Life's Little Adventures

What's New?

Here's what I'm up to now. My current — and most challenging — "Little Adventure" is to develop a fresh approach to travel apps for the iPad, iPhone, and iPodTouch, as well as for many tablets and smartphones using the Android operating system, and later as e-books.

What's so special about that? There are plenty of travel apps out there, many of which are free. Well, mine can take you to some quite unusual places that are usually overlooked, as well as to the familiar. And they are loaded with background information, plenty of photos, links to videos, attraction websites and multiple sources of up-to-date information.

But best of all are the MAPS. So far, over a hundred "Diagram Maps" have been specially created just for this project. These show you exactly where everything is and how to get there, and the simple design and bold type make them easy to read on even the small iPhone screen. In addition, for every Day Trip and attraction entry there is an embedded Google Map with even more detail.

Most of the many restaurant recommendations have direct links to the establishment's website so you can study their menu in advance.

The very small download price of $2.99 each — less than a cup of coffee — entitles users to FREE future updates and revisions.

I began this project in November 2010, and had the first one online in January 2011. Since then I have completed three more, and am nearly finished with a fifth. 

WHY NOT CHECK THEM OUT? CLICKY.

Vienna & Beyond

Innsbruck & the Alps

London's Backyard

London's Backyard for Android

Paris Day Trips (requires free Sutro World app to download. Click here)

And coming soon: Philadelphia Day Trips. And coming even sooner: Assisting Avedon, my first non-travel app, recalling my experiences with the famous photographer Richard Avedon in the 1950s and 60s.

My app publisher, SUTRO MEDIA, has literally hundreds of travel apps covering all corners of the Earth. Here are just a few of my favorites:

Real Pizza of New York

Berlin Essential

California Essential Guide

Click on Sutro's website for more information about them.

Another really great one is Puerto Escondido on the southwest coast of Mexico, available for both iPad via Sutro World, and for Android via Google Play.

Another one that I've reviewed and found fascinating is Jeff Steiner's Southern Burgundy Explorer, available on Apple's iTunes app store. This is a must if you're wandering through southern France.

I've discovered two really good guide apps to the beaches of South Carolina, both by Liz and Charlie Mitchell. The first is Hilton Head Essentials, and the second is Myrtle Beach's Best. If you're heading that way with your iPad or iPhone be sure to check them out by clicking on their names, which links to their Apple iTunes page. 

Paris Day Trips

At long last: My travel app for easy one-day trips to intriguing destinations outside of Paris is available for download to Apple iPad, iPhone, and iPodTouch devices — and soon it will also be ready for Android devices as well.

"...The Île de France has no regional unity, it does not offer any precise boundaries..." This undefined region within easy daytrip range of Paris is truly the heart of France. Its best attractions are fully explored on my Paris Day Trips: A Travel Guide app. 

To view free samples of this you will first need to download the FREE travel app SUTRO WORLD (click), which also allows you to sample pages and illustrations from over 300 of the very best travel apps anywhere. Listings are grouped by region. For mine, touch "Europe" and then scan down to "Paris Day Trips: A Travel Guide." Open that, then touch words in bold face blue to explore further. If you like what you see, click on the low, low price in the upper right corner to begin a quick download to your Apple iDevice. It's that easy.

 

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2012? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

e-Guides Continued

Hello, Earl Steinbicker here. A few weeks ago I wrote on this blog about how the entire world of travel guides is changing completely, almost overnight, from pages printed on paper to interactive digital files read on such small devices as the Kindle, Nook, smart phones, or iPads.

Now I have taken action on these developments. My first effort, my little baby, is now available on Apple’s iTunes website for downloads to Apple’s iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch, for the low price of only $2.99. I give you:

Waltzing Through Vienna

But this waltz goes far beyond five walking tours in Vienna itself, also describing one-day adventures and self-guided tours in the Wienerwald, the Wachau Valley, up the Schneeberg, down into the Burgenland, and on to such destinations as Mariazell, St. Pölten, and Linz.  Every trip can be taken by public transportation; no car needed.

But that's not all. The interactive indexing allows it to also be used as a conventional guide, independent of suggested tours. And there are plenty of restaurant recommendations, and lots of photos.

Thanks to a computer program developed by Sutro Media, this is surely the future of travel guides. And it's here now!

Coming next: Innsbruck and the Alps.

 Let your cell phone be your travel guide!

