‘Rework’ from 37 Signals Coming Next Week

I pre-ordered the Kindle version of Rework from the guys at 37 Signals.  As a Basecamp subscriber, and a general fan of the way they think, work, and ship, I’m really looking forward to the new book.  Chomping at the bit, I was Googling around and found this interview from O’Reilly TV.  Hope you enjoy and stay tuned for a review of the book:

Publishers explain ebook pricing

The New York Times did a piece on how pricing works on an ebook.  The costs, who gets what, and the margins.  You can read those details here.  Plus they have a handy time-saving graphic:

It’s a good article but it stops before it gets to the good stuff.  What they don’t cover is the one start-up or company that’s going to have the guts to say, “we’ll make 30% of what we did last year, and we’re prepared to do that for five years.  By then we’ll have destroyed everyone holding on to their old pricing models.  We’re going to get to the real customers and we’re going to be bigger than any of today’s publishing companies can imagine.”

There’s a new publishing king.  I don’t know its name or where’s it’s located;  not sure if it will be one company or a few.  But, someone’s going to step up and do something drastic, and it’s going to shake the shit out of the pillars of today’s publishing world.

What do you think?

Pick of the Week :: iMovie ‘09 & iDVD The Missing Manual

Spring is almost here and the window to edit down those video clips and movies your shot over the holidays is closing fast. If you don’t get to them now, Spring will spring and then your not so relaxing summer will arrive, followed by the beauties of Fall. Next thing you know, you have another round of holiday videos to shoot! Who has time to deal with that 2009 crap when 2010 is upon us?! Listen, everyone hates watching a 27 minute video for those 48 seconds of pure funny, bliss, or ‘moment’. You’re boring your friends and family with those other 26 minutes and 12 seconds. They may never tell you, but, well, you are. So if you ever want those videos to be anywhere other than a hard drive or a drawer, this pick is for you (plus, you’ll need a Mac).

iMovie ‘09 and iDVD: The Missing Manual is the pick. iMovie and iDVD are already on your Mac (unless you did something funky) and they’re quite powerful and ready to go. All you have to do is figure out how to use it. With this book, you’re not alone. I always say the right book is the most affordable training tool around, and this book falls into that category.

So what’s in the book?

• First, it’s full color throughout (not a dopey 8 page ‘color insert’)
• Some background on choosing a camera
• The basics of getting your movie on the Mac and understanding project, events, and the iMovie workspace
• Creating a movie by editing and arranging clips, cropping
• Using transitions, themes, video effects, green screen and picture-in-picture
• Even adding subtitles, credits, a sound track

So really from beginner to power user, the book takes you through the application.  There is a complete section on exporting your work so you can share it on your own website, YouTube, the iPhone, well, really anywhere you want it to be viewed.

Then there’s the iDVD section. This is likely one of the most under-used applications in the iLife suite. It’s very powerful and anyone can make remarkable DVD menus with this tool. It’s wonderful if you want to throw your parents a professional quality DVD instead of sending them to YouTube for a 3″ x 5″ look at your last adventure.

More? You got it. From The Missing CD ROM you can download additional content like:

• Bonus appendix: The Basics of Lighting, Composition, and Camera Technique
• Movies on Custom Web Sites
• Bonus appendix: More Chapter Markers

And, how do we know David Pogue is the right author for the book? There are plenty of Mac maniacs around, but, before he did a deal with CNBC, he used to produce those clever weekly videos we watch on the NewYorkTimes.com all on his own using his Mac, iMovie, and some clever plugins.  So you have a guy that not only can explain things really well, but he has the hands on experience.  The perfect combo for  a topic like this.  Years ago he made a video about how he makes the videos. Unfortunately that one’s not available anymore. I was only able to come up with a broken link to a Real Audio archive (nice work NYTs).

[NOTE TO DAVID POGUE: If you still have that video, and I bet you do, how about popping it up on YouTube? Sure, it might be dated, but it was a good one.]

So there you have the pick of the week: David Pogue’s iMovie ‘09 & iDVD: The Missing Manual. Buy it, read it, and make your own awesome videos that won’t bore the life out of your friends and family!

TECHSHELF PICK OF THE WEEK ::

iMovie ‘09 and iDVD: The Missing Manual
by David Pogue & Aaron Miller
978-0-596-80141-0
$49.99 retail (don’t pay that much though)

Benjamin Franklin :: Albert Einstein :: Steve Jobs

The New York Times is reporting that Walter Isaacson (author of two best-selling biographies, “Einstein: His Life and Universe” and “Benjamin Franklin: An American Life“) is working on a new biography.  However, it’s focus is not Abe Lincoln, JFK, or Leonardo Da Vinci.  It’s said to be Apple’s fearless leader, Steve Jobs.

The book, which is in the early planning stages, would cover the entire life of Mr. Jobs, from his youth in the area now known as Silicon Valley through his years at Apple, these people said.  Mr. Jobs, who will turn 55 on Feb. 24, has invited Mr. Isaacson to tour his childhood home, one person with knowledge of the discussion said.

This is exciting for a few reasons.  One, because Isaacson does fantastic work, and, two, it’s rumored that Jobs is cooperating on the project.  Three, because there is some history with Jobs and ‘unauthorized’ biographies.  For example, it’s a rumor that when Wiley put out iCon Steve Jobs: The Greatest Second Act in the History of Business, Jobs himself had the book removed from the Apple retails stores along with ALL they other Wiley books, including the ‘For Dummies’ series.

A search for ‘Steve Jobs’ on Amazon pulls up a list of everything from Jobs’ presentation ’secrets’ (geez, I hate ’secrets’ and ‘easy steps’) and his comeback to Apple, to his ’secret life’ and what’s inside his brain.  All of it unauthorized and at least once removed.  If Isaacson does the work that he’s known for, with the cooperation of his subject, this could be a real killer!

iPhone Developers Dave Mark & Jeff LaMarche Interview

Late last week I was lucky enough to hook up with superstar iPhone Development authors Dave Mark and Jeff LaMarche for an interview about their books, how Apress became so dominant on the Mac development side of things, and, of course, the iPad.  We talked for about 30 minutes and you can check it out here:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Or, download the MP3.

I also learned that Dave & Jeff have started a company and now you can get them to build an iPhone or Android app for you.  You can get more details by contacting them direct:  daveandjeff at iphonedevbook dot com.

Related & useful links:

• iPhoneDevBook.com
• DaveMark.com
• Jeff LaMarche’s Blog
• More iPhone 3 Development: Tackling iPhone SDK 3 (Beginning) on Amazon.
• Beginning iPhone 3 Development: Exploring the iPhone SDK on Amazon
• Twitter:  @davemark  and @jeff_lamarche

Linchpin Review – Godin’s Best Yet

I just finished reading Linchpin for the second time.   Linchpin, however, is different from Godin’s previous books.  For one, it’s bigger — bigger in size (check out our ‘unboxing‘) and delivers bigger ideas.  Second, the ideas Seth shares are complete and interlocked.  Where books like The Dip and Tribes covered a specific idea, Linchpin brings them all together in a cohesive work that, in your hands, could change the way you work, what you do, how you do it, and why.

The book opens with a look at where we are and how we got here.  The shift that’s happening moving us away from the factory and back to artistry.  Why the role of an easily replaceable cog/worker is dying, and, for you, is probably already dead.  Quote:

“Wait!  Are You Saying That I Have to Stop Following Instructions and Start Being an Artist?  Someone Who Dreams Up New Ideas and Makes Them Real?  Someone Who Finds New Ways to Interact, New Pathways to Deliver Emotion, New Ways to Connect?  Someone Who Acts Like a Human, Not a Cog?  Me?”

Yes.

So, what do we do next?  Since bloggers have discovered that posts like “7 Ways to Supercharge Your Meetings” and “Change Your Life in 28 Days” work wonders with search engines and in receiving link love, many readers now look for specific, step-by-step lists to complete a task, a project, family life, or a career.  Linchpin doesn’t provide lists, or how to’s.  There are no specific instructions on how to be an artist, or a leader.  Godin gives good reason (page 187):

Telling people leadership is important is one thing.  Showing them step by step precisely how to be a leader is impossible.  ”Tell me what to do” is a nonsensial statement in this context.

There is no map.  No map to be a leader, no map to be an artist.  I’ve read hundreds of books about art (in all its forms) and how to do it , and not one has a clue about the map, because there isn’t one.”

One of the tell tale signs of a book that shakes my foundation is the number of dog-earred pages.  Usually, if I hit 10, it’s a good sign.  I think in Drive, I hit around that number.  Here are a couple of shots of Linchpin:

The book also goes into an area that’s usually reserved for guys like Tony Robbins.  Something covered wonderfully by Steven Pressfield in The War of Art.  That is conquering things like procrastination, fear, and “resistance”.  Godin not only credits Pressfield for his work, but adds his own angle by giving these barriers their own organ:  The Lizard Brain.  Seth says it’s in all of us, and it will bury us if we let it (see video below of a talk covering just this topic).

It’s only February, but this could be the most important business book of 2010 and maybe 2011 for that matter. The timing is dead on with everything that is happening in major industries like publishing, music, & technology.  Plus, people are still getting canned from their jobs everyday.  Those people could look at that as a gift.  Linchpin doesn’t come with rose colored glasses, but it certainly will help readers frame exactly what’s happening, what can be done, and point them in a direction to contribute more than they ever imagined.

For you guys that LOVE summaries and lists, here’s a final shot of the summary at the end of the book.  Choose your Ven diagram.  Where are you?  Where do you want to be?

More on the web:

• Linchpin on Amazon
• Seth Godin’s remarkable blog

Ihnatko on the CBS Morning Show

Internationally beloved tech writer, Andy Ihnatko was on the CBS Early Show on Saturday (1.23.10).  It was pretty early, so in case you missed it, I caught it with the trusty El Gato. Speculating on what Apple is going to announce/release this week, Andy is in the camp that this will revolutionize the publishing industry.

“This could be as big as the original Macintosh.”

Here’s the clip:

More from Andy:

• His latest book, iPhone Fully Loaded (Iphone Fully Loaded: If You’ve Got It, You Can Iphone It)
• http://ihnatko.com
• http://twitter.com/ihnatko
• http://twit.tv/mbw

Jeff Jarvis & the King of All Media

Many of us know Jeff Jarvis from his book, What Would Google Do?, and from This Week in Google from the TWiT network, but today, worlds collided.  I was listening to the 1/14/10 Howard Stern replay and I heard a very familiar voice.  Sure enough, it was Jeff Jarvis on the Stern Show!  I pulled the clip for you:

LISTEN

Who knew Jarvis was such a Stern fan?  Very awesome.  And if you don’t subscribe to Sirius, you should!

New 70% Royalty Option from Amazon

We saw it coming.  The soon to be biggest book publisher in the world, Amazon.com announced a new deal for authors and publishers today.  Starting June 30, 2010, if you choose to publish your book on the Kindle, you’ll get a 70% royalty.  That sure beats the standard publishing contract, right (7-15%)?  Here are some details:

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) today announced details of a new program that will enable authors and publishers who use the Kindle Digital Text Platform (DTP) to earn a larger share of revenue from each Kindle book they sell. For each Kindle book sold, authors and publishers who choose the new 70 percent royalty option will receive 70 percent of list price, net of delivery costs. This new option will be in addition to and will not replace the existing DTP standard royalty option. This new 70 percent royalty option will become available on June 30, 2010.

Delivery costs will be based on file size and pricing will be $0.15/MB. At today’s median DTP file size of 368KB, delivery costs would be less than $0.06 per unit sold. This new program can thus enable authors and publishers to make more money on every sale. For example, on an $8.99 book an author would make $3.15 with the standard option, and $6.25 with the new 70 percent option.

Some of the catches are the maximum you can charge for your book in $9.99, and you must price the digital book at least 20% less than the physical book.  Overall, a good deal for authors.

I wonder if Carolyn Reidy is doing alright.  This must be tough.

LINCHPIN Unboxing!

Hot off the press and before you can buy it, I just got a review copy of Seth Godin’s latest book, Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?.  It just came in about 15 minutes ago so we don’t have a proper review ready for you yet, but we do have what may be the very first “unboxing” of a book.

First impressions:

• This is physically bigger than the previous few Godin titles
• Still no index – at least Seth’s consistent
• Cool layout and binding
• Jacket has a bazillion thumbnails and a “hidden message”?!

Flipping through the contents (aka “A First Look at Linchpin”), this book seems like it might pick up exactly where “Tribes” left off.  Instead of focusing on modern marketing, it looks like it will concentrate on the people that do the work, how they can do things better, and why they/we must.

Enjoy the photos.  Look for a full review early next week (sorry GOOGLED, you just got bumped).  Would also be awesome to get a quick interview up here with Seth as well.

Disclosures: To get this review copy, I had to make a minimum donation of $30 to The Acumen Fund.  I’m also a Seth Godin fan and went to a full one day seminar with him on November 19, 2009.