“Three iPad users claim that because the iPad will shut itself off after remaining in direct sunlight for long enough, it fails to meet the promises Apple made about using the iPad as an e-book reader. The group has filed a federal class-action lawsuit in the Northern California district to ‘redress and end this pattern of unlawful conduct,’ according to this report on Ars Technica.

The lawsuit claims that the iPad does not live up to Apple’s claim that “reading on the iPad is just like reading a book.”  Ars Technica reports, “This claim is patently false, according to the lawsuit, because a real book can be used in ‘the sunlight or other normal environmental conditions’ without shutting off.”

They go on to say:

When the iPad’s operating temperature reaches a critical level, it will force itself to shut down and display a message warning the user to let the device cool down before trying use it again. This warning is the same that iPhones and iPod touches give before shutting down when they overheat, often after being left in direct sunlight….

The iPad may not work “just like a book” at the beach or out in the hot sun. Does that fact truly make Apple guilty of fraud, negligent misrepresentation, deceptive advertising, unfair business practices, breach of express or implied warranty, intentional misrepresentation, or unjust enrichment? The plaintiffs are seeking class-action status and asking for an injunction against Apple’s “false” promises as well as “real” and punitive damages.

Chris Walters’ post over at the Consumerist wonders:

If the plaintiffs win, I think Apple should also be forced to install a wind sensor so that pages flip automatically when you’re outdoors in a strong breeze. Then the company could sell an “iPadWeight” wireless accessory ($69) that you would have to put on top of the screen to “hold down” the pages. A wireless “iMark” ($29) that would function as a bookmark wouldn’t be a bad idea, either.

All schadenfreude aside friends, this case does seem to fail the “reasonable person” test quite miserably. But, hey, this is America. You can sue for anything!

For those who have always puzzled over heavy metal bands’ umlaut obsession, Michael Schaub at Bookslut points us to this illuminating Wikipedia link for your delectation:

A metal umlaut (also known as röck döts) is an umlaut mark that is sometimes used gratuitously or decoratively over letters in the names of heavy metal bands, for example those of Mötley Crüe and Motörhead. Among English speakers, the use of umlaut marks and other diacritics with a blackletter style typeface is a form of foreign branding intended to give a band’s logo a Teutonic quality. It is a form of marketing that evokes stereotypes of boldness and strength commonly attributed to ancient north European peoples, such as the Vikings and Goths; author Reebee Garofalo has attributed its use to a desire for a “Gothic horror” feel. The metal umlaut is never referred to by the term diaeresis in this usage, nor is it generally intended to affect the pronunciation of the band’s name.

These decorative umlauts have been parodied in film and fiction. In the mockumentary film This Is Spın̈al Tap (spelled with an umlaut mark over the n), fictional rocker David St. Hubbins (Michael McKean) says, “It’s like a pair of eyes. You’re looking at the umlaut, and it’s looking at you.”

Apparently Spin̈al Tap’s umlaut over the a consonant was really pushing the envelope for diacritics. But, there is precedent. This usage can be found, according to Wikipedia, “in the Jakaltek language of Guatemala and in some orthographies of Malagasy, a language of Madagascar.”

Which is, presumably, where the original band members where from.

Fidel Castro in a recent public appearance at the Havana aquarium

Don’t count him out yet: Cuba’s Fidel Castro, long considered at death’s door, has announced that he is publishing a new book. According to this CNN report, Castro will “publish a new book in August on the fighting more than 50 years ago between his ragtag rebels and the 10,000-strong army under former dictator Fulgencio Batista.”

According to a (Spanish language) post on the state-run website, www.cubadebate.cu, Castro says the book will be called The Strategic Victory, and “I didn’t know whether to call it Batista’s Last Offensive or How 300 Defeated 10,000, which would sound like a science fiction story.” Always the jokester.

Castro, according to CNN’s report, said “the 25 chapters contain photos, maps and illustrations of the weapons used during a series of battles that lasted 74 days in 1958 and paved the way for his bearded revolutionaries to declare victory on January 1, 1959. “The enemy suffered more than 1,000 losses, more than 300 of them deaths and 443 taken prisoner,” he writes, seeming to indicate that math may not be his strong point.

Since 2006, when illness caused Castro to cede his head-of-state powers to his brother, Raul, he has been posting his “Reflections of Comrade Fidel” for cubadebate.cu. Now, with his announcement of the forthcoming book and a concurrent increase in his public activity—making seven appearances in the last few weeks— it sounds like he is ready for his comeback tour.

And there’s more. According to CNN, “Castro said he would now start work on a book covering the second half of the fighting, called The Final Strategic Counteroffensive.”

