Even Japan isn't a good testbed for the format-hobbled Librie if one goes by a much-appreciated note from Yutaka Ohno.

Giving Sony the benefit of the doubt, thinking that Japanese customers' priorities might be different from those of Americans, I wrote: "I just can't get over how out of touch Sony is with U.S. consumers." But Yutaka Ohno educated me. Turns out that hatred of stupid proprietary formats--presumably including the accompanying DRM--is alive and well in Japan.

A nice, wry response

"Sorry for not being smart," Yutaka wrote me wryly, "but Japanese e-books lovers/ advocates like myself are mad about Librie's proprietary format too.

"I don't think you are xenophobic, but I'd rather see a more 'global' or 'international' approach, like American and Japanese e-book advocacy groups issuing joint statements and so forth, than demanding Sony to hand over matters to its U.S. division."

OK, Yutaka. You got it! Let's hear more about the statements that Japanese e-book advocates are making against the Librie's proprietary format and perhaps the DRM. Got a collection of protests that we could quote? Let's indeed make this outcry international and help consumers and Sony alike. I'd love to hear from you and others about what is happening to the Librie in Japan. Is it as big a flop there--in its crippled form--as it is likely to be if introduced here in the States? And have Japanese consumers worked out any hacks to take advantage of the Linux-based OS? Let's get some communication going. Any chance of publicity in the Japanese press?

Needed: A 'Free the Librie' list

I'm at dr@teleread.org and would love to hear further from you and others in Japan and work with you and perhaps start an international e-mail list called "Free the Librie"--ideally with versions in both Japanese and English. Perhaps the list and an accompanying Web site could eventually evolve into an independent users group if the Librie somehow survives.

Related: Jon Noring reminds me that Sony's name came up in Cory Doctorow's talk at Microsoft on the inanities of DRM, and that Cory noted that Sony treated these matters far more sensibly before it went so Hollywood and became so much of a content company. A liberated Librie would be a good way to help show that consumers still matter to Sony. Speaking of international efforts, by the way, Jon and I would love to see international participation in the OpenReader effort to make certain that the format serves everyone's neeeds.

And speaking of DRM: See Wendy Seltzer's comments on the Doctorow talk and Jon's The Perils of DRM Overkill for Large Publishers. Meanwhile Sony might note the headline on the Seltzer item: "DRM Is Bad for Monopolists, Too."

Clarification: Nope, the picture is not of Yutaka himself, just a publicity shot for the Clie.
posted by David Rothman at 12:31 PM | permanent link

"A forthcoming bill in the U.S. Senate would, if passed, dramatically reshape copyright law by prohibiting file-trading networks and some consumer electronics devices on the grounds that they could be used for unlawful purposes." - CNET.

The TeleRead take: The bill, pushed by Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, could even help undermine the legality of VCRs. Ka-ching, ka-ching! How much more in campaign contributions will this one net Hatch and colleagues? More via Slashdot
posted by David Rothman at 5:41 AM | permanent link

Here are some replies from OpenReader's Jon Noring to publisher Dick Claassen's comments:

On hardware-based e-book-reading systems

"This shows the problem with buying ebook readers that use their own proprietary formats--one never knows the future of these hardware readers nor of the associated formats. Now many customers are stuck with ebooks they can't easily read or convert, if at all.

"I believe what customers most prefer is an ebook format which is fully independent of any particular hardware or OS, yet is fully adaptable, in an end-user friendly way, to anything they would use to read or access the book."

The format war

"Microsoft will very likely never port their Microsoft Reader to anything other than Windows OS (both desktop and PDA)--not to Linux, and not to Mac. And they will very likely never publish the LIT format and allow third-parties to build LIT readers, especially for non-Microsoft platforms.

"Since Adobe is not tied down to any particular hardware or software OS, it is quite cross-platform (but not very end-user friendly as I've discussed in several places).

