Apple Previews Redesigned Books App Coming in iOS 12

[trusso]

Looks like Books gets the same treatment as Music and Videos/TV... nothing more than a storefront with access to my purchases buried under advertisements posing as "recommendations."

[...]

Dear Apple, I already own 95% of the media I probably ever will. Please stop changing your media players into advertising billboards with convoluted methods to get to the content I already own and just want to listen to/view!

My thoughts exactly. I guess we're just a minority now.

Reminds me of an old little ditty:

Welcome my son, welcome to the machine.​

What did you dream? It's alright, we told you what to dream.
You dreamed of a big star, he played a mean guitar,
He always ate in the Steak Bar. He loved to drive in his Jaguar.
So welcome to the machine.​

 

[Solomani]

In other news…. in 2019 Apple plans to rebrand a slew of products:

iBooks will become Books.

iTunes will become "Tunes"

iMac will thereafter simply be called "Mac"

iPhone will be abbreviated to "Phone"

and iCloud will be rebranded simply as "Cloud"


Last but not least, Apple Exec Jony Ive will thereafter be known as Jony Ve

 

[FelixDerKater]

Scott Forstall should market a nice book-like books app.

 

[Rogifan]

Looks like Books gets the same treatment as Music and Videos/TV... nothing more than a storefront with access to my purchases buried under advertisements posing as "recommendations."

Well, I suppose I already have to use Cesium for downloaded music, Player Xtreme for already synced videos; now I'll just have to find a dedicated audiobook player for already downloaded audiobooks.

Dear Apple, I already own 95% of the media I probably ever will. Please stop changing your media players into advertising billboards with convoluted methods to get to the content I already own and just want to listen to/view!

You know these apps are also stores, right? What good is a store that doesn’t provide recommendations?

 

[FelixDerKater]

In other news…. in 2019 Apple plans to rebrand a slew of products:

iBooks will become Books.

iTunes will become "Tunes"

iMac will thereafter simply be called "Mac"

iPhone will be abbreviated to "Phone"

and iCloud will be rebranded simply as "Cloud"


Last but not least, Apple Exec Jony Ive will thereafter be know as Jony Ve

Just rebrand iTunes as Apple Music and combine it into one coherent app.

 

[Rogifan]

I was convinced this was a beta bug... dammit if it’s meant to be like that I’m sad. To me just like majorly cheap and nasty

I don’t like it either but my Twitter feed was full of people loved the fact the books app was using a serif font. To me it looks completely out of place.

 

[Spendlove]

Will I be able to finally delete the PDF "Introduction to iOS" I downloaded 5 years ago?

 

[H3LL5P4WN]

I like the redesign of the storefront... but why are there no pictures of what it looks like to actually read, ESPECIALLY on the iPad?

You know, kind of the most important aspect of an eReader/app is reading.

 

[Solomani]

Will I be able to finally delete the PDF "Introduction to iOS" I downloaded 5 years ago?

Don't do that. It will corrupt your OS9 Extensions folder therefore killing all the binary hamsters.

 

[profets]

I like the redesign of the storefront... but why are there no pictures of what it looks like to actually read, ESPECIALLY on the iPad?

You know, kind of the most important aspect of an eReader/app is reading.

I was thinking similarly - the press release on apple.com, or wherever that link goes to, just shows examples of Books on iPhone, none on iPad.

 

[trusso]

You know these apps are also stores, right? What good is a store that doesn’t provide recommendations?

Well, if it isn't Mr. Snarky-Snark-Snark.

Yes, we are well aware. The issue isn't that the apps have stores – it's that the new design shoves the store in your face, when all most of us want to do is access our own music/movies/books. I still get annoyed whenever I open the TV or Music apps and have to navigate down 3 levels just to get to my stuff, past the unwanted "recommendations," etc. I'm not looking forward to the same philosophy on the Books app. All it does is clutter up the screen (as well as the user's brain - read "The Shallows" by Nicholas Carr) with unnecessary distractions.

Imagine walking into a movie theater or a library, but before you could enjoy your movie or book, you had to make your way through a throng of barkers hawking a bunch of irrelevant pulp. No, thanks. I'm happy to look for new titles when I want to, but shoving them in my face is a huge turn-off.

Unfortunately, big-tech doesn't listen to people like me. Or, if they do, they realize that I don't matter because most people enjoy sucking corporate... popsicles... these days.

 

[Envo]

It still can't group the books by series, or categories... What I see is nothing new, just spamming me about some unrelated books. (I usually buying books outside from the iBooks store, because of the DRM protection)

 

[AfroAbel]

Those fonts used for the headings look awful. Why are they deviating from the norm instead of just using San Francisco? A font with a serif looks extremely out of place in iOS.

could it be that the header matches the font used when reading? (which would mean a different array of fonts)

 

[subjonas]

Apple updates their reading software but neglects updating their best reading hardware: iPad mini.

 

[H3LL5P4WN]

I was thinking similarly - the press release on apple.com, or wherever that link goes to, just shows examples of Books on iPhone, none on iPad.

Which is fine, but there's nothing showing the actual reading experience.

I was actually considering going and buying a new Kobo, either the Aura One or Clara HD just to have a dedicated reading experience again (my OG Kobo Touch bit the dust ages ago).

 

[KazKam]

You know these apps are also stores, right? What good is a store that doesn’t provide recommendations?

But they've shifted the focus of the apps from first a player, second a store -- to first a store, second a player. I liked the music app when it was primarily a music player. I liked the Videos app when it was primarily a video player. Now they're just stores that happen to be able to play content. Blech.

Put another way. When you used to open one of these apps the interface said "Here's the media you already own so that you can play it. If you'd like to discover or purchase new media, go over there." Now when you open one of these apps the interface says "Here's the media we think you should consume and buy. If you'd like to play something you already own, go over there."

The new way feels sleezy. I feel like I'm in the ad-supported version of the app and there should be a IAP to get rid of that crap.

 

[Internet Enzyme]

The fact that they’re using a different font for the headers literally pains me inside.

When I saw that they were using a serif font for this app, it blew my mind. That’s so strange.

 

[profets]

Which is fine, but there's nothing showing the actual reading experience.

I was actually considering going and buying a new Kobo, either the Aura One or Clara HD just to have a dedicated reading experience again (my OG Kobo Touch bit the dust ages ago).

I hear you.

Reading experience itself hasn't really changed. I enjoy reading quite often (usually few times per day) on a mini 4 using iBooks.

I like this update a lot, but still feel like there's many more improvements they could make.

 

[omihek]

Looks like Books gets the same treatment as Music and Videos/TV... nothing more than a storefront with access to my purchases buried under advertisements posing as "recommendations."

Well, I suppose I already have to use Cesium for downloaded music, Player Xtreme for already synced videos; now I'll just have to find a dedicated audiobook player for already downloaded audiobooks.

Dear Apple, I already own 95% of the media I probably ever will. Please stop changing your media players into advertising billboards with convoluted methods to get to the content I already own and just want to listen to/view!

It's called the Library tab. It's there now. It'll be there in iOS 12. What's the issue again?
[doublepost=1528834261][/doublepost]

The fact that they’re using a different font for the headers literally pains me inside.

Looks more like a font you'd see in a "real" book. Maybe that's the reason.

 

[H3LL5P4WN]

I hear you.

Reading experience itself hasn't really changed. I enjoy reading quite often (usually few times per day) on a mini 4 using iBooks.

I like this update a lot, but still feel like there's many more improvements they could make.

I loved the pre-iOS7 iBooks. I loved the little skeuomorphic details that made it kinda feel like you were looking at a book, and I wept when it got iOS7-ized.

 

[Millah]

Well, if it isn't Mr. Snarky-Snark-Snark.

