iPad with Apple Pencil (iBook/Kindle/etc)

Please refer to my explanation above. In short: no. You cannot write in any ebook. As iBooks is just an Apple-enhanced type of the ebook format, this not not possible. You have to convert any ebook or iBook into PDF before you are able to write or draw in it.

Only notes and highlighting are possible as they can flow with the text.

As I stated, you CAN bring entire textbooks into a PDF reader/makup app or entire books into a Notes App and mark it up and still be able to read the entire book!

I use Notability to store PDF versions of manual to mark up and another PDF app called Foxit PDF can do the same for books, also.

You do not HAVE to have the eBook stay in an eReader app to read and markup books.

Totally agree. Also, writing in the margins is one of the most helpful ways to engage with the text; it's actually a learning tool. If I'm reading a novel for pleasure, it's no big deal. But if I'm trying to learn something, I want to highlight, take notes in the margins, underline, throw in an exclamation point or question mark, etc. I'm surprised there isn't more demand, especially in the education context.

Sorry for being unclear: drawing in PDF documents is possible with a lot of apps. Drawing in an eBook (which is xml), is technically not possible.

The same way you cannot draw on an HTML page like this one - unless you convert it into something page- like (e.g. PDF).

There is no one to blame (much as you wouldn't blame a car maker for not being able to fly with his SUV).

-> If you need to draw on a page, convert it into something with a fixed page layout.

The answers on this page have helped me decide to not buy an iPad pro. I thought it would be great to have the ability to notate without clunky on-screen keyboards a book. Serious people using books for serious purposes not only highlight, but also notate. A basic function of a real book is to have a margin which intellectuals for years had used to mark up, write notes to themselves. They become a literary treasure for famous writers papers when they pass on, like Lorraine Hansberry for example. It gives insight into how the person thinks. For actual study of any topic it is important. If you are a student of Neuroscience, you'll have a ton of new words to learn that won't appear in an on-line dicitionary. There will be concepts that need short descriptions. The notation needs to be easy and visible. E-books need to replicate real books perfectly and be more convenient, otherwise a real book is better, even if it weighs something more. Light reading of novels doesn't require this, but study does. Apple needs to fix this, Kindle needs to fix it too.

Real books have a physicality You read a book, put it down go to work, you come home, its where you put it.But in an iPad it might be there but gets lost in the clutter. That's why you need to make the eBook better in someways.

Unfortunately, it is technically not feasible: eBooks (and this is the book format most books are delivered in) are made from a subgroup of the xml-world, where contents is not "fixed" on a page like PDF, but rather flows and is adaptable according to your reading preferences. You can, for example, change the font face, its size or the background colour of a book. This would not be possible on a static page. But to markup sections of a text or draw a line, the object has to be placed somewhere on a page, which is not possible on a free-flowing text.

Bluntly: drawing in an eBook is like painting the sea - the canvas just moves around, but your

painting cannot move with it.

I agree, iOS11 has added some great functionality.

The first thing you should do is convert your ebooks to PDF format. Then, import the PDFs into iBooks.

https://www.ereader-palace.com/convert-apple-ibooks-pdf/

This is an excellent point! I came here looking to be able to annotate ebooks on iPad with Apple Pencil. It seemed like such an obvious thing. But I understand why there is this limitation. Ebook formats are designed to adjust baseed on screen size, orientation, font size, font type, etc. There is no way you could annotate on an ebook format and expect it to retain a consistent location. Obviously some things (writing in the margins) can move a little without much issue, while other things (such as circling a particular phrase) would be way off.

Converting to PDF would certainly solve this issue. But of course PDF viewers aren’t typically designed for reading long books so it would likely have a lot of other difficulties (such as chapter support, etc). The best of both worlds would be for kindle/iBooks to have a “convert to PDF” option, where you could then continue reading it in that same app with the ability to mark up with Apple Pencil

After just 2 days using my iPad Pro 10.5", I have found two critical flaws with the use of iBooks for medical school purposes, both of which can (and must) be addressed by Apple.

(1) Inability to annotate iBooks using Apple Pencil - This is the subject of the current post, and has to be addressed ASAP. If the iPad Pro is truly a device for professionals, it needs to meet the needs of said professionals.

(2) Lack of medical dictionary (or ability to add other professional terminology) - this is a major deficiency, since students are often exposed to a long list of new terms in each subject area. This concern extends beyond the medical profession.

Excellent, complete answer. And this is what I expected.

Makes me wonder if PDF eBooks will become a better solution where you "fix" the elements you want. I tested this with a PDF doc in Notability, and it worked great with the Apple Pencil

With iOS 11 you can highlight a word or passage in an ibook, epub book, and then add notes to it.

Using the pencil, tap and highlight the passage, then tap on it to bring up the options bar, and tap on the speech bubble, to bring up a note. You can use the keyboard to type a note. The note will be placed on the book margin, and you can tap the yellow box to open the note.

Currently the Apple Pencil is not well integrated into eBooks to let you annotate as if you were using a pen. Both Kindle and iBooks have really clunky, tedious and rigid annotation capabilities. Not at all suitable for my use. I would like to see Notabilty-like markup capabilities that would integrate with eBooks.

1) I am a participating member of the medical education committee at my institution, and as a group we all agreed that this is truly a 'critical' flaw that makes it unusable for medical professionals. Two weeks ago we met with an Apple representative to help us develop iBooks for the medical curriculum, and these two issues arose that shut down the discussion (this and a storage issue with embedded videos). The literature pertaining to information processing and retention point to more interactive learning tools, which was the goal in using iBooks.

2) It is actually very realistic to expect a device to incorporate new "custom" dictionaries. Since I am in the medical field, I have actually done this for Microsoft Office applications on my MacBook with no problem (just needed to import a .dic file with the appropriate terminology).

The device is attached to the internet it is completely reasonable to expect it to have a complete dictionary. Also most doctors and lawyers I know hate the fact that many seemingly simple features are ommitted from this device. Don't get me wrong I still love it and I still use it, but a basic function of adding a $100 pencil should be to allow you to use it with Ebooks. I used my iPad all through law school, but it has not been without significant frustration at times.

LockLaw wrote:

The device is attached to the internet it is completely reasonable to expect it to have a complete dictionary.

Why?

Do other devices that are connected to the internet have complete dictionaries?

Do even computers which can also connect to the interent come with built in dictionaries?

The answer is No. Never has there been a device that comes with a built in dictionary. Its always been a separate install.

If you need a dictionary, you can download one from the App Store. If you need a specialized dictionary even more so. I'm pretty sure a vast majority of people do not need to have a medical or legal dictionary be built into the device. Why would that be necessary?

iOS does have a spelling and correction dictionary built in which you can use when writing in any app that supports writing or shows the onscreen keyboard for anything.

Beyond that, if you need a dictionary you can download one from iBooks just fine. There are many free ones. Why is that so offensive to people?

I do not understand this aversion to having to download something to a device.

Also not sure what lawyers and doctors you have been hanging around of, but the ones I know love the device, and haven't really expressed any lack of features to me. Most understand its not a computer.

For example: I fell and hurt my wrist, and my orthopedist breaks out his iPad and shows me my X-Ray on a TV screen that is connected to his iPad, and he can zoom in and out of the x-ray and move around it easily. He said that has helped him tremendously in working with patients.