MacBreak Weekly 283

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MacBreak Weekly
Episode 283


Mbw.jpg
"Author Author"
Hosts: Leo Laporte
Guests: Alex Lindsay, Andy Ihnatko, Adam Christianson
Recorded: January 24th, 2012
Published: January 24th, 2012

Transcript

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MacBreak Weekly 283:

Apple iBooks 2, iBook Author, the new iTunes U App, and much more...

Host

Guests

Topics

MacWorld / iWorld

  • http://www.macworldiworld.com/
  • LL: $25 to get into the exhibits.
    • $100 for the iFanPass
  • AI: They've broken it up to chunks that are much more affordable, rather than spending $1200.
  • LL: AC, are you going to give a talk this year.
  • AC: No, but I'm going to cover the event.
  • AL: There is a good reason to just go to the exhibit, because there is a big selection of all types of products and accessories.
  • LL: look at this picture: *http://montaraventures.com/pix/apple-marketshare.jpg
    • Who are the Apple fans nowadays, as opposed to 5 or 10 years ago.
  • AC: It's still very much centric to the creative and art world, where Apple is really strong.
  • LL: It is a bit disappointing when you go to such an event and all you see is iPhone case, after case, after case…
    • You don't see Microsoft, you don't see Apple… Is it still representative to the Mac community?
  • AL: I think so. The culture is still very much the same.
  • LL: Is Apple alienating its core users by focusing more on consumer products?
    • We are also going to be a MacWorld. We are shooting iPad Today there and are broadcasting it live.
    • And we are going to have a party: at the Continental Hotel at 6 pm.

Apple announces iBooks 2, iBooks Author to "reinvent textbooks"

  • LL: I thought it was a huge announcement.
    • Announcement #1: iBooks 2
      • There are more than textbooks, they are interactive and they are cheap, $14.95
      • The textbooks that were on there are the core curriculum.
      • Charter and private schools can use it, but not public schools.
      • Publishers will love this because there is no resale market.
  • AC: What I would love is the ability to share notes with friends and study buddies.
  • AL: Apple has been working on this for 2 or 3 years.
  • LL: We can stipulate that this is early days.
  • LL:Announcement #2: iBook Author
  • LL: AL, tell us how great it is.
  • AL: It's not great yet but there is a lot of potential
    • You can use widgets, 3d models, videos, etc.
    • We booked $500,000 worth of production since it got released.
    • It's not only the textbook market, but some other uses are interesting, e.g. manuals, etc.
    • And Pixelcorps has been developing all necessary skills for creating such content over the past 12 years.
    • The reason why Apple needs to own this ecosystem is because they are changing how textbooks are made. It would be possible otherwise.
  • AI: I also see a great market beyond the textbooks. Newspapers come to mind for example.
    • Even if you only do a half-a** job, it still is a lot better than anything out there.
    • And if you find someone with design skills you can make this a great product.
  • LL: Is it comparable to InDesign?
  • AI: No, it's really designed for textbooks and you have to adapt to what the iBook Author app is designed to do.
    • It's not very collaborative or scriptable at all.
  • AC: It's what Apple does a lot. They create a great tool and leave it up to the people to create some great content.
  • LL: If you have a already existing Apple dashboard widget's it'll work in iBooks 2?
  • AL: Some will, others not, because it's still dealing with the sandbox environment.
  • LL: Announcement #3: iTunes U App
    • So much more accessible now.
  • AL: How exciting does it get if they start doing interaction.
  • LL: Before there were audio/video lectures
    • Now, they have texts, review questions, tests, etc.
    • The opportunity to learn now is enormous.

iBooks Author end-user license agreement sparks controversy

More iPad Retina images found in iTunes U, iBooks 2 files

Virgin America Names Commercial Airplane After Steve Jobs


Tips & Picks

iOS Tip

  • AL: If you want to find a word on a page in Safari
    • you type it into the search box and on the bottom of the list you have a section that says to search on the page rather than in Google.
  • LL: On the iPad you have a search box on the keyboard.


Lion Tip

  • AI: CMD+OPT+SHIFT+V = Past and match style, which ignores the style of the content in the clipboard and use the one in the document where it'll be pasted.

Picks of the Week

  • AC: NoteShelf, write with pleasure on your iPad, $4.99
  • AI: OnLive Desktop, Windows virtualization on the iPad, free


Plugs

Sponsors

  • [http://www.ford.com/technology/ Ford Technology) Electric and hybrid technology
  • Hover (offer code: macbreak): 10% off on domain name registration
  • GoToMeeting (offer code: macbreak): Safe money by meeting from the comfort of your home/office.

Production Information

  • Edited by:
  • Show notes: Jean-Marie Schweizer (Bushgeek)


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