An exciting future for readers!

[Dennis S]

Those interested in this thread probably know already that I have become an avid proponent of reading books on the Ipad. Today, on the the "book store" (by tapping on this you can pick from tens of thousands of titles), I noticed a new category of books described as "enhanced". This aroused my curiosity, and as I started exploring the list, I noticed that on of the options is a book comprised of the original notes of John Wesley Powell as he explored the Southwest, most noticeably being the first white man to discover, explore, and run, the rapids of the Colorado river.

I have often read references to these notes, which have been highly praised for their ability to transport he reader back in time and space to experience the fear, wonder and excitement of Indian encounters, climbing canyon cliffs, and other adventures in attempts to see what lay ahead down river, and finally a mix of elation and terror as these brave men shoved of from shore and committed themselves to running the river in old wooden boats.

Two particular things cause me to believe that those who love to read are entering into exciting, wonderful times. First, this book, like many older books, is completely free. Second, I believe I understand what Apple was referring to when it labels some of the book offerings as enhanced. At various places throughout the book there are moving picture illustrations. For example, when the author described the place where two rivers come together, you can choose to tap and see a small "movie", which allows you to see with your own eyes what the author has described, and even hear the rushing waters as the two rivers come together. In time the movie portion of the books will get bigger and better. The printed portion pre-dominates, as there are only a few minutes of movies in the entire book (and I like it that way), but the short movie clips are a fantastic addition.

 

[Duffey]

I hope to purchase an Ipad. Phyllis, VR Phyllis, also has one and often sings its praises. The enhanced feature that you describe makes me want one more than ever, Dennis. Thanks for putting another tally mark in the "why I need an Ipad" column!

 

[Marguerite53]

Wow! Sign me up! Husband and I have matching MacBookPros so we won't be switching to iPad soon, but he did hear that not only will they be selling them at Target (!! or was it Walmart) but that Verizon is going to have them and I'm sure there will be some enhanced communication features in that "marriage".

Thanks for the info, Dennis. I'm so hoping the price will keep dropping so that my 3 twenty-something children can update their poor old tired, over-used college Dell laptops!

How are the Photoshop type programs on the iPad? Can you edit and organize all your wonderful photos on that little thing?

Marguerite

 

[Dennis S]

I think the real value of the iPad for a photographer comes in several areas. First, with a small adaptor (about the size of a postage stamp) you can download your pictures onto something that weighs practically nothing and fits into a large camera bag. This is not a finished product, but the display is outstanding, and lets me know immediately if I am getting the results I want. I have the version that can also connect to the Internet over ATT. This way, wherever I have cell coverage (and for the places I go that is not always the case), I can send photos by email attachment right from the field. Finally, the iPad is a fully functional digital frame, and with the right case could hang on your wall to display the pictures you choose, with any digital music in your library. Right now I can't regulate how long each photo is displayed, but I anticipate that will be dealt with by updating somewhere down the road.

I have only used Photoshop (actually Elements) for one picture. I had two photos that I badly wanted to combine, and I purchased and learned how to use the software for that single picture. I loved the result, and it has been very popular in my limited circles.

So far, that has been my only "Photoshop" inspiration. Mostly I use an Apple program called "Aperture". A while ago I purchased an iMac desktop computer with a fast processor, and big screen. That has been a real luxury, and I can't believe I would ever go back to doing this work on an iPad or laptop.

Marguerite--you may recall my asking for advice about the purchase of a movie camera. After a lot of looking I discovered that Panasonic sells a nice movie camera with tremendous storage capacity that uses something worked out with Apple to allow very fast and convenient output to Apple's iMovie program. I have a movie of a bull elk defending his "harem". The action is great, but I couldn't get close enough for a really good product. I am working on adding music, and might post a link some day. I can see that the guys who do this professionally must have some very, very expensive equipment!

 

[Marcia58]

Dennis, have you been to the Barnes & Noble website eBook section? Lots of freebies (public domain, etc.), as well as inexpensive "start-up authors" (like me) who are bypassing the gatekeepers (aka publishers) by self-publishing eBooks through B&N.

 

[Dennis S]

Marcia--thanks for the tip. I have never been to the Barnes & Noble website, and I will check it out. I should add that, although free books are great, one of the best values for your dollar is a well written book. Reading the work of a good author often transcends the barriers of time, space, and culture. It is as close to magic as any of us will ever get.

 

[Mentu]

Devoted Kindle User

Devoted Kindle User

I've used my Kindle for the past three years and keep it with me always. The new Kindle is a lot smaller package and much less expensive (base price $139) than the Ipad but the files from Amazon can be read on both. One big plus for the Kindle is that the cost of the Internet connection is included in the purchase price so there are no monthly fees. For anyone interested in E Books, on the Amazon Kindle Book website, there is always a list of 100 free books that changes somewhat from month to month.

http://www.amazon.com/b/?ie=UTF8&node=1286228011&tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=6573026111&ref=pd_sl_87t6wof406_b

Also, if you are interested in an "Classic" books, you can download tens of thousands of free books from the Gutenberg Project.
http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/

Another very useful item is "Instapaper". This is a website that can be used to transfer long articles found on websites to a format that is more easily used by devices such as the Kindle and the Ipad.

http://www.instapaper.com/

Larry

 

[Eva]

Very interesting information. Thanks for sharing. I have been talking about Ipad with hubby the last few days and now I am more encouraged

 

[Marguerite53]

Dennis, that is all great info. I purchased some bundled Adobe products with "teacher" discounts when we first bought the MacBookPro (Illustrator, Photoshop, ??). They are technically WAY over my head! I've since wondered that Aperture might be better fun (but I would miss Illustrator). I love hearing how you have really equipped yourself for this passion that is your photography!! Good job!!! It is great that you can go out on your journeys, check your "exposures" before you leave the scene, and perfect your shots before you get back home to your cyber studio! Kind of "old school" masters "new school"!! I love that!:wink2:

I'm glad you found a movie camera that does what you want it to. I found that the iMovie that came with my laptop was somewhat frustrating to use because you have to really use more canned things than I would want to. But it is fun! I definitely hope you will share that movie with us when you are finished.

:biggrin2:Marguerite

 

[Kathy McCain]

Thanks Dennis and Larry for the terrific info! Technology is wonderful thing!

 

[hensylee]

I also have kindle for 3 yrs now and just love it. I read it every day. There are so many free books on Amazon - classics on down the list. Some of the free novels are far better than the ones written by 'today's' authors so I look for them.

I got the $189 kindles for daughter and daughter-in-law (they are avid readers). Mentu is absolutely right that kindle can be read on various other appliances. Even computer. you can download free the kindle to your computer, order books sent to your computer and read away. I did that on my laptop when I lent my kindle to daughter so she could try it out. Amazon downloaded every single book ordered by me from them and it's the exact same list that's on my kindle.

Amazon has it's own way of sending stuff to your kindle. It's called Whispernet and it connects you to Amazon to download - downloads books in seconds.