by Ina Fried
LAS VEGAS--Ray Kurzweil knows a little something about e-readers.
The computing pioneer, who among other things helped develop modern
text recognition software, has been working to use digital technology
to improve reading for the past 30 years. After years of work on how
computers can help those with learning disabilities, Kurzweil is now
taking aim at the masses.
His latest project, Blio, is an effort to improve the emerging
electronic book field with software that turns e-books into more than
just a digital copy of the print edition. Blio, which is due out next
month, is software that combines a full-color digital book with the
ability to add Web content, video, and professionally narrated
audiobooks.
Kurzweil said that kind of reading experience just isn't possible on
current e-readers like the Kindle. Plus, he said, most people don't
want to carry a separate device just for reading.
"People want to do everything--they want to watch their movies, they
want to do all their computing, their e-mail on one platform," he said
in an interview. "They don't want to take another device."
Initially, the software will run on Windows PCs, Apple's iPhone, and
its iPod Touch, though Kurzweil wants to make it available on other
devices as well. Blio made a brief cameo Wednesday as part of the
keynote speech by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.
The Blio software allows for a number of interesting enhancements over
standard e-books. In one example, Kurzweil shows a children's picture
book of the "Three Little Pigs" with the book synchronized to the
human-narrated audiobook. As the audio goes on, the word being read
can be highlighted. That, Kurzweil says, allows children to improve
their reading more quickly.
Another type of enhanced book could benefit older students. Kurzweil
showed an anatomy textbook with Web content, such as quizzes, built
right into the book.
Kurzweil said he doesn't see a big market for dedicated e-readers with
limited capabilities.
All of these enhanced books require work from the publishers, though
Blio can handle the task of syncing an audiobook by scanning the text
and audio. In that case, it's more a matter of acquiring the rights to
both text and audio, though Kurzweil notes that it opens up an
opportunity for publishers to sell a premium version of their books.
Under the hood, Blio uses a number of Microsoft technologies,
including Windows Presentation Foundation and the XML Paper
Specification (XPS). Kurzweil said his company is also working on a
Silverlight version of its software that will provide for Mac support.
Users will be able to register up to five different devices on which
they can read their content, although some textbooks will be limited
to just three devices to limit piracy. "They are a little worried
about some of your generation," Kurzweil said.
For more on Blio, check out my video interview with Kurzweil, embedded above.