"Of course, XHTML is also fully cross-platform and if done right, is very end-user friendly and accessible--it is also fully open standards. XHTML points in the right direction of what an open standard ebook format should be based upon."

The Sony Librie e-book reading device being marketed in Japan

"From the information I've seen, the Sony reader (if it ever reaches the U.S. market) uses a proprietary format based on some XML markup vocabulary. I'm still trying to figure it out, but it appears to not be an open, published standard, and that is a Bad Sign (tm).

"So, if this is the case, it's just another proprietary format to add to the plethora of other proprietary formats, and another proprietary hardware reading system to add to the plethora of other proprietary hardware reading systems. We don't want that.

"(Is there any reason for a dedicated ebook device to use a proprietary standard--the answer is 'no'! Witness the Cybook, which will read OEBPS Publications.)

"And will Sony let other hardware manufacturers build readers for the Sony ebook format? That is unclear, but I am pessimistic."

Bottom line

"Dick, I fully understand where you are coming from! The ebook industry needs to settle upon a general open standard format for digital book and publication distribution (and not just a lame "exchange" format as OEBPS has been relegated to.) The format should meet several requirements, which I've attempted to outline in last year's UCF paper (ignore the focus on OEBPS for the moment, and look at the general requirements):

http://12.108.175.91/ebookweb/OEBPSstandard

"But I think the biggest mistake is to focus on hardware since hardware and associated OS is ephemeral, while we want the ebook standard to have permanence and be truly independent of any particular platform. (For nearly all other multimedia types, the dominant formats are truly cross-platform, not tied to any one platform or OS. Why should ebooks and other digital publications be the exception?)"

The case for OpenReader

"That's why several of us have joined together to work on the OpenReader System.

"Here's the summary of OpenReader from the homepage:

"'OpenReader is a cooperative project to create next-generation software for reading digital publications. The software and accompanying format are for books, periodicals, newspapers, business documents, and other similar types of publications--most any type of content best presented in a page-based manner. The OpenReader System will be open source, built upon XML and related open standards.'

"Of course, read the various pages which go into further details on the OpenReader System.

"The important thing to note is that the OpenReader System comprises two fundamental components:

"1) The cross-platform, open source codebase for easy adapting and compiling into a reading application for all kinds of platforms (both dedicated ebook readers and multipurpose devices.)

"Of course, we welcome others to write their own OpenReader codebases so long as they conform to the OpenReader System specifications.

"2) The OpenReader Portable Publication Format ('ORP') for distributing digital publications, such as books, newspapers, periodicals, etc. Item (1) is fairly self-explanatory; refer to the hardware/OS support section in the Preliminary Implementation Roadmap at:

http://www.openreader.org/features-table.html#ti2

"(Planned hardware/OS support is subject to constant revision.)

"Item (2) is best explained at http://www.openreader.org/technical.html:

"The OpenReader format, now in the initial stages of development, will be a single, portable, compressed archive file which will internally contain ('encapsulate') a recognized XML/CSS-based framework representing one or more publications. Initially, the two publication frameworks to be supported are:

"1) Simple sets of interlinked, CSS-styled XML documents, plus any images and other supported multimedia content. This includes valid XHTML-based 'web sites.'

"2) OEBPS 1.2, an ebook industry framework specification published by the Open eBook Forum.

"As an interesting aside, we believe the ORP format will be suitable for creating portable, fully-standards-compliant web sites. After all, a 'web site' is a type of 'digital publication.' It will be trivial for browser developers to add support for the ORP format when it encapsulates a Type 1 file set: an XHTML file set or an XML fileset using CSS.)

"There's a lot more I can discuss, but it's better for everyone to look over the OpenReader web site (it's fairly brief), and then post here their thoughts, concerns, and criticisms.

"Of course, anyone wishing to join the OpenReader effort, either as an active supporter (individual or representing an organization) or as a 'Friend of OpenReader,' let me know in private email."
posted by David Rothman at 4:28 AM | permanent link

Dick Claassen of Awe-Struck E-Books posted the following to the eBook Community List. In the next post I'll quote responses from Jon Noring, list moderator as well the main cofounder of the OpenReader Consortium. Jon and I invite publishers to join us in our efforts. - David Rothman.

