Mike Cane has a provocative (as ever!) post up today, ePub is Not Universal, So Stop the BS. It all started when I posted this to Twitter:
Thinking about AMZN rumor http://bit.ly/cMUSqA @katerados and DK news (investing in iPad apps), and thinking apps keep AMZN out #eprdctn
I think it's a shame that Dorling Kindersley might shutter their beautiful books behind iPad apps instead of taking advantage of the EPUB standard in order to make them available to any EPUB compatible reader. It's pretty short-sighted.
EPUB will eventually win out because it's an open-source standard based on the already universal standard that is HTML. It is text-based and non-proprietary which means that any computer can read it. That means any desktop computer, any mobile computer, any tablet.
Mike worries about different engines in different ereaders, but though that has caused headaches for web designers, it has not stopped HTML from being the universal language of web pages. Internet Explorer and Firefox have different engines, but have joined in the end to support HTML standards and display HTML the same way.
He also complains about DRM, but that is a bit like complaining about different web portals requiring log-ins. If Facebook makes me sign in to use their site, that doesn't make HTML any less universal.
I started writing books about writing HTML in 1995. I am convinced that the reason that the web grew at the rate that it did was because anyone could write HTML, anyone could create their own web site and publish what they wanted to say. They didn't need expensive tools or credentials. And what they wrote could be read by anyone on the internet.
EPUB, based on HTML, has the same power. You can write an EPUB document with any free text editor. And while it's true that there are a fair number of details to keep in mind, you don't have to be a programmer or have an advanced degree. I am convinced that anyone can do it. (I even wrote a book about it to make it easier, but that's not my point here.)
Will EPUB be based on XHTML 1.1 or HTML5? It doesn't matter. HTML5 is backwards compatible and so any ereader that accepts HTML5 will also accept the current flavor of EPUB.
And on the other side? You can read EPUB with any one of many free non-proprietary ereaders. EPUB is HTML, ereaders are browsers. Both are universal.
The web is what it is because it belongs to all of us. The barriers to participation are incredibly low. EPUB will win because it has 6 billion people and HTML behind it.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
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Hear hear! Well put.
ReplyDeleteI especially loved this part:
"I am convinced that the reason that the web grew at the rate that it did was because anyone could write HTML, anyone could create their own web site and publish what they wanted to say. They didn't need expensive tools or credentials. And what they wrote could be read by anyone on the internet."
I remember teaching a night class, circa 1997 or so, at my daughter's high school on how to create and publish a web site. Most of the adult learners (mainly parents of the HS students) were nervous around a computer, let alone the Internet.
I had them writing simple web pages in NotePad. When they previewed them in IE, they were so excited to see their links work! Then I uploaded them to my web server so they could go home and show their kids what they did in school that day. ;-)
Well put, I can't wait to read your book on EPUB. Will it be available on the kindle? (Just kidding)
ReplyDeleteAnne-Marie: yes, exactly! I've had the same experience so many times. I've gotten thousands of letters from older people and kids (the other day a 7 year old!) and 20-somethings looking for a job and everyone in between all excited and proud because they were able to publish something themselves. We have this inner need to share, and the web, HTML particularly, and now EPUB, makes it possible.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous: actually, it will be available in Kindle format too. I've never been an extremist :)
ReplyDeleteA few months ago i would have agreed with you. Now, if I imagine the average reader choosing between a Sony Reader and one of the new Amazon Kindles, I can't see a good reason why they would choose the Sony. Amazon has the cheapest books and plenty of free ones, and they have their 3G Whispernet for buying books anywhere you go. Will buyers pay more upfront and over the life of their eReader to support a more open standard? I seriously doubt it.
ReplyDelete"I think it's a shame that Dorling Kindersley might shutter their beautiful books behind iPad apps instead of taking advantage of the EPUB standard in order to make them available to any EPUB compatible reader."
ReplyDeleteIf the DK website is any indication then their apps will have a lot more than just the books n them.
If they can make an app as useful as this page then it was worth it:
http://us.dk.com/static/cs/us/11/starwars/
I really don't understand why people insist that the Kindle format (which is really nothing more than the old Mobi format, which is really just HTML) is proprietary.
