While reading a technical book, I came across a footnote referencing a source citation with a Wikipedia URL. I frowned upon seeing an encyclopedia as a source. A book or article would be more useful to me. Ignoring the arguments about the quality of Wikipedia versus other encyclopedias, let’s look at problems on how this turns into a source citation failure.

It turns out the specific URL has changed, and Wikipedia redirects to a the same topic on another page. However, there is no mention of the specific point referenced by the book as someone has since updated the entry. The page also boldly states at the top that the entry “needs attention from an expert on the subject.”

The author of the book is an expert on this topic, but chooses to cite an encyclopedia entry in need of improvement, and the point in question has since been edited out. No value to the reader.

Please cite a solid source that provides more information to the reader.

Support authors. Buy a book (or three.)

Below is my incomplete list of ebooks by Friday Flash participants. The best part about Friday Flash is diversity, and the same is true for this list of books. There is something for everyone.

I have read several of these titles, and the rest are on my reading list. Sure, ebooks don’t impress people like print books sitting on a shelf, but you’re a reader! (You could always take a snap of your digital bookshelf like I did.) Even if you don’t have a fancy ebook reader, you can enjoy their books on your PC, phone or iPod (and some are available in print.) Smashwords supports many formats or read online.

If you’re creating an ebook for Smashwords, consider formatting working contents supporting PDF, epub, mobi, and iPad. See my post on formatting.

Books are cheap. Buy them all! (At least sample.)

_______________________________________________________

13 Horror Stories by John McDonell (McDonnellWrite.) Sample on Smashwords.

A Breath of Life and Other Stories by Eric J. Krause (ericjkrause) is a collection of shorts. Find it at Smashwords or Amazon.

A, B & E by Marc Nash (21stCscribe) is in paperback at Amazon.

Deadlands Hunt by G L Drummond (Scath) is part of a world of stories. Sample on Smashwords .

Don’t Fall Asleep by Laura Eno (lauraeno) begins the Dream Assassin series. Find it on Smashwords or Amazon.

A Fine Cast of Characters by J. Dane Tyler (DarcKnyt) is a collection. Sample at Smashwords.

The First Tale by Icy Sedgwick (icypop) takes place in her Vertigo City from her serial shared on Tuesday Serial available at Smashwords.

From Dark Places by Emma Newman (EmApocalyptic) is a collection available on Smashwords.

Must Love Dragons by Monica Marier (lil_monmon) is a novel available at Lulu.

Password Incorrect by Piotr Kowalczyk (namenick) is a collection. Sample on Smashwords.

Prophecy Moon by Laura Eno (lauraeno) is a fantasy novella about love, wizards, and worlds. Sample at Smashwords or Amazon.

RealmShift by Alan Baxter (AlanBaxter) is a novel. Available at Smashwords and Amazon.

Something’s Not Right by Trevor Mcpherson (3S_stories) is a collection of shorts. Your biggest disappointment might be how short this book is, but the stories pack a punch. Available at Smashwords.

Strange New Feet by Shannon Esposito (soesposito) is a science-politics novella available at Smashwords and Amazon.

You’ll also find some of your favorite Friday Flash authors in these collections:

• Best of Friday Flash – Volume One edited by J.M. Strother is available at Smashwords.
• The Yin and Yang Book edited by Jodi Cleghorn and Paul Anderson at chinesewhisperings.com

________________________________________________

Screen shot of iPad bookshelf

Is the iPad magical? That depends on your definition of magic. Revolutionary? Maybe, maybe not. In under two months, over two million units have sold beating expectations. Why? The iPad is not for Apple “fanboys” or “techies.” The iPad is what computers should strive to be, a device that brings the user closer to their data.

User Case: Non-Techie

I showed a book lover an iPad. At first she almost seemed skeptical. She doesn’t get along with computers. Gizmos never impress her. Copying a file between drives is an advanced concept. After a few minutes, she warmed up to the device—a little. A couple weeks later she put the iPad through a full test.