Check it out by clicking the line below: 

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/waltzing-through-vienna/id414967727?mt=8

I am the author, Earl Steinbicker, and all of the above images were taken directly off the screen of my iPod Touch, shown exactly as they will appear on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch. It's got far more up-to-date information than most $20 printed guides, and costs only $2.99. 

 

NEW! June 28 2011. Waltzing Through Vienna has been greatly improved in a new edition with a new name, Vienna & Beyond, free for current holders of the app. It now includes many "Diagram Maps" especially created for the small screen, making it easier to find your way around. CHECK IT OUT HERE.

 

AND NOW Innsbruck & the Alps is available for download to your iPhone, iPad, or iPodTouch. CLICK HERE to learn more.

 

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2012? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

 

June 2011. My new London's Backyard travel guide for the iPhone, iPad, and iPodTouch — describing all the wonderful discoveries that lie just outside the city — is now available for download at a very low price. Check it out Here.

February 2012. It's now available on ANDROID for those devices, at only $2.99 for a download with free future updates. CLICK HERE for a free preview.

The Future of Publishing

I’ve been writing travel guides for over thirty years now, and have had many little adventures during that time — some of which are recounted on these pages.

Now Comes the Biggest Adventure of All!

e-Guides!

The entire world of travel guides is changing completely, almost overnight, from pages printed on paper to interactive digital files kept constantly up to date and delivered via the internet or cellular phone system to such hand-held devices as Amazon’s Kindle, Barnes & Noble’s Nook, Sony’s Reader, Samsung’s Galaxy — and most notably for travelers, Apple’s iPad, iPhone, and iPod Touch.

Are these just a digitized version of traditional guidebooks? They could be, and unfortunately some are. But that’s missing the point. Those who create them are re-inventing the whole idea of travel guides to take advantage of exciting new possibilities. Here’s an example of how this might work:

Check This Out!

Let’s say you’re walking down the street in a strange city, not sure of what’s there, what to visit next, or even how to get to it. You simply pull out your handy i-Phone (or other such device), open the application (“app”) for that town, and browse. For every attraction there’s an interactive entry, complete with photos and a live Google map that can pinpoint the exact spot you want, fill the whole screen, and can be expanded into neighboring streets with the flick of a finger. Want to know what that museum has to offer? Just touch its name and all is revealed. Want to know still more? A touch on the screen over its website address opens that for your perusing.

Hungry? The guide suggests various restaurants. Touch their names and their files open. Another touch takes you to their website, where you can examine a menu, check prices, hours of operation, and more.

Want to know how to get to that out-of-town attraction without a car? It will tell you, and then connect to the correct schedules.

How did we ever do without this?

Recently I’ve begun investigating just how best to use this technology to present my travel information. Some early observations are:

A few months ago I purchased a Kindle, the model with both 3G and WiFi connectivity, and downloaded several travel guides into it. The Kindle is great because its e-ink screen is easy to read under almost all light conditions, the unit is lightweight and small enough to carry easily, and connects to the internet over both cellular and WiFi systems. Photos and maps, however, are in black-and-white only, and have a very limited range of tones. So far, the maps that I’ve seen on it are taken from the printed book versions of the guides, making them quite difficult to read. This could be overcome by creating special maps with larger type and more contrast. If I decide to put my guidebooks on the Kindle, I will certainly draw new maps. The reading material is sold by Amazon.

Recently I acquired an Apple iPod Touch, which is quite similar to their iPhone except that you can’t make calls from it, and its connectivity to the internet is by WiFi only. This is not a really serious drawback as once text and images are downloaded there is no need for a net connection. And it is much, much cheaper. The beauty of this device, and of the iPhone, is its tiny size. It can easily be carried in a shirt pocket, yet the text, photos, and maps are entirely readable. Apple’s iPad is a bit larger and heavier, but still easy to carry as you go about exploring. Travel guides and other books, plus music, are sold on Apple’s iTunes store. A good selection of recent travel guides is available online through Sutro Media. The photo on the left is of me holding my new toy as it displays a European travel website.

Now I must get to work! More will follow as things develop. Stay tuned.

 

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2012? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

Daytrips From London

Oh, happy day! The first copy of my new guidebook just arrived from the printer, and it's all I hoped for. The operative word in the title — and what distinguishes it from my earlier books about England — is "From." This time I've eliminated the walking tours inside London in order to make space for new discoveries within daytrip range of the city. These include a preserved 19th-century canal village where you can ride a canal boat, take a waterside walk, visit the National Waterways Museum, or just watch the activities from a canalside café. Another is to a highly secret World War II military intelligence center where the Nazi codes were cracked and early computers developed. A third features a secluded 14th-century moated manor house, Winston Churchill's country estate, and one of the greatest of England's stately homes, along with the optional opportunity for real country walks. Then there's that Thameside village just west of London long favored by leading artists, and where the Keeper of the Royal Swans pursues his strange and uniquely British ceremonial duties.

 

 CLICK HERE for Free Sample Chapters!

 

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2012? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

 

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This book is also available from Amazon Great Britain for £13.50, or Amazon in Europe for €15.50.

 FIND OUT MORE or purchase the book from Amazon by clicking below:

Our Studio, Part XXIII

A few weeks ago I was reminiscing about the times in 1968 when my business partner Jim Houghton and I did photographic assignments for Time-Life Books, and especially about our photo essay on the power brokers, movers and shakers in Washington D.C. Completed over a period of several days, it covered no fewer than 63 individuals spread over some 13 pages. This book, The District of Columbia — The Seat of Government, and another one that we did on the Middle Atlantic States were part of the TIME-LIFE Library of America series. Since I haven't seen these books, or even any of the photos, in about 35 years, I did a Google search and found a used copy on Amazon for a mere $4. Here's the story behind it:

 

Photos above are of, left to right, Senate Minority Leader Everett Dirksen, Senate Majority Leader Mike Mansfield, Speaker of the House John McCormack, and House Minority Leader Gerald Ford.

  

For our first book in in the Time-Life Library of America series, on the Middle Atlantic States, we opted to use a large 8x10 view camera outdoors, emulating the work of Richard Avedon — whom both of us had assisted a few years earlier. This time, however, we chose to use handheld Mamiyaflex TLR cameras loaded with 120 Tri-X film, and portable strobe lights. Since this equipment was small, instead of driving we flew down on the wonderful old Eastern Shuttle, which required no reservations, used old Elektra turboprops, and left from LaGuardia Airport in New York. At Washington National Airport we rented a car, drove to a Holiday Inn in Arlington VA, and then set off for the first sitting in the Capitol Office buildings. This was of the Agricultural Committee, who claimed that this was the only time ever that every member showed up!

 The next day we were to work in the Capitol Building itself, so we drove there and looked for a place to park. The most convenient spot was right under the Capitol steps, from which a door led to where we were going. I doubt if you could get away with this today, what with security precautions, but no one bothered us and we left the car there until late afternoon. The most memorable session that day was of the House Minority Leader, Gerald Ford, who engaged me in a long conversation about building a home darkroom. This was before he became President.

Security was also rather lax at the White House, where we drove right in and parked at the door to the West Wing. A guard did check our papers, but never inspected the vehicle or its contents. Actually, President Johnson was out of town at the time, and we were to photograph his special assistant, Joseph Califano, who was called the "Deputy President for Domestic Affairs" by the New York Times. After we finished, he showed us into the Oval Office for a quick look around. I was sorely tempted to liberate a souvenir, but didn't.

Photos on the right are of Presidential Special Assistant Joseph Califano and his staff.

Now I'm interested in finding the other book in the series, as well as the one we did for Time-Life on gardening.

Photos and book text copyright © 1968 Time Inc., used non-commercially under Fair Use Doctrine to illustrate my story.

Blog text copyright © 2010 by Earl Steinbicker

 

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2012? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

 

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Index of Book Publishing Posts

With over a dozen entries so far, the "Book Publishing" category in the left-hand column was becoming too cluttered and difficult to navigate. So, here is an index of all it contained, along with a brief description of each post. To open any one, just click on its title.

AMAZON'S New KINDLE DX...At last, digital reading devices come of age and represent a real threat to printed books.

HOW I GOT TO WRITE BOOKS...and why I'm telling you about my publisher and my adventures with them.

A NEW AUTHOR FINDS A PUBLISHER...FINALLY! What it took to get started.

AT LAST, A BOOK CONTRACT. My long association with Hastings House begins in 1982.

WRITING THAT FIRST BOOK — What it took to bring a dream to reality.

MAKING THE MAPS. My book needed LOTS of maps. Here's how they were made.

HOT OFF THE PRESSES. The first edition of Daytrips from London is out in February 1983, and selling it begins.

TWO MORE BOOKS. In 1984 I get to work on two more titles: Daytrips in Germany and Daytrips in France. And do some freelance work for Air France.

A NEW OWNER, A NEW BOOK — My publisher, Hastings House. gets a new owner in 1985, and I get to do another book.

ADVENTURES IN SCOTLAND: An attempt to expand my London book back in 1986.