I have been following with interest the discussions on DRM, pricing an ebook, how to load ebooks on your PDA, etc. I may have missed a previous discussion on the topic I'm about to introduce, but I'm wondering if any of us have thought about the psychology of all this? We've (Awe-Struck's) been publishing and selling ebooks for going on seven years. When we began our company the only format we offered to our customers was PDF. Back then, (we ran Awe-Struck with Macs and still do), I was stupefied with the non intuitive nature of Winzip (still am) and didn't know how to make a self-extracting file. So you can imagine that we got lots of customer "help-me!" emails because they didn't know how to unzip their ebook(s). Many customers didn't even know how to install the Acrobat Reader software, let alone use it. Eventually we began offering HTML files and I figured out how to make self-extracting files with Winzip. This was a good move for us. HTML is viewable in any web browser, something a customer must have had in the first place if they ordered the book from us. So the customer already owned the reader software and knew how to operate it. No muss, no fuss, and the customer complaints dropped down to nearly zero. Happy boy, me. We dropped the PDF format soon after.

We now offer our ebooks in 9 different formats. HTML, Palm PDB, Palm Digital, Palm Mobipocket, Rocket/REB1100, Microsoft Reader, Hiebook, eBookman, and, yes, once again, PDF. So imagine a customer's irritation at having to determine which publishers/distributors sell which formats. And imagine the publishers' frustration for having to make all these formats available at each new title release. We no longer make the Hiebook and eBookman formats available through our shopping cart, but we do have these two formats on hand and will sell them if a customer asks. Why would a customer ask? Because when big chain stores like Staples, and big online stores like Amazon sold eBookman reader devices one can imagine that there are hundreds of thousands of customers whose title choices are severely limited once Franklin no longer supported their own reader.

How can we expect customers to stay on board with us if there are no standard readers and no standard formats? Further, the Palm and Pocket PC screens are very small for readers whose eyesight is starting to fail. We need a standard format and we need a standard reader. Must we wait years while Bill Gates and Adobe duke it out?

And now a new reader device appears on the horizon. The new Sony reader with Digital Ink seems to be the answer to all our prayers. Light in weight, page size about like a paperback, very legible type, extremely long battery life. Like a real book. We need this thing! Price? From what I've seen online, around 350 bucks. We can go to Walmart and buy a darned good TV for 350 bucks! People won't spend that much money for just a reader. We publishers and distributors have survived this long because on our Palm Pilots we can keep track of appointments, keep an address book, jot down memos, listen to digital music, watch digital videos, read our email, and... and... oh, yeah, we can also read ebooks! There is no denying the power of the Palm. I use Wordsmith on my Palm to edit all our titles. The power is there. But the screen is small. For many users--especially those new to the PDA--getting an ebook onto the Palm is still too much of a mystery. And batteries have to be recharged regularly, something, psychology speaking, that's a real pain to many people since they're still tied, in a way, to the plug in the wall. For the ebook business to grow, (pardon me for speaking of this as a "business", but we've been working at this a long time, now), the people who have the power must make available a device that's the size of a book, has legible type like a book, takes almost no power so standard batteries can be used, and is cheap. Let me say that again--cheap! People not even aware of what an ebook is are not going to fork out 350 bucks for a reader that just reads a book. It's so darned frustrating. My nephew has an Advanced Gameboy. Fifty bucks. It's screen is larger than a Palm screen, but the device is still small. The lid flips up and the screen is in the lid. How much of a technological stretch would it be to make an ebook reader that looks a lot like a Gameboy? Yes, it doesn't look like a book. But it has a familiar look--a look people might be willing to pay 50 bucks for. And imagine what a breeze it would be to "dumb down" a Gameboy, a device that displays sophisticated graphics, so it could show static type and flip pages, for cryin' out loud!