After a few days, she had purchased books and installed a couple apps. Then she went on a trip. She had no trouble connecting to wi-fi networks at airports or homes of relatives. Not only did she read several books, but she took notes, imported photos, added pictures to her contacts, e-mail, and more! On her return, she showed me a funny YouTube video and had no trouble bringing it back up—a process she’s not as familiar with on other computers. Just a couple taps and we were watching it.

After just two weeks, this person—a technology hater—uses the iPad extensively. She now uses Mail on iPad instead of accessing her e-mail on the desktop computer. Why? Mail for iPad is so much easier. She wants more applications on the iPad, ones that helps her get work done.

Some Questions for Software Engineers and Designers

• Why does MS Windows make it so difficult to connect to a wireless network?
• Why are so many applications cluttered with buttons, menus, bells-and-whistles, many of which never get used?
• Why are users more concerned about file systems and CPU stats than using their data?
• Why do so many basic applications consume so much memory and run slow?
• Why do computers still use the same design; file systems, windows concept, a mouse since the 1960s?
• Why is your OS or application hard to use?

Software engineers and designers: Are you paying attention?

Evolution

We are at a major transition point in computer evolution. Users want to get closer to their data and work more efficiently. Let’s move away from the large applications that try to do everything and come up short, and move to applications that do a few things very well. And let’s get things done on computers that are easier to use. The iPad sales show that consumers are ready for the transition. The iPad may not be the future, but it marks the a step in the evolution of the computer.

Is the iPad magical? You bet your butt it is.

Hear the origins of the iPad from Steve Jobs on this D8 video.

B&N eReader for iPad screen shot

Barnes and Noble released their eReader for iPad a few days ago. Similar to the Kindle Reader, B&N eReader uses Safari to find and purchase books. Only books purchased from B&N are available on supported devices. Even though eReader uses the ePub format, there is no support for reading DRM-free ePub books from other sources. Which is fine since iBooks allows this. B&N eReader covers the basics including text search, bookmarking, and built-in dictionary. The table of contents is a nice looking pop-up. Where the eReader excels is in thematic presentation allowing shades of colors for when black-on-white might be too much contrast. There is also a button for publisher’s choice theme keeping the presentation closer to the intended look, or a “Night Light” which uses a black background to keep the light level low. Missing is a built-in brightness adjustment as in iBooks, but the themes nearly make up for it. The big feature B&N supports is book lending, but not all books are available for lending.

I like the B&N eReader over Kindle Reader. Choosing between iBooks and B&N will likely depend on availability and price of the book. That’s the best part: choice. With several book readers and a huge selection of books, the iPad is looking like one darn good reading device.

See the review on Gizmodo.

If you’re new to digital books or have a shiny new digital book reader, you may be wondering where to find books. Some stores use DRM that may limit the book to a device, while others sell DRM-free books allowing you transfer the book to a new device. Below are some quick lists to help get you started.

eBook Stores

• iBookstore for iPad
• Amazon using Kindle software
• Barnes & Noble using nook or B&N reader
• O’Reilly [technical, DRM-free]
• Smashwords [some free, DRM-free]
• Feedbooks [many free, DRM-free]
• Project Gutenberg [free, DRM-free]

The iBookstore provides searching Project Gutenberg, but if you are shopping elsewhere you may find it easier to download an ePub using your PC then import the book using iTunes same as a song.

iPad reading software

• iBooks (need to add, not included out of the box)
• Kindle for iPad
• GoodReader for PDF and MS Office documents.

iPhone / iPod Touch reading software

• Kindle for iPhone
• Stanza
• GoodReader
• Barnes & Noble

Android reading software

• Aldiko

PC reading software

• Adobe Digital Editions

Digital Reading

Until recently, I considered myself a traditional reader especially with technical books. I preferred using the physical book, marking pages and quickly flipping through to find something. PDF documents on the PC are difficult to work with, and many eBooks on the PC aren’t much better with the ability to search as the only benefit. Searching usually just jumps through the document, but the iBooks search reveals a list of results showing surrounded context. Some of my technical books are full of sticky notes, many of which I’ve forgotten their purpose for being there and end up checking each one. Digital readers make bookmarking cleaner.

