During Apple’s Q1 earnings call, the company said there are 1.5 million iPads in use in educational institutions. Apple is expected to sell at least 48 million iPads this year.

Last month, Apple unveiled iBooks 2, iBooks Author, and the iTunes U App. Apple sold 350,000 textbooks in just 3 days.

OnlineTeachingDegree.com released the following infographic looking at iPads vs. textbooks:

Created by: Online Teaching Degree

Since then, we conducted a Q&A with Lansdale about the e-reading trend, and what it means to authors.

Lansdale says he’s never done anything directly to e-book in the past, though much of his back list has moved to e-book.

He says he’s not sure of the advantages of going e-book only, but plans to try it and see.

“I think that some people are reading only e-books, and if you want to be discovered by new readers, and stay in the game, e-books have to be a serious consideration,” Lansdale tells WebProNews. “I prefer hard copies, and hope everything of mine will eventually be contained that way, but I do want to experiment and see if there’s a different market out there.”

“I’ve stayed in the game by not only trying to write as well as possible, but trying to keep up with the changes in the industry,” he continues. “The pulps aren’t coming back, and soon paperbacks will be gone, and they won’t, in any way that matters, come back either.”

“At least not the lower level paperbacks,” he adds. “I think the larger style paperback, like VINTAGE books uses will be around for awhile.”

Given his lack of experience in going e-book only, he says he can’t speak to how well they help authors reach new audiences. “But it looks to me that they can be an aid, and for some writers, a career,” he says. “Some writers seem to speak to that medium more than others. I’m not sure why that is. It’s like some writers did well in hardback, not paper, or in limited editions, and some it was just the opposite. It’s like certain actors who can command great attention on TV, but get lost in film.”

When asked if he reads e-books, Lansdale tells us he’s read three (he uses a Nook rather than a Kindle).

“I don’t prefer it, but I’m sure I’ll read others in time,” he says of e-books. “My wife has read a few e-books. It seems nice for trips. I think the advantage to these kind of devices is to the casual reader who doesn’t keep books, or who doesn’t have room to store books.”

“I think books are going to be around,” he says. “Too many people like them, and there will be new readers who like them as well. But its slice of the market will become smaller. In some ways, I think more people are reading because of e-books, and that’s a good thing. These are people who don’t go to bookstores, but love to look through listings on their computer and load up without having to leave their house.”

People like to share good books with their friends. When asked about this thoughts on this in relation to the e-book format, he says, “The problem with sharing an e-book is that it may be too easy to copy. Where someone could loan a book around, this way they can really loan a book, cutting into a writer’s sales. This will change writing, how it’s done, and what writers get paid. Which for many isn’t that much to begin with. It has its negatives.”

In a recent Facebook update, Lansdale said, “I think there will always be real books, but they are going to be a smaller, and probably more collector type of market. Some publishers are even considering moving that way more and more, so this could be good for small presses, as far as real books go.”

When asked more about this, Lansdale tells WebProNews, “I just think the market will shrink, but it will become more valuable to small presses who will now have a market for those who want this kind of book, especially if the main houses limit their number of paper books.”

“I also think it’s obvious that small presses don’t have to make the large amounts of money big publishers do to survive,” he continues. “I think in fact this situation will cause their markets to grow. What led to the e-book isn’t just technology, its greed. Book companies didn’t just want to make a profit anymore, they wanted to make vast fortunes. They wanted fewer writers and more best sellers. They turned books from common entertainment to luxury entertainment.”

“The same has been done with movies and comics,” he says. “Too high a price for people to afford. This opened the door for cheaper books. I don’t think there has ever been enough readers to sustain the kinds of sales these companies needed, but what’s odd, is, as I said earlier, I think readership is growing because of accessibility. It’s like the paperback revolution which changed everything in the last century.”

So how long will it be until e-book reading is more common than print book reading?

“I have no idea how long it will be,” Lansdale admits. “Some of it is fad, and it will ebb and flow, and then it’ll find its balance. It is happening fast, though.”

Meanwhile, Lansdale appears to be embracing the e-book market more than ever, offering his previous writings in the format, including all of the “Hap and Leonard” books, which he said in a Facebook update today are available from Vintage Books, a division of Random House.

He also has several titles available in the Kindle Lending Library, which can be read for free by Amazon Prime members. One of them is The Nightrunners – my first experience with Lansdale’s writing, and the one that got me hooked on his work.

Source: booksofhorror.com via Chris on Pinterest

Visit Joe’s site here.

Still, people are creatures of habit, and change doesn’t always come easy. Did you know that many feared the invention of the printing press? Previous to the press, books were unique hand-written works of art which were most commonly read aloud in performances and sermons.

