Adobe introduces new e-reader software

By Marcelo Duran
Associate Editor


Adobe Systems Inc. last month introduced a desktop electronic reader it contends will make rich Internet applications more accessible to consumers.

The reader, dubbed Digital Editions, is engineered to allow users to view and organize PDF and XML-based content on desktop and laptop computer, said Bill McCoy, Adobe’s general manager of ePublishing Business.

To that end, the software can handle rich-format authoring apps such as Flash or other multimedia tools as well as offer content-protection features to prevent unauthorized use of certain files, he said.

“It is a very lightweight download, under 3 megabytes and doesn’t require other technologies like Adobe Reader or Flash Player,” McCoy said. “It behaves as a full desktop application and supports reading content online and offline.”

Adobe Digital Editions is available as a free download and runs on Microsoft Corp. and Apple Inc. operating systems. Linux platforms and versions in French, German, Japanese, Korean and Chinese are expected to be available in the second half of 2007.

Open standards

DE is based on the Open Publications Structure, developed by the International Digital Publishing Forum, which supports reflowable content.

Incorporating OPS allows DE to reformat content to match a user’s display, a feature that will become more important once DE is ported to cell phones and other mobile devices.

Adobe’s release of InDesign CS3 included tools to allow users to create more dynamic content that could be exploited in DE, McCoy said.

“Of course, InDesign is quite capable of authoring rich final form pages in PDF format,” McCoy said. “But we added a new capability to offer XML content that is more dynamic and reflowable so that the content can adapt to display size.”

The app includes a library mode for allowing users to see and organize their publications. Users will be able to drag and drop files onto various bookshelves.

Bookmark content

Users can also tap into a robust annotation capability that will enable them to bookmark and highlight content for later referral.

The annotated material will be stored separately in an open XML format, which McCoy said will set the stage for future social networking features.

“Over time we want to make it possible to share these annotations publicly or privately with a set of colleagues,” he said.

McCoy said Adobe developed DE on a fast-track schedule, testing three versions in eight months.

“That’s very rapid pace of evolution for Adobe, instead of going off and working for a shrink-wrap product that’s going to take 18 months or two years to develop,” he said.

“Our job is to create the platform that enables people to do these kinds of (reading) experiences and let the newspapers figure out what it’s good for,” McCoy said of DE. “We’re just the musical instrument makers. You guys are the musicians.”

DE’s features will also be incorporated into the Sony Reader product line, according to an alliance between the two firms.