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After over ten years of covering the digital reading world – e-readers and ebooks (mostly in French) – I thought I had seen it all when it comes to DRM. But an important development is shaking things up.

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Discovering the Past: Free Access to the Video Game History Foundation's Digital Archive

Today marks an exciting milestone for gaming enthusiasts and historians alike, as the Video Game History Foundation (VGHF) opens its digital archive of video game research materials to the public.

Accessible now at https://archive.gamehistory.org/, this repository is an impressive gateway into the world of video game history that is completely free of charge.

A Rich Tapestry of Gaming’s History

Since its inception in 2017, the VGHF has been on a mission to build a comprehensive digital library centered around the history of video games.

Over the years, they have meticulously gathered a treasure trove of materials including development documents, rare publications, magazines, and behind-the-scenes content. This endeavor ensures that the stories of how our favorite games came to life are preserved for future generations.

What’s Inside the Archive

The initial collection is a remarkable assortment of items that includes:

• Unseen development materials: A glimpse into the creative process behind beloved video games.
• Promotional artwork: Graphics, press kits, and other marketing materials from iconic titles.
• Rare magazines: Over 1,500 full-text searchable out-of-print video game magazines, including trade publications that are seldom available to the public.

These resources are invaluable for understanding both the artistic and business sides of video game development.

While the archive offers an incredible amount of content, it is unfortunate that documents cannot currently be downloaded for use on e-readers like Kindle. This limitation makes it less convenient for those who prefer to read on portable devices. Finding a way to transfer documents for offline access remains a challenge for many users.

EDIT: I find a way to download the retro magazines with the short cut keyboard "CTRL + S" on my computer to save the file as PDF.

Learn How Games Were Made

One of the highlights of the launch is the Mark Flitman papers, a collection of documents from a retired game producer who worked with renowned companies such as Konami and Acclaim.

These papers embody a detailed record of the video game industry's past, offering unique insights into production and marketing practices that shaped the gaming landscape.

Additionally, the archive boasts over 100 hours of footage from the production of the Myst series, featuring behind-the-scenes content and interviews with the original development team. This access not only enriches the narrative of the Myst games but also supports upcoming projects like The Myst Documentary.

More to Explore

The VGHF Library will continue to expand, looking forward to more exciting additions such as:

• The first 100 CDs from GamePro magazine’s archives.
• Guidebooks and ephemera from video game events, including searchable directories from the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3).
• A rich collection of promotional materials from FromSoftware, curated by citizen archivist Kris Urquhart.

With so much to offer, the VGHF’s digital archive is not just a resource—it's a celebration of the vibrant history of video games.

Conclusion

The launch of the Video Game History Foundation’s digital library opens up a new chapter in the preservation and study of video games.

Whether you’re a researcher, a developer, or just a fan, having free access to these incredible resources is an opportunity to learn, explore, and appreciate the art and craft of video game creation.

Dive in at library.gamehistory.org or https://archive.gamehistory.org/ and start your journey through the rich history of gaming today!

That's why I love ebooks: one day we'll have all the information we need at our fingertips in a little device like an ebook reader. But, of course, there's still a long way to go before we get there.

Remember the surprise announcement of the Daylight Computer DC-1? No? Let me jog your memory: it’s a tablet featuring a proprietary system called Sol:OS, a “Live Paper” screen, and a minimalist-focused concept. But where has the Daylight DC-1 gone since its announcement?

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Here’s a selection of notable blogs and websites about e-readers across different languages. These blogs serve as good resources for anyone interested in the latest information about e-readers and digital reading trends in various languages:

English

1. The Ebook Reader: This blog covers a wide range of topics related to e-readers, e-books, and digital publishing.
2. Good e-Reader: Focuses on news and reviews related to e-readers, tablets, and the latest in digital content.

Spanish

1. Libros y Literatura: While primarily a book review blog, it also covers e-readers and their impact on reading culture.

French

1. Liseuses.net: Offers insights and reviews on e-readers and e-books in the French context.
2. Actualitté: Covers a broad range of literary topics including e-readers, digital publishing, and the evolution of reading.

German

1. Allesebook.de/: A blog focused on reviews, comparisons, and news related to e-readers and e-books in Germany.
2. Buchreport: Features industry news and occasionally covers developments in e-readers and the digital book market.

