The Potential of E-Book Readers

Sony's announcement of two e-book readers, the Reader Pocket Edition and the Reader Touch Edition (picture on the left), has caught my attention today. This is tough competition for Amazon's Kindle DX, due the following features of the Reader Touch Edition:

1. Touch screen that comes with a stylus that enables users to highlight and write on the "pages" of an electronic book. This feature is useful for bookworms like me.

2. SD memory card slot. Amazon's Kindle does not come with this feature (it has a 4GB internal flash memory). More memory, the better.

3. Nice design, it is sleek and simple. It looks a lot better than the Amazon Kindle (I don't like the many buttons).

Of course, it also comes to mind that the success of e-book readers is dependent on the accessibility of the e-books. From my brief research, the e-books are only available for purchase via online sites that sells for ~$8.00 per e-book (this is expensive for me!). Sony has also announced that you can load e-books "loaned" from local libraries. I don't clearly understand the mechanics of Sony's, but I see this as an opportunity for different ways the e-books can be sold. Here are some ideas:

1. E-books can be purchased on-loan, meaning it would expire after a certain number of days. After the expiry date, the customer can have the option to extend the validity of the e-book in case he/she has not finished reading it, which comes with a price of course. Expiry dates may vary depending on the length of the book, or on the number of days the book will be loaned. This will make e-books more affordable than the current $8.00 per e-book.

2. Book publishers can give special support for e-books by releasing e-books ahead of the physical book release. Of course, this comes with a special rate.

3. In countries with lower online purchase rates such as the Philippines where I'm from, e-books can be made available in bookstores in the malls. I think tie-ups with bookstores are essential even in other countries.

4. The e-book readers can include a SIM slot for 3G Wi-Fi access. There can be special websites designed for browsing via e-books (most likely these are e-book online stores).

I have this other random idea: What if these e-book readers function as an mp3 player too? I sometimes like to listen to music while I'm reading. Hmm Apple E-Reader? :D

I'd hope this entry has sparked your interest and possibly, for more ideas. Please feel free to comment, I'd like to hear your thoughts. :) Read more...

Before the Fallout by Diana Preston

--- This is not a book review! ---

"Before the Fallout" is one of the most impressive non-fiction books I've ever read and I revere Diana Preston's extensive research for creating this masterpiece.

The atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima was such a defining moment in history and this book somehow goes "behind-the-scenes" of it all. Before reading this book, I must admit that I was naive and have often wondered how mankind can be so evil to have created such a destructive weapon. People back then didn't simply decide, "let's drop a bomb to end the war". Such a bomb did not exist back then.

To quote from the author, "The destructive flash that seared Hiroshima into history was the culmination of fifty years of scientific creativity and more than fifty years of political and military turmoil. Generations of scientists contributed to that moment in physics." Before the Fallout, containing 340 pages, tells the story behind those two sentences.

Marie Curie, Ernest Rutherford, Niels Bohr, Albert Einstein, Werner Heisenberg, and Robert Oppenheimer were among the brilliant scientists featured in the book.

I'd like to share some of the interesting stories and anecdotes:

1. During World War II, Niels Bohr and his son Aage Bohr were invited to become part of the top-secret Manhattan Project (the organization tasked to create the atomic bomb). They sailed to the United States from London under their assumed names of Nicholas and James Baker. As they disembarked, the FBI agents who met them were horrified to see "NIELS BOHR" written in large black letters on the suitcase of "Nicholas Baker".

2. In 1910, there were rumors that Marie Curie (widowed at that time) and Paul Langevin (a married man) were engaged in an affair. The letters they wrote to each other were most likely stolen by Langevin's brother-in-law, Henry Bourgeouis. There was even evidence that Henry was paid blackmail money by Marie to prevent the letters' disclosure. In 1911 when Marie Curie had been awarded a second Nobel Prize for Chemistry, these issues surfaced again when Gustave Tery, an editor of the weekly L'Oeuvre, published extracts from the Curie-Langevin letters. This prompted Langevin to challege the editor to a duel. Nothing happened to the duel since both men did not raise their weapons.

3. Los Alamos was the location for the Manhattan Project. Houses were setup for the scientists and their families to live. Many babies were born in Los Alamos during this time as many couples decided to start families there. However, there was one problem: there was the perennial shortage of diapers. Some of the scientists blamed Leslie Groves (military leader of the Manhattan Project), believing he had arranged for this on purpose.

4. Niels Bohr and Ernest Rutherford have something in common. They both liked to disassemble clocks as a child. Read more...

Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince movie

--spoiler alert!--

Last month, I watched Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and of all the Harry Potter movies ever made, this has got to be the most disappointing for me. From the past HP movies, I have already prepared myself not to set high expectations. What disappointed me was how the movie failed to show the importance behind Dumbledore's mission in his quest for the Horcruxes, which was crucial information that he passed on to Harry in book 6 that became key in his victory against Voldemort later on.

Instead of ranting my disappointment, I would like to recommend on how it could have been a better movie:

1. The main characters, especially Harry and Dumbledore, could show more emotions because I felt kind of detached from them. Surprisingly, the lesser characters in the movie that showed more depth were Draco Malfoy and Professor Slughorn. I am saying this because when Dumbledore died in the movie, I just didn't feel it.

2. Less emphasis on Malfoy's vanishing cabinet. There were too many scenes showing this to the point that it bored me, especially when Malfoy placed a bird in the cabinet to test if it worked. Not important!

3. The Ministry of Magic could have shown more presence. I understand why this can be omitted in the movie, but it could introduce that there was a new Minister of Magic (Rufus Scrimegeour). Since the Ministry played such a big part in the 5th movie, I just thought it should still show its presence in the 6th movie.

4. Provide more explanation on the Horcrux. Dumbledore should've explained the significance of the locket, that it was a Slyltherin heirloom. And that the diary in the second Harry Potter movie was a horcrux, along with other objects such as the ring that caused Dumbledore's hand to burn. The movie kept showing Dumbledore's burnt hand with the ring, yet it didn't explain how it happened.

On a positive side, I liked the cave scene at the ending. It was exactly how I imagined it would be like in the movie.
Read more...