I think people are forgetting about printed computer magazines - e.g. Linux Journal, APC, etc. They have a restricted column magazine format, and they often use TinyURLs when publishing links.
Why not just print a short url to a page listing all the links in the book? Individually referenced by chapter/paragraph/diagram. So, something like www.linuxjournal/~fred/links.html or www.fred-the-writer.com/links.html
Also, the bonus to that is links could be updated after print publication.
The entire thing strikes me as a bogus problem (bad organization) solved with a bogus solution (tinyurl).
I have noticed that GameSpot, one of the biggest gaming sites in internet, has been using TinyURLs for external links since some months ago. The problem with this is that those site's Page Rank at Google get lowered because they aren't being linked directly. I am not sure why they would do that, though.
That's a good point. It messes up page rankings and I wish I had been the one to mention that. Heh.
But also, I think there's a business problem with using tinyurl in that as a business you're creating a portal to your site, and your domain is your brand. If you're doling out links to a different domain, then you're:
not representing your brand
confusing the customer
creating unnecessary dependencies on 3rd party companies in which you have no real business relationship
If the reason is for making it easier to tell customers where to go over the phone, then the documents aren't organized well. If the pages are static (manuals and such), they ought to be served as static links (i.e. short url), rather than some silly query form with half a bazillion arguments. There also should be a site map of commonly requested docs so you don't have to keep telling clients to go here or there. You tell them once to go the site map (i.e. short url). If they are dynamic, then customers should be directed to the query form instead (i.e. short url) rather than the document at the destination.
If the reason is for shorting links to make them look "prettier", then someone on that IT staff is incompetent as there are numerous ways to hide complex GET arguments.
They're sending... not receiving. You can't control what email client or settings the receiver uses, or their inability to reconstruct the two halves of the url by cutting and pasting.
Who are the primary users of tinyurl.com? Professionals? Corporations? No. Generally, it's a userbase very similar to the MySpace, YouTube, chat, and fan site userbases, and the world will not end if those links are broken. Well, except maybe for some nerds waiting in anticipation for the next batch of Britney Spears beach pics.
OK. So what if a corporation or government office is using tinyurl? Fire the IT staff. Do it now.
Last point. If you have a web host and you control the domain (or the path on the domain), it's rather easy to simulate tinurl. Example:
An ebook reader should have a high contrast, high DPI display that is easy to read in sunlight
Oh by the way, I forgot to mention. I have a really hard time reading paper books under direct sunlight, so finding a shady spot to read an e-book on an e-book reader would in no way change my outdoor reading habits. The white pages reflect the light so much it hurts my eyes so I have to find a seat under the shade.
An ebook reader should have a high contrast, high DPI display that is easy to read in sunlight, with a long battery life. This can be provided with e-ink technology, which the PSP and DS being designed to play games (not read books) don't use. That is why you'd want to buy a separate e-book reader, but if you are comfortable using your PSP or DS for this, then use them, but they wouldn't suit me. That said, I think $400 is too expensive.
I think the screen quality and eye strain are the most salient reasons to ever buy a book reader, however I'm not convinced extremely high resolution color LCD screens can't mimic that well enough to "get by"--at least for books you read at shorter intervals, say reference books, but definitely not novels.
Also, since a lot of books I read are references, it sucks if the images are down sampled to B&W, low res, or stripped from the book entirely. I'm not a fan of e-readers so I'm not sure how well they deal with images.
Bookmarks are generally presented as a list on a menu or a sidebar. It's a good way to record "checkpoints" but finding and using them is still not 3-dimensional experience.
If a new fancy GUI is created that changes all of this by finding visual ways of presenting the book, bookmarks and previously read pages--in high resolution on a wide screen (say a PSP)--then I'd completely change my mind. However, as long as books read like web browsers or PDF readers, I won't be able to switch.
That's cause you didn't RTFA. It is not single purpose, it has wireless connection and also audio so conceivably it's a competitor for other devices, such as music players. From TFA:
Maybe you didn't read the other articles then.
How about this quote? salon.com
Details are skimpy. The device, reports say, will have Wi-Fi, Sprint's EV-DO wireless service to make book purchases on the go,
The Kindle is equipped with a Wi-Fi connection that taps into an Amazon e-book store, which users can access to purchase new electronic books--and Amazon has reportedly signed onto a deal with Sprint for EVDO access. Additionally, the device comes with a headphone jack for audiobooks, as well as an e-mail address.
But the source said the Kindle apparently won't bear many other BlackBerry-like features such as a calendar or address book. The Kindle may also lack a backlight. Instead, it comes with a small reading light attached to an adjustable arm.
Wireless that connects to their "service". Yea. Nice multi-functionality. I assume you're assuming you'll be able to freely surf any site you want. How do you know? The product isn't out yet. You're making it up or guessing if you think you know.