Portuguese

1. Livros Digitais: This blog discusses the latest in e-reader technology, reviews, and trends affecting Portuguese-speaking readers.

Brace yourselves because 2025 is bringing more digital notepads aimed at boosting productivity. Fujitsu plans to make a mark with its latest gadget, the Fujitsu Quaderno A4C.

The Quaderno line isn’t new; it’s been around for a few years and comes in two sizes: A5 and A4. The naming, using paper sizes, is no coincidence since the brand targets businesses focused on going paperless.

So, what is this Fujitsu Quaderno A4C all about?

It’s a digital device featuring a 13.3-inch colored e-ink display with Kaleido 3 technology. This means it sports the latest in colored e-ink screens and seems to target the ReMarkable Paper Pro head-on.

The Fujitsu Quaderno A4C comes with a stylus that uses Wacom’s battery-free pressure system.

Here are its technical specs:

• 13.3-inch Kaleido 3 (color) screen with a black-and-white resolution of 1650 x 2200 pixels (207 dpi, but just 103 dpi for color)
• Capacitive touch layer with Wacom stylus
• 32 GB of storage
• USB-C
• WiFi
• Bluetooth
• Weight: 368 grams
• Dimensions: 222.8 x 301.11 x 5.7 mm
• Supported format: PDF
  

Feature-wise, the Quaderno A4C seems bare-bones!

It’s only compatible with PDF files, so forget about loading ePub files without converting them first — a bit of a downer.

But remember, it’s built for the corporate world. Thankfully, you can take notes on PDF documents, even in color. But if it plans to compete with the likes of ReMarkable, Kindle Scribe, or Kobo Elipsa, it might need a bit more.

It seems like the Fujitsu Quaderno A4C is primarily targeting Japanese businesses, who tend to be pretty traditional. Using a Japanese product to handle important documents might be reassuring in terms of minimizing industrial espionage risks. Remember, Sony has offered similar products aimed at Japan for a long time.

For those of us living outside Japan, though, this device might not be too appealing. It will be available sometime in March 2025 with a steep price tag of $719.99. See also : best alternatives to the reMarkable

Official site: https://fujitsuquaderno.com/

So, 2024 is over and lots of e-readers came out. It was really the year for color e-ink screen e-readers, with every brand launching a color version of their top models.

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Amazon is back with a new version of its large-format e-ink tablet, the Kindle Scribe. Does this new version fix the issues of the first generation Scribe? That’s what I’m going to try to figure out in this article.

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In France, the second-hand book market is estimated to be worth over 350 million euros. This financial opportunity attracts many who would also like to take a slice of the pie.

Last April, Emmanuel Macron proposed a tax on second-hand books to support authors and publishers, whose income mainly comes from the sale of new books.

However, the market for new books is in decline in France, with a slight increase of 1.16% in revenue in 2023, while the sale of copies has dropped by nearly 2%.

This raises the question of how to recover funds from the second-hand market, with the aim of providing additional compensation to authors and publishers.

An amendment proposal has been made in October 2024 to tax sellers of second-hand books (or rather the online platforms that offer them, like Momox) to compensate for the economic losses suffered by authors.

However, legal experts point out that this could be legally complex and risky for competition, as it would be difficult to legally differentiate between online resellers, referral sites, and physical booksellers.

Taxing only online sales platforms could also create market imbalances.

Furthermore, implementing such a tax must comply with European regulations, which complicates the situation even more.

This is because, until now, the European directive 2001/29/EC stated that once a new book is sold, no rights can be asserted over it: the buyer fully enjoys the purchased work and can, for example, lend it to a friend or their children for reading.

This also allows the person to resell their book – just like one can resell a Toyota car without the manufacturer receiving a percentage of the sale.

To change this, it would first be necessary to establish copyright on second-hand books, which currently does not exist and complicates matters.

Ultimately, the debate highlights a broader issue regarding the sharing of value in the literary industry in France.

Instead of demonizing the second-hand market, which can attract new readers and stimulate the purchase of new books, France would be better off considering other solutions to support the book industry and promote reading, rather than adding new taxes that would further hinder the development of reading in this European country.

In France, new books are taxed at 5.5%, and their prices are fixed, meaning that every bookstore must sell the book at the same price throughout the French territory.

There's no doubt that this tax affair won't stop there, and with the country in political crisis (Prime Minister resignation), it's easy to imagine that those in power, led by their publisher friends, won't stop there.