DESKTOP PUBLISHING...and how home computers can be used to convert a manuscript into a finished book, complete with printer-friendly book publishing PDF or EPS files.

PRINT ON DEMAND...Is this the future of book publishing? I discuss our experiences with this new technology.

DIGITAL TRAVEL GUIDES...The wave of the future? A modest proposal for a new idea.

AMAZON CONNECT: A new service from Amazon.com that opens a door for dialog between authors and their readers.

GOOGLE'S NEW PEEK INSIDE BOOKS...A knowledge base is born.

EXTRAORDINARY PLACES. I edit a marvelous and timeless guide to the London region by another author.

BREATHING NEW LIFE INTO OLD BOOKS — Digging into the backlist and finding gold.

MY NEW BOOK, PART I. Daytrips Bavaria is now available.

WORDS INTO BOOKS: A description of my do-it-yourself approach to changing raw text into finished books.

A FUN READ. Do Travel Writers Go to Hell? My comments on that controversial new book by Thomas Kohnstamm.

An ASA Story. T.H.E. Hill's humorous tale about super-secretive doings by the ASA in Berlin at the height of the Cold War.

WHITHER BOOK PUBLISHING? A look at where the industry is heading, and some amazing new technologies.

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2012? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

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PRINT ON DEMAND

PRINT ON DEMAND...the new wave of book publishing

That's me on the right, working on a book

If you haven't already heard of print-on-demand (POD) publishing, you certainly will soon enough. This new technology makes it possible to issue books for which there is a small but very real market — books that would otherwise be unprofitable to print due to limited demand. In essence, it prints each book from a digital file as it is needed, one copy at a time. No more warehousing of thousands of copies, no more funds tied up in inventory. Think what this means! Backlisted and out-of-print titles can remain alive and available instead of being relegated to that great black hole of forgotten knowledge.

HOW IT WORKS:

There are basically two methods of producing POD books. For new titles, the completely edited and formatted word-processing file is uploaded into a desktop-publishing program such as Quark, InDesign, or PagePlus, arranged into page format — with illustrations if desired — and then converted into a PDF file using Acrobat or a similar program. In either case, the resultant file is sent to the POD printer online via FTP or as a CD or DVD disk. For older titles, one copy of the existing book is scanned in high resolution by the POD printer and converted into a PDF file. Either way, the resultant file is then checked against a second (reference) copy and if asked for, a proof copy of the book made for the editor's approval. This file becomes part of the printer's database, and can be made available to other POD printers worldwide via the Internet.

When an order for the book is received, one or more copies are printed on a high-speed laser printer, trimmed, bound, and shipped to the customer the same day. One fascinating aspect of this is that the actual printing can be done anywhere in the world by accessing the file over the Internet — whichever printer is closest to the customer. This greatly saves on shipping costs, customs duties, and handling. The printer used by my publisher, Hastings House, has arrangements with other POD printers in many countries. Their name is Booksurge, and they are a divsion of Amazon.com, which also lists the books on their popular website.

As is also the case with conventional offset printing, quality could be a problem unless rigid controls and inspections are implemented. When these are used, the resultant book quality closely matches that of regular printing presses, particularly for text and (for some reason) for color photos.

Cost is another factor. Since each book is printed one-off, the labor costs are higher than for automated offset printing. Still, the savings from not being stuck with slow-selling or unsold inventory makes it the better choice for books that will sell in the hundreds or low thousands of copies over an extended period of time. And, as the POD process becomes more automated — as it surely will — the costs will eventually rival conventional offset printing.

A PIONEER IN POD:

My publisher, Hastings House, with its backlist of classic titles from the 1930s through the 1990s, has been a pioneer in the use of POD printing. This began in the spring of 2003 when stocks of my Daytrips Italy (4th Edition) had run out and there were orders for more, but not enough orders to justify an offset reprint. So this was the perfect time to see what Booksurge LLC and their newfangled POD process could do! The results looked fine, so Hastings downloaded the digital files of other titles in the series to them. On June 16, 2003, I flew down to Charleston, South Carolina to watch them run off copies of my Daytrips books, and to meet with my publisher, Peter Leers, who had flown up from Orlando, Florida.

