So, how do these work?

I downloaded a couple, then noticed they were gone after a few hours
from the bookshelf.

I've never seen one disappear until I got around to deleting it myself. Are you sure you haven't switch shelves by taping the Collections button?

Or it could just be a new behavior. It's been a while since I've downloaded a sample. I'll go grab one now and see what happens.

I can't seem to download samples at the moment.

The iBooks Store may be having problems. If the book never shows up with the SAMPLE ribbon on the corner then it never finished downloading, which would probably be why it disappears after a while. When iBooks gives up trying, it probably deletes the attempt instead of leaving a cover with no content on the shelf.

Originally Posted by twerppoet

I can't seem to download samples at the moment.

The iBooks Store may be having problems. If the book never shows up with the SAMPLE ribbon on the corner then it never finished downloading, which would probably be why it disappears after a while. When iBooks gives up trying, it probably deletes the attempt instead of leaving a cover with no content on the shelf.

I may have removed it by mistake.
Just wondering what a sample really gives you.
Thanks for your help.

ibooks are wonderfull!

Originally Posted by msny

I may have removed it by mistake.
Just wondering what a sample really gives you.
Thanks for your help.

ibooks are wonderfull!

It gives you the first few pages of the book. Sometimes that is useful, and sometimes not. Depends on how many pages the publisher crammed into the front before the story starts; advertisement, introduction, table of contents, etc. So far I've had better luck with samples in iBooks than I have with previews on Amazon.

The sample I tried to download yesterday finally worked, and I got the first 23 pages. If memory serves this is typical, but remember that the number of pages depends on your font size setting, not the number of pages in a real book. However, in this case 23 pages is probable pretty close. It turns out the book I grabbed is a graphic novel "Cowboys and Aliens", which explains why it was so slow to download.

It looks kind of cool, so I may end up buying it. That's always a danger when you browsing through a book store.

Anyway, I'll leave it on the shelf for a few days and see if it sticks.