14 DAY TRIAL // Apple is using Inside iTunes to promote iBooks 2, a new version of the company’s e-reading app that now supports “a whole new level of Multi-Touch interactivity.”
Not only that, but textbook authors and publishers can take advantage of these enhancements to deliver an even more compelling message.
So, everything starts with the new iBooks 2 app. It’s free on the iTunes App Store at this here address. When you’re finished installing it, Apple recommends downloading one of the free interactive textbooks that are currently available.
The company’s suggestion is E.O. Wilson's Life on Earth. Here’s what Apple has to say about it:
“Once you've upgraded iBooks, get E.O. Wilson's Life on Earth (free) in the iBookstore, and explore the examples of interactivity within it. The Introduction to Ecology chapter in particular makes use of several different techniques now possible--single images become galleries you can swipe through for a more complete illustration of the point; data maps become movies that show how the data changes over time, some under fingertip control; tappable images are linked to regions on a map; and the creators are just getting started.”
Of course, not all books are free. And while the paid ones aren’t all that expensive either (around 15 bucks each), every title comes with a free sample to allow the customer to make up their mind about purchasing the full book.
A set of four books from DK Publishing, which are not categorized as textbooks, also have free samples on offer.
Finally, the Mac maker touts the new iBooks Author app. It’s available in the Mac App Store and it’s sort of like the iOS software development kit for book writers.
“If you're also interested in creating Multi-Touch books yourself, explore the free iBooks Author app for the Mac, available in the Mac App Store,” says Apple.
It only works on Macs, and it requires iTunes 10.5.3, so that you can sync a book to an iPad and see how it behaves on the multi-touch display.