Chamber Four

• The nook is finally in stock, though you may be better off waiting Apple and Spring Design out to see where prices land. LG is stepping into the ereader/tablet ring. Qualcomm’s Mirasol color display using butterfly wing tech is pretty cool looking. It’ll probably cost too much to be a game changer though. Also new to the game: The Notion Ink Adam uses a Pixel Qi display, whatever the hell that is. Here’s the Bookeen Orizon. [UPDATE: Evidently the iPad is intimidating enough to scare off Acer.]
• I’m not too excited about Apple bringing back FairPlay DRM. It’s no doubt related to their desire to control ebook prices, odd since iBooks isn’t even coming preloaded on the iPad.. I wonder what kind of kiddie-DRM Fisher Price will employto keep toddlers from pirating iXL software. Also in kid ereaders: the VTech Flip.
• It’s just public domain stuff, but it looks like this British library did a decent job with these classics. I like this EFF checklist for reader’s digital rights. Too bad publisher don’t much care about reading the data.
• I adore this vast collection of Lolita covers. The UK Ministry of Defense released all their UFO files to the public…cool. I’m currently reading a collection of post-apocalyptic fiction, so I found Slate’s guide to survival guides pretty cool. Conversely, I find the concept of BookByYou entirely f*@#ing stupid. And for a video, I’m sick of the snow; I’d buy one of these if it actually worked:

and this is just rad:

Happy Halloween boys and ghouls. Here’s some quick suggestions for spooky reads:

Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

This is one of my favorite books of all time. It’s not like anything you’d expect from seeing Karloff flicks, rather it’s steeped in pathos and haunting characterization. Read my mini-review here, and download a free copy here.

.

The Collected Works of Edgar Allan Poe.

He’s the master. Enough said about that. Download for free.

.

.

Pretty much anything written by H.P. Lovecraft

He’s a lesser know master, but a master nonetheless. I’m expecially in favor of “The Call of Chutlhu” and “Herbert West: Reanimator.” Some of his work is public domain as well.

.

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Another great book eclipsed by offshoot Hollywood and pop culture iterations. This book is original and great and old enough to be free.

.

Night Shift by Stephen King

He’s gotten a little redundant in recent years, but I had to include Stephen King on this list.  I happen to love some of the stories included in this collection, however I almost chose Pet Sematary instead, and you can’t go wrong with that choice either.

.

Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Swartz

Remember these books from the Scholastic book fairs? They provide a nice collection of spooky tales and lore. The real draw though is the incredible, creepy illustrations. They seriously gave me nightmares when I was little. Read online.

So after hearing all the hype, I bit the bullet and payed $9.99 to download Eucalyptus. And after reading through a book on it, I have to admit it’s worth the relatively steep price. If only you could import books, rather than be limited to Project Gutenberg’s (admittedly vast) library, it’d be the best reader app available for the iPhone.

The presentation is top notch. Texts are far more readable in Eucalyptus than in the other reader apps I’ve tried. On top of this everything is well organized, intuitive and easy to navigate. They’ve included plenty of animations and graphical touches that give the package a decidedly professional flair. This does wonders negating the fears of buyer’s remorse I had when I first agreed to spend $10. …
Continue reading »

I’ve been listening to a lot of audiobooks recently. They oprovide a great way to multitask (at work, the gym, driving) while plowing through some new books. Paying hardcover prices on iTunes for audiobooks seems a little rediculous to me, especially seeeing how more or less useless audiobooks are once you’ve finished them. That is, if its not a book you plan to re-enjoy soon, there’s little it can do besides waste space. Revisiting sections and searching for quotesor passages is more cumbersome than it is worth.

So I though about getting into a subscription based audiobook program to keep up with newer books, but then I decided just to start borrowing audiobooks from the library and ripping them to my computer. In the meantime, I began getting audiobooks from a site called LibriVox, where volunteers upload recordings of readings from public domain books. I was immediately (and still am a little) astounded at the high quality of the readings and recordings. They are pleasant and professional. They are also free. …
Continue reading »

Project Gutenberg is one of the most aptly titled programs ever. Gutenberg, famously, invented the printing press, and in effect delivered affordable literature to the masses. Project Gutenberg (which began in 1971) not only invented the ebook, but aims to deliver literature back to the masses. Of course literature is easy to find in a bookstore, but believe it or not, you already own thousands of books, even if they aren’t currently in your possession.

…
Continue reading »