Entries tagged with “toc conference” from Tools of Change for Publishing

Wanted: Proposals for TOC 2010

Andrew Savikas
July 23, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

If you follow us on Twitter, you already know that the Call for Proposals is now open for the 2010 Tools of Change for Publishing Conference (Feb. 22-24, 2010 in New York).

One of our main themes last year was that all publishing is now digital publishing, and that's becoming clearer with each new announcement about a new device, reseller, smartphone, or other new way to reach an audience -- an audience that is now often walking around with a bookstore in their pocket or briefcase. Here's some of the topics we're looking for:

• Reaching mobile readers: when your customers carry bookstores in their pockets
• Pricing and packaging digital books
• Case studies of successful (or unsuccessful!) new publishing and digital initiatives
• Case studies from implementing lessons learned at a previous TOC Conference
• Strategies and tactics for incorporating print-on-demand into a supply chain
• Moving beyond books: selling merchandise, community, experience, and other scarce goods in a world of "free"
• Tools and challenges for an efficient all-digital workflow
• Revising your P&L's for the economics of digital publishing
• Understanding and responding to the changing retail landscape
• Using the web to find and promote the original people behind "user-generated content"--authors
• Best practices for working with Amazon, Google, and other big internet players
• How to capture and analyze web metrics of interest to publishers
• Best new practices and tools for working with and supporting authors during editorial, production and/or marketing phases
• Systems and devices for displaying digital copy (demos welcome)
• Business models for delivering and/or receiving material via new devices
• New copyright clearing, assertion, and determination mechanisms
• XML, EPUB, RDF, and other TLA's (three-letter acronyms) decoded and explained
• Using open-source tools to assemble a digital publishