Peter James's Host, published on two disks, was an early example – but exactly where the medium started life is surprisingly tricky to identifyWhat was the first ebook? Debate rages … When Peter James published his thriller Host on two floppy disks, in 1993, it was billed as the "world's first electronic novel", and attacked as a harbinger of the apocalypse which would destroy literature as we knew it. Now it has been accepted into the Science Museum's collection as one of the earliest examples of the form, as the spotlight of academia begins to shine on the history of digital publishing."I got absolutely pilloried," says James. "I was on Today accused of killing the novel, I was a front-page headline on papers in Italy – 99% of the press was negative … one journalist even took his computer on a wheelbarrow to the beach, along with a generator, to read Host in his deckchair."The digital version of the novel (it was also published physically) went on to sell 12,000 copies, according to James, and two years later, he was speaking on a panel on the future of the novel at the University of Southern California, together with Apple founder Steve Jobs. "I said ebooks would catch on when they became more convenient to read than the printed novel," said James. "It was astonishing the amount of outrage it caused."And Host – about a scientist who downloads his brain into a computer and has his body frozen – has now become a historical artefact, accepted into the Science Museum's... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2014-03-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hearst Magazines has announced the release of a new ebook aimed at the holiday chef. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2012-10-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon is forcing publishers to start negotiations over ebook prices exclusive of the full 20%... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Waterstones has begun promoting the Amazon Kindle devices that will be on sale in stores from... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Haynes Publishing is launching its first range of ebooks and selling them independently through... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon will offer partial refunds to customers who bought ebooks between April 2010 and May 2012 a result of the settlement in a price-fixing case between publishers and the attorneys general of most U.S. states. The retailer is notifying eligible customers by email. Compensation ranges from... Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2012-10-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon has announced it will give Kindle owners refunds on past ebook purchases if a settlement with publishers accused of fixing prices is approved. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-10-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon contacts some US customers to detail partial refunds for ebooks as part of a settlement regarding price fixing. Continue reading at BBC World
[ BBC World | 2012-10-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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I bought my first ebook in 1999 and in recent years stopped purchasing print altogether. My wife is a relative ebook newbie, so I am surprised that she and not me received surprising email today from Amazon about a forthcoming purchasing credit. Perhaps you got similar message. In April, the... Continue reading at Betanews
[ Betanews | 2012-10-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Tribune Company has kicked off an ebook initiative in partnership with Agate Publishing, collecting stories and photos from the Chicago Tribune and two other newspapers and selling them as digital long-form features. Tribune, which has already relea ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-10-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Waterstones is rolling out a new branding campaign set to emphasise the benefits of shopping in a... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A new story from Audrey Niffenegger, the author of The Time Traveler’s Wife, will feature... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bulgarian author Miroslav Penkov has won the £15,000 BBC International Short Story Award,... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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An erotic novel has become Penguin's most successful ever ebook in terms of weekly sales,... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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US publisher SourceBooks has developed a new range of interactive ebooks for Apple devices based... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Some readers were upset by the font size of early releases of the ebook version of 'The Casual Vacancy,' in addition to concerns about its price. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-10-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hachette companies Orion and Hodder & Stoughton are jointly publishing a new story by... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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JK Rowling's novel, The Casual Vacancy, suffers a formatting error in the US making it near-impossible to read on some e-readers. Continue reading at BBC World
[ BBC World | 2012-09-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon and Sony are continuing to offer ebooks at 20p, with further titles added to their... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-09-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Government-appointed panel to consider what role can ebooks play in our libraries in future. Continue reading at BBC World
[ BBC World | 2012-09-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Spain's increasing involvement in the Eurozone crisis, along with government austerity... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-09-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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