Ok. There'll be audio output. Wowzee... just what everyone was waiting for: playing audio CD's and MP3's on a clunky $400 e-book reader. OOoo. Hot seller.
Oh yea, and I'm sure I'll be dumping my small $75 cell phone for this reader to catch all my email. Yes!
Can it run a PDA version of office? How about games? How about a web browser? How about synching my desktop files? Slapping WiFi and an audio output on this device hardly makes it multi-function. Face it. It's a book reader, single purpose. That's how it's supposedly functions, what the available specs indicate, and what all the marketing hype advertises. That's it. It's nothing special.
Also look at Palmfiction on a HiRes+ Palm device. Far superior 320x480 touchscreen loveliness, and fantastic battery life.
I just don't get why I should buy a special (single) purpose e-book reader at $400 when I've already got a powerful handheld (PSP and DS) that's capable of doing it. Most households have cellphones and/or handheld game systems. Those are the systems you target if you're a smart businessman.
is that you won't get the feel from turning pages, the thickness of the book the weight.
I think the problem with electronic reading is a problem of orientation. It's hard to get a feel for what you've read, how much you've read, how much is left, and how to locate what you read when it's an electronic document. It's also harder to scan ahead for pictures, which are landmarks, due to loading time. With a paper book or magazine, you have a 3-dimensional sense of where things are.
It'd have to be a PDA style cell phone, or possibly PDA style table PC. I don't think tiny cell phones will ever be suitable for extended reading, no matter the resolution. No one wants to carry around magnifiers either.
To read E-Books.... Search google for ebook+psp or ebook+ds and you'll see lots of into on them.
If I was into ebooks, I'd probably prefer reading them on a PSP because it's screen is wide. For reading, a wide screen is more important than a tall or square screen... IMO.
I see no justification in frightening or alarming people unnecessarily. You posit that I am uncaring for anyone other than myself, and by inference imply that you are more caring. You wrote: Unlike you, lots of people...
You severely misinterpreted then. The point I made was you don't seem to want to use evidence outside your sphere of influence in order to make conclusions and take individual action, which is a self-imposed limitation IMO.
Lots of people" are morons and parrot whatever they think they're supposed to think.
Ahh.. Such an arrogant comment. I've met dozens of people like you and y'all follow the same routine. ~I alone know the true nature of the world, because I'm smarter than everyone else, and that makes me "special" (in other words better)~
You're providing to me an example that you saw on the internet? Reread what I wrote: Has this happened to you or anyone you know?
Because the event didn't happen to that specific person, the comment doesn't invalidate it happens in general or that it could happen to you. Unlike you, lots of people observe what's happening to others in order to prepare and prevent that from happening to themselves. I presume you'd rather wait until it happened to you to start worrying about it.
Just because something supposedly happened somewhere else that you heard about (and don't know the details of the situation) doesn't mean that you can make a blanket statement.
Plus, what's with this blanket statement nonsense? There weren't any. In fact, they were specific statements with examples.
I make my own decisions and stand by them. Others use examples to justify their beliefs.
Backing up a statement with examples is bad eh? (Read "beliefs" as non-scientific or ignorant). You have some very strange (read invalid) notions regarding debate. Heh.
The developers can't debug worth shit. I've run into similar problems in production code (such as graphics contexts in java or cyclical references) and it usually doesn't take that long to figure it out.
Pretty shoddy debugging... IMO. Too bad CS departments don't put more emphasis on debugging.
Just to clear things up. I only said I hate being called "he". That's it. No coded secret message. Heh. I'm well aware it isn't going to change things. I was venting frustration and irritation. It's amazing how those simple little words led to lesbianism and all sorts of elaborate suppositions regarding things I never said.
I let my words do the talking, which often causes problems because slashdot readers (men) seem to read into every single word I place on the page. They strain to read between the lines and surmise my true motivation. Too bad they don't simply accept the obvious meaning, because that representation is the closest to my thought.
Most of you men behave more like women with the vicious gossip. Funny actually.
Besides, go ahead and tell me how you are going to address Siddhartha, Sabine or Kim? Are we obligated to learn all names from all languages and in the last case first ask if the poster is American or Korean?
I have no intention to respond to that (other than letting you know I'm not going to respond) because your interpretation of a secondary side-comment was so perversely misunderstood. I'm not going to defend what you believe I said. I only defend what I actually said.
Slashdot Mirror
Also, the bonus to that is links could be updated after print publication.
The entire thing strikes me as a bogus problem (bad organization) solved with a bogus solution (tinyurl).
Anyway, I know that's off topic, so mod me down if you must.
