1. BOOK AS API
SOLVEfor
INTERESTING
OTHERWISE LIFE IS DULL.
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2. Friday, 15 February, 13

3. The book has always been a
hack.
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4. Friday, 15 February, 13

5. The butler did it.
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6. Content Format Structure
Fiction or non Chronological
Wood
Objective or Alphabetical
Subjective pulp
Narrator’s
Vampires or choice
Werewolves
http://www.flickr.com/photos/playingwithpsp/2313754224/
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7. The linear narrative is just the
default interface.
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8. Format locks content
and structure.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wackyvorlon/8758696/
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9. A false
epiphany.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wackyvorlon/8758696/
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10. Content is in flux
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11. Friday, 15 February, 13

12. Objective The Difference Engine UNIX reference
Content focus
Historical fiction User manual
Prove it’s wrong: Keep it current:
Retellings Critique, debate, accuracy, Errata, revisions, Textbook
speculation, expertise, omissions, Q&A, other
Biographies evidence. references Reference
Speculative fiction “How to” book
Twilight Cooking For Geeks
Franchise Food/wine
Collaborate & book
Procedural
drama Make me special: evangelize:
Marketing
Author access, chat, Testimonials, blogs,
book
Scifi celebrity. speaking, next big idea,
create events. Self-help
Fantasy
Subjective book
Author/character The Hobbit Made To Stick
focus
Fiction Nonfiction
Beyond the story/ Accuracy, case
inside the author’s mind studies, evidence
Friday, 15 February, 13

13. We can’t be
all things to all people.
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14. The gold master and the
long shadow
http://www.ibaraki-ct.ac.jp/english/manufacturing-of-Blue-Ray-Disk.jpg
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15. Friday, 15 February, 13

16. Naming software by year
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17. Software went moldy.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/creative_tools/6002142018/
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18. Friday, 15 February, 13

19. SaaS won because of
administration.
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20. The App Exchange
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21. The publication date of a
book
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22. From atoms
to bits.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/alicepopkorn/6846578476/
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23. The most popular camera
in the world.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/art_es_anna/288880795/
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24. Friday, 15 February, 13

25. The most popular cameral
in the world
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26. The footnote is the
original hyperlink.
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27. From 2003 back we generated 5
billion gigabytes of information.
By 2011, we were cranking out that
much data every 2 days.
By 2013, we’ll be doing it every 10
minutes.
According to IBM at http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/ideas/2012/05/big-data-or-too-much-information/
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28. Publishers “see content
as a scarcity we
produce and control.
Facebook and
Google ... see content
as an abundant
resource to learn from,
value and exploit.”
Jeff Jarvis
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29. There’s more stuff about
the book outside the book
than within.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/41517846@N08/4290380364/
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30. Grant me four things.
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31. 1.
A book is a bundle of
content, structure, and
format.
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32. 2.
The format that content
takes must adapt to
how it’s being used.
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33. 3.
Book content shifts;
“publication date” is a
false epiphany.
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34. 4.
Big Data means books
that aren’t linked to the
world are hermits.
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35. Maybe you disagree.
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36. Friday, 15 February, 13

37. Authoring a book means
Creating the Designing the
Content Structure
(what you’re of the
reading) reader interface
(how you’re
reading it)
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38. Then the future of a book is
its API.
Content API Structure
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39. Freedom from
the false epiphany.
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40. Content gets its own
lifestream.
Lousy Critical Movie Misguided Celebrity
first acclaim script mobile app boat
Blog cruise
draft
Fan-made Scathing
Gleam in Release Wiki IMDB tell-all
author’s
eye Prequel Awkward fan-fiction
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41. Structure gets a
developer ecosystem
http://www.flickr.com/photos/isadocafe/3269174348/in/photostream/
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42. Those that
ignore it...
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43. Those that
embrace it...
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44. Your
choice.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/susivinh/7905247944
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45. And now, from the abstract
to the concrete (and the
ridiculous to the sublime):
Hugh!
Friday, 15 February, 13

46. an
API
for
books
@hughmcguire
pressbooks.com
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47. To Do List:
1. start thinking of books as [stuff].
2. think about how we make books
3. look at examples
4. wonder: is this easy or hard?
Friday, 15 February, 13

48. What is a book?
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49. My definition:
“A book is a discrete collection of text (and
other media), that is designed by the
author(s) as an internally complete
representation of an idea, or set of ideas;
emotion or set of emotions; and
transmitted to readers in various formats.”
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50. What’s in a book?
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51. joy!
pleasure!
knowledge!
characters!
fictional people!
real people!
places!
concepts!
footnotes!
references!
lots and lots of other ...
Friday, 15 February, 13

