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Creating an Interactive iPad Multi-Touch Book with iBooks Author: First Take

February 3, 2012 By John Richardson 1 Comment

The educational community was all abuzz over the last few weeks about the new interactive textbooks coming out from Apple. Instead of static pictures and text, these new books come alive with audio, video, and interactive diagrams and charts. These interactive texts are viewable on the iPad and other iOS devices.

The creation software, iBooks Author, is a free download for the Mac from the app store (It’s not currently available for the PC). It installs quickly and has the look and feel of Apple’s flagship word processor, Pages. I downloaded the software to my Macbook Pro and decided to take an existing ebook that I published and convert it to an interactive text. The iBooks Author video made it look easy.

After working with the software and importing my existing ebook, I would like to give you a preliminary overview of the process. I thought the process would be as simple as importing my existing book, making a few changes and Viola… and interactive book. Unfortunately it’s not quite that easy. Here is what I’ve found so far.

1. Multiple Monitors are a must. If you are going to use iBooks Author, you’ll need a LOT of screen real estate. Unlike working in Pages or Word, creating an Interactive book requires opening a lot of windows and dialog boxes. Trying to do this on my 13” MacBook proved difficult. I soon had a huge amount of screen clutter. Hooking up an external monitor really makes this program come alive. If you have a large screen iMac, you’ll probably be OK. With a MacBook an external monitor is a must.

2. An iPad and connector cable is necessary. To view your compiled book, you will not be able to view it on your Mac. You’ll need an iPad and connector cable to download the iBooks file. The transfer is quick and easy and then you can explore the interactive features. Since this transfer is necessary, you’ll have to change your standard workflow.

I found this to be very clunky at first. I’m used to viewing my finished work with the click of the mouse. With iBooks author you’ll need to export each time to see the changes. Once you get used to it, it makes sense, since only the iPad has a touch interface. If you don’t have an iPad handy, you can also export to PDF which will play on your computer and will give you an idea of page formatting in the final output.

3. Importing is best done one chapter at a time. The iBooks Author program has an import feature that allows you to import existing MS Word or Apple Pages files. While the import works, it doesn’t format existing chapters properly. In my limited exploration so far, I’ve found it easier to import one chapter at a time instead of the entire document. When I tried to bring in my existing book all at one time, I ended up with a mess. So far, I’ve found that having my existing book open in Pages and cutting and pasting one chapter at a time works the best.

4. New file types. In exploring the available widgets, I’ve found some new file types to play with. You can import Keynote files (Apple’s version of Powerpoint) and use the built in animation to create stunning animated diagrams and charts. For 3d models, iBooks Author uses 3D Collada files with a .dae extension. Google SketchUp will create these files. I did a little searching online and found a few examples. Once you get everything together you can build interactive chapter reviews.

Overall: So far this journey has been slow and somewhat cumbersome. Once I added the larger monitor and broke my project into smaller pieces, it’s actually starting to come together. Having an iPad handy, really makes the project come alive. Once I get this done , I’ll post a step-by-step review of the process.

Verdict: If you have a Mac and want to start creating magic, download this free program and start exploring. Start simple and play with the tools. You’ll soon have your first interactive textbook on it’s way to the iBooks store.

Question: Have you tried iBooks Author yet?

5 Minute Carb Cycling Meals

January 30, 2012 By John Richardson 3 Comments

In my quest to implement the carb cycling diet into my daily routine, I’ve come across a frustrating problem. This diet requires lots of protein on the low carb days, which means that I have to cook some type of meat or veggie patty to fulfill the plan. I’ve tried some different solutions, but I’ve found that I’m often having to use multiple pans or other cooking implements to get things prepared. I don’t have a lot of extra time in my daily routine, so I’m always on the lookout for time saving ideas.

In the video above I’ll show you a practical and low cost solution I discovered for preparing quick meals with a minimum of fuss. The Cuisinart Griddler allows me to cook two meat patties along with buns or tortillas all at the same time. I just pre-heat the unit for a minute, put on my food items and come back five minutes later to a fully cooked meal. Since the unit cooks on both sides at once, I don’t have to constantly turn items or drain juices.

The unit features reversible grills for different items. One side is flat for pancakes, buns, and bread while the other is ribbed for meat and Panini style sandwiches. Cleanup is fast and easy as the grills click out for washing in the sink or dishwasher. Cooking a low carb meal couldn’t be quicker and easier. The ribbed grills allow fat and juices to drain off the back into a collection tray.

Watch the video above to see how easy this is.

In the video I used delicious Chicken-lime patties from Trader Joe’s along with whole wheat crumpets. You can easily substitute turkey, beef, or fish, and have your meals ready in minutes. While it’s better to thaw your meat beforehand, the grill works well with patties right from the freezer. Now that there a lot of low calorie bun choices, you can make a healthy low carb meal, that you take with you with a minimum of fuss.

Question: Have you ever used a two sided grill like this?

Is Your Writing Holding You Back Online? Five Quick Ways to Improve

January 27, 2012 By John Richardson 1 Comment

This is a guest post by Ali Luke. She is a writer and writing coach, and blogs about writing on her site Aliventures. You can find her on Twitter as @aliventures, where she’s always happy to answer questions about writing. Although podcasts and videos are becoming more and more popular online, we still live in [...]

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What is Carb Cycling?

January 26, 2012 By John Richardson 1 Comment

I’ve been searching for a good diet and exercise program for the New Year. I’ve looked at some of the latest research and results that different plans have been getting. My search led me to the concept of Carb-Cycling, which has been used by bodybuilders for years. In a nutshell, carb cycling boils down to… [...]

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A Mysterious Diet Secret

January 19, 2012 By John Richardson Leave a Comment

One of the most complicated and controversial things to do is pick a weight loss diet plan. There are literally hundreds of them, and many of them purport to be the only way to achieve permanent weight loss. Here are some common ones… The Low Carb Diet (South Beach, Dukan, and Atkins are common versions) [...]

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How To Create a Diet That Works

January 17, 2012 By John Richardson 2 Comments

Wow, it’s the New Year again. Time to put away the Christmas decorations, clean up the house, and deal with those unwanted pounds that found my midsection over the last two months. Why are November and December so hard on the waistline? Every year I tell myself I’m not going to gain any weight over [...]

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