Mac Slocum

Mac Slocum is O'Reilly's Online Managing Editor. He's been writing, editing and producing web content in various forms since the mid '90s. He also dabbles in video interviews from time to time.

A screenshot, a link, and a heap of praise are met with a takedown notice

The New York Times should have considered context before slapping Quartz with a takedown letter.

The New York Times sent a takedown notice to Quartz because Quartz published a screenshot of a Times interactive visualization.

Let me clarify:

Quartz posted a static screenshot of an interactive and it linked to the interactive and praised the interactive. Quartz was actively encouraging people to go check out the full thing on the New York Times’ website. The offending Quartz article is titled “Our favorite charts of 2012.”

Quartz was transferring at least 90% of the attention and value to the New York Times. And yet, the Times wanted Quartz to take the whole thing down. Read more…

Something big is missing from Flipboard and iBookstore

Flipboard is a great discovery channel for books, but where are the samples?

Flipboard (which I adore) and Apple’s iBookstore (which I rarely think about) have teamed up. Sort of.

A new books section in Flipboard highlights titles from iBookstore. It’s a nice idea, but it doesn’t go far enough.

Instead of doing the obvious thing — publishing full samples — the Flipboard / iBookstore section only shows the book cover, author and publisher’s description. That’s like lining the shelves of a physical bookstore with book jackets, not the books themselves. Why would you do that?

Read more…

Now available: Best of TOC 2012 anthology

Now available: Best of TOC 2012 anthology

The free "Best of TOC 2012" collection charts the digital evolution of publishing.

"Best of TOC 2012" explores the ideas that are shaping the content world, including: the adaptation of publishing, digital's legal issues, new tech and tools, and thoughts from the edge of publishing.

The five things you need to pay attention to at TOC 2012

The five things you need to pay attention to at TOC 2012

Publishing startups, data, and ebook quality are among TOC 2012's key topics.

Tools of Change for Publishing chairs Kat Meyer and Joe Wikert reveal their top recommendations for things to see, do and watch at the upcoming conference.

Sensors, data, UI and the future of publishing

Tweets and related information from Tim O'Reilly's Silverchair Strategies 2011 presentation.

In a recent keynote address, Tim O'Reilly looked at how sensors, data and interfaces will shape information delivery.

When media rebooted, it brought marketing with it

When media rebooted, it brought marketing with it

Mitch Joel on matching marketing platforms to your needs and why book ads might work.

In this TOC podcast, Twist Image president Mitch Joel talks about some of the common challenges facing the music, magazine and book publishing sectors. He also expands on his suggestion that publishers should "burn the ships" and not look back.

Publishers: What are they good for?

Publishers: What are they good for?

O'Reilly editors examine the role of traditional publishers in light of Amanda Hocking's independent success.

News of author Amanda Hocking achieving success without the help of a traditional publisher led O'Reilly editors to question the purpose and future of publishers. This post collects excerpts from a recent back-channel conversation.

Want to succeed in online content? Get small, be open, go free

Want to succeed in online content? Get small, be open, go free

Formation Media CEO Sam Jones on how fading publishing brands can be reborn on the digital side.

Formation Media CEO Sam Jones discusses his recipe for online content success: It has to be free, it has to be widely available, and publishers must operate at a web-appropriate scale.

What lies ahead: Publishing

Tim O'Reilly on the jobs of publishers and why ebooks represent an opportunity for a change in form.

Tim O'Reilly recently offered his thoughts and predictions for a number of areas we cover here on Radar. Here he discusses the near-term future of publishing.

Open-ended publishing

Open-ended publishing

Digital content isn't defined by editions, so let's stop thinking that way.

Content creators are trained to create defined editions: a book, an article, a movie, etc. Yet, digital content doesn't work that way. It flows and mashes up, dissipates and then reassembles. That's why it's time for a mental shift toward open-ended publishing.