No - this required the iBooks app. The iBooks app is for the iPad and the same will be available for the iPhone when firmware update 4.0 for the iPhone is released this summer.
An app written for OS X on a Mac can't be installed and used on the iPhone, iPod Touch, or iPad, and an app written for the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad can't be installed and used on a Mac.
I'm thinking this may be possible when Apple release the App Store on the Mac, expected January 6th, 2010.
I guess we will see if your thinking is right or not. I really don't think it matters that much, as the limited selection available in ibooks probably means that most people use other readers like Kindle.app for much of their reading.
Apple does not have an ibook function for your mac or macbook for one simple reason. If they did, you wouldn't rush out and buy an ipad.
Nonsense. iBooks is hardly the main attraction of the iPad, especially considering the limited selection of books it has compared to Kindle.app. The idea that someone would buy a Mac to have Flash also seems ludicrous, but who knows...
The only reason apps are not available for the computer is that Apple wouldn't sell any iPads. iPhones are phones and iPods are MP3 players. But an iPad is an in-between for people who like to hoard tech toys. Borders (the bookstore) has an eReader app for the Mac. The computer. With a store. All the books you want. Get that. The smallest font size is a bit large, but at least I can read on my laptop. Finally.
The only reason apps are not available for the computer is that Apple wouldn't sell any iPads.
That is just nonsense. iBooks hardly matters in such a decision, and most people use other e-readers like the Kindle or Nook apps anyway because the book selection is larger.
I've been going nuts trying to figure out how to transfer the ibooks i have on my itunes so i can read them on adobe digital editions. I read your post that you can read ibooks on this software so i'm hoping you can help me figure it out. How do i do this???
Unfortunately this was not included in the Release of App Store for the Mac yesterday (Jan 6, 2011). They are going to continue to lose customers until they can sell books through iTunes that can be read accross all their products. I hear that it may be in June 2011.
I really wish I had read this forum BEFORE buying my first ibook. I was looking forward to reading my book on my laptop and iphone, but it seems my money only spends well enough for the iphone. Other apps like barnes and noble allow me to do both, so never again will I use the ibook app once i get past this book. Their loss not mine.
I absolutely agree with you. I have several titles in iBooks, but I have not paid for a single one of them through the iBookstore. There are so many issues with DRM on ebooks that I refuse to purchase them. I would be a very willing consumer of ebooks if I could use them on the platform and reader of my choice.
Suggestions for Apple:
Desktop version of iBooks, DRM free ebooks, syncing between ibooks on different devices.
Were at 1/3. Hopefully the other two will be forthcoming.
Hi. I assume this has already been said, but just in case:
1. Reading. You can use Sigil, Stanza, Adobe Digital Editions (ADE), or Calibre to read iBooks. The iBooks are stored in ~/Music/iTunes/iTunes Music/Books/ (each of these is a folder inside a folder inside your home folder). Just install one of the above programs and double-click your ebook. If the ebook is DRM-protected, you
might be able to read it with ADE- I've not tried this yet. Most of my epubs are Gutenberg editions from Feedbooks.com or Manybooks.net. Those epubs are out-of-copyright and have no DRM.
2. Future readability. Epubs are an open content format (unless DRM'ed). They're basically zip files of websites - just a folder full of html files and images. So they are good for archival purposes. As for claiming that Kindle is the way to go, I disagree. It's completely closed. And I think Amazon is more likely to lose to Apple, given how Apple has taken the market with iOS devices. And not only is Amazon's format closed, but it has the same threat over it that iBooks does: Amazon can delete files off your device and their files are DRM'ed. At least SOME epubs - the ones worth reading - aren't.