The iPad using iBooks and GoodReader has changed my opinion. The iBooks bookmarking tool is handy. I highlight as much text to give me enough information, a reminder that may be all I need in a pinch. If I need to read more, I can jump to the page. Devices like Kindle and iPad allow the reader to hold and carry the device like a book, even leaf through pages. Even better, I can now carry my 1,500 page technical book around without breaking my back. Another great bonus: some technical eBooks get updates downloaded straight to my reader. No need to visit the web for corrections.

The pages of my favorite book has turned yellow and the spine is falling apart. I read it too much. When I replace it, I will get the eBook.

The iPad works great as a reader allowing hours of comfortable reading using iBooks. Some avid readers using e-Ink devices may be hesitant about considering LCD screen due to eye fatigue. Don’t be. With proper brightness adjustment, the iPad is perfectly suitable for hours of reading.

Problems with e-Ink

The technology e-Ink uses still has a ways to go before it is ready. Faster refresh, improved graphics, and color are necessary for the demands of daily reading and computing. Think about all the textbooks with illustrations and diagrams. The slow refresh and lack of graphics severely limits interactive applications; no interactive or multimedia storytelling.

Problems with LCD

Three primary reasons for eyestrain, headaches, and fatigue when viewing a monitor: flicker, poor lighting, and low quality (low res or blurry) screen. LCD screens don’t flicker. Apple only uses good quality screens, and the iPad produces sharp enough text. That leaves lighting.

Lighting is key when working at a computer for many hours. I see too many super-bright screens especially at night. Some screens—including the iPad—automatically adjust for room brightness, but screens need initial calibration for the user and may need adjustments in extreme lighting situations such as direct sunlight or a dark room. Lower the brightness.

Keep reflections away using proper lighting and screen position. The iPad screen is only moderately reflective, and I barely notice it.

The iPad includes a brightness adjustment in settings, and iBooks includes a quick brightness adjustment during reading. Eyes should never squint or become tired at the proper brightness. Like reading physical books, looking around occasionally keeps eyes from becoming fatigued.

My book in iBooks

Why I prefer the iPad

The iPad is a truly portable computer. I can do work including write this blog. Apps allow many possibilities for storytelling that we haven’t even thought of yet, and iBooks is currently the best eReader for traditional book reading. The touch technology and interface of iPad and iPhone is a joy to use. And my story, Dunston Monster, looks great in iBooks.

Someday we may have a “screen” that is a flexible paper-like colored touch display, but until then I’ll stick with touch LCD display.

This post produced using iPad: Written in iWork Pages then pasted into WP dashboard using Safari and edited.

The eBook is a digital copy of the physical book, same concept as in 1971 when Project Gutenberg was founded. Much has changed since 1971 including the Web where we may find many eBooks in formats included text, PDF, HTML, XML, ePub, Kindle, Open eBook, and more. PDF is great layout for print, but not as useful on the screen. Some modern eBooks contain hyperlinks, but otherwise remain the same as the original concept.

The eBook is trying hard to be like print.

Current eBook readers are lost in the past. Amazon Kindle, Sony Reader, Stanza, Zinio, and others are simple print replacements. They offer nothing functionally new and few of them do better than print. Some readers present books poorly lacking the nice format we are accustomed to in print.

Single function reading devices like Kindle come with big price tags at $250-$400, but Forrester Research shows that consumers want to pay under $100 for a single purpose reader. E Ink produces a paper-like display, but even after they add color, a quality view isn’t enough for the price.

Students hate lugging stacks of textbooks, but carrying multiple devices is not much of an improvement. And some publishers are trying to rent textbooks (eBook only lasts 180 days; see Mashable “3 Reasons Students Aren’t Ready“) at print prices.

