Is There Any Such Thing As a Universal Reader?

[adavis]

I'm new to this e-reader business and was excited about it when I started but have discovered something I don't like. I started a series of 18 books in iBooks and then discovered that Apple doesn't have one book in the series. Barnes and Noble did have the missing book so I got it from them but I can't open it in iBooks. I complained to B&N about it and was told I would have to use nook to read it. If I have to arrange books by where I bought them rather than by author I'm thinking e-books are not for me and i'll be better off sticking with paper.

 

[emm]

You might have to chalk this one up to the learning process. IBooks is the worst reading app in terms of book availability. Download the Kindle app which has the best selection. Then you can keep most of your books in that app.

 

[thewitt]

No such thing as a universal reader...

Much like the early Sony Betamax VS VHS video tape wars, everyone believes their proprietary eBook format is best...

There are a few open standard formats like ePub that should win out in the end, though there will always be holdouts.

Believe it or not, most eBook readers are currently supporting many formats. I think Kindle supports more than a dozen - though not ePub. They just add their own variation or proprietary format to the ones they do support.

Those of us in the content business wish the war would end soon, but just like DVD and Blu Ray, the new kid on the block usually adds features that some publisher or hardware supplier finds attractive and when it gains a foothold it also gains credibility and a following.

-t

 

[info]

And if we buy books in a "losing" format, we may very well lose them all. This should be an incentive to the industry to standardize, but...

 

[thewitt]

As long as people are willing to purchase the hardware that only supports a proprietary format, or continue to buy books in those formats, they will stick around.

Imagine the pressures on a publisher who will only support ePub for instance. He loses all Kindle readers... Why does Amazon not step up and support ePub? Because it's not in their best interest financially.

The game will eventually produce a winner, however I don't expect to see one any time soon.

-t

 

[info]

No, not soon at all it seems. The VHS-Betamax comparison is a good one I think.

 

[adavis]

I guess I'll just stick to paper books. I didn't do VHS or Betamax until only VHS was around. I guess I can do the same thing again if I live long enough. What I wanted was a complete set of Tony Hillerman novels. I have the complete set in 1st editions, many of which are signed. Considering what the early ones are now worth I'm afraid to touch them and would like to read them again. Always eBay I guess.

 

[thewitt]

Contact the eBook publisher and ask them if they have the missing volume. They may, and it may simply not have made it into the resellers offerings online.

I recently did this with two different books and was able to source them both in the ePub format I wanted.

-t

 

[adavis]

I did contact Apple about a month ago and got an automated response but so far no way of obtaining the book. I try not to become disillusioned with Apple but a few little issues start adding up to a big issue after a while. This iPad is my first experience with Apple and might end up being my last.

 

[iluvmyipad]

You could just add the B&N app to your iPad. I have both the kindle and the nook apps, their books are so much cheaper than iBooks.

 

[thewitt]

I did contact Apple about a month ago and got an automated response but so far no way of obtaining the book. I try not to become disillusioned with Apple but a few little issues start adding up to a big issue after a while. This iPad is my first experience with Apple and might end up being my last.

Apple is not the publisher. Go straight to them. Apple is a reseller.

-t