Kindle e-readers and kindle iOS app

[gsk]

Hi All,

 

I was just wondering if anyone was using these and if so, what the arrangements are for buying books, is there an equivalent to the VPP store? Do you need to buy 1 book for each device? Are there any better options that we ought to be looking at?

 

Any extra info on how content is managed would be great. I've not used them in schools at all so far. I need to figure out whether we'd just be better off using books from the apple VPP store and iBooks and abandoning the e-reader idea?

 

Thanks,

[enjay]

We have a few. They're all tied to a single Amazon account (you can have up to 5, I think). Books are bought by purchasing Amazon gift certificates on the school credit card, then applying them to the account. They're not on the school wifi, so the Librarian takes them home whenever she's bought any new books.

 

We looked at the iOS/Android apps, but couldn't find a way to prevent students from browsing the store and buying books.

[tmoon-mint]

For Amazon I have found this. Looks like its only available in the US though.

 

You can purchase iBooks via managed distribution but they must be assigned to a unique Apple ID per device. They cannot be device assigned and also cannot be revoked and reassigned once they have been claimed by an Apple ID. This is down to restrictions from the Publishers and not Apples doing.

[gsk]

That whispercast system looks ideal, but as you say, it's not available here. My gut feeling is that iBooks and the VPP store would be the way forward but I can't see how to distribute books to shared devices (which don't have an apple ID attached to them).

[tmoon-mint]

Unfortunately the only way to volume purchase books is to use managed distribution in conjunction with an Apple ID. You would need 1 apple ID per device even though they are shared and would assign the books to the Apple IDs using VPP. As noted above licenses for books cant be revoked and will be permanently assigned to that Apple ID.

[enjay]

Sadly another Amazon feature not available in the UK, same with the ability to lend Kindle books to friends (or get posters delivered in tubes rather than massive boxes)

 

I've just remembered, the library system at my previous school, MLS Eclipse, had the facility to lend ebooks through Overdrive.