Page by Page

We’ve all been there, attempting to scan either a lost report back into the digital world, or all those old photos up onto the computer for the first time. We all understand the time consuming and tedious time that comes with the average scanning job. Well, Tokyo University is hoping to change all that.

The university has recently presented its prototype scanner that scans pages as they turn. The camera adjusts for movement and light and produces pretty clear copies of the original. Imagine the possibilities? Every book could make it to the kindle. Well, we’ll see how I feel about a full “paper-less” revolution when we get there.

Academy trades books for digital versions

Cushing Academy in Massachutsetts has traded in its 20,000 volume library of traditional books for a  web-based multimedia library including 18 Amazon Kindles and Sony readers.  Is this the future of reading?

The Boston Globe quote headmaster James Tracy : “When I look at books, I see an outdated technology, like scrolls before books.”

The school likes to think they are trading in 20,000 books for millions but I don’t know. For me there is still something about holding a book in your hand. Maybe I’m just old-fashioned. It is very true that kids are more familiar with technology at younger ages than even my age is, but I just wish books were as timeless as I hope they are.

Another quote from the story was very telling:

Tia Alliy, a 16-year-old junior, said she visits the library nearly every day, but only once looked for a book in the stacks. She’s not alone. School officials said when they checked library records one day last spring only 48 books had been checked out, and 30 of those were children’s books.

Really?

The school is one of the first to go this route, but I suspect they won’t be the last.  . .

A Reading Voice

Scanners are incredible, color photos, signatures, articles, all can be duplicated.  Yet, can a scanner go beyond the visual? Beyond saving a file to creating one?  The answer is yes.

The Book Reader V100 is up and running and ready to create MP3 files out of the written word.  It’s a simple and silent way to create your own books on tape.  I can’t say anything about how nice the digital voice will be to the ears, but it’s a start.  Think of the possibilities?  Get me a scanner that can copy my comics into video files and then you’ll really have something .

Sofa Boy–A Cautionary Tale

Video game veteran  Scott Langteau, best known for his work with the Medal of Honor game series, has a new children’s book featuring “Sofa Boy,” an overzealous young gamer who takes his obsession to new levels.

The following description sums up the tale:

Sofa Boy invites readers into the living room of an average family. But this family’s son has a bigger than average obsession with videogames. Sitting from daybreak to dark on the family sofa, the boy will not stop his gaming and TV gazing to play outside, have dinner, take a bath, or go to bed. He is - quite literally - consumed with sitting on the couch. Penned with a clever rhyme scheme and accompanied by captivating illustrations, Sofa Boy encourages moderation in gaming habits, by showing the fantastical fate of one boy (and one cat!) who wouldn’t put the controller down.

This would make a great night-time read for the little gamer in your life.

Available from Amazon and other retailers. Sofa Boy ($14.95) ISBN: 978-0-615-25125-7

Kindle 2

Amazon has announced the newest member of the Kindle family.

The Kindle 2 is sleeker and lighter but has a stronger battery. The Amazon homepage touts it as being thinner than a magazine and lighter than a paperback. It also can operate for two weeks on a single charge.

The Kindle 2 can also store 1,500 titles and with its text-to-speech feature it can even read it to you.

You can download more than 230,000 different titles to the Kindle 2, including more than 100 books on the NYT best seller list. Amazon says their goal is to have every book ever written available for download.

The new device will be available Feb. 24, 2009 and they are now accepting preorders. Price is $359.

If you already own a Kindle, you can get first priority if you place your order by midnight PST tonight (Feb. 10).

I’ve been a little skeptical in the past, but this new version is very enticing. See Amazon’s site for complete details.  I never thought I would really be able to make the switch, but I can begin to see the appeal.

Book Glutton takes reading online

If you aren’t ready for Amazon’s Kindle, but you want to see what online book reading is all about try out Book Glutton. (Found via Geek Sugar)

Now, in some ways there is no comparison as Kindle is its own dedicated device, but the Book Glutton site is an interesting option for those who don’t want to carry books or additional equipment with them.

You can read public-domain works (like all the classics and thousands of other things) via their reader. In addition, you can comment and read what others are saying page by page. If you have your own group, you can have a “virtual book club.”  If you prefer, you can also read in private.

The site is currently in beta with additional features and more contemporary works in the plans.  For now, it is a nice way to find public-domain works in a readable format. It also could work well for your kids who are online anyway so they could at least be reading a good book! Many English teacher favorites are on the site.  You might recommend it to your child’s English teacher as an alternative to the “reader-response” notebooks we are all so found of assigning. Integrating technology in the classroom is a great way to get kids engaged.

Get a Clue

“Napoleon. George Washington. William Shakespeare. What if all the greatest figures in history were part of one huge secret family? What if you discovered that you were one of that elite clan?”

A new obsession is about to hit the tween reading world–The 39 Clues.  It’s part-novel series, part-scavenger hunt, part-card game and all fun!