52. THINGS!
(and: things that we can name).
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53. What is an API?
Friday, 15 February, 13

54. Terry Jones’s Definition:
“Just as a User Interface gives humans
access to information, an API gives
programs access to information.”
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55. What is a (book) API’s job?
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56. “To give other services the ability to
use [the stuff] in your books, under
defined circumstances.”
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57. An API is
another mechanism
by which a publisher can do its
job, which is:
“to make public”
the contents of a book
(under certain commercial
arrangements)
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58. HOW:
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59. Start with your
INDEX.
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60. What is an index’s job?
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61. Shakespeare’s Answer:
“And in such indexes, although small pricks
To their subsequent volumes, there is seen
The baby figure of the giant mass
Of things to come at large.”
(Troilus and Cessida).
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62. What does a paper index look like?
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63. Friday, 15 February, 13

64. What does an ebook index look like?
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65. Friday, 15 February, 13

66. That there is a link!
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67. <a href="/chapter3/index-entry-78">Dracula</a>
<a href="/chapter4/index-entry-101">May 1, 1893</a>
<a href="/chapter1/index-entry-122">Munich</a>
<a href="/chapter9/index-entry-11">Murder</a>
<a href="/chapter10/index-entry-68">Succotash</a>
<a href="/chapter6/index-entry-99">Smith, Dr.</a>
<a href="/chapter16/index-entry-119">Sambuca</a>
<a href="/chapter15/index-entry-199">Vienna</a>
<a href="/chapter2/index-entry-666">Veins</a>
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68. Jonathan Harker’s Journal:
3 May. Bistritz.
Left Munich at 8:35 P.M., on 1st May,
arriving at Vienna early next morning ...the
post town named by Count Dracula, is a
fairly well-known place....
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69. Left Munich at 8:35 P.M., on 1st
May, arriving at Vienna early
next morning ... the post town
named by Count Dracula, is a
fairly well-known place....
Friday, 15 February, 13

70. Left <a id="index-entry-122">Munich</a>
at 8:35 P.M., on <a id="index-
entry-101">1st May</a>, arriving at <a
id="index-entry-199">Vienna</a> early
next morning... the post town named by
<a id="index-entry-99">Count Dracula</
a>, is a fairly well-known place...
Friday, 15 February, 13

71. What does a smart index look
like?
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72. Left <a id="index-entry-122"
class=”place”>Munich</a> at 8:35 P.M.,
on <a id="index-entry-101"
class=”date”>1st May</a>, arriving at <a
id="index-entry-199"
class=”place”>Vienna</a> early next
morning...the post town named by <a
id="index-entry-99" class=”person”>Count
Dracula</a>, is a fairly well-known
place...
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73. <a href="/ch3/index-78"
class=”person”>Dracula</a>
<a href="/ch4/index-101"
class=”date”>May 1, 1893</a>
<a href="/ch1/index-122"
class=”place”>Munich</a>
<a href="/ch9/index-11"
class=”cause-of-death”>Murder</a>
<a href="/ch10/index-68"
class=”food”>Succotash</a>
<a href="/ch2/index-666"
class=”body-part”>Veins</a>
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74. HEY!
THAT’S AN API!
THAT WAS EASY!
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75. What can we do with a book API?
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76. We can build different interfaces
that allow readers to engage in
different ways.
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77. The Pulp interface.
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78. image: Gleann Ignacio
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79. The Bits interface.
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80. Image: Rebekah Ford
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81. The
“what stuff is mentioned in this
book”
interface:
Small Demons.
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82. Friday, 15 February, 13

83. The
“who is reading this and what are
they saying about it”
interface:
Readmill.
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84. Friday, 15 February, 13

85. The
“Let’s explode this book and put it back
together in a very cool way”
interface:
Dracula Dissected.
bit.ly/draculadissected
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86. Friday, 15 February, 13

87. Friday, 15 February, 13

88. Friday, 15 February, 13

89. Friday, 15 February, 13

90. Friday, 15 February, 13

91. Friday, 15 February, 13

92. Friday, 15 February, 13

93. Friday, 15 February, 13

94. Friday, 15 February, 13

95. IS THIS HARD?
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96. Not if you use a good
book-based
content management system.
(like PressBooks!).
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97. 1. Books are made of stuff that can be
named
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98. 2. If you name stuff in your HTML (while
indexing!), then we can (easily) build new
uses/interfaces for our books, such as
Dracula Dissected.
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99. <shameless_plug>
3. If you use something like PressBooks to
make your books, making Dracula
Dissected becomes easy.
</shameless_plug>
Friday, 15 February, 13

100. Questions?
@hughmcguire @acroll
pressbooks.com solveforinteresting.com
Friday, 15 February, 13