A little while ago (about a year) I published a little article on my take of the future of digital publishing. Since then there has been a number of advancements in digital paper and eReaders. While not a huge step forward, The Kindle from Amazon is one such product that shows us the direction the publishing world is headed. I wouldn't go as far to say its the iPod of eReaders, but for a company such as Amazon to invest in such a product definitely shows that this is an area in the future of publishing that warrants serious attention.

But, if you're like me, then a big white brick with a mono display (and a stupid name) is not really what you what to be reading your novels on, let alone a magazine. Where are the eBooks that are exactly that, A book? with actual pages? Thankfully researchers at Maryland and Berkeley Universities in the US have been working on such a device and developed a prototype eBook with two displays that simulate the turning of pages. While still a bit on the chunky side, this humanising of  technology is what is needed to successfully move the publishing world forward in the digital arena.

After years of speculation, digital paper is finally stating to make an appearance. Like movies and music before it, mainstream publishing is moving toward the digital realm, and with many of the top electronic brands such as Sony, Fujitsu and Philips pouring resources into the development of digital paper, electronic books and readers using this new technology are sure to be as much apart of out lives in the future as the iPod is now.

With the help of the Internet, the last 10 years has seen a massive increase in the publishing of digital publications and zines. There are now sites such as pdf-mags.com that cater specifically for independently published digital publications, and more recently, the iTunes store has seen the inclusion of PDF magazines as part of their podcast subscription service. Magazines such as The Fader have already started making the transition and are now letting readers download a digital copy of the magazine for free.

As we have already seen, copyright and illegal distribution of digital files over the internet has become quite a thorn in the side of the music and film industries, with the RIAA and MPAA going as far as to sue individuals for downloading copyright material. Recently television networks in Australia have started blowing the “piracy” trumpet, claiming that the illegal distribution of television shows over the internet are hurting the ratings and are responsible for a loss in advertising revenue.

So what then for the publishing industry? Will the AAP and MPA be the next to cry thief and start taking the public to court? Or will a smarter approach be taken, one that doesn’t involve making criminals out of ones customers. Sooner rather than later we will see the emergence of an iTunes like application for storing, arranging and viewing digital and PDF magazines, which will only help to propel the digital publishing arena forward, and will most certainly do for publishing what pod casting had done for radio. This is where the magazine and book publishers need to be looking. It won’t be long before storage and reading devices using digital paper arrive to integrate with these applications, at which point the digital publishing revolution will truly begin.

1000 magazines in your pocket anyone?

After coming across a piece on Jinbei Yamada and his bicycle brand Arrow in issue three of Monocle magazine (it only just came out in Australia), I went to the website to find out a bit more on this amazing designer. Unfortunately, the site is all in Japanese, but then again you don't need any translation to appreciate the beauty and simplicity of Yamada's designs.