ReplyDeleteWe've been creating Kindle books since Amazon first announced it. It's actually far easier than ePub, albeit with far fewer niceties in its display capabilities.
I can take any of the Kindle books we've created and put it directly on my Kindle. In fact, that proofing is the last step before we upload the file to Amazon or send it to a client.
We can also sell those Kindle files directly off our website for purchasers to load into their own Kindles...or read on Kindle for PC or Mac.
I can even use CSS and include settings that the Kindle device won't recognize. It just ignores what it doesn't understand. But any other device could certainly read it if a programmer wanted to make it do so.
The only thing proprietary about Kindle is Amazon's own DRM, but you can sell Kindle books in the Kindle Book Store without it.
So where's the dreaded proprietary aspect?
I don't see it.
Hi Walt:
ReplyDeleteJeff Bezos said it himself: "having our own standard allows us to incorporate new things at a very rapid rate" (http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2010-07-29-amazon29_VA_N.htm)
Amazon controls and adapts Mobi for its own needs and purposes. That's proprietary.
But Amazon's "adapting" the Mobi format does not invalidate any existing Kindle books. They still work the same as always. Amazon's just providing more capabilities as they update it.
ReplyDeleteAnd I still say that any eReader developer who wanted to read and display the non-DRM Kindle books could do so. It's not a secret format. And Amazon does NOT require you to accept their DRM. None of our eBooks in the Kindle Store have DRM.
Not really any different than the DRM that Apple or any other retailer might apply.
The problem isn't that the Amazon publishes books in Mobi rather than EPUB. It's the heavy slant toward reading books from Amazon. I was intrigued enough by the latest model to give it serious consideration and even read the user's manual. Unfortunately, I came away with these gotchas.
ReplyDelete1. The Kindle doesn't support EPUB, which among other things means we can't read library books on it. For books I read once and forget, my budget doesn't allow purchasing.
2. The process of moving one's own documents to it is a pain: either emailing via Amazon or a clumsy USB file transfer by hand. I'd rather my Mac included a "Sent to Kindle" option alongside printing that'd automatically move a document to my Kindle the next time it synchs via WiFi or USB.
3. I use Instapaper to read longer web articles. On my iPod touch, the process couldn't be easier. The app synchs automatically via WiFi. On a Kindle the process is kludgy and can sometimes incur a charge.
4. Last but not least--and this applies to an iPad too--in a lot of work and social situations it's easy to sneak in a little reading on an iPhone/touch. You look like you're checking IM and phone messages. But those who see you with a Kindle will know exactly what you're doing. "He's bored or doesn't have enough to do," they will think.
--Michael W. Perry, author of Untangling Tolkien
As one developing a mobile app in html, css and javascript while considering expanding the content of the app to an ebook, I came across this article on Webmonkey about Treesaver. I guess it will all play out but when Treesaver goes open source maybe it will do for books what Blogger et al has done for web publishing.
ReplyDeleteOne of the great advantages of the ePub standard is, that you can create your own DRM-free e-Books that can be read on:
ReplyDelete- PC + Mac with Adobe Digital Editions
- iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad with the Stanza Reader or iBooks app
- Android devices with the Aldiko Reader
- Specific e-Readers, like Cybook Gen3, Sony eReaders, etc.
So what do you want more?
No need for Kindle and their proprietary Mobipocket language.
Long live ePub!!
My understanding is that with permission from the copyright holder, Amazon will take a PDF or EPUB file and make the conversion to MOBI at no cost, so there's no reason for publishers to skip EPUB in favor of MOBI or vice versa. And as the list of EPUB-reading devices grows, it will only become more common. Personally, I think the reading devices will change far more than the language behind the books.
ReplyDeleteFor DK (and Disney too, I hear), I think the issues are how the books display, the reading experience, and being able to maintain their specific brand. EPUB doesn't offer much control over those aspects. For large format color and highly designed books, EPUB may never be the choice, but for the majority of books, which are primarily text and limited illustrations, that's not a concern.