So here are my conclusions. We need a universally accepted reading device. The device must be inexpensive, yet easy to read from. We need a standard format so we don't have to make so darned many formats with each new title release. Many formats are not only time intensive for us, the publisher, they're confusing to the customer. Occasionally a cover artist will try to bypass my cover specs and send me a cover that has the proportions of a CD jewel case label. No! The cover has to have the proportion of a book in print. Anything else is psychologically devastating to the customer who wants to buy a book. Maybe someday, when ebooks are as common as grass, we will be able to get creative ith cover proportions and reader device design. But until that day we need to present the ebook package in the form of a plain old paperback book. People aren't impressed by the fact that you can put hundreds of books on a memory card or memory stick. They want a book. Period. What's taking the powers-that-be so long?
posted by David Rothman at 3:35 AM | permanent link

"I did see the Sony ebook reader the other day," write a friend in Japan. "It's really sweet--too bad they made the DRM part of it so draconian that it's virtually unusable. Next to it was a Toshiba ebook reader. It was a lot heavier and the screen wasn't as nice." But it looks as if DRM will kill off the chances of her actully buying the Sony Librie. Let's hope Sony does do a U.S. model--and learns from its mistakes with the Japanese version.
posted by David Rothman at 3:01 AM | permanent link

So what else is new? - News.com.
posted by David Rothman at 3:32 PM | permanent link

The walking paper blog from Aaron Schmidt, a 25-year-old reference librarian in Western Springs, IL, nicely shows how libraries can use Instant Messaging to reel in young people.

Now imagine a mix of IM and online resources such as e-books, where library users can go for instant gratification.

Meanwhile I'll pass on a suggestion for Aaron and others. The patron in Aaron's example asked him how long it would take to read The Illiad. Aaron said, "I can put it on hold for you if you like." In the future, though, he might also flash a Web address on the screen and invite the patron to click on it for the full text--yes, an e-book version.

The turnstile syndrome

Part of the problem, of course, is that most online resources are not part of individual libraries' collections, and that librarians have their hearts set on luring people to physical libraries. What happens, though, when users would like the information immediately? Whether it's in changing the reporting procedures for budget planning purposes or in other ways, librarians should worry more about serving patrons and less about turnstile counts. More and more, they are not the same thing.

Perhaps the patron wanted a paper book. But he or she would have been better off if given an electronic option as well. Actually in Aaron's place, I might even have gone beyond "Click here." If there were sufficient interest from the patron, I'd have said, "You can find thousands of electronic book at a bunch of sites in various formats. Here's a particularly good one if you own a PDA."

Hey, great job--just the same!

That's just me. I'm nitpicking. As it is, Aaron Schmidt happens to be doing a great job. Rather laudably he did do a "click here" act to send the patron to an online article on Atlantis. Neat! Plus, Aaron also directed the patron to the paper version of the Odyssey--already read, it turns out. Also excellent on Aaron's part!

What's more, I'm not against physical libraries--especially much-needed neighborhood branches. But, again, libraries would also do well to offer e-books among the options for patrons, especially the IM crowd. Remember, public domain books can be kept forever--meaning that the patron will be even more grateful since they won't have to worry about fines and other joys.

Tip for librarians: So far I've found Blackmask to be the site with public domain books in the most convenient formats. Manybooks.net and GutenTalk are also good sources of public domain e-books in different formats.

The blog angle: Aaron's reproduction of the unidentified patron's questions suggests that younger people could do better in the spelling department, at least if the quoted questions are representative. This is one area where blogging could help. Even for formal papers from students, teachers should experiment with student blogging--while at the same time holding students up to traditional standards in that case. (A little hypocrisy here. I myself am a rotten proofreader. One of my specialties, alas, is in leaving out the "l" in "public domain." Just a moment ago, I caught myself at it again and did a very quick fix.)

