By reusing and repurposing existing writing into viral fragments on Twitter, the account functioned like today’s chatbots. The Guardian spoke to Jacob Bakkila, the human behind the accountMore than a decade before an AI-powered chatbot could do your homework, help you make dinner or pass the bar exam, there was @Horse_ebooks. The primitive predecessor to today’s chatbot renaissance began as a Twitter account in 2010, tweeting automated excerpts from ebooks that, decontextualized, took on unexpected and strangely poetic meanings.Purportedly a spambot, the account surfaced quotes from ebooks that went viral for their absurdist fragments – phrases like “Hello saxophone,” “COULD THIS BE THE”, and “Today we are lucky to be talking”. It amassed more than 200,000 followers at its peak and now, despite being inactive for a decade, the account still holds 131,000 followers. Its most memorable quip – “everything happens so much” – still resonates today. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2024-01-03 15:00:04 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 11/11/2011 - 07:35 The Booksellers Association is calling for the end of tax and business rate concessions for charity bookshops, saying that they represent "unfair competition" to high street booksellers. The call comes amid claims... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-11-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Wed, 09/11/2011 - 12:25 Faber Academy has launched a three-day self-publishing course, with Faber Academy director Jason Cooper saying that it does not represent a conflict of interests for the publisher. The course, "Bring Your Book to Market",... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-11-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell, Graeme Neill and Philip Stone Publication Date: Fri, 04/11/2011 - 10:27 W H Smith has fired the starting pistol for festive promotions, with Waterstones, Amazon.co.uk, Blackwell, John Smith and Foyles following hot on their heels as 1st November saw the switch-on of... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-11-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 07/10/2011 - 14:39 Independent publishers are predicting that ebook sales may make up as much as 15% of their total sales by the end of 2011, as FutureBook's Digital Census reveals that a quarter of UK publishers now have ebook sales which... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Bookseller Staff Publication Date: Wed, 21/09/2011 - 09:03 Libraries in Seattle have started testing the feature that allows readers to borrow books using their Kindle. Amazon signed a deal with Overdrive earlier this year to provide the service, which the retailer said will be... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell, Benedicte Page and Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Fri, 09/09/2011 - 09:00 Publishers have reacted broadly positively to Waterstone's requests for a higher flat rate discount on books in return for a scrapping of major promotion charges, calling the system... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell, Graeme Neill and Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Wed, 31/08/2011 - 18:15 Publishers and trade figures have broadly reacted positively towards the scrapping of Waterstones 3-for-2 promotion. As The Bookseller revealed earlier today [31st August], the offer is... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill and Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Wed, 31/08/2011 - 10:27 Waterstone's is bringing its iconic 3 for 2 offer to an end, with plans to implement money-off deals across individual books. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In the more simple days of selling, advertising sales executives dealt in print, closing deals on a monthly cycle. Now, as technology drives opportunities for publishers, sales execs are faced with an ever-growing portfolio of products and services to offer to clients. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2011-07-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The last nine Borders stores in Australia will close after no buyers could be found for the bookseller chain, the administrator said today. Continue reading at The Sydney Morning Herald
[ The Sydney Morning Herald | 2011-06-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 20/05/2011 - 08:34 Random House and Bloomsbury have begun "buddying" programmes to support their local libraries and library authorities. More than 20 Random House staff have volunteered to be part of a pilot scheme pioneered by deputy group... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Katie Allen Publication Date: Thu, 19/05/2011 - 17:03 Jeweller Cartier has stepped down from sponsoring the Crime Writers Association (CWA)s Diamond Dagger prize after 26 years. The final Diamond Dagger, awarded for sustained excellence in crime-writing, was presented to Lindsey... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Philip Jones Publication Date: Mon, 11/04/2011 - 11:02 Kobo has embarked on a European push with the launch of local content stores in Germany and Spain starting in May 2011, with local stores for France, Italy and the Netherlands following shortly after. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Thu, 07/04/2011 - 09:07 Fiona Kennedy, Waterstones head of range, is to leave her post after more than 10 years. She joined Waterstones in September 2000 from Tesco, where she had been its buying manager for books. She said: I have worked in retail... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-04-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Thu, 03/03/2011 - 05:36 The administrators of British Bookshops and Stationers will begin an online auction of non-book stock, including forklift trucks and office equipment, on Tuesday (8th March). Interested parties will be invited to view the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-03-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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While many media pundits purport that magazine readership is dropping or that printed magazines are soon to be extinct, the truth emerges that year after year magazine readership continues to grow. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2011-02-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Eleven Waterstone's stores will close by the end of this week. The outlets are spread across the UK and are mostly in locations where more than one Waterstone's store currently exists. Staff at the affected Waterstone's stores have now entered into a period of... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Nine HMV stores have shut their doors as the music retailer begins it's programme of closures. The HMV Group announced at the beginning of the year it would shut 40 HMV stores and 20 Waterstone's shops within 12 months in a bid to cut costs, and it has begun to close... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-02-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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While magazine Web sites are starting to take a back seat to other channels that reach readers on a daily basis (such as Facebook and Twitter) they remain the centerpiece for many publishers' digital strategies. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2011-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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