Re: A "ebook reader" for anywhere, anytime

Well, instead of theorizing about what might happen, I asked the people
who make WikiReader (OpenMoko) about the possibility of using their
device as an ebook reader.

Here is what they said to me in return (from email):

"Right now we only support Wikipedia. Next on our roadmap is 
multilingual support. It's going to be a while before we venture outside 
of Wikis :-)

"It would be possible but would require software development. Our 
internal roadmap is focused on Wikipedia and adding more language support. 
If you would like us to keep you posted, please signup for our newsletter:

" http://thewikireader.com/update.html "



So, as tantalizing as it may look, it doesn't look feasible at this point,
and it doesn't look like OpenMoko are intending to go in that direction
any time in the near future.

Of course, an open architecture means outsiders might do so.

Tony

--- In [email protected], Chris Smith <smith@...> wrote:
>
> 
> I was surprised to discover this item in the past few days, and 
> learned that it managed to launch with very little fanfare.
> 
> The designers behind this appear to have done some very serious 
> thinking about what is absolutely needed for a go-anywhere 
> reader, and eliminated everything else.
> 
> Go read ... http://thewikireader.com/story.html
> 
> The WikiReader manages hit a lot of points that many device 
> designers seem to miss...
> 
> - no wireless AT ALL. This saves space, power, complexity, and 
> cost. The cost is particularly import when, as they note, 75% of 
> the world is offline. Quite frankly, I find the raves over 
> wireless to be contrary to what would make sense for a long-term 
> reading device. I can get much of this reaction when I tell 
> people that "I installed Wikipedia on my netbook".
> 
> - 2 AA batteries. You can always find those.
> 
> - LCD display. Yes, it's monochrome LCD. The old-fashioned and 
> cheap way to get to low-power consumption.
> 
> - no onboard memory. It will always be cheaper for users to 
> install the flash memory they need - no more, no less - than for 
> the company to charge you last year's prices for a one-size fits 
> all memory. It also allows the slightly more sophisticated user 
> to keep a couple of memory cards on hand with a variety of 
> content (eg; Wikipedia, classic fiction, recent news).
> 
> - open structures for data. Read that carefully. It should be 
> fairly straightforward to install any text you can find into this 
> device. Although the device appears to use proprietary formats, 
> this is 'proprietary' in the sense of 'custom', not in the sense 
> of 'locked down'. It looks like there are open entry points (that 
> do not involve uploading your work a server) to allow you to 
> bring content into the device. I've seen suggestions that the 
> device itself is relatively open to mods and hacking.
> 
> - all of this allows them to hit a very sweet price point of $99. 
> Note that this looks to be the mass-market, going-forward price - 
> it's not a startup discount, nor a price based on future revenues 
> from content. When you pay $99, you get a device and they get a 
> profit. This goes back to the open device (above). When they get 
> paid back just by selling you the device, then the company 
> selling it doesn't worry if you mod it or hack it, since you 
> aren't hitting their business model. Heck - really good hacks 
> *improve* their business model, since they sell more devices.
> 
> These people have done the industrial design work that I wish 
> more companies would actually do. I've seen the guts of this 
> device, and it shows an incredible economy of scale. Heck, the 
> battery clips are mounted on the (only) circuit board. They even 
> eliminated paint from the manufacturing process.
> 
> The only limitation appears to be the screen size, which is 
> certainly partly cost, but is also aimed at making the device 
> super portable. The resolution appears to be reasonable given the 
> device size.
> 
> Finally, from my point of view, they beat the Kindle to market.
> 
> My take? This device has more potential to drive ebooks than any 
> device I've seen to date. Although the initial launch emphasizes 
> Wikipedia as content, it will be interesting to see if 
> alternative content can generate even more buzz. They already 
> offer a Wikipedia subscription (they mail you the microSD card), 
> so they have everything in place to start selling other content 
> offerings.
> 
> 
> : chris smith ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
> : nihil tam munitum quod non expugnari pecunia possit - cicero :
>




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