Category Archives: ebooks

Project Gutenburg Open Audiobook Collection

Posted on September 23, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

The Project Gutenberg Open Audiobook Collection is a brilliant initiative and an excellent resource for free audio books. “Project Gutenberg, Microsoft, and MIT have worked together to create thousands of free and open audiobooks using new neural text-to-speech technology and Project Gutenberg’s large … Continue reading →

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Cataloging all the books in existence

Posted on August 2, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

Late last year, the U.S. government took down the free e-book download site Z-Library, and arrested those affiliated with the project. I recently learned about another website that has taken up the mantle and is working to catalog free e-books. The … Continue reading →

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Summer reads and more

Posted on July 24, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

It’s that time of the year when former President Barack Obama releases his summer reading list. Since he has such impeccable and varied tastes, those of us who care about books take notice. While I usually have read at least … Continue reading →

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Pushing back against AI

Posted on July 23, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

The Authors Guild has submitted an open letter to the CEOs of prominent AI companies, including OpenAI, Alphabet, Meta, Stability AI, IBM, and Microsoft, calling their attention “to the inherent injustice in exploiting our works as part of your AI systems without … Continue reading →

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Reading Immersion

Posted on July 10, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

The new Sol Reader is a clever device that looks like a VR headset, but instead of immersion in virtual reality it offers the user the opportunity to get lost in a good book. The digital device streams e-books from … Continue reading →

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Are these the 50 best scifi books of all time ?

Posted on April 17, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

I read quite a lot of science fiction. My reading habits were informed early in childhood by my love of writers such as Ray Bradbury and Isaac Asimov. These days I find myself leaning towards post-apocalyptic sci-fi and space operas. … Continue reading →

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Printed books prevail

Posted on March 5, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

A tip of the hat to TBTP’s most loyal reader for the link to this infographic and article on the abiding appeal of the printed book. There is some comfort for an old bibliophile in learning that readers everywhere still … Continue reading →

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My AI Tale

Posted on January 28, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

To say that I am ambivalent about the rush to use AI in the arts would be an understatement. In many instances it seems more like an automated plagiarism machine than cutting edge technology. However, I was game to give … Continue reading →

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Who reads what where

Posted on January 23, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

I’m a sucker for a clever infographic, especially if it pertains to books or reading. The graphic above shows which reading genres are most popular in 36 countries around the world. To collect the data, the folks at Study In … Continue reading →

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Not another Book of the Year List

Posted on December 14, 2022 by Brian D. Butler

It’s that time of the year when the “Best Books of the Year” lists come out. While I mine the lists for reading recommendations, I hesitate to generate my own list. Reading tastes are so subjective. In fact, I frequently … Continue reading →

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