Which all brings to mind a classic Chevy Chase routine from way back when on Saturday Night Live. For those of you too young to remember, you can catch it here:

Today is the birthday of the great English poet, Gerard Manley Hopkins, born on this day in 1844 in Stratford, Essex, England. Raised Anglican, in an artistic and prosperous home, he studied classics at Balliol College, Oxford. Hopkins converted to Catholicism in 1866, and he decided to become a priest himself. He entered a Jesuit novitiate near London in 1867, and he vowed to “write no more…unless it were by the wish of my superiors.” Hopkins burnt all of his poetry and would not write poems again until 1875.

Nonetheless, when he began writing again, on the occasion of a shipwreck that took the lives of five Franciscan nuns, it was an outpouring unlike anything English language poetry had seen. His highly compressed, musical language introduced new aural affects, often using familiar words in unfamiliar ways. Straining at the boundaries of sense, he pushed poetic language into the 20th Century.

For a full taste of Hopkin’s accomplishments, try the magnificent poem below — perhaps the first cri-de-coeur for environmental sensitivity in English Letters:

Binsey Poplars

felled 1879

My aspens dear, whose airy cages quelled,
Quelled or quenched in leaves the leaping sun,
All felled, felled, are all felled;
Of a fresh and following folded rank
Not spared, not one
That dandled a sandalled
Shadow that swam or sank
On meadow & river & wind-wandering weed-winding bank.

O if we but knew what we do
When we delve or hew —
Hack and rack the growing green!
Since country is so tender
To touch, her being só slender,
That, like this sleek and seeing ball
But a prick will make no eye at all,
Where we, even where we mean
To mend her we end her,
When we hew or delve:
After-comers cannot guess the beauty been.
Ten or twelve, only ten or twelve
Strokes of havoc unselve
The sweet especial scene,
Rural scene, a rural scene,
Sweet especial rural scene.

If the above piqued your interest, the Poetry Foundation website has more here on Gerard Manley Hopkins.

“Thanks to the Chicago Public Library and an outpouring of public support, Gabriel Levinson and his ‘Book Bike‘ win an unexpected battle with City Hall,” according to this post on the Tonic website.

For those of you who don’t know, the Book Bike is a large tricycle that’s been outfitted with a plywood box that contains a world of books. Levinson pedals it weekly through the streets and parks of Chicago, expounding his love of reading, and offering books to anyone who cares to take one. For free. ‘“Hopefully, it’s just a fun discovery for people,”’ Gabriel Levinson tells Tonic

Seems like a benign enough practice, no? Actually, the kind of self-less, philanthropic activity to be applauded, right? Wrong. As Tonic tells it, one day:

A fellow bicyclist approached Gabriel in one of the city’s parks, and his initial excitement at having a nibble of interest on a slow day soon transformed into surprise and then frustration and anger.

The bicyclist turned out to be a parks department employee who informed Levinson that unless and until he has a permit on hand, he had to remove himself and the Book Bike from park property. The paperwork required would be substantial, and it would be ongoing: Chicagoist reported that in addition to the overall permit, he would need to apply separately for each intended outing. And without 501(c)(3) status, he would not be eligible for fee reductions or waivers, which would likely approach $2,000 in total.

Levinson went home and blogged his frustrations. As he told Tonic, ‘“My blog has about ten regular readers, nine of whom are friends that I’ve browbeaten into reading it.”’

Nonetheless the story spread beyond his friends. According to Tonic, “Local media outlet Chicagoist ran the story, and this was soon followed by national media when MSNBC picked up and ran with it. Suddenly awash in interest, moral support and fresh donations from not only those in the Chicago community, but from around the world within mere days, Levinson was surprised how resonant his idea and passion had become with so many.”

“’I was simply overwhelmed by what has come back from this. I had no idea that there was this sort of support.’” Levinson said.

Soon, the Book Bikes plight came to the attention of the real force behind getting things done in Chicago, the fixer every pol needs, the Public Library. Yes, the library took Levinson’s venture under it’s protective wing. They offered to “deputize” the Book Bike as an official partner.

Levinson’s now got a simple letter, on letterhead, from the library, saying it’s all kosher. No fees, no fines. So, next time some free-lance park ranger gives him a hard time he just flashes his letter.

Don’t mess with the Chicago Public Library.

Sam Weller and the Skyped Ray Bradbury

Ray Bradbury, reigning King of Sci-fi, was transported via fiber optics from his home in Los Angeles to New York City yesterday.

According to this post on the Wall Street Journal Speakeasy blog, “Although Ray Bradbury resides in Los Angeles, he made a 45-minute appearance in New York Wednesday night to chat with his biographer Sam Weller about Weller’s book, Listen to the Echoes; The Ray Bradbury Interviews (Melville House).” The 90-year-old Bradbury video-phoned in via Skype from his living room to speak with Weller, who sat next to a projection of Bradbury in front of a 120 people in Soho’s McNally Jackson Bookstore.