Related: Library Journal article mentioning Aaron and other young male librarians--badly needed, given the failure of so many librarians and teachers to be responsive to the tastes of young male readers. (Found via The Shifted Librarian.)

Update, 2:56 EDT: "What bull!" is a female librarian's comment on the need for more male librarians. But, hey, more men probably would mean more money, given the present patterns of sexism in the salary scales of various professions. (I think she was kidding anyway.)
posted by David Rothman at 7:37 AM | permanent link

"...it sure is comfortable to lie back on my couch while surfing those websites: the tablet is lighter, easier to hold, and easier to read, and the clamshell doesn't get in my way." - Simson Garfinkel, extolling the virtues of a borrowed Compaq tc1100 Tablet PC in his column in MIT Technology Review.

The TeleRead take: When it comes to reading--not necessarily everything--Simson Garfinkel obviously prefers tablets over laptops. I agree. For years, TeleRead has argued that the tablet form factor is often the best for reading s-books. Not always. When I'll be waiting somewhere, my 320x480-resolution Sony NX60 PDA is handy to carry in my pants pocket; mobility wins out over the limits of the screen. In general, however, tablets are fine. The ergonomics make sense.

The clamshell factor and other hassles...

Not necessarily so with laptops--and not just because of the clamshell factor.  The angle question isn't the only one. If nothing else, the optimal distance between your eyes and a laptop screen may clash with the best distance between your back and the keyboard. Your back could kill you if you're at this hour after hour. That's one reason why I'd much rather the schools get students reading off tablets than laptops. Children can develop back pains from carrying around too many books, but why should they risk problems from a higher-tech source?

...vs. the belly rest

Many people might disagree. An editor I know, for example, likes to stretch out and read with the laptop resting on her stomach, and for her, it's comfortable. But can you imagine the same thing happening in a classroom? I love the idea of K-12 laptop programs like the one in Maine, but I hope that the schools will look ahead and consider the benefits of the tablet form factor. Keyboards could be carried in backpacks along with the tablets themselves. The Tablet PC approach is also worthy of consideration. And if vendors like Apple can come up with superior solutions to any discussed here, then so much the better. While I agree with the Garfinkel column that there's no need to trash your laptop, it would help to look ahead--especially when Tablet PC prices come down in a serious way.

Bottom line: The more comfortable students are when they take in a book, the more hours they'll devote to uninterrupted reading. As much as I love interactivity, must we constantly be typing? Books offer a good opportunity for focused and sustained reflection in the context of someone else's thoughts. And the tablet form factor can go a long way toward encouraging this.
posted by David Rothman at 12:29 PM | permanent link

Four students died at Kent State, Miss and Mrs. became Ms., gay and gray liberation movements gained strength, and Jimmy Carter told us all to put on sweaters to save energy.

The White House's sweater fixation didn't last long in the grand scheme of things. The effects of the rest have, and on Thursday at 7 p.m. CDT, an Audio Avenue program will discuss a book that chronicles the transformation: The Seventies: The Great Shift in American Culture, Society, and Politics. Author is Bruce J. Schulman.

See earlier post for details on how to participate in the chatcast. Although aimed at the blind, the chatcast is open to all. The moderator is Tom Peters, and the sponsor is the Mid-Illinois Talking Books Center.

Detail: I've updated the link information. Just go by the URL in the earlier post.
posted by David Rothman at 8:14 AM | permanent link

"You may still buy books. But with Project Gutenberg putting thousands of books online, and with the continuing evolution of eBooks, will you care as much about owning them? Certainly, I notice fewer bookshelf-lined walls in homes and offices." - Columnist Paul Andrews in the Seattle Times.

The TeleRead take: I think Andrews is wrong here. I'd love it if Project Gutenberg and similar activities were the main reason why fewer home had libraries, but the real explanation is that people don't care about books of any kind as much as they used to. The DRM policies of the commercial side of e-bookdom, along with the format wars, have not helped. But mainly people don't give a squat about books in any flavor, p- or e-, and would rather play video games or watch TV or movies. What was once a used bookstore near me is now a vacuum cleaner store. In general, book sales are not what they should be, and the increasing prices haven't helped.

