iBook Author is a free app that allows users to easily create stunning multi-touch textbooks for download on a Mac or iOS device. It provides all the tools one might need to start creating and publishing ebooks including galleries, video, interactive diagrams, 3D objects, and many more.
iBook Author provides you with a set of pre-defined templates to help you design the background of your textbook. You can choose from a wide variety of styles, like classic textbook, or photo book in both landscape and portrait orientations. You can also choose from a variety of page layouts in each template, or even create one of your own.
This is a free app
Type of Material:
Open Textbook
Recommended Uses:
Tool allows users to create electronic books. This could be used individually or as group task.
Technical Requirements:
iBooks on a Mac requires OS X 10.9 or later; for iPad, must have iBooks2 or later and iOS 5 or later; iPhone with iOS 8.4 or later
Identify Major Learning Goals:
No objectives or learning goals are identified but the app walks the user through the steps of creating an electronic text.
User's objectives would be incorporated into the final product.
Target Student Population:
The iBooks Author Starter Kit is designed for anyone who wants to write a book with iBooks Author. The tutorial is very clearly written, easy to understand, and would be applicable for individuals from high school to post-secondary.
Prerequisite Knowledge or Skills:
Word processing skills are a must. Familiarity with Keynote is a plus as the iBooks setup is very similar to that of Keynote.
Content Quality
Rating:
Strengths:
This starter kit is extremely well written and easy to follow. It takes a user step-by-step from the beginning to the end of the process of writing a book with iBooks Author. It is not necessarily a curriculum that should be taught to everyone, but it does provide both basic knowledge as well as more advanced instructions for the users who wish to learn more.
Concerns:
None
Potential Effectiveness as a Teaching Tool
Rating:
Strengths:
The target learner is anyone wishing to write a book using iBooks. This resource definitely improves the ability of the user to understand iBooks, and makes a complicated program easier to use. The material can be utilized in a variety of ways; some users may need more assistance and to read it cover to cover, while others may need help with only a few topics. The kit is easy to search.
Concerns:
The iBooks Starter Kit is not a teaching tool, per se, but something that helps educators create teaching tools.
Ease of Use for Both Students and Faculty
Rating:
Strengths:
The layout and organization is standard for what one expects from an Apple product -- excellent layout, great use of color, sleek fonts and use of white space v. text. The starter kit is easy to search and go to the desired topic. Additionally, at the end of certain chapters, a review quiz is included for readers to check that they have understood that chapter's main ideas.
Concerns:
None
Other Issues and Comments:
Might be used in introductory computing class with task focused on desktop publishing.
Creative Commons:
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