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Apple announces new version of iBooks and iBooks Author, available today

Apple announces new version of iBooks and iBooks Author, available today

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Gallery Photo: iBook
Gallery Photo: iBook

At its event in California today, Apple announced a new version of iBooks, bringing a number of improvements to the app, including continuous scrolling. The new version also includes better integration with iCloud, and enhanced sharing functionality, including the ability to tap and share a book passage to Facebook or Twitter. The app now supports over 40 languages — Apple demonstrated Korean, Chinese, and Japanese options on stage. It's the first major update since Apple introduced iBooks 2 back in January, which brought new features like 3D imaging, embedded video, and multitouch gestures.

Apple has also updated its iBooks Author app, adding in new templates, and allowing publishers to update their books. Apple says authors can use their own fonts, drop mathematical expressions into books, and utilize multitouch widgets. The company says there are now 2,500 classrooms using iBooks textbooks in the US. Both the new version of iBooks and iBooks Author are available today.

Update: iBooks 3 is now available in the App Store, and requires iOS 5 or higher.

New iBooks liveblog photos

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