The Bible was the first “pressed” book. It was most commonly read and interpreted by religious figures and scholars. A predominant fear of its mass production was that the layman would begin to consume and interpret its meaning without the guidience of church officials and draw their own conclusion about the content. Not good as far as the church saw it.

Regardless, books became common enough that they were not just for public performance or religeous sermon any more. Everyone knows books are for everyone and are an excepted way to pass on knowledge, learn facts, document history, and entertain us. More recently, we have the evolution of the book, the e-book, and some have anxiety about its role in society.

Let’s look at what book lover’s are thinking on both sides of the coin: For and against e-books domination of the market.

Pros For E-Books:

1). Real books are heavy and cumbersome. Often it is hard for them to stay open on their own and readers have to fidget with them to get comfortable.

2). Real books are expensive. Not only for consumers but also to manufacturers. The books have to be printed, packaged, and distributed. These processes consume materials and resources not to mention what the consumer has to go through to get it from the retailer.

3). Real books can easily be lost or damage. While an e-reader is expensive at first, many books can be read and saved on the device. Even if the reader was damaged, the contents of the publication can be accessed by a replacement reader more easily than a water damaged box of books can be replaced.

4). An e-reader offers much that a book cannot. A dictionary, a clock, internet access, the list goes on. A book is just a book. It has more uses than just reading however; those uses are relatively limited.

5). Privacy. People cannot see what book you are reading. In fact, you can have one e-reader and be reading several books at once. also, if your e-reader is password protected, no one else can even open your book.

Pros for Real Books:

1). A physical book is yours to own and use as you see fit. Make notes in the margins, write your name in it, display it on your bookshelf, cut out pictures from there pages, ect. You own the book.

2). You can loan a book in physical form and not have to worry about infringement of any kind on the authors intellectual property or right to be payed. Physical books allow you to “by hand” pass on the information inside of it and share the experience with others.

3). Physical books offer an experience that extends to more senses than just sight. Well worn books especially might have this effect. The smell, feel, weight of a book offer a feast to more of the senses. Perhaps the pictures offer more in physical print than those of digital format.

4). A book is a single purpose object. You won’t be distracted by clocks, software updates, or other tasks you can perform on the book. For those hoping to escape reality for awhile and enjoy a good book, this may come as a comfort.

5). A book can be purchased used. Used books offer an opportunity to access material at a discounted cost. Digital versions remain pristine forever and may never be discounted or the opposite, disappear from servers altogether. This could be a disadvantage for readers of older publications.

Conclusion:

So a lot of what fans are saying about the pros and cons of e-books are in direct opposition of one another. I guess it really just comes down to what you need the publication for, where you plan to read it, and what kind of budget you’re on. The same debate could take place for digital versus cd or record format music. A lot of hardcore music lovers still swear by the record for sound quality and overall listening experience.

Joe LansdaleAbout the Hap and Leonard book I’m planning. It’ll be shorter than a usual book, but I’m going to try it at ebooks first, but I’m not ruling out print. But, books are changing, and both formats are valid, even if I prefer the real books. I think there will always be real books, but they are going to be a smaller, and probably more collector type of market. Some publishers are even considering moving that way more and more, so this could be good for small presses, as far as real books go. 17 hours ago · 55 likes · 38 comments

Joe LansdaleOkay, there will be a hard back and a limited of the new Hap and Leonard book when I do it. Just made plans with a publisher. But it will be small press. Again, it will be a short book. Longer than HYENAS and the forthcoming DEAD AIM, but not a full length novel. 2 hours ago · 38 likes · 13 comments

Original Article: Popular (at least cult following-wise) author Joe Lansdale said in a Facebook status update this morning that he is considering an e-book-only format for his next “Hap and Leonard” novel.

Joe LansdaleI’m thinking of a Hap and Leonard novel done only in E Books, at least originally. 1 hour ago · 51 likes · 38 comments

Hap and Leonard are a couple of characters that Lansdale has based a number of his works around. They are always getting into some fun (and often bloody) adventures that are usually so bizarre that to try to describe them here would really not do them justice. But they are certainly the typical Lansdale fare, if there is such a thing. There’s really nothing typical about Lansdale’s writing, which is a big part of what makes it so fun to read.

If you’re not familiar with any of his writing, perhaps you’ll recognize the film Bubba Ho-Tep, which is based on one of his short stories. It’s about Elvis Presley’s adventure in a nursing home with an African American fellow who believes he’s John F. Kennedy, and they have to team up to fight a mummy. This may sound absurd, but Lansdale has a knack for making the absurd not only entertaining, but less absurd – another trait that is often on display in his writing.

Lansdale’s fans have already expressed mixed reaction to his e-book-only decision, in the comments on his update. The reactions range from “that’s awesome” to “no, not e-book only!”. However, there are quite a few indicating that this will be a reason for them to actually buy a Kindle or other e-reading device.

