Amazon's been attuned to the needs of its vision-impaired customers for years, first rolling out text-to-speech technology on its original Kindle e-reader years ago. Today the company revealed plans to add to that feature set in its Kindle Fire and Fire HD (7-inch) tablets with Voice Guide and Explore by Touch technology. Voice Guide's an improvement upon regular text-to-speech tech that reads aloud any action performed by users -- things like announcing app names and book titles when they're selected. Explore by Touch lets folks swipe their fingers across their Fire's display and identifies each onscreen item as their phalanges pass over them. Once aware of what app or piece of content's being touched, a simple tap opens the item. Ready for the new assisted navigation experience right now? Well, all you anxious Fire owners will have to wait, the update doesn't land until early next year.Filed under: Tablets, Software, AmazonCommentsSource: Amazon Continue reading at 'Engadget'
[ Engadget | 2012-12-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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It's kind of a natural for a company that, despite its many other ventures, still makes a lot of its money selling books. Continue reading at AllThingsD
[ AllThingsD | 2013-03-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon continues to socialize itself. The e-commerce giant announced today that it has acquired bibliophilic social platform Goodreads. “Goodreads has helped change how we discover and discuss books and, with Kindle, Amazon has helped expand reading around the world. In addition, both Amazon... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2013-03-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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On Wednesday, Nook Media -- Barnes & Noble subsidiary -- announced that Windows 8 users can take advantage of a "free book and magazine offer", available for a limited period of time, after installing the Nook app. All that users have to do is download the Nook app -- which is available for... Continue reading at Betanews
[ Betanews | 2013-03-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Flipboard latest update democratizes content curation on the service, introduces search, and provides integration with Etsy. With 50 million users, Flipboard, the social news magazine available on the iPhone and iPad, has become a dominant player in content curation. Now, with competition in... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2013-03-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google has killed off the print editions of Frommer's guide books. And this makes sense, as Google never wanted to be a publisher and only bought Frommer's for the metadata. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-03-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Last night something strange caught my attention, nearly enough to post a late-day story. Then this morning I got a little email nudge from Amazon PR, and thought: "Yeah. Why not?" The timing and broader ecosystem implications are interesting for service "Send to Kindle". Just as Google whacks... Continue reading at Betanews
[ Betanews | 2013-03-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon's Little A imprint will release novels, memoirs, and story collections, while Day One will focus on short stories and new writers. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-03-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A L Kennedy's The Blue Book and Jake Arnott's The House of Rumour are to be the first... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Less than 5% of all published books are available in an accessible format. Several organizations, notably Bookshare, are working to change that woeful statistic. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-03-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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UK bookstores are experimenting with exclusive chapters and other offers to lure customers into stores and away from online shopping at Amazon, but some doubt its efficacy. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-03-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Union Books has acquired a social and personal history of luck by novelist David Flusfeder.... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Association of American Publishers and the Authors Guild, are fighting Amazon's bid to own new global domain names including .book, .author, and .read. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-03-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Telegraph has claimed niche authors are being unfairly hit by Amazon’s self-publishing... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon, the biggest bookseller in America, is also famously one of the most tight-lipped. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-03-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How best to deliver digital textbooks to students and who should do it, will be two key issues up... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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When I wrote Why I Love Kindle back in February I said I was intending to upgrade to a Kindle Paperwhite soon. Three weeks later, timed so I can buy a Kindle copy of my own book (my publisher only supplies free paperbacks), and that’s exactly what I’ve done. The Kindle is one of those very rare... Continue reading at Betanews
[ Betanews | 2013-03-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Deutsche Telekom has confirmed it is bringing out an e-reader in collaboration with booksellers... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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German Thalia, Weltbild, Hugendubel, as well as Bertelsmann and Deutsche Telekom, have launched Tolino, a new ebook platform to compete with Amazon. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-03-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon's decision not to pay commission to affiliate sites linking to free Kindle ebooks likely signals a shift in strategy, and has affiliates up in arms. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-02-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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By curtailing paid commission to free ebook listing sites, Amazon is penalizing the big traffic producers that generate brand loyalty and other purchases. But why? Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-02-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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