Making books count again

Needless to say, a focused effort in the schools and libraries such as TeleRead could help immensely by accustoming the young to books for both enlightenment and recreation. Depends on the 'tude of the teachers. Often they're doing a great job of getting students--especially boys--to hate books. The choice of the right titles isn't there. Not enough Jules Verne to agument, say, Pride and Prejudice.

Much needs to be done among K-12 folks. When I was calling Power People about Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act recently, a lobbyist with a major education group asked me, "Who wants to read old books?" That's how big a constituency public domain books enjoy; in fact, she didn't even know about the Bono Act. Oh, well. I auppose that Andrews was confusing The Big Picture with little trends among his acquaintances within the journalistic and techie elites.

Detail: The Andrews column was mainly on ownership of digital items. Thanks to the DRM Mafia and the Tower of eBabel, you can't truly own an e-book for keeps. To this day I have yet to buy my first DRM-protected e-book unless you include a dictionary that I use with Mobipocket. I have obtained DRMed books via promos, and a friend gave me a gift certificate. First-hand, I've witnessed with a hassle DRM can be.

Update, July 1, 2004: Amazon, of course, is also a reason why the vacuum cleaner store replaced the used bookshop near me. But consider this. Accurately or not--I don't know--a recent CNBC report said people are paying $2.8 billion annually for books ordered off the Net. If the e-book biz is so healthy with DRM and the Tower of eBabel, why are sales of digitized books at a mere $20-$30 million globally--just a speck of the several billion? It can't all have to do with the quality or lack of quality of the display devices.
posted by David Rothman at 9:37 AM | permanent link

That's what some are saying in a Slashdot discussion based on an article in Wireless News Factor. Since PDAs are the main platform for e-books, this is of no small interest. The good news is that some PDAs will soon come with hard drive in them, so that you can store the equivalent of a CD of e-books. Also screens most likely will grow larger and VGA res should be more and more common.

Related: Do Handhelds have a future? in eWeek.

Handheld review: Kurns and Patrick's favorable video review of the Sony VGN-U70/P in .wmv format. Too bad Sony's retreating from the U.S. PDA market. (Review found via Mike Cane.)
posted by David Rothman at 9:11 AM | permanent link

Wealthy squeeze out low-income students is the headline in the Chicago Sun Times today.

At the "146 most selective schools" in the U.S., says the paper, just nine percent of students "come from families in the bottom half by socioeconomic status, while 74 percent come from the upper fourth." That's a paraphrase of a study from the Century Foundation. A well-stocked national digital library system in the TeleRead vein could help. Too often universities are piggy about their digital holdings, refusing to share them with the world at large, or at least many of them.

Women's magazines in places of history tomes

Meanwhile, poor schools must fare as best they can. I've heard of at least one college library where the popular reading tastes of a certain campus bureaucrat prevailed over the needs of the students. In other words, an outrageous sum went each year for junky novels and women's magazines, as opposed to academic works. And so the students got a double whammy. They had to put up with both substandard people and lack of the right books.

A good digital library system for all will never turn Podunk Community College into Harvard. But lack of books will help keep the Podunks at the high school level. Rather than merely trying to increase economic diversity at elite institutions, we should also worry about upgrading the rest.

Related: Elite Universities Look to Boost Economic Diversity, from National Public Radio. Also see the Digital Promise site calling for a "Digital Opportunity Investment Trust," an idea advocated by former FCC Chairman Newton Minow and others with connections with the Foundation. It isn't as book-oriented as TeleRead would be (actually TeleRead would blend in multimedia with books--so often the most efficient way of absorbing large amounts of information in a hurry!). What's more, the trust proposal appeared years after the orignal TeleRead one. Still, it's progress.
posted by David Rothman at 10:27 AM | permanent link