But also, I think there's a business problem with using tinyurl in that as a business you're creating a portal to your site, and your domain is your brand. If you're doling out links to a different domain, then you're:
- not representing your brand
- confusing the customer
- creating unnecessary dependencies on 3rd party companies in which you have no real business relationship
If the reason is for making it easier to tell customers where to go over the phone, then the documents aren't organized well. If the pages are static (manuals and such), they ought to be served as static links (i.e. short url), rather than some silly query form with half a bazillion arguments. There also should be a site map of commonly requested docs so you don't have to keep telling clients to go here or there. You tell them once to go the site map (i.e. short url). If they are dynamic, then customers should be directed to the query form instead (i.e. short url) rather than the document at the destination.If the reason is for shorting links to make them look "prettier", then someone on that IT staff is incompetent as there are numerous ways to hide complex GET arguments.
They're sending... not receiving. You can't control what email client or settings the receiver uses, or their inability to reconstruct the two halves of the url by cutting and pasting.
Who are the primary users of tinyurl.com? Professionals? Corporations? No. Generally, it's a userbase very similar to the MySpace, YouTube, chat, and fan site userbases, and the world will not end if those links are broken. Well, except maybe for some nerds waiting in anticipation for the next batch of Britney Spears beach pics.
OK. So what if a corporation or government office is using tinyurl? Fire the IT staff. Do it now.
Last point. If you have a web host and you control the domain (or the path on the domain), it's rather easy to simulate tinurl. Example:
www.blahblahblah123.com/orders/products/listing/1/AYZHEKF/view.cgi?blah=blah&blah=blah&blah=blah&blah=blah.....
map to
www.blahblahblah123.com/1
use an Apache redirect, document.location = $url, or meta-refresh tag.
I also don't want skin cancer.
Also, since a lot of books I read are references, it sucks if the images are down sampled to B&W, low res, or stripped from the book entirely. I'm not a fan of e-readers so I'm not sure how well they deal with images.
Bookmarks are generally presented as a list on a menu or a sidebar. It's a good way to record "checkpoints" but finding and using them is still not 3-dimensional experience.
If a new fancy GUI is created that changes all of this by finding visual ways of presenting the book, bookmarks and previously read pages--in high resolution on a wide screen (say a PSP)--then I'd completely change my mind. However, as long as books read like web browsers or PDF readers, I won't be able to switch.
It would be pretty simple to merge existing technology to accomplish that. Cell phone plus glasses. In fact, wikipedia mentions it.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_retinal_display
Or how about this quote? cnn.com
Wireless that connects to their "service". Yea. Nice multi-functionality. I assume you're assuming you'll be able to freely surf any site you want. How do you know? The product isn't out yet. You're making it up or guessing if you think you know.
Ok. There'll be audio output. Wowzee... just what everyone was waiting for: playing audio CD's and MP3's on a clunky $400 e-book reader. OOoo. Hot seller.
Oh yea, and I'm sure I'll be dumping my small $75 cell phone for this reader to catch all my email. Yes!
Can it run a PDA version of office? How about games? How about a web browser? How about synching my desktop files? Slapping WiFi and an audio output on this device hardly makes it multi-function. Face it. It's a book reader, single purpose. That's how it's supposedly functions, what the available specs indicate, and what all the marketing hype advertises. That's it. It's nothing special.
It'd have to be a PDA style cell phone, or possibly PDA style table PC. I don't think tiny cell phones will ever be suitable for extended reading, no matter the resolution. No one wants to carry around magnifiers either.
To read E-Books.... Search google for ebook+psp or ebook+ds and you'll see lots of into on them.
If I was into ebooks, I'd probably prefer reading them on a PSP because it's screen is wide. For reading, a wide screen is more important than a tall or square screen... IMO.
Ahh.. Such an arrogant comment. I've met dozens of people like you and y'all follow the same routine. ~I alone know the true nature of the world, because I'm smarter than everyone else, and that makes me "special" (in other words better)~
Plus, what's with this blanket statement nonsense? There weren't any. In fact, they were specific statements with examples.
Backing up a statement with examples is bad eh? (Read "beliefs" as non-scientific or ignorant). You have some very strange (read invalid) notions regarding debate. Heh.
The developers can't debug worth shit. I've run into similar problems in production code (such as graphics contexts in java or cyclical references) and it usually doesn't take that long to figure it out.
Pretty shoddy debugging... IMO. Too bad CS departments don't put more emphasis on debugging.
Too bad I missed this the other day...
Just to clear things up. I only said I hate being called "he". That's it. No coded secret message. Heh. I'm well aware it isn't going to change things. I was venting frustration and irritation. It's amazing how those simple little words led to lesbianism and all sorts of elaborate suppositions regarding things I never said.
I let my words do the talking, which often causes problems because slashdot readers (men) seem to read into every single word I place on the page. They strain to read between the lines and surmise my true motivation. Too bad they don't simply accept the obvious meaning, because that representation is the closest to my thought.
Most of you men behave more like women with the vicious gossip. Funny actually.
....Russian traitor, imo. Assuming your home country isn't nazi Germany or the equivalent.
Yea.. because the pronoun "you" is so unwieldy.
You're the smartest in your family.... aren't you?
(That was sarcasm.)