oh my apple, a run-down on iBooks maker and iTunesU

ibooks author, evil incarnate because anybody can't make money outside iBookstore - or a true revolution for learning and coursebooks?

That was more or less the two sentiments raging through the blogs and twitter back when Apple launched their iBooks author software. And for once it was a subject worthy of some strong opinions here on the blog, just not musings.

First off, the student perspective.

Having spent 4.5 years with four or five courses each semester, with an eclectic mix of solid US hardcovers, printed handouts and student curated leaflets I've spent my share of time pining over the cost of new editions and hunting through used versions for fair quality ones.

Also, with out a dedicated reading space for the first two years, dragging around 500-1000 pages books, three or four at a time for that days classes takes it toll in terms of priorities every day. For study groups we actually set up a schedule - who brings which book on what day.

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Then there is the year after - when you take the next class, it would sometimes be useful (especially at the start of term and before exams) to review a bit from the first book, but that meant sunk costs rather than recouping at least parts of the cost.


So, Apple has made a deal with the major text book publisher, and is pushing the price down. Way down. Talk of a max price set at $19 ???  New, normal books retail at at least three or four times that.

As an example, the MCGraw algebra book sits at $14.95 list price on iTunesU, while Amazon has a similar book at $93. The latter you can buy used and then resell while the former could be bought with volume and education discount (also sales tax free).

Imagine a student with student loans, considering getting an iPad, but needs books instead. Now every book saves the student over $40 - that adds up fast to finance the device instead. And let's face it - students want toys as well.

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Then the educator perspective

The tools is free to download. You can import just about anything into it - word, pdf, code, and so on.
And anything shared directly on campus, be it in sorority, by professor or ta, or simply student groups making their own projects available - is also free, and can be distributed directly or via iBookstore / iTunesU

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But... you have to have a Mac to use it. And a new one at that. And also you would probably do well with an iPad for testing the actual output as well. And the majority of educational institutions (over here at least) are like the corporations, stuck with a bunch of pc's. Of assorted age and quality. So the upfront cost could be a bummer.

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Well what about the tech?

Is is all about putting things together. Not making anything that didn't already exists in some form or another.

Tools exist — they’re getting more powerful everyday — that allow us to treat digital objects as digital objects: to collect and organize them, to fashion stories from them, to turn them into bespoke devices uniquely tuned to unlocking the world’s mysteries.

And while iBooks is not the only or maybe best way to collect and enhance "other" media alongside text. Storify could do a lot of it, and a version of prezi more suited to long form text mix.ins wouldn't be all that hard. Why, all the assorted "html presentations" would be well suited to giving a structured mix of text, images, video and plug ins. So why didn't anybody else do this?

Adding annotations, and storing them. Also packaging the content for download, with a quick course guide - read this, check. Now that is usability first and foremost. And that is why Apple might be the only one who really could make this.

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The output of iBooks Author is no more intended to be an industry standard than are any other Apple-proprietary document formats — Pages, Numbers, Keynote, etc

Is it so strange to see that this is not all that different from Word outputting mainly Word .doc files - and actually using it's import from WP to move the market - or Microsoft XNA for Xbox live games not running all that well on a PS3?

They never said they wanted to make a new html. In order to actually move the market companies often times have to make their own solution rather than open standards. Kindle wasn't the first ebook reader by a long stretch. But it worked. Well. And it was easy enough to get books made for it and sold hassle free. While it could also read "generic" formats.

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And in closing - the fine print

But the contract / terms and conditions, and the communication from Apple regarding the changes they made to clarify it? Yeah, vintage Cupertino.

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And not getting worldwide deal in place, thus leaving a lot of us "out in the cold" once more? F.U publishers, studios, and assorted guilds.

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Overall, big ups to Apple for moving the educational market forward, probably kicking and screaming most of the way.