Really, this is a prime example of how authors can push the e-reader industry even further (as if it needs any help). Not only is Lansdale putting out a book e-book-only, he’s doing so with a chapter in an established series, which is a fan favorite.

Other Hap and Leonard stories include:

Savage Season (1990)
Mucho Mojo (1994)
Two-Bear Mambo (1995)
Bad Chili (1997)
Rumble Tumble (1998)
Veil’s Visit (1999)
Captains Outrageous (2001)
Vanilla Ride (2009)
Devil Red (2011)
Hyenas: a Hap and Leonard Novella (2011)

If you haven’t read any of Lansdale’s work, and you liked to be entertained (and don’t have a weak stomach), do yourself a favor and start digging into his works.

Textbook publishers saw it coming: an e-textbook revolution is imminent and it will change learning forever, said Osman Rashid, co-founder and CEO of Kno.

The software company based in Silicon Valley currently offers 150,000 textbook titles to be used on a computer or iPad, and they cost for 30 to 50 percent less of the regular price of print version.

And what’s most striking is the interactivity of the content, as graphics become 3D and illustrations with labels (for example, one of a cell which has the labels of all its parts) become quizzes to test the student’s knowledge.

One particularly attractive feature Rashid demonstrated at DLD was the flashcard feature, which measures the student’s confidence his or her own knowledge.

Journalist Spencer Reiss of Wired asked Rashid why, if people have been talking about this shift in textbooks, it has taken this long.

“User experience has so far been bad, it was not conducive… but now the innovation in education is better because of the tablets”, he said, adding that tablets and the iPad have allowed to better usability.

Publishers are really starting to embrace the new model, said Rashid, but the next big step should be taking heavy, print textbooks out of the students’ backpack and putting in a tablet device instead.

A Day in the Life of Kno from Kno on Vimeo.

Digital Pal, launching in beta today, allows users to discuss specific subjects without it getting lost amidst all the photos and status updates. It also allows users to discuss their experiences and recommend movies, music, books and games to one another. It also offers powerful tools that recommend new products to users based upon what they already like.

Tatiana Utornik, DigitalPal project manager, explained the main role of the network: “Imagine this situation: “The Hangover” is on tonight. Should you watch it? It may be fun, but is it your kind of fun? Should you risk wasting your time – again? If only you could quickly find out what your friends thought about it. This is where DigitalPal steps in. It allows you to immediately see what your friends had to say about movies you want to see – but also music you want to hear, books you want to read, and games you want to play.”

DigitalPal is attempting to differentiate themselves from the other Web sites that focus on only one type of media like films and music by gathering them all into one place. With the service, users can receive recommendations from their friends and their own ratings.

The most important thing to remember is that DigitalPal is not trying to supplant Facebook. It only seeks to supplement the service for those who wish to share movie recommendations without the clutter of Facebook.

I’ve jumped on board to try the service out and can provide a few more details than what the company offered. First and foremost, users can sign in with their Facebook account which makes using the site much easier.

From there, the site takes you to MoviePal. It asks you to rate 10 movies on a scale of one to 10. You can either rate movies that are already there which are among the most popular films or you can search for the film you want to rate. After rating 10 of them, you are taken to a page with more films and are asked to refine the selection process so it can recommend more movies to you.

This same process is repeated for music, books and games. I’ve already rated my first 10 movies and games so here’s a screengrab of the book selection process to give you an idea of what it looks like at first.

The recommendation refining process lists a series of genres that allow the user to pick and choose which genres they like and then the service will pick out movies or games that belong in those genres. It’s a little wonky as the recommendation service is not always spot on nor does it feature every title out there.

Nonetheless, the service is off to a good start and most recommendations are spot-on. I rated Requiem for a Dream highly and every Darren Aronofsky film was at the top of my list of potential new movies to rate and recommend to friends.

The service features a board for users to display all of their recently rated media alongside their friend’s ratings. You can comment on your friend’s ratings as well as your own.

The rated tab allows you to organize your rated products alongside changing the rating. It’s a useful feature in the case of somebody not liking a movie that much anymore after repeated viewings.

There’s a wishlist so users can list what they want to watch or listen to. The final tab is the catalog which allows users to list every movie, book, album and game that they own. It’s a great way to brag about your collection and let your friends know what you have.

Finally, there’s a bar on the side called, “My Pals” that lists all your Facebook friends and lets you invite them to use DigitalPal. Below that is a bar called, “My Pals Favorites” which lists all of their favorite games, movies, music and books in real time as their lists are updated.

The site is a little rough around the edges now. It’s pretty simplistic aesthetically, but it gets the job done. The site is also in open beta so it’s not fully completed yet. The site’s team want users to try out DigitalPal and let them know what you think.

