iBooks

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Apple Books

icon
Basic data

developer Apple Inc.
Publishing year 2010
Current  version 4.2.4
(October 21, 2019)
operating system iOS , iPadOS , macOS
programming language Objective-C
category E-book reader
License End User License Agreement
German speaking Yes
Official website

Apple Books is management software for electronic books (e-books) for iOS , iPadOS and macOS . Apple introduced iBooks to the public on January 27, 2010 as part of the presentation of the iPad . iBooks supports PDF , EPUB and the proprietary iBooks file format ( filename extension .ibooks ). Electronic books can be read in iBooks and, depending on the file format, bookmarks, highlights and notes can be added. The currently opened pages, notes and the arrangement of the books on the bookshelf are synchronized between multiple end devices via iCloud . Books can be purchased in the iBooks Store with an iTunes account or, for example, from an e-mail or, only on macOS: from the file system.

history

The day after the iPad presentation, Amazon, the previous market leader among e-book distributors, withdrew books from New York-based Macmillan Publishers Ltd., the fifth largest publisher in the United States, because Macmillian preferred Apple's distribution model. The next day the books were resumed and Macmillan granted the right to deviate from Amazon's fixed price concept.

For the iBook Store, Apple has concluded sales agreements with five major publishers in the United States and is in direct competition with Amazon and its e-book reader Kindle . The iBook Store was launched in the United States, but is now also available in Germany.

Since June 2011 it has been possible to buy e-books directly from your computer in the iTunes Store . These e-books are made available in the iBook Store. In addition to the .ibooks file format, publishers can also offer their electronic books in the integrated online shop in the cross-platform EPUB standard, which has been supplemented by the Apple-specific implementation of digital rights management . If a work is created in ibooks format and is charged a fee, it may only be sold in Apple's iBook store. This restriction does not apply to other formats. However, if the work is to be distributed free of charge, it may also be distributed via other distribution channels, including in the iBooks file format.

On January 19, 2012, the free iBooks Author app was presented, with which e-books can be created and published without special knowledge.

On June 10, 2013, Apple presented a specially adapted version of iBooks for the desktop operating system macOS (which was called "OS X" until 2016) at WWDC . This date marks a turning point in the long history of iTunes because since then all electronic books on a Mac are no longer managed in iTunes but in iBooks.

iOS

At WWDC 2010 , iBooks was expanded to include a number of functions: The app is now also available for the iPhone and iPod touch and the ability to view PDF files has been added. In addition, sections in the e-books can now be marked and commented on.

On January 19, 2012, Apple introduced a new version of the app called iBooks 2 . This allows iBooks with multimedia content, e.g. B. 3D animations or photo galleries can be read and obtained from the iBooks Store . With iBooks 3 , iCloud was firmly integrated into the app. In addition, purchased books are available directly on the bookshelf and can be updated. iBooks was not pre-installed until iOS 7, but could be downloaded from the App Store like third-party apps . It has been an integral part of the system since iOS 8.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Apple Books in the App Store. Retrieved March 13, 2020 .
  2. ↑ Amazon gives way to US publisher MacMillan . In: Handelsblatt , February 1, 2010.
  3. ↑ Apple becomes the world's major publisher . In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung , February 1, 2010
  4. ↑ iTunes 10.3 is here: Wireless Sync and iBookstore , at ifun.de. Retrieved September 19, 2011
  5. ↑ Apple FAQ iBooks Author
  6. ↑ Zeit.de: Apple wants to revolutionize the textbook market
  7. ↑ Introducing iBooks for Mac