John August

Geek Alert

On Amazon, Apple and dick moves

Books, Geek Alert

John Scalzi’s helpful write-up of this past weekend’s [ridiculous battle between Amazon and Macmillan](http://whatever.scalzi.com/2010/02/01/all-the-many-ways-amazon-so-very-failed-the-weekend/) can be summarized quite succinctly:

**Don’t pull dick moves.**

It’s okay to play hard. As an Amazon customer and fan of the Kindle, I want Amazon to keep e-book prices low. As an author and [Kindle self-publisher](http://johnaugust.com/archives/2009/kindle-formatting-for-web-geeks), I want writers to make money.

Conflict between these two goals isn’t a bad thing; it’s business. Business is good. I know Amazon is a huge and powerful retailer that can muscle around its suppliers. I also know the folks at Macmillan aren’t all rainbows and puppies. But as a customer, I should never be aware of their negotiations. I should simply buy books.

When Amazon suddenly yanked all of Macmillan’s titles, it not only exposed the behind-the-scenes conflict, but punished otherwise neutral parties, including customers and authors.

Dick moves, defined
—-

A dick move is an action which to an outside observer appears excessive or petulant.

Or, more tautologically, a dick move is something which, when performed, leads observers to note: “Wow, what a dick!”

Last weekend, Amazon pulled a dick move. It then took too long to admit it was wrong, and finally had to [accept Macmillan’s terms](http://www.amazon.com/tag/kindle/forum/ref=cm_cd_tfp_ef_tft_tp?_encoding=UTF8&cdForum=Fx1D7SY3BVSESG&cdThread=Tx2MEGQWTNGIMHV&displayType=tagsDetail). It was a huge bundle of fail, and very much unlike a company that has done so much so well.

Many industry observers speculate that the announcement of Apple’s iPad precipitated this round of crazy. In the demo shots of Apple’s iBook store, book prices are significantly higher. Did Apple do this deliberately, trying to stir the pot? Maybe. And if so, was that a dick move?

Not really. Dick moves tend to be more obvious and punitive. ((Same with the exclusion of Flash on the iPad. You can be sure Steve Jobs knew there would be a blue lego popping up during his demo, but let it go undiscussed.)) But with the iPad, Apple is setting itself up for a series of awkward decisions, any one of which could easily become a dick move:

* **Will the iBook store include every book a publisher wants to sell?** And if not, what will be Apple’s criteria? Will they review every book the way they review apps? Will there be age ratings? If so, how will they determine those ratings?

* **Will Apple let individuals publish to the iBook store, the way Amazon does?** Trying to get an independent film sold through iTunes is tough. Apple will only deal with studios and aggregators, which not only minimizes its exposure to crazy filmmakers, but also helps ensure that copyright is valid. Getting an e-book sold through Amazon is comparatively straightforward.

* **Will Apple let users read any ePub file through the iBook reader, or does it have to be bought through Apple?** The iPod and iPhone will only run apps bought through Apple, but they will play any mp3 file you throw at them. Book files feel more analogous to music files than apps. Let’s hope Apple agrees.

* **Will Apple give third-party readers and sellers (such as the Kindle app and Stanza) equal access?** A book-reading application doesn’t seem like it would require magic and undocumented access to the iPad’s hardware. The iBook app should compete on a level playing field.

* **How will Apple set prices on books?** Apple has two basic philosophies on pricing: the App Store model, in which publishers have wide flexibility in setting price, and the iTunes model, in which tracks and albums are strongly pushed toward fixed price points. ((The App Store model has resulted in a race to the bottom at 99 cents. One could argue that price floors rather than price ceilings might better support the publishing economy.)) Will Apple allow free books? Kindle doesn’t, except through special arrangement with publishers.

For Apple, the best way to avoid dick moves on these five points is to allow robust competition. Apple doesn’t need to worry about selling every book to every customer as long as third parties can bring them to the iPad.

How screenwriters will use the iPad

Geek Alert

A few thoughts on Apple’s new tablet, and how we’ll be using it in a few months.

1. **It should be terrific for reading scripts.** Right now, the big Kindle DX does a credible job with screenplays. It’s $489. The iPad is only $10 more, and can handle mail, web, video and a lot more. A few weeks ago, I wrote about reading scripts on [laptops turned sideways](http://johnaugust.com/archives/2009/read-scripts-book-styl). The iPad is the elegant version of this solution.

2. While you probably won’t *write* write a screenplay on it, you could **easily make minor changes to a script** right on the iPad. If Pages and Numbers can run on the iPad, a credible screenwriting app should be possible. (There’s already a poky one for the iPhone that can handle Final Draft files.)

3. **It will be useful for pitches.** A few weeks ago, I was in a meeting and wanted to show the team what I envisioned for a specific monster. I passed around my iPhone. An iPad would have been ideal.

4. The touch screen feels ripe for an **index card/outlining application.** Virtual corkboard, virtual cards. Go.

5. One TV show will use it **on-camera by the end of the season.** I suspect it will be one of the CBS crime procedurals. We’ll notice it the first few times it shows up, then it will become commonplace, the way TV characters are always on iPhones.

6. While it’s never going to have the detail of a Wacom tablet, I can envision a lot of **storyboarding and shot-planning** happening on the iPad. A touch interface is a very natural way to approach angles and spatial composition.

7. **Scaling up blows.** While you *can* run any iPhone app on the iPad, things with text look pretty crappy. Most developers will want to do a new version for the iPad.

8. **Comic books.** They’re going to look great on it. Marvel and DC need to offer subscriptions and all-you-can-eat plans. (Update: Marvel [already does](http://marvel.com/digital_comics/unlimited/).)

