Books Like Coffee: Ordering Made Easy

awilson — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 05:00:00 +0000

After the #amazonfail discussions via Twitter, as well as problems with authors using signatures when they posted reviews, many have wondered if any bookstore could compete with the online retail giant.

Believe it or not, it just might be the indie bookstore just up the street.

The Espresso Book Machine uses POD technology to allow customers at any bookstore to order a copy of a hard-to-find read – and to get it in about ten minutes. From the UK's The Times Online:

It prints something that looks like a book, feels like a book
and, to all intents and purposes, is indistinguishable from the thousands of
other titles on the shop's shelves (except for the hardbacks, of course, and
the sort of blockbuster fiction that has the author's name on the front in
big, raised, shiny letters, but then you can't have everything).

Currently, Blackwell's in Britain is testing the machine for three months. Ultimately, the bookseller hopes to save store space – and offer more titles to customers – if the technology proves to be a hit. Of course, the technology fell apart during a trial run with the newspaper – an LOL moment for anyone who has used a copy machine that can also cut wood:

Thor Sigvaldason, co-founder of On Demand Books, the people behind the
machine, clicked a mouse and it started making whirry, photocopier-like
noises. Laser-printed pages started flying out from the first half of the
machine into the second, where the book is made. It was clamped, glued,
stuck to the cover, cut to size and spewed out of a letterbox-sized slot in
the side of the machine – where it promptly fell apart.

Read the full story – and find out what The Times reporter thought when the final book was printed and in hand.

The machine first debuted in 2006, and is the next generation of an invention by Jeff Marsh called The Perfect Book Machine, created in 2001. The New York Public Library got one two years ago. There are at least five in the U.S. today, with plans for more.

If this technology can finally take off, more bookstores will be able to offer more texts – especially beneficial for small retailers who don't have the inventory of Amazon. For some authors who have a hard time getting stores to shelve their books, the Espresso Book Machine will open up doors that normally would have stayed closed. Small libraries (that can afford it) will be able to offer books to residents they would never have dreamed of before. It will save money in overall print costs – which can be astronomical for a simple tri-fold brochure – and allow booksellers to print only what is needed, so there isn't a huge stock to throw out if a book doesn't sell.

A few negatives: It takes some of the mystery out of publishing. I've met many people who stand in awe of book creation, from writing to printing. Once they see a copy machine create a book (You know that is what they will think.), it won't seem so cool anymore. Also, some will want to pay less for a "photocopy" of a book, rather than the original printing. The machine costs $150,000 to $175,000, according to various reports. That isn't pocket change. Smaller booksellers will need to unite to pay for it, and work out a sharing system that benefits customers in all locations.

Check out this video on the Espresso Book Machine from One Demand Books:

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Books Like Coffee: Ordering Made Easy