Thoughts on iPads and e-editions

I shared some thoughts on The Californian's iPad edition on the fine blog of Steve Yelvington, a web visionary whose post on newspaper replica editions prompted a related thread on Twitter that caught my attention. 

I'll share more on in the future on our work with e-editions of The Californian, but Yelvington's post is a good start for people who are in the business of producing replica editions of printed publications. There's life in these editions that many -- including myself -- once considered substandard products. 

Kindle edition in the wild

An index page as seen on the Kindle Touch.The Californian has been trying to launch a Kindle edition of the daily newspaper for months. For various reasons -- some good, some not -- it's taken us way too long to launch a formal Amazon edition to supplement the two Kindle blog feeds we've had available for several years. 

But the good news is we're close. 

Attached are recent screenshots of tests on two different Kindle models and the Kindle app on iPad. 

Our work on a Kindle edition has been slowed by frustrating gremlins in trying to get a clean feed out of our newsroom publishing system that retains acceptable formatting. We're also struggling to figure out how to export black-and-white images for some Kindles and color for platforms like the Kindle Fire and the iPad. 

An index page as seen on the Kindle Keyboard model.

A section index page as seen on the Kindle iPad app.

But as I said, we seem to be in the final stages of testing. I'm hoping we can be live in the Amazon Store within a few weeks. 

Stay tuned. 

Coming soon: a multimedia book chronicling the March Meet

A full-page print ad promoting The Bakersfield Californian's upcoming history of the March Meet.

A small team in The Californian newsroom is working on an iPad-only book chronicling the world-famous March Meet, held annually at Famoso Raceway just north of Bakersfield.

"March Meet: Bakersfield's Love Affair with Speed, Nitro & Good Times" will take fans deep into one of Bakersfield's biggest events. This will be our first iPad-only book and will feature lots of stories, photos and videos on the racing legends and characters who have brought this event to life over the last 54 years. 

We're excited about the prospects an interactive multimedia book will bring to an event that's a sensory overload: the blast of dragsters hitting more than 250 mph, hundreds of classic cars, colorful people from all walks of life and the rich history of an event that draws fans from around the world.

The four-day March Meet runs through Sunday, and we'll begin production first thing Monday. Our goal -- and it's a huge challenge -- is to submit a finished product to the Apple Store by Friday. 

At this point, we're focusing on an iPad version, but there may be versions for other e-readers coming soon. 

For details and to sign up for an alert when the book his available for sale, visit books.bakersfield.com.

Update on Saturday, March 17, 2012 at 8:48 PM by Logan Molen

Here's our second trailer for the "March Meet" e-book. Turn up the speakers!