A few readers try to mimic print exactly. The Zinio reader uses a layout approach presenting magazines on screen where the reader gives the feel of the printed magazine including animated page flipping. Why does a digital version need to mimic print? Format for reading devices.

Future digital books will bring new concepts, new ways of telling stories. At basic level, an eBook must support connecting common items including linking related stories, jumping to author biography, finding similar books, going to and from an appendix. Hyperlinks accomplish this, but digital books need more. Imagine an instruction book including optional video clips. Vook is video embedded book, and this is only the start. Educational books may include sounds, connect students together, import new material, quiz the student, or provide alternate instruction. New ways of telling stories will go beyond the eBook.

New digital readers supporting other functions will push basic readers out of the market, and they are just around the corner. Even better, other functions allow storytellers to deliver new forms. What about consumers that just want to read a traditional story? New readers support that as well. And there’s always print.

Gizmodo shows a sample of Microsoft’s Courier, a dual screen device based on a traditional organizer. The video gives us a peek at the near future. These smaller devices will replace notebook computers as the business travel companion. Heavy work can wait for the office while those with mobile offices may prefer keeping their computers. By including other functions, the Courier may have a future in storytelling.

Apple may introduce a multifunction device like a larger iPod Touch aimed at reading. Applications allow future formats revealing new ideas to fit right in. Consumers want to see Apple’s attempt at doing e-reader right.

Future digital books will kill current readers. The old eBooks may survive as free content to support print books, future digital books, or other products.

Just as they gain popularity, eBook readers are dead on arrival.

What others say:

• TIME points out that as e-reader gains traction, it may become obsolete.
• “Sony’s E-Reader: A Nice Device at the Wrong Price” at Portfolio.com
• “The iPod Decade And The Steve Jobs Effect“
• Adam Penenberg declares, “It’s the End of the Book as We Know It,” calling Kindle “clumsy” with an “uninspiring interface.”
• Techdirt is “Still Debating The Cost of Ebooks.”
• At LibraryJournal, Roy Tennant declares “Single Purpose E-Book Readers are Dead.”
• Macworld: “Apple looms large over e-reader market.”
• “On Formats and Friction” talks about the need for better formatting.
• Penny Arcade reaction to Kindle popularity in the comic, “Progress.”
• Newsweek: “The Hype is Right” on Apple’s new device.

In the essay, “Post-Medium Publishing,” Paul Graham claims that consumers never pay for content. He begins with the observation that publishers set prices based on the cost of production and distribution of the format. The essay offers some consideration about the future of book publishing.

Do consumers pay for content?

I have never heard of a consumer paying for unwanted content.

Let us assume the consumer wants the content, and that the essay does not infer that consumers are unwilling to pay for content, simply chasing after the cheapest form of the content, otherwise libraries would have put bookstores out of business years ago. The consumer wants the content and is willing to pay. But does the consumer actually pay for the content?

Consider this question from the essay:

If audiences were willing to pay more for better content, why wasn’t anyone already selling it to them? There was no reason you couldn’t have done that in the era of physical media. So were the print media and the music labels simply overlooking this opportunity?

Art is subjective. Not everyone agrees on what makes good content. Many titles target an audience. Even the experts can’t always explain why a certain title sells as much as it does.

The reason publishers set prices by cost of production is profit. Graham points out that the idea is to sell the content as cheap as possible. Competition forces a publisher to keep the price as low as possible earning profit in number of sales.

Publishers take chances on unknown artists often losing money from sales too few to cover production and distribution. Sales of popular titles cover the losses. This results in poor selling titles priced too high. Consumer are more likely to purchase better content reflected in number of sales.

Some titles are priced too high for the content, and consumers are less willing to pay the asking price.

New release prices are nearly the same for a format, but look at older titles. Prices tend to fall as a title ages, faster for some mediums. Video game prices fall after a few months, the most popular titles remaining at their initial price for over a year. Look at releases from October 2008: Fallout still sells for initial release price (as of today: $50 for the PC download) while Fable 2, Dead Space, and Golden Axe have fallen in price.

