From the press release: A revised and expanded new ebook about ebooks, published today, is packed with information about how to understand, and enjoy, the digital reading revolution. The book, soon to be released as a 368-page paperback, is now available in ebook editions which contain all the same information as the paperback — yet sells for less than four dollars. Published by Zorba Press (in Ithaca, New York), 50 Benefits of Ebooks is a lively introduction to the brave new worlds of ebooks and electronic publishing. This revised edition (now 66,000 words) is 25% larger than the September 2009 edition, and...

Sumo wrestlers need iPads, too! Sumo wrestlers in Japan have a problem — but I am not going to be the man to tell them. When they try to send emails from a mobile phone or a personal computer, then can't do it very well thanks to their fat fingers, which push more than one key at a time. The Japan Sumo Association (JSA) has purchased 51 iPads to distribute to their wrestlers, thinking that the larger keyboard on the iPads will solve the problem. I am speculating that a new screen technology might be required: the sumi-eInk screen. More information about this story is...

 Archimedes, the Greek DaVinci who enriched Greek culture with dozens of discoveries and inventions, is best known for sitting in his bathtub and shouting "Eureka!" when he instantly grasped how to determine if a king's crown was fake or made of solid gold. I had my "Eureka!" moment, just days ago, when I finished reading this new book edited by Sue Polanka. For two years I had been wondering how I could learn more about this topic, without reading hundreds of articles or getting an MLS. No Shelf Required is the best available...

A colorful advertisement at the top of the New York Times (online) today asks us to click to read "The First Shoppable Children's Storybook." I hope it is also the last. In an ebook, the marriage of videos and commerce creates a monstrous mutation, not a genuine reading experience that should bring delight and wisdom. Books are one of the last refuges in our world from the constant cry by advertisers to spend money and fill our lives with unnecessary things. I am not against videos in ebooks (although they should not be called "books"); I am not against commerce, done with balance...

EPUB Straight to the PointCreating ebooks for the Apple iPad and other ereadersby Elizabeth CastroPeachpit Press, ISBN: 978-0-321-734686Available Formats:Paperback, 192 pagesPDF (watermarked with buyer's name)EPUB (unencrypted, direct from Castro's web site)Reviewed by Michael Pastore, Epublishers WeeklyWe can dance on the moon, probe the depths of space, transplant organs, make maps of the murky mysteries of the deep seas and the 25,000 human genes, communicate instantaneously around the entire Earth, and — in minutes or less — access an unimaginable quantity of the world's accumulated knowledge.Nevertheless, right now, it is impossible to find, borrow or...

Michael Pastore of Epublishers Weekly, has redone the IDPF data and posted the above chart. This chart is done on an annual basis, as opposed to the IDPF chart which they do on a quarterly basis. It makes the data easier to see. Remember, the usual caveats to IDPF data apply to this chart as well....

Got an email from Michael Pastore, author of 50 Benefits of Ebooks, and he says: I needed some reference information about images and ebooks -- and I couldn't find it on the Net. So I thought that I would gather this information in one place. I'm now seeking help to get this ready: can TeleRead announce this project? I call it the == Preparing Images For Ebooks Project (PIFEP) == The tables he needs help with are here. He needs image file formats and info for stuff such as DPI and aspect ratio for a whole slew of equipment. Michael promises to make...

From Michael Pastore, EPublishers Weekly: Here is a very informative video of a presentation about e-book reading devices, featuring Liza Daly and Keith Fahlgren. It's designed as a talk targeted for e-book publishers, but clear enough for everyone to understand. I've seen a number of “e-book videos: lately, and all of them keep the camera focused on the speaker, and not the screen---which means that the video viewers cannot see what the audience sees: the important stuff on the lecturer's screen. To solve this problem, a slideshow of this presentation is included...

Editor’s Note:  The following is the beginning of a long essay by Michael. The full essay can be found at Epublishers Weekly. Paper books: I love them, and I hope that they are never replaced completely by their electronic progeny. Nevertheless, every day, ebooks are growing in use, in sales, and in significance.  To promote the growth of this young industry — and to nourish the aspects of the digital reading revolution that can make us a nation of readers again — publishers and authors need to educate the reading public about the brave new worlds of ebooks...