Bradbury, a benign king, is well-loved among both literati and the sci-fi set, so the place was packed. According to the Journal:

In order to accommodate the massive crowd, the SoHo independent bookstore staff rearranged the front of the store as Bradbury lovers eagerly grabbed available chairs. The café closed early to ensure the sputtering cappuccino machine would finish its noisy rounds before Weller began. Complete silence fell upon the room as if a sacred event was to begin.

Dialing California, the coffee machine dared not sputter as the audience hung in anticipation of the Skype session.

The first call attempt failed, then all at once sunlight mixed with big black glasses and filled the screen. Bradbury waved, Weller waved, like two old friends meeting once again. For the duration of the conversation Weller softly and comfortably questioned a smiling Bradbury, knowing how the man would respond to each of his questions.

Addressing the shear magnitude of his output—over 600 short sstories alone—Bradbury told the audience, “I’m a great big pomegranate that exploded all over the place and now my seeds are everywhere.”

He also told the story of writing his famous, and still best-selling, Fahrenheit 451:

“I found a typewriter in the back of the library at UCLA. It cost 10 cents for a half hour. I spent nine days at that typewriter and it cost me $9.80 to write Fahrenheit 451,” said Bradbury.

As Weller’s interview drew to a close, he turned the computer toward the audience, which enthusiastically waved good-bye to Bradbury. Bradbury waved back, said good-bye, and signed out.

“Can fart jokes save the reading souls of boys?” asks an Associated Press wire story. Apparently, we had best hope so:

Boys have lagged behind girls in reading achievement for more than 20 years, but the gender gap now exists in nearly every state and has widened to mammoth proportions — as much as 10 percentage points in some, according to the Center on Education Policy.

“It certainly should set off alarm bells,” said the center’s director, Jack Jennings. “It’s a significant separation.”

….Parents of reluctant readers complain that boys are forced to stick to stuffy required school lists that exclude nonfiction or silly subjects, or have teachers who cater to higher achievers and girls. They’re hoping books that exploit boys’ love of bodily functions and gross-out humor can close the gap.

Driven by their desperation to attract young male readers attention, teachers, librarians and publishers are responding with a “steady stream of sports and historical nonfiction, potty humor, bloodthirsty vampires and action-packed graphic novels, fantasy and sleuthing,” according to the AP. “Butts, farts. Whatever, said Amelia Yunker, a children’s librarian in Farmington Hills, Mich. She hosted a grossology party with slime and an armpit noise demonstration. ‘Just get ‘em reading. Worry about what they’re reading later.’”

As part of the enticement to read, some are adding on-line prizes, special features, and even video. Patrick Carman’s upper-grade books, the Skeleton Creek series from Scholastic, “use password-protected websites to alternate book text and quick fixes of shaky, hand-held video. To follow the story, reading and watching online are both required. ‘We’re meeting them halfway,’ Carman said. ‘It’s the idea that these books understand where they’re at.’”

And then there is the wildly successful, Sweet Farts written for younger kids by Ray Sabini, fourth grade teacher from Miller Place, New York. “‘Reaching those reluctant boys, it’s a challenge I take very, very seriously and this is what they think is funny,’” Sabini told the AP. “‘There’s also history in there. There’s science in there, the problem of bullying, but it’s the humor that gets their attention.’”

Jon Scieszka, former teacher and Library of Congress literary ambassador for young people’s lit, has been writing kid books for 20 years, and he is a bit more hopeful about the range of what boys will read. “‘Boys will read a wide variety of stuff, not just gross-out humor, but stuff they enjoy in large part is stuff that’s not seen as legitimate reading in some schools, so they’re already feeling they’re not part of the system,’” he told the AP.

There is, of course, a long and hollowed tradition of the gross-out in literature. So these young readers can look forward to some sophisticated adult fare. Rabelais anyone?

British author Alan Shadrake speaks during the launch of his book Once a Jolly Hangman in Singapore on Saturday.

British author and freelance journalist Alan Shadrake, 75, who was arrested in Singapore while promoting his book on executions (as reported earlier on MobyLives here), was released on bail Tuesday pending further investigations by police.

According to a Agence France Presse wire report, “a local activist posted bail of 10,000 Singapore dollars (47,000 pounds) for him.” Shadrake is facing charges of criminal defamation and contempt of court, which are punishable by jail and fines for his book—Once a Jolly Hangman: Singapore Justice in the Dock which addresses the governments use of the death penalty.

“Critics say Singapore, which has only five million people, has one of the world’s highest rates of executions but the government refuses to disclose any numbers and maintains that capital punishment helps keep crime rates low,” observes the AFP report.

