Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Grub Street Printing Newsletter #25, May 2011

eBook Metrics
A new report from Simba Information claims that 75% of the U.S. eBook market belongs to professional and scholarly titles.
But according to this, there is no way to accurately gauge the size of the eBook market because no accurate data collection exists to report all eBook sales.
Hybrid Printing
From mounting an inkjet print head on a web offset press to preprinting offset shells for inkjet imprinting, printers are finding ways to get the best of multiple options by mixing digital and conventional printing.
Traditional Book Outlook
While it's clear that the digital revolution has transformed book publishers into content providers, the traditional book will share the market with electronic media but not disappear like glass negatives. Even techies concede that the book market will be a shared playing field.
Very Large Format Presses Coming Back
Years ago, Baker Johnson Inc.'s 54” Miller press was called a “dinosaur” when everyone moved to 40” equipment. Big is back, as KBA introduces an 81” offset color press running at 9000 sheets per hour. That translates to printing a 192 page 5 ½ x 8 ½ book on a single press pass (one sheet of paper).
Conde Nast Spear-Phished
A simple email to Conde Nast, seemingly from their printer, Quad Graphics, diverted over $8 million of payments to a new bank account established by the phishers. It was a very sophisticated scam that took weeks to discover but was uncovered before the scammers had withdrawn any of the money.
Eco – Electronics
While the paper industry must constantly defend its environmental impact and commits millions of dollars per year to improve its eco-footprint, the electronics industry continues to enjoy little or no scrutiny.
Copyright and Digital Rights Management
While many writers endorse giving your books away online, this is a discussion of rights management in the digital age.
Digital Eggs
In an effort to improve safer egg production through traceability, Domino Printing Sciences has developed inkjet technology to print unique identifiers on individual eggs.
Nook Color Identity Crisis
B&N has released an Android update for the Nook Color that blurs the line between eBook reader and tablet computer.
Third World Paper Mill
While American paper usage is shrinking, the third world embraces paper as an economical medium for information distribution. This is an enormous paper mill in Indonesia.
American Recycled Paper Mill
Fibermark Paper (Alsip, IL) makes 90,000 tons of recycled paper yearly in a plant that no one seemed to want.
Smells So Good
Karl Lagerfeld is preparing to introduce a perfume that smells like books. Bibliophile Lagerfeld claims a 300,000 book library
Final Thought
When I am dead, I hope it may be said:
His sins were scarlet but his books were read.”
Hilaire Beloc (1870 – 1953)

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