In what is arguably the most significant week in publishing this decade – maybe even this century – we’re giving Apple’s newly launched iPad a rigorous examination – and coming to a surprising verdict – in this week’s edition of Litopia After Dark.
Will Steve Jobs’ multi-function e-reader succeed in changing our lives in the same way as Gutenberg’s movable type did in the 15th century? The stakes could hardly be higher. The iPad is almost certainly his enduring legacy to the world – and his personal bid for historical immortality. Many in the publishing industry itself are fervently hoping that this new type of product – a “device of the third category” as Jobs calls it – will rescue the business from extinction. Will they be proved right – or wrong?
We’ve got a terrific panel to discuss this and other topics tonight – Simon Flynn, managing director of Icon Books, is our voice from the business itself, and of course there’s Donna Ballman (whose new book The Writer’s Guide to the Courtroom is just out) and Dave Bartram to inject reality and wit in equal measure. Also on the panel tonight is John Quirk, whose own newly-formed publishing business is being tracked on Litopia Daily.
Other topics on tonight’s show include:
- Where are the extra-terrestrials? It’s too quiet out there
- P. Diddy blows £220,000 on a luxury car for his teenage son
- Discriminating against unreliable people is illegal
- Chimpcam enables monkey porn
- Write what you know – that should leave you with a lot of free time
- Publishers holding new talent contests – the latest author rip-off?
This week’s titles for the Commissioning Meeting are:
DONNA
“Grimm Tales Made Gay”
Guy Wetmore Carryl, 1873-1904
Illustrator Albert Levering, 1869-1929JOHN
“Gutta-Percha Willie”
George MacDonald, 1824-1905SIMON
“The Melting of Molly”
Maria Thompson Daviess, 1872-1924DAVE
“Manhood Perfectly Restored: Prof. Jean Civiale’s Soluble Urethral Crayons as a Quick, Painless, and Certain Cure for Impotence, Etc.”
Civiale Remedial Agency
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Back lighting is a problem not a benefit when it comes to reading. No keyboard makes it worthless for any writing more than a brief note. They do have a keyboard dock and I assume you can use a bluetooth keyboard, but if you’re going to carry a keyboard and an iPad the MacBook Air seems to me the better choice.
Good points. I’ve always instinctively liked the idea of a tablet pc… but never bought one. And I do wonder whether the iPad might be rather the same – an impressive piece of gear that doesn’t quite suit anyone. But if anyone can pioneer this new market, it’ll be Apple…