SharedBook: On Demand

More Press!

2009-10-06T18:12:34-04:00

This annotation thing...seems to be getting us quite a bit of pub, as they say. We'll take it!

Read all about us in Business Week. More to come, no doubt...

Transparency Update

2009-09-25T11:37:18-04:00

Word is spreading quickly on Congressman Culberson's effort to generate comment on the Healthcare Bill. After several pickups yesterday (Washington Times, The Hill) there is a comprehensive piece today at Information Week.

Making Transparency a Reality

2009-09-24T09:03:17-04:00

The promise of transparency seems to be on the lips of politicians and government officials of all stripes, and with good reason – we need it in a democracy! But while there’s little argument over the value of transparency, there is one nagging problem: How do we actually achieve it?

The profusion of websites established by city, state, and federal government agencies certainly do a wonderful job of disseminating information. But true transparency requires more. It requires give and take, back and forth; in short, an open discourse between and among the government and the governed. The citizens must be able to voice opinions, concerns, and support, and be both heard and responded to.

This week SharedBook is doing its part. Our annotation platform is being used by Representative John Culberson of Texas to allow his congressional district in Houston to review H.R 3200, also known as the Majority Healthcare Bill. It’s the most controversial and important legislation we’ve had in years, and it can affect all of the Congressman’s constituents. We’re delighted to have been chosen to provide the enabling technology for this important issue. You can have a look here.

It’s great to be part of the larger effort to use the social media opportunities and the full interactive power of Web 2.0 to allow transparency to be realized. Let’s hope this is just one small step of many towards achieving that goal.

For more information, take a look at the press release we’ve sent today.

We have lots of Fans!

2009-07-28T15:00:53-04:00

We're not rivaling any of the top ten, mind you - it will take a while to catch up to President Obama, among others - but our Blog2Print Facebook page has a following now, and it's growing every day. Take a look - and don't miss out on the special offer that awaits there.

We're on Twitter too, as you might have guessed...

And there's more social media news just around the corner, so stay tuned!

Clear Skies for Custom Publishing in Chicago

2009-07-22T10:48:43-04:00

I left the sweltering heat of an Alabama July in search of cool lake breezes in Chicago to attend the American Library Association’s annual meeting last week. What I found was bright sunshine, unseasonably warm temperatures, cabs without air conditioning (what are they thinking?), and a library community ready to brave the heat of new technology that can provide services their patrons need.

Although I’ve visited Chicago and McCormick Place often for BEA, this was my first visit to ALA, which runs from Thursday to Tuesday, incorporating recepetions, dinners, presentations, and panels, in addition to the exhibits. When not being feted at the Art Institute or one of Chicago's award-winning restaurants, librarians learned to improve their processes and discovered new products for their patrons in public, academic, and corporate settings. Although the libraries represented are quite disparate in size, resources, and audience, what was universal among librarians is their determination to harness technology and make libraries viable and integral to the modern reader.

In the interest of accessing and sharing information as widely as possible, librarians are at the forefront of incorporating digital distribution to the physical book world. SharedBook was at the show to talk with librarians, their vendors, and publishers about using our proprietary platform to create a technology bridge between digital repositories and the digital download or physical book. We combine the aggregation and customization tools of SharedBook with database content, allowing any editor or front-end user to pull from the millions of digitized pages in library and publisher archives, and download or print just the content that is of value.

The show was particularly exciting for SharedBook. Our publisher-partner Encyclopaedia Britannica used our Smart Button™ to aggregate Chicago-related content from their extensive archive and create a guide to Chicago’s geography, history, people and politics. The entire process of selecting content to creating the print-ready file was complete in less than thirty minutes. On the show floor, the Espresso Book Machine pumped out a new 86-page, paperback book in less than three minutes, and they provided over 100 free copies to show attendees. You can see a flip book of the finished product here.

So despite lugging a trench coat all the way to Chicago that never made it out of my bag, I'd have to say the trip was a success. The storm clouds of an economic recession may have tempered travel budgets and industry upheaval in the book world may be cause for long term concern, but after a few days with some remarkably resolute and sensibly shod librarians, things are looking brighter for SharedBook, its partners, and a library industry ready to face the challenges of its future.

