Earlier this morning, Apple unveiled a couple of new applications geared towards revolutionizing education. The first was iBooks 2, an update to the company’s digital book store that now includes a host of interactive textbooks.
And the second was iBooks Author, an app that provides all the tools needed to make those textbooks without needing any kind of background in programming or publishing. And it’s now available for download…
iBooks Author can be described as sort of a combination between Pages and Keynote, but it’s much more than that:
“Now anyone can create stunning iBooks textbooks, cookbooks, history books, picture books, and more for iPad. All you need is an idea and a Mac. Start with one of the Apple-designed templates that feature a wide variety of page layouts. Add your own text and images with drag-and-drop ease. Use Multi-Touch widgets to include interactive photo galleries, movies, Keynote presentations, 3D objects, and more. Preview your book on your iPad at any time. Then submit your finished work to the iBookstore with a few simple steps. And before you know it, you’re a published author.”
And best of all, iBooks Author is free. If you want to try it out for yourself, you can download it from the Mac App Store.
What do you think of iBooks Author?