If you’ve ever wanted to somehow merge your Kindle with the familiar world of traditional books, or you just want to house it in something really unique, you should know about ReBindIt, a small online business that launched in April and makes one-of-a-kind Kindle 2 cases out of old hardcovers. Pop your Kindle 2 into [...]
books
Calibre gets a major update, becomes even more invaluable for managing your ebook library
If you’re not using Calibre on your computer to manage your ever-growing library of ebooks, why not? It’s free, it runs on OS X, Windows, and Linux systems, and it will let you manage your entire library easily. It’s also just been upgraded to version 0.7, and packs a lot of incredibly useful new features [...]
Convert your old LIT ebooks so you can read them on your Kindle
Yesterday’s “Help File” column at the Washington Post illustrates a common problem when it comes to digital content: how do you deal with old formats that aren’t properly supported anymore? For instance, Microsoft’s LIT ebook format was a popular choice several years ago, but none of today’s major ebook devices natively support those files. Here [...]
"Popular Highlights" lets you see what passages Kindle readers highlight the most
Does this phrase resonate with you? …three things–autonomy, complexity, and a connection between effort and reward–are, most people agree, the three qualities that work has to have if it is to be satisfying. If so, you’re not alone. Over 1,600 Kindle readers have highlighted that sentence from Malcom Gladwell’s book Outliers, making it the most [...]
What's the weirdest book title of 2009?
The Bookseller, a UK publishing magazine and website, has an annual prize called the Diagram Prize that it awards to the “oddest book title of the year.” The Twitter network effect led to a tripling of submissions this year, so Booklist has published their “Very Longlist” for the first time ever. Here are all the [...]
175 free woodworking books
Time to get your carpenter on: Evenfall Studios (www.evenfallstudios.com) has a collection of 175 old public domain woodworking books, mostly scanned via Google’s book scanning project, that cover everything from carving, to upholstery, to using hand and machine tools. Most are rather old and might be more interesting as historical records, but here are three [...]
A review of Blue Leaf book scanning service
A review of Blue Leaf Book Scanning service, a mail-in book scanner that will convert your printed books into PDF and other formats.
Can you use Twitter to sell books?
Everyone who writes or publishes wants to know how to use Twitter as a promotional tool to drive sales, and to that end the British book reading website Lovereading–sort of the ugly UK cousin to Goodreads, only with a smaller membership and more directly tied to big publishing houses–just completed a survey of members to [...]
Why everyone should take advantage of Kindle book previews
Browse books without being in a bookstore: almost anyone can use the Kindle store to download free book previews to a Windows PC or iPhone/iPod Touch.
Five editors and authors discuss the role of the editor
Here are the three key points made in a recent BBC Open Book program about the role of the editor in pubilshing.
Robin Sloan Publishes First Novel Directly To Readers For $1
Robin Sloan is a blogger and author who relied on readers, instead of a vanity press or traditional publisher, to help him publish his first novel.
Cory Doctorow's new experiment: all sorts of formats, all sorts of prices
Cory Doctorow is taking a DIY approach to publishing his next book, and he’s going to document it for the benefit of others. Here are some other experiments in online distribution and what they’ve taught us so far.