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Apple Adds Audio and Video Capabilities to 'iBooks'

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Apr 12, 2001
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Responding to Amazon's addition of support for embedded audio and video in Kindle eBooks late last month, Apple yesterday updated its iBooks application for iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch yesterday to add similar functionality, as well as several other enhancements.
- Double-tap an image within a book to view it in greater detail.
- Experience books that include audio and video.
- Enjoy substantial performance improvements when reading PDFs.
- Look-up definitions to English words inside books without a specified language.
- Addresses an issue that may have caused some book downloads to not complete.
- Includes many stability and performance improvements.
Click to expand...
The iBooks update comes alongside iTunes 9.2.1, which brought several minor enhancements to the company's media management, playing, and syncing application.

Article Link: Apple Adds Audio and Video Capabilities to 'iBooks'
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2010/07/20/apple-adds-audio-and-video-capabilities-to-ibooks/
Now all they need to do is make ibooks have enough books to be worth using over the amazon app.:rolleyes:
 
This could lead to some pretty cool interactive factual books and text books. I wonder if anyone would consider using iBooks to distribute magazines, Apple could make a neat simple subscriptions system rather than having all these separate apps for magazines and newspapers as we have now.
 
iBooks is the nicest eBook reader app that there is no books for. I would love to start buying iBooks (have 5), but I quickly open my Kindle app and buy them there because almost nothing is available in the iBook store.
 
talkingfuture said:
This could lead to some pretty cool interactive factual books and text books. I wonder if anyone would consider using iBooks to distribute magazines, Apple could make a neat simple subscriptions system rather than having all these separate apps for magazines and newspapers as we have now.
Click to expand...

I use the Zinio reader to subscribe to MacWorld magazine. One app puts all my magazines at my fingertips. Not that stupid 1 magazine = 1 app solution that companies are using now. Apple really missed the boat on this one, by not having a distribution method, such as iMags to distribute magazines.
 
I had a bunch of PDF files in iBooks on my iPad, but when I updated it erased all my PDF's. Kept the ePub books I had, but all the PDF's were gone.
 
The release notes also had a line about speed improvements for PDF. It was already good, but any improvements are welcome because PDF definitely isn't quite as slick as the ebooks. The iPad is still a magnificent PDF reader though.

Edit: just spotted that ARN also had that line in his summary. Doh. Sorry about the redundant post.
 
Mike Teezie said:
Hopefully PDF reading really is substantially improved.
Click to expand...

It's definitely much quicker now for reading PDFs. You still have to zoom in on text from page to page... unlike Goodreader, but despite that I prefer iBooks.

I also noticed that my bookmarks/highlights/etc. in an ePub book I'm reading were somehow synced automatically and wirelessly between my iPad and iPhone. I'm not sure if it did that before this version (I thought before it only synced that stuff if you connected them to your computer?)
 
Reading magazines is superb, but I really really really wish they would let us adjust the margins for ePub books...
 
Great update! However it would be great if they start adding a bunch of books! Apple sorely lags in lack of selections. I end up buying my ebooks from other sources and I would rather do business with Apple. :rolleyes:
 
Hmm

iBooks with audio and video...

Bit like a web browser then (albeit offline).

Just give us flash already!

-----

Devoted Apple fan, too many :apple: devices to count. Happy with my iPhone4.
 
Hooray for Competition!

I love it when companies go head-to-head in products rather in public relations.
 
talkingfuture said:
This could lead to some pretty cool interactive factual books and text books. I wonder if anyone would consider using iBooks to distribute magazines, Apple could make a neat simple subscriptions system rather than having all these separate apps for magazines and newspapers as we have now.
Click to expand...

Apple does support a subscription model, but it's up to the individual developer to write codes taking advantage of it.
 
furi0usbee said:
iBooks is the nicest eBook reader app that there is no books for. I would love to start buying iBooks (have 5), but I quickly open my Kindle app and buy them there because almost nothing is available in the iBook store.
Click to expand...

I agree 100%. There are many books I want to buy regarding The Beatles and there are only about 10, most of them I am not interested in. Also, in regard to Elvis, only a handful for him as well.

Very disappointing.
 
RonD69 said:
Apple does support a subscription model, but it's up to the individual developer to write codes taking advantage of it.
Click to expand...

Do they for iBooks? Are you sure? I thought to publish in iBooks you need a catalog/ISBN number. Doesn't that fact alone mean publishing magazines would be impossible? I don't know, I'm just asking...
 
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