Lightspeed Illuminati

Teaching tiny electrons to sit up and speak

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Entries Tagged as 'electronic publishing'

Is book publishing about to slide into the sea?

July 4th, 2010 · Comments Off · ebook news, electronic publishing

In an unapologetically wistful article for the Baltimore Sun, Garrison Keillor envisioned a future where books spring up like wildflowers, unattended by the meticulous gardening skills of editors, and the democratization of publishing will lead to a vast wasteland of uninspired, pedestrian ebooks to be read only by friends and family. As much as I [...]

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Kurzweil introduces format-friendly ebook software

June 21st, 2010 · Comments Off · ebook news, electronic publishing, technology

Blio, Ray Kurzweil’s free software designed to overcome page display shortcomings of other ebook formats, is a dark horse running in a race that’s been going on for some time. Nonetheless, the package shows some competitive promise in the heated market in which Kindle and iPad are setting the pace. Projected to be available to [...]

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Changing the game for authors

June 14th, 2010 · Comments Off · ebook news, electronic publishing

Traditional book publishers are very nervous—at least as nervous as recording industry executives were nearly a decade ago as Apple’s iTunes burst upon the scene and overturned conventional wisdom about who really controlled sales and distribution of songs. Amazon’s success with the Kindle was a friendly tap on the shoulder for publishing executives. Apple’s iPad [...]

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Swarm intelligence and digital communication

June 6th, 2010 · Comments Off · electronic publishing

Unlike bees and ants—with their near-miraculous ability to coordinate complex activities in a self-organizing way—humans don’t exhibit any discernible signs of swarm intelligence. In fact, as a species we often work against our long-term survival, launching wars for reasons that leave historians scratching their heads, polluting the air and water that keep us alive, and [...]

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