Upon release a haggard-looking Shadrake told the AFP “he had hardly slept ’since they dragged me out of bed. I’ve had a few hours of sleep on a very hard floor and I’ve been sitting at the desk being interrogated all day long explaining all the chapters of the book and going through the history of the book, my research, why I did the book.’”

According to the AFP:

Amnesty International earlier urged Singapore’s government to immediately release the elderly author.

“Singapore uses criminal defamation laws to silence critics of government policies,” Donna Guest, Amnesty’s Asia Pacific Deputy Director, said in London.

“The Singapore government should release Shadrake at once.”

She added: “If Singapore aspires to be a global media city, it needs to respect global human rights standards for freedom of expression… Singapore should get rid of both its criminal defamation laws and the death penalty.”

Shadrake’s passport has been impounded to prevent him from leaving Singapore until the case is resolved. Hearings for the case are scheduled to begin July 30th.

Good day's work on the floor of the US Senate.

Freedom-loving folks around the United States are celebrating the Senate’s passage yesterday of a bi-partisan bill to prevent “libel tourism,” a growing problem that has had a definite chilling effect on free speech.

The Association of American Publishers‘ press release on the bill’s passage, available here, states:

[T]he U.S. book publishing industry cheered today’s Senate passage of bi-partisan legislation that will protect American authors and publishers from foreign libel judgments that undermine First Amendment free speech rights.

The SPEECH Act, which passed the Senate this afternoon by unanimous consent, prohibits federal courts from recognizing or enforcing foreign libel judgments that do not pass First Amendment muster. The legislation also allows American authors and publishers to go into court and seek a declaration that such a foreign judgment is not enforceable in the U.S., and to do so even if no attempt has been made to enforce the foreign judgment.

The AAP’s statement went on to explain libel tourism and its dangers:

The exploitation of plaintiff-friendly foreign libel laws as a weapon to silence American authors and prevent them from speaking out on issues of public concern began attracting public attention after U.S. author Rachel Ehrenfeld was successfully sued in England by a Saudi billionaire even though her book had never been published there. AAP supported Dr. Ehrenfeld in her legal efforts to have the judgment thrown out by a U.S. court, and played a key role in lobbying for federal legislation. Similar legislation passed the House last year

“We’re very pleased with the Senate’s action,” said Judith Platt, AAP’s director of Freedom to Read. “As we told Congress, these foreign libel judgments not only deprive American authors and publishers of their right to speak, they deprive our citizenry of their right to be informed. The legislation passed today will significantly reduce that chilling effect.”

Just when you thought the Senate couldn’t agree on anything, they do something like this. Nice work!

The BookLiberator

While publishers, booksellers, authors and agents are busy hacking out the future of e-books, in through the side door comes a gadget that could make copyright holder’s lives more complicated yet, according to this report from Forbes:

Remember the sense of liberation that came from digitizing your CDs and then chucking a decade or two’s accumulation of archaic plastic? James Vasile and Ian Sullivan want to give you that gratification again–this time from rendering into bits your hundreds of pounds of dead trees.

Their invention, on display over the weekend at the HOPE hackers conference in New York: the BookLiberator, a simple contraption of poplar wood, screws, plexiglass, and two mounted digital cameras. Rest a book or magazine on the device’s adjustable base, and set its boxy frame so that the plexiglass spreads the pages flat. Take a picture with each camera, turn the page, and repeat. Before long you’ve created new fodder for your Kindle, iPad, or Sony Reader.

The scanner is quicker than traditional scanners at 15 pages per minute, and the quality of the image is better than with traditional scanners. According to the Journal, “Vasile and Sullivan plan to sell their invention in construct-it-yourself kits for around $120, plus an extra $200 for the pair of cameras–less than 10% of the price, they point out, of advanced book scanning devices.”

All of which puts fear in the heart of those who believe in copyright protections (not to mention manufacturers of scanners). Though Vasile, a lawyer for the Software Freedom Law Center, told the Journal, “We don’t think the major use case for this is copyright infringement. If you want to download a Stephen King book off of bittorrent, it’s already there.”

The Journal continues:

Instead, Vasile hopes that librarians will use the BookLiberator to archive their collections and that college classes will digitize textbooks to allow for easy annotation and “remixing.” “It’s no less legal than a photocopier or VCR,” he says.

But Vasile admits that his brainchild was first known as “BookRipper,” and was partly funded by QuestionCopyright.org, an organization whose favorite slogans include “Radical Copyright Reform” and “Copying Is Not Theft.” A line from Question Copyright’s FAQ: “Q: Isn’t copying a copyrighted work stealing? A: If I steal your bicycle, now you have no bicycle. If I copy your song, now we both have it.”

And “I” have no means of livelihood. But Vasile protests to the Journal that focusing on the copyright infringement aspects of his new device misses the point, “The legitimate uses for this are way more interesting than just free books,” he says. “We want to change the culture of text.”