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Just as the print industry belabored over the CTP (computer-to-plate) dilemma for more than a decade, e-book debates will undoubtedly continue to wage for years. Indeed, the births of these two phenomena mimic one another in several ways. The evolution of a revolution As we look back, the dawn of CTP led to a great deal of speculation on the print producer's part. Many openly scoffed at CTP's validity; others simply avoided the topic, as if skirting its discussion would deny its very existence. It took several years—and the growing support of industry standards groups—to bolster an acknow-ledgement that CTP was our destiny. The

Handheld E-Book Reading By Donna Loyle, Editor They're getting smaller, smarter and cheaper—all at the same time. In the last year or two, numerous handheld e-book reading devices have hit the market. Innovative features include audio capabilities; built-in dictionaries; revolutionary easy-on-the-eyes type; backlit LCD screens; highlighting ability; direct Internet connections; and much more. While this article does not cover all of the e-book readers available (for example, many e-titles can be read on Palm PDAs, which are not marketed as e-book reading units), the information below offers a quick roundup of some of the latest and coolest devices recently introduced. RCA REB1100

Special to BookTech by Danny O. Snow For centuries, publishers have wrestled with one simple but crucial question upon which their success often depends: How many copies should we print? On one hand, fundamental economics of printing encourage publishers to produce as many copies as possible to achieve better economies of scale and lower per-unit costs. Meanwhile, the cost of unsold copies can also erode profit margins. The sunny side of POD Print-on-demand (POD) increasingly offers today's publishers a good solution to this central dilemma. By allowing publishers to print exactly enough copies to meet market demands and no more, POD drastically reduces, or

After Riding the Bullet Simon & Schuster Online's high-profile e-book trial proved that e-books can be popular. This was good, but the Stephen King novella was popular enough to attract hackers. Now what? by Rose Blessing "We certainly don't fold up our tent here," says Adam Rothberg, director of corporate communications, the lucky one at Simon & Schuster Online assigned to answer reporters' calls on the issue of the hacking of the Stephen King e-book Riding the Bullet. "We believe in the e-book just as strongly as we did before." But S&S Online also acknowledges that the event highlighted the importance of good security: "It's unfortunate, but some

by Rose Blessing While Barnes & Noble.com and Amazon.com are seen as major competitors in the online bookselling arena, they diverge sharply when it comes to selling electronic books. While Amazon.com sells no electronic books, Barnes & Noble.com has seized several opportunities to sell e-books on line through its Web site, www.bn.com. --More than 2,300 e-book titles are available for NuvoMedia's Rocket E-book, which uses a proprietary software based on the OEB format. --In January, the company began posting Glassbook Reader software on its Web site for free download with a collection of free e-books for it. Glassbook Reader software can be run on Pentium-class Windows

by Tatyana Sinioukov University of California Press book producers achieve success by attending to the nuances of design and production Since its inception in 1893, University of California Press, Berkeley, CA, has become one of the largest university publishers in the nation, earning recognition for its diverse titles and creative approach to book design. Originally established to distribute the faculty research papers by exchanging them, for free, for papers from other universities, the University of California Press today serves as the university's non- profit publishing arm, creating titles from special editions of the classics to fine art books to historical studies to volumes of

With two years of Web-creation experience under her belt, Kelly Maragni, director of marketing, has spent a great deal of time Web surfing for ideas, and notes that by now there are many impressive sites on the Internet related to book publishing. Here are a few of her favorites, which she offers to BookTech readers as sources for inspiration Newspapers/magazines, etc. 1. The New York Times "I like to scan the headlines daily and check bestseller listings for our books frequently!" http://www.nytimes.com 2. Granta magazine "I love the design and there's always something good to read" http://www.granta.nybooks.com 3. American Demographics "My favorite place for

As publishers continue to test the potential for interactive ebooks, investigating what other sects are doing may offer clues on how to thrive in the digital era. One underexplored publishing segment is comic books, graphic novels, and manga, or CGM for short.

Here’s a handy metadata glossary with some important terms and organizations so you too can speak fluent Metadata! These terms are selected from the glossary of The Metadata Handbook.

Publishers are finding they must engage directly with consumers, and fortunately they have a powerful tool for doing that: content—and lots of it. The challenge is then to provide opportunities for engagement, rise above the noise to attract the most relevant audiences, and do so efficiently