Popular content maintains higher value.

Consumers may purchase entire video games without any physical media. Additionally, they may purchase downloadable content (DLC.) While some DLC adds more length to a game, others are there merely for aesthetics such as additional costumes for characters including LittleBigPlanet, or the Horse Armor for Elder Scrolls: Oblivion. Pure content; nothing physical, and consumers pay.

Graham states that free copies online compete with the publisher’s distribution. This is not true given that titles are available online for free. Consider classics available at Project Gutenberg, and many consumers still purchase the physical books. Some authors give away stories for free while selling physical and digital copies on Amazon. Will this change in the future?

Neil Gaiman pointed out on Twitter (here and here) that his novel, The Graveyard Book remains on the New York Times “Best Sellers” (Chapter books, #8) after a year even though a free copy is available online. Take a look at his blog post on this topic.

Graham claims that prices will continue to fall once writers realize they don’t need publishers. This is not entirely true. Publishers need to change since writers will still need marketing, editors, and all the little things that sell stories. Authors may choose between self-publishing and a digital publisher. Prices will fall.

Amazon is already driving prices down by selling many of the big new releases at a loss trying to increase Kindle adoption (read more: Beliefnet.) However, publishers may combat this by delaying eBook release after hardcover much like they do for paperbacks. Since the cost of production and distribution of an eBook is lower than the printed book, we see a greater range in price. An eBook by an unknown author may sell for $1 or $2 while new release eBooks by established authors go for $10 on Amazon. Will the cheaper eBook titles force prices of titles by established authors down?

Graham calls iTunes a “tollbooth”, a gateway to the iPod. Apple’s iTunes is a software product. The iTunes Store is a store. No tollbooth here. The consumer doesn’t need the iTunes Store. Audiophiles and prefer using iTunes as a tool to push uncompressed original CD tracks into their iPods. Consumers may also choose other stores for their music purchases. Apple’s store is popular because it’s a good, convenient store. If it was all about getting content as cheap as possible, everyone would download pirated copies.

Graham implies that businesses pay for software due to laws. This is not true.

Software applications are tools like hammers and wrenches. Tools may include content, but tools are not content. Workers use the best tool for the job. Photoshop CS4 allows the user to edit images. Gimp, an open source product, also edits images for free. A graphic artist may choose to pay for Photoshop CS4 for productivity and special needs not available in Gimp. Commercial software may also come with services. Consumers want to pay for quality tools that help them get the job done. Otherwise everyone would pick free open source software putting Microsoft and Adobe out of business.

Consider this point from the essay:

What happens to publishing if you can’t sell content? You have two choices: give it away and make money from it indirectly, or find ways to embody it in things people will pay for.

The music business struggles in the transition to digital delivery, trying to sell content. They have gone after iTunes Store demanding performance fees for the 30 second samples (read more: cnet.)

Benefits to giving away content:

1. Piracy is not an issue.
2. Increase awareness about the artist.
3. Drive demand for products.

These benefits may convince artists and publishers to give away books and music to make money indirectly from concerts, merchandise, and future distributions of content yet to come.

Some books are overpriced for their content, and consumers choose to pay for better content. Popular content maintains value selling at higher prices. Consumers pay for games without physical media, DLC, and music from iTunes Store. Therefore, consumers pay for content.

The future may bring new forms of storytelling (read more: The Huffington Post,) and the stories we know today may be given away free. Better AI may bring video games and storytelling closer. Imagine the idea behind Storybird blossoming into some new forms of interactive storytelling.

Whatever the future brings, consumers will pay for the content.

In an earlier post, “Short Fiction Decline“, I point out Neil Clarke’s post on the decline of short fiction publication readership. He remains optimistic due to some new online publications showing promise. A recent post, “More Crappy News for Short Story Writers” by Seth Fischer starts a discussion on short story collections including a response by one story blog, and a post by Larry Dark. Please take a look at these posts including the informative comments on Fischer’s post.