9. I don’t know that the iPad is going to save print media in general, but many **film-focussed magazines** would probably work as well or better in this format. Right now, I read [DV Magazine](http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/newbay/dv0210/) in its online, Flash-based form, and it’s a surprisingly good experience.

10. **There’s still room for the Kindle.** The Kindle’s e-ink screen is great for reading traditional, linear books. Amazon’s selection for the Kindle is great, and the fact that they already make a good Kindle reader app for the iPhone means they’ll be able to bring that selection through to the iPad. I like that there’s going to be competition right from the start.

11. **”Fine, but I’ll wait for version 2.0.”** That’s great. I’ll enjoy using version 1.0 for a year, then get the new model when it comes out. Particularly since you don’t have to buy it with a wireless contract, there’s no penalty for upgrading.

Hiring a new person

Geek Alert, Meta, News

I’m hiring a second full-time employee, a position I’m calling Director of Digital Things.

In addition to my actual job of screenwriting and directing, I currently do all the tech stuff: the websites, the wiring, the coding, the iPhone app that’s *thisclose* to beta testing. And I enjoy it. The luxury of a writer’s life is the freedom to explore and obsess.

But the list of things I’d like to do is so much longer than what I could conceivably do that it makes sense to bring in somebody with similar ambitions and a specific mandate. Rather than, “Wouldn’t it be neat if…” I’d like to be saying, “Hey, figure out a way to do this.”

So I’m hiring somebody who can.

My assistant, Matt, will continue to handle my schedule, travel, research and proofreading. The new person will handle stuff related to this website and many new projects.

I see this as a full-time job. Salary would be commensurate with experience, and there’s health insurance.

I’d prefer the person live in Los Angeles for occasional face-to-face discussions, but she or he would be working outside the office most of the time. The new guy would be free to — encouraged to — pursue outside projects, as long as the real work came first.

After a string of terrific and very different assistants, I’ve learned that hiring someone is never a matter of checklists. Each employee brings experiences and abilities that change the nature of the job.

But I can safely predict this person will need to be very digital, with a good balance of design sense and general geekery. A good candidate for this position would be able to talk about most of the following with ease:

* Great opening title sequences of the last year.

* Pros and cons of breaking out CSS into multiple files.

* The feeds aren’t updating right. Is the problem on WordPress, Feedburner or somewhere else?

* Whatever happened to the Stone typefaces?

* Books you’ve bought just for the cover.

* Is that short URL scheme a good idea?

* Why isn’t Google hitting this page? What SEO should we bother with, and what should we ignore?

* Is it worth outsourcing comments to something like Disqus? Could we get Scrippets to work with it?

* If you were marketing a web series about giant killer plants, what outlets would you target and how?

* Since jQuery’s already loading, what else could/should we have it do?

* Getting an offsite backup server going.

* How quickly can we get The Variant onto the new Apple device?

* If we needed to swap hosts in 24 hours, what are the first six things to do?

* Five desert island typefaces, and whether TypeKit is worth it.

* Setting up A/B test pages to track two possible layouts.

A great candidate might also have expertise in several of the following:

* Coding everything from PHP to Flash to Ruby to Objective-C

* Motion graphics and VFX

* Shooting and editing

* Gadgetry and game development

You’ll notice that “writing” is nowhere in these criteria. To date, all of my assistants have been screenwriters, and all of them are now working in the industry. But I don’t see this new position as being a particularly good stepping stone for an aspiring screenwriter.

But it is likely a stepping stone for something else, and a paid opportunity to explore some areas of interest for a year or two. In addition to maintaining existing properties, there’s a range of new projects I’d like to tackle.

Here’s the hiring process:

1. Candidates email digital@johnaugust.com. Include a bio with work experience and background, interests, and (most importantly) links to work you’ve done. I’m particularly interested in seeing websites you’ve designed, along with an explanation of their goals and techniques. But I’m also curious about other projects, like iPhone apps or short films or something else you think I’d be interested in. I’ll be hiring a person, not a portfolio, so let me get a sense of what you’re like.

2. By the second week of February, I’ll narrow down my choices to a few great candidates. I’ll give each candidate a small budget and a reasonable deadline to come up with a site for a specific project, such as The Remnants. We’ll have coffee and talk about what you did and why.

3. I’ll pick the person who seems the best fit.

**Do not apply in the comments.** Let’s save the comments section for feedback about the nature of the job and general discussion.

Reading scripts on a MacBook, book-style

Follow Up, Geek Alert

bookstyleIf you could physically remove your laptop screen and hold it vertically, it would be the perfect size for reading a script. That’s the hope behind the mythical Apple tablet that always seems six months away.

But until Mr. Jobs decides we’re ready for the future, reader [Douglas](http://johnaugust.com/archives/2009/reading-scripts-on-the-kindle#comment-174771) has a suggestion that is surprisingly close. Turn your laptop on its side, and hold it like a hardcover book.

No, really. It works much better than you’d think, particularly with one of the unibody MacBooks.

I suspect there’s a way to get the screen rotated in the proper direction on almost any laptop. But on a Mac running Snow Leopard, it’s pretty easy to get a .pdf turned the right way.

1. Open the .pdf in Preview.
2. Click on one of the pages, then Select All (⌘-A) to highlight all the pages.
3. Choose Rotate Right (⌘-R) or Rotate Left (⌘-L).
4. Choose Full Screen (Shift-⌘-F).
5. Click the zoom-to-fit button.

I’ve found it more comfortable to read with the screen on the left-hand side, using my right hand to advance pages with the arrow keys. But experiment to see what works best for you.

**Update:** Several readers have pointed to a free utility called [ReadRight](http://www.twilightedge.com/mac/readright/) which basically does steps 1-6 all at once, with some other handy options thrown in. I particularly like being able to advance pages with a click on the trackpad.

Since Preview is already included on every Mac, I’ll keep it as the general-case solution.