I for one love the idea of having all of my friend’s recommendations in one place. I don’t usually agree with the critics at large publications, but I can usually trust my friends’ recommendations. This site allows me to easily view those. The only problem is that it’s new and other much older and respected sites allow people to recommend stuff to their friends. It’s only a matter of time though to see how successful DigitalPal is especially after they exit beta and go into full commercial release.

What do you think? Are you interested in a social networking site that focuses more on media than statuses?

As previously reported, it was the top-seling book of the holiday season on Amazon.com. To put that into persepctive, though, Amazon also shared the following fact:

Amazon customers purchased enough copies of Walter Isaacson’s “Steve Jobs” book to create a stack taller than Mt. Everest.

Mt. Everest peaks at 29,029 feet above sea level. It’s a fairly thick book, but it’s not that thick. It’s 630 pages.

Other “holiday fun facts” from Amazon around customer purchases include:

• The cumulative weight of the Bowflex 552 Adjustable Dumbbells purchased by Amazon customers would outweigh more than 70 adult elephants.
• If you unfolded and stacked each pair of jeans purchased by Amazon customers this holiday, the height would be 2,500 times taller than the Statue of Liberty.
• Amazon customers purchased enough sweaters to outfit each of Santa’s reindeer during Christmas Eve deliveries for the next 14,000 years.
• Amazon customers purchased enough copies of Just Dance 3 to give 15 copies to each person who participated in setting the world record for simultaneous dancing.
• Amazon customers purchased enough HeatMax HotHands Handwarmers to give a pair to each resident of Iceland.
• Amazon customers purchased enough Rory’s Story Cubes to give a cube to each person watching the New Year’s Eve ball drop live at Times Square.

More on Amazon’s best-selling products of the holiday season here.

“We’ve all been there: the Internet is suddenly down, and you can’t keep on reading your ebook to see what the character decides to do next,” says Google Books Product Manager Xinxing Gu. “Or you’re about to head to the airport and want to be able to dive into a newly-purchased ebook during a long flight.”

“Whether you are flying through the air, backpacking through the European countryside, or simply facing intermittent network connections, you can always read your Google eBooks in your Chrome browser or on your Chromebook,” says Gu.

Offinline access requires the installation of the Google Books app, which can be found in the Chrome Web Store.

Obviously you’ll have to download the eBooks themselves while you’re still online.

Mouseover the cover of books you’ve downloaded, and find the “make available offline” checkbox that pops up. This option can also be accessed by clicking the “i” in the right-hand corner of your screen.

In the Google Books Help Center, Google offers 5 tips and best practices for offline reading in the web browser:

1. You can only use this feature with flowing text (EPUB) books, as scanned pages (PDF) are too large for offline reading and not supported at this time.

5. If you have multiple windows open with the Google Books app, only one of the windows will show the percentage of Downloading completed. All other windows will simply display “Downloading”. Our engineers are aware of this issue and are working to fix it.

Offline reading is also supported in Google’s mobile apps.

It had previously been announced that the Steve Jobs biography was the top selling print book of 2011, but of course that list didn’t take into account Kindle sales. According to Amazon, even when you factor in e-books, Isaacson’s book still takes the top spot.

“After the year of recommending books to our customers, it’s always fun to see what books really resonated with them,” said Chris Schluep, Senior Editor of Books, Amazon.com. “We chose ‘Steve Jobs’ as one of the Top 10 best books of the year, and even though it was published in October, the sales have been phenomenal in both formats. And we’re really excited that Kindle Direct Publishing authors have taken two of the top spots this year for book sales overall.”

Those “Kindle Direct Publishing” books that he mentions are “The Mill River Recluse” and “The Abbey,” which were able to crack the top 10 overall bestseller list without any print sales – only Kindle sales.

Here’s the complete list:

1. “Steve Jobs” by Walter Isaacson
2. “Bossypants” by Tina Fey
3. “A Stolen Life” by Jaycee Dugard
4. “The Mill River Recluse” by Darcie Chan
5. “In the Garden of the Beasts” by Erik Larson
6. “A Dance with Dragons” by George R.R. Martin
7. “The Paris Wife” by Paula McLain
8. “The Litigators” by John Grisham
9. “The Abbey” by Chris Culver
10. “Inheritance (The Inheritance Cycle)” by Christopher Paolini

Amazon also has most in-depth best-of lists including the 100 best-selling print books of the year and the 100 best-selling Kindle books of the year.

Amazon has also released an editorial list of the “best” books of the year. Topping that list in “The Art of Fielding” by Chad Harbach. They describe it as “confident, intimate, unpredictable, and wholly memorable.”

“Steve Jobs” released on October 24th. It is currently the second best-selling print book and 14th best-selling Kindle book in the month of December. It has been in the Amazon top 100 for 94 days.