Some points brought up in the discussion:

1. Novels get more promotion.
2. Book publishers avoid short fiction.
3. Some short fiction sells.
4. Competition with instant access media.
5. Consumers today have shorter attention spans (??)
6. Some readers want immersion with long stories.
7. Traditional books may not be the best place for short fiction.

I noted #5 as a question because of the debate in the comments under Fischer’s post: Does short fiction benefit? One comment points out that short stories may require more dedication by the reader. Do readers have short attention spans? Not avid readers.

For the average consumer, finding short fiction is a challenge. Large book chains no longer carry literary magazines leaving a consumer searching through small independent book stores gazing at a limited supply. Publishers and retail stores promote novels. Dark points out that some story collections sell very well. Short fiction sells when promoted.

Perhaps consumers have grown a taste for novels finding short stories more difficult to enjoy. They want immersion.  Reading short fiction is not the same as reading a novel. And when curious consumers try a few short stories, they find boring literary prose, some incomplete stories without a beginning or ending. Or the reader finds a genre magazine full of poorly written stories. Searching for online publications may results in ugly websites with bizarre text colors making reading a chore. So, many readers stick to short stories written by familiar authors like Stephen King. And big book publishers cringe at the idea of a short story collection.

Short fiction needs a platform. If publications want to survive in this world full of noise they need to be part of the community with their readers. Help readers find the stories they want to read. Share knowledge by taking part in other communities. Design beautiful websites with easy navigation. And promote good writers.

Writers need to join the community, work with publications, improve their skills. Write fantastic short stories.

Short fiction readership is in decline. Like many periodicals, short fiction publications face distribution issues, fight for tighter shelf space, and compete with other media. Collections of short stories compete with novels. The traditional newspaper is extinct, and magazines follow close behind. In order for short fiction to survive, it needs to change with the times.

Neil Clarke of Clarkesworld charts the decline in readership of short fiction magazines. Even though several magazines have ended, Clarke points out that a few new launches are attracting attention including Tor.com. Print magazines face distribution issues, and need to change in order to survive. Over at iRoSF, talk of declining short fiction readership includes discussions about if the short fiction market is supported primarily by the writers themselves. Other new publications have opened up including a few in the Twitter micro-fiction market.

Noise is a problem. So much competes for readers attention including social media such as Facebook, YouTube, and blogs. Kristine Kathryn Rusch in “What’s Louder than Noise?” points out the difficulty of authors getting noticed, including established authors. Rusch claims that the great American novel is now an impossibility. Michael Hyatt points out in “The Importance of Building Your Platform” that new published books grew in last year competing for the same shelf space* along with more media competing for attention.

Short story delivery changes over time. Before the printing press, people shared stories orally using poetry to help remember the telling. Plays make room for movies. Newspapers move online delivering news faster and cheaper. Technology changes entertainment moving stories onto paper and into new media. We now have digital book readers using technology like electronic paper displays. Michael Miner of Chicago Reader reports on Dan Sinker’s idea of delivering short stories to cell phones via CellStories.net. Many read news articles while at the coffee shop. Why not fiction? Last year, Stephen King and Marvel teamed up to produce a graphic adaption of a short story. Or on a lower budget, some magazines such as Weird Tales show interest in video flash fiction. Storybird encourages users to collaborate using story and art to produce works that others can view or play with like a toy. Stories in video games grow more complex each year, including interactive stories. What new story sharing methods await us?

We still have plays, we have paper books, and we continue to tell stories orally. We also have new means to enjoy our stories, keep our stories, and share our stories. And that’s the way we want it. Both authors and publications need to build their platforms, survive the noise. Short fiction publication must change.

*Here “shelf space” refers to total outlets including “On Demand” besides traditional published books. Bowker reports on US book distribution for last year showing traditional books declined.