I just got a technology newsletter and they have this article about a new fandangled device, the B.0.0.K.
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"New Built-in Orderly Organized Knowledge Device Hits The Market
Announcing the new Built-in Orderly Organized Knowledge device (BOOK). The BOOK is a revolutionary breakthrough in technology: No wires, no electric circuits, no batteries, nothing to be connected or switched on. It's so easy to use even a child can operate it. Just lift its cover!
Compact and portable, it can be used anywhere -- even sitting in an armchair by the fire -- yet it is powerful enough to hold as much information as a CD-ROM disc. Here's how it works...
Each BOOK is constructed of sequentially numbered sheets of paper (recyclable), each capable of holding thousands of bits of information.
These pages are locked together with a custom-fit device called a binder which keeps the sheets in their correct sequence. Opaque Paper Technology (OPT) allows manufacturers to use both sides of the sheet, doubling the information density and cutting costs in half. Experts are divided on the prospects for further increases in information density; for now BOOKs with more information simply use more pages. This makes them thicker and harder to carry, and has drawn some criticism from the mobile computing crowd.
Each sheet is scanned optically, registering information directly into your brain. A flick of the finger takes you to the next sheet. The BOOK may be taken up at any time and used by merely opening it. The BOOK never crashes and never needs rebooting, though like other display devices it can become unusable if dropped overboard. The "browse" feature allows you to move instantly to any sheet, and move forward or backward as you wish. Many come with an "index" feature, which pinpoints the exact location of any selected information for instant retrieval.
An optional "BOOKmark" accessory allows you to open the BOOK to the exact place you left it in a previous session -- even if the BOOK has been closed. BOOKmarks fit universal design standards; thus, a single BOOKmark can be used in BOOKs by various manufacturers.
Conversely, numerous BOOKmarks can be used in a single BOOK if the user wants to store numerous views at once. The number is limited only by the number of pages in the BOOK.
You can also make personal notes next to BOOK text entries with an optional programming tool, the Portable Erasable Notation Cryptic Intercommunication Language Stylus (PENCILS) or the Permanent Entry Notation System (PENS).
Portable, durable, and affordable, the BOOK is being hailed as the entertainment wave of the future. The BOOK's appeal seems so certain that thousands of content creators have committed to the platform. Look for a flood of new titles soon"
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Anyone tried it yet?
That sounds amazing! I think I'll have to buy one! And think of all the possibilities! You could have a whole collection of them and put them on shelves, they could also be used in schools, and maybe you could even make special picture BOOKs for children who can't read yet! I predict there will soon be special BOOKstores and places where you can loan books. It's the medium of the future!
I got a B.O.OK. recently and am very happy with the hardware end of it, but I find that there's so many programming languages out there that if a good piece of software is released in Japan for instance it often takes years to be translated into a language compatible with my reading software. Often it's never ported into my software language at all. If there's no multi-language support for the hardware I don't think this technology will get very far.