Now there are several POD printing firms, most of whom are geared to working directly with authors in what is politely called "subsidy publishing" and impolitely known as "vanity printing." This can actually be a good way for aspiring authors to get their feet wet before finding a publisher. Booksurge LLC is different as they also cater to regular publishers who desire to keep old titles available even though demand for them is small. Now a subsidiary of Amazon.com, Booksurge has arrangements with other POD printers around the world, so that an order for one book can be filled by the facility closest to the buyer.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS:

At Amazon.com's annual meeting on May 23, 2006, company founder and CEO Jeff Bezos announced that POD books have improved Amazon's selections and are becoming an important part of the company's business. "As a customer, if you get a product from Amazon, you might never know that it was printed yesterday," Bezos said. "I think we'll see more and more products created instantaneously."

CLICK HERE for a July 2007 update on how we are now using this technology.

In another post on this blog, I discuss an electronic technology that will allow the low-cost downloading of specific portions of books, to be printed out by the user or put in a PDA or I-book. In concept, this is similar to the way that individual songs are sold by i-Tunes or various MP3-based vendors. CLICK HERE TO READ IT.

And for more on this subject, CLICK HERE.

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SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2012? Why, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

Google

GOOGLE'S NEW PEEK INSIDE BOOKS...a knowledge base is born:

Yet another fantastic service is offered by those fine folks at Google. With their seemingly unlimited storage capacity, they have started a campaign to scan every page of literally millions of books from around the world, add every word of every page into their search engine, and make it all easily accessible to anyone, all for FREE! Yes, it works! Check it out by clicking here, and enter something into the search field. You might try the name of my first book, Daytrips London, which has already been scanned. Another click or two takes you inside the books, scrolling down one page at a time.

HOW DOES THIS BENEFIT AUTHORS AND PUBLISHERS? Hugely. It makes potential buyers aware of books they probably never heard of. And lets them examine the pages before deciding to buy, just as you would in a bookstore. Buying is easy — just click on an adjacent link.

MORE TO THE POINT, HOW DOES THIS BENEFIT GOOGLE? Advertising fees. They put ads next to the retrieved pages. Ads that somehow relate to the book's subject. Or not. They also place a direct link to an online bookseller such as Amazon or Barnes & Noble, from which they derive a small cut when a purchase is made. Google makes its billions one penny at a time.

CAN USERS PRINT OUT THE PAGES? WOULD THIS EVEN PAY? No and no. You cannot print the pages (copyrights and all that). You can just read them. Even if you could, it would not pay, given printer ink prices and the relatively low quality of the images. You are much better off buying the book and putting a few pennies in the author's pocket.

THINK OF THIS AS A PUBLIC LIBRARY RIGHT IN YOUR COMPUTER. The whole world of knowledge comes right to your monitor, just a click away. Saves a trip to the libary. And gas. And time.

FLASH: Google Books has added a search engine in the right-hand column of their site that lets you find anything in the book! Much better than an index. Just type in your request, hit go, and it displays a list of relevant pages in the book. Clicking on these opens the pages, and even highlights the material you're looking for. Will miracles never cease? CLICK HERE TO TRY IT.

 

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2012? WHY, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

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Two More Books

 

THE NEXT LOGICAL STEP...another book.

Continuing from before...

Even before the London book was printed, Hastings House offered me a contract to do another title, Daytrips in Germany. So, with copies of the London book in hand along with the contract, I visited the New York offices of GermanRail, DZT (the German Tourist Authority), and Lufthansa for all the goodies they could bestow. The Germans were even more generous than the Brits, covering my hotels in Munich and Hamburg. This, combined with bunking with a friend near Frankfurt, made this truly an affordable adventure.

 

THE THIRD BOOK BEGINS:

By the summer of 1984 sales of both the London and Germany books were sufficient to justify a new venture, Daytrips in France. So off I went to visit the New York offices of Air France, which offered free transportation in return for my writing some promotional material for them. A fair trade, and it later landed me occasional jobs preparing advertising copy for them. In total I spent nearly all of September and October in France, hiking all over some 45 towns in quest of the best walking tour routes.

Back in New York, other projects delayed the France book, but the manuscript was completed by mid-July of 1985. While this was being prepared, I spent much of September and nearly all of October back in France doing research for two "good value" dining guides to be given out free to Air France's frequent fliers as a goodwill gesture. The airline armed me with a letter (in French) to be shown to prospective restaurants, explaining my mission. This resulted in many a free meal. I really liked this job.

In December of 1985, Walter Frese retired and Hastings House Publishers was sold to a new owner. I made one last trip to the old office to rescue every scrap of paper relating to the Daytrips books, and then crossed East 40th Street to our new headquarters.

To be continued...

 

SO, just what Little Adventure am I up to now in 2012? WHY, just the most challenging one of them all! CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

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