According to Amazon’s description:

The 39 Clues is Scholastic’s groundbreaking new series, spanning 10 adrenaline-charged books, 350 trading cards, and an online game where readers play a part in the story and compete for over $100,000 in prizes.

The 39 Clues books set the story, and the cards, website and game allow kids to participate in it. Kids visit the website - the39clues.com - and discover they are lost members of the Cahill family. They set up online accounts where they can compete against other kids and against Cahill characters to find all 39 clues. Through the website, kids can track their points and clues, manage their card collections, dig through the Cahill archives for secrets, and “travel” the world to collect Cahill artifacts, interview characters, and hunt down clues. Collecting cards helps: Each card is a piece of evidence containing information on a Cahill, a clue, or a family secret.

The series is written by four different authors. The first book The Map of Bones is written by Rick Riordan, who is the author of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series.  The next book One False Note will come out in December and is written by Gordon Korman.

This series really goes the extra mile to incorporate reading fun with an on-line experience. Clues are hidden throughout the Internet and the prizes are real. 

This looks like great fun for the whole family. I’m going to have to read these even though my little ones are quite old enough yet to appreciate them.  Have you started yet? Tell me what you think.

Weekly Links–Great Books edition

There are so many wonderful book-related sites I can only scrape the surface, but here goes.

Like GoodReads, Shelfari is a social network for book lovers. Keep track of what everyone is reading. My favorite feature of Shelfari, however is a very nifty widget for sharing your “bookshelf” with the world.

Paperspine is the Netflix of books.  For a monthly fee $9.99 and up, you can rent books, keeping them for as long as you want before returning them and receiving the next book on your list.  If you don’t live near a good library or don’t like late fees, this could be a really nice option.  You get to enjoy the book, but you don’t have to front the full cost.  Booksfree is a similar service.

If you don’t want to go the monthly fee route, you can get books free, for the cost of postage, at PaperBackSwap, an on-line lending library of sorts.  Learn more about how you can join the community and get credits for lending out your books. 

Open Books Radio is a weekly conversation with authors. You can download interviews from the website to learn more about your favorite authors or ones you’ve never heard of.

Librivox  volunteers record chapters of books in the public domain and release the audio files back onto the net. Their goal is to make all public domain books available as free audio books.  Download mp3 or podcasts of classics and listen in your car, at home or while you workout.  Also great for students who need reading support to follow along in their book while they listen to the story.

I could go on and on, but that is probably enough for now. Enjoy!

Book Week–Kindle

I can’t let my “book week” pass without commenting on Amazon’s Kindle . I’m sure in the future we may all get our books this way, but for now, I think, I still prefer good ol’ ink and paper.
The Kindle is a hand-held device that allows you to download more than 140,000+ titles directly via its 3G network. No hotspot needed. Subscribe to your favorite newspapers, read your favorite blogs and catch up on the latest bestseller all from its 6-inch “electronic-paper” display.
I have to say I am intrigued to see how the display looks. It isn’t backlit like other electronic screens, which supposedly cuts down on the glare. The closest I have gotten to one was Jeff Bezos on The Martha Stewart Show a few months ago.
However, they do have a community called “See a Kindle in Your City” to help you connect with others who have one and might let you take a look. I couldn’t find any takers in my neck of the woods.
At $359 a pop, I’m certainly not going to run out and buy one without seeing it in person. Honestly, I love books, but I don’t buy that many. That hasn’t always been the case, but now I am in the library with my kids so much I don’t really see the need to. It would take me a long time to recoup my costs at $9.99 a book, but finance website Wesabe has done an interesting analysis to see how long it would take to make your money back.
The Kindle has six different font sizes so those with vision difficulties might benefit, however that might mean your fingers tire of scrolling. I’m curious if the text looks as it does in the printed book or if it is standard Times New Roman or something.

In other pros, there is the environmentally-friendly aspect in that it isn’t using paper to print all the books, newspapers, etc. you might read. Also, if you are a traveller or you have a commute by train or bus, this may be a great way to take your reading materials without having the extra weight.
Do you have a Kindle? What do you think of it? Why did you choose to buy it?

Book Week–Read any good books lately?

Want to keep up with the best books, see what your friends are reading, and track your book history? You can with Goodreads.

When I was in middle school, my best friend and I were on a reading team together at our local library. From then on, we would often share great books we found. As we grew, years and distance kept us from sharing until recently when she introduced me to Goodreads.  Now I get updates as she adds new reviews to her “now reading” list or updates to her “must-read” shelf.

What’s more you can explore what the community finds interesting, join a discussion group, start a book club, chat with authors and more.  Now you can search by the most popular, most read and even unpopular books. You can also explore listopia with lists like “The Thickest Books Ever,” “The Worst Books of All Time, and “The Best Books of 2008″.

Want to learn more? There is a video tour posted on the goodreads blog.