News Roundup: Kindle 2.0 Speculation, Wikipedia: The Book, "Dilbert" Embraces User-Generated Content, Mobile Audiobook Downloads, Tracking Drafts and Revisions

Speculation on Kindle 2.0

Ars Technica speculates on what the Kindle 2.0 might provide:

… the general hardware configuration appears to be here for a while. The fact that they’re still selling the current version also suggests that they have committed to this design in all its white-plastic glory. In the long term, there’s still the option of moving some of the awkwardly-placed controls and of improving the E Ink screen (color and improved contrast or faster response times, seem inevitable) … All of this leaves changes to the software as the most likely candidates for 2.0 improvements. Realistically, we could only infer what Amazon considered to an acceptable interface based on what was released as 1.0. If this doesn’t reflect what they “wanted to release in the first place,” then all bets on what may change are off.

German Wikipedia Coming in Book Form

Bertelsmann is putting 25,000 German Wikipedia entries into The One-Volume Wikipedia Encyclopedia. From the New York Times:

Bertelsmann says the project should not be judged as a re-creation in book form of what appears online, but rather as an attempt to harness the collective wisdom of Wikipedia’s users. (Continue reading …)

“Dilbert” Embraces User-Generated Content

“Dilbert” creator Scott Adams and his distributor, United Media, are supporting user-generated content through Dilbert.com. Visitors can rewrite captions and redistribute the results, and the full “Dilbert” archive will eventually be available for free. From Webware:

I asked Adams why he and United Media are opening up the Dilbert intellectual property like this, and he sent me a response by email: “We’re accepting the realities of IP on the Internet, and trying to get ahead of the curve. People already alter Dilbert strips and distribute them. If we make it easy and legal to do so, and drive more traffic to Dilbert.com in the process, everyone wins. Plus it’s a lot of fun to see what people come up with in the mashups.”

UK Service Brings Audiobook Downloads to Mobile Phones

UK-based GoSpoken has partnered with Random House to make 50 audiobook titles available for purchase through the GoSpoken mobile download service. GoSpoken is currently aimed at early adopter UK residents who have broadband-capable cellphones (specifically, HSDPA-enabled) and mobile data plans. (Continue reading …)

Writing and Tracking through Subversion

Programmers use version control systems to track and monitor code revisions. Writers can bring the same functionality to their drafts by following Rachel Greenham’s Mac OS X Subversion tutorial. (Continue reading …)

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