Yes, we are well aware. The issue isn't that the apps have stores – it's that the new design shoves the store in your face, when all most of us want to do is access our own music/movies/books. I still get annoyed whenever I open the TV or Music apps and have to navigate down 3 levels just to get to my stuff, past the unwanted "recommendations," etc. I'm not looking forward to the same philosophy on the Books app. All it does is clutter up the screen (as well as the user's brain - read "The Shallows" by Nicholas Carr) with unnecessary distractions.

Imagine walking into a movie theater or a library, but before you could enjoy your movie or book, you had to make your way through a throng of barkers hawking a bunch of irrelevant pulp. No, thanks. I'm happy to look for new titles when I want to, but shoving them in my face is a huge turn-off.

Unfortunately, big-tech doesn't listen to people like me. Or, if they do, they realize that I don't matter because most people enjoy sucking corporate... popsicles... these days.

How so? The first 2 tabs in the app are related to YOUR library. They are front and center, the first 2 things you see. The next 2 tabs are store-related, split amongst ebooks and audiobooks.

I fail to see how the store is taking over the app. Currently, its split evenly, and if you want to be technical, YOUR content is given priority by being the first 2 sections of the app.

 

[bluecoast]

Can they PLEASE finally add iBooks to the Apple Watch?? They made such a point in the keynote of “other audio apps” and about updating Books, yet I still can’t listen to an audiobook synced with iTunes while running. I have been submitting this as a needed enhancement for 2 years.

I suspect this will be a feature that will debut around iOS 13 (yes I know that books isn’t actually part of the OS).
[doublepost=1528837212][/doublepost]

In other news…. in 2019 Apple plans to rebrand a slew of products:

iBooks will become Books.

iTunes will become "Tunes"

iMac will thereafter simply be called "Mac"

iPhone will be abbreviated to "Phone"

and iCloud will be rebranded simply as "Cloud"


Last but not least, Apple Exec Jony Ive will thereafter be known as Jony Ve

Tbh I’m really glad that they’re phasing out the ‘i’ prefix that on one time seemed to be on nearly every product that Apple had.

It feels a little dated and of course it was meant to denote ‘internet’ ready.

Everything is now internet ready!

I really hope that in 2019, iCloud gets called Cloud. And iMessage becomes Message etc

iPhone, iPad and iMac will stay just as they’re such well known product names but I suspect that the software and services will lose all of their ‘i’ prefixes.

(Although I think that iTunes will remain like that as a ‘legacy’ product).

 

[jpn]

I use iBooks every day and it is so sad that they removed the reading progress on iOS 11. The only way I could tell now is using the 3D touch on my iPhone. I cannot do that on my iPad Pro and I always read on my iPad. I do not know why they removed that feature to begin with. For those screenshots, it looks like it is back!

hi.
sorry, i dont have the beta.
what is the % that is shown under some of the books?

 

[mihike]

I’m not fussed about what it looks like. I just hope Apple FINALLY figures out how to play the audiobook if it’s the last thing you played without pointlessly playing music instead. Audiobooks have been screwed up for years. Hopefully bug fixes really are coming instead of more “pretty” changes.

And Apple, if you can’t fix it, at least make it so it doesn’t take 5 seconds to launch the app (on an iPhone X) so we can go right back to our books every time it screws up.

 

[Solomani]

I suspect this will be a feature that will debut around iOS 13 (yes I know that books isn’t actually part of the OS).
[doublepost=1528837212][/doublepost]

Tbh I’m really glad that they’re phasing out the ‘i’ prefix that on one time seemed to be on nearly every product that Apple had.

It feels a little dated and of course it was meant to denote ‘internet’ ready.

Everything is now internet ready!

I really hope that in 2019, iCloud gets called Cloud. And iMessage becomes Message etc

iPhone, iPad and iMac will stay just as they’re such well known product names but I suspect that the software and services will lose all of their ‘i’ prefixes.

(Although I think that iTunes will remain like that as a ‘legacy’ product).

The only thing worse than i-Names are names that contain special keyboard characters. I think the musician Prince did something similarly stupid, for a couple years he changed his name to some special graphic symbol. That was cute, but impractical at best. It did not last.