Happy Birthday to...

2009-05-13T18:06:08-04:00

Us!

We're Five. And yes, we do act like it sometimes. But forgive us for blowing our own horn when we say that, since we're up 70% over last year (in an economy where flat is the new up) we're feeling all's well. For now.

Tomorrow is another story.

Meanwhile, to check out all the facts, and read about our new deal with Thomas Nelson, and updates to our platform, and MUCH, MUCH MORE...

Wordpress, anyone?

2009-03-04T17:14:07-05:00

Didn't we TELL YOU we would? We did! We just launched our Blog2Print support for Wordpress Blogs. In record time, if we can say so out loud.

So, now if you have a blog on Blogger - you go to Blog2Print.

If you have a blog on TypePad - you go to Blog2Print.

And if you have a blog on Wordpress - where ya gonna go?!?!

Easy stuff, right?

TypePad, anyone?

2009-02-10T12:21:32-05:00

Bloggers asked for it, and now we have it!

The Blog2Print service, long a favorite among authors on the Blogger platform, is now available to those of you who use TypePad, which includes, among others, us. Fairly ironic, isn't it, that we couldn't make a Blog Book of our own blog? Well, that is behind us now.

What? Do we hear calls for WordPress? Watch this space, folks - it won't be long now...and keep an eye on Blog2Print.com for continued innovation as we take this platform forward.

From Alabama to New York: Toto, I’ve a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore.

2008-12-01T12:43:27-05:00

I recently joined the SharedBook team, which is based on Wall Street in New York City. Even though I’m in Alabama, I’ve been in the publishing industry for almost fifteen years, so trips to New York were regular occurrences, with home base being a hotel room and death-defying cab rides the transportation of choice. But with SharedBook I’ve enjoyed the new-found benefit of a local office with a view of the Statue of Liberty and strong encouragement from upper management to take advantage of cheaper, faster, and presumably less fear-inducing public transportation.

Armed with a “flashmap,” explicit directions from Rick Hunt (our office representative for the Metro Transit Authority) and a Southern girl’s sense of adventure, I mastered the 6 train, delved into the R train, and got completely lost taking a bus. Everyone in New York seems to move with such a sense of purpose that I’m loathe to stop someone and ask directions (other than a UPS driver—always an excellent source of information). It’s not that New Yorkers are unhelpful; on the contrary, I have always found New Yorkers friendly and warm once you get them to stop moving. It’s more that as soon as I open my mouth, my Southern roots are readily apparent and I don’t want to look like an out-of-towner who needs help. So I’ve spent a few extra minutes (hours?) wandering around looking for my next meeting, but you can stumble upon superb hidden gems that way. Like one night I arrived safely early for a client dinner at Balthazar and walked a few blocks to kill time. And there, behind a gray façade, nowhere near what I knew to be a shopping district, was --wonder of wonders-- a Bloomingdale’s. Who knew! I love this town.

So, in honor of my first blog post, I’d like to announce one of our newest personalized products, the University of Alabama Football 2008 Media Guide. The Crimson Tide is having a stellar regular season, capped off by a trouncing of in-state rival Auburn36-0 this weekend. Ranked number one and soon to be playing Florida for the SEC Championship and a spot in the BCS Championship Game, even Bear would say Saban is earning his $4 mil. If you know anyone who learned to say Roll Tide before their ABC’s, they need this for Christmas. Just go to www.rolltide.com and click on Bama Stores.

The Force Is With Us!

2008-11-24T17:07:42-05:00

You can't possibly know how excited we are today to announce that our very first frontlist personalized book just happens to be the latest novel in the Star Wars series! Now, that's the way to step out, big time.

You can read about the deal, or pre-order the book. Or you can amuse yourself by writing silly Yoda-like sentences ("Sell millions, we will...") about the whole thing. As we have. Or you can thank your wonderful partners at Lucas and Random House a couple dozen more times. As we will!

Anyway, it's wonderful news for us, and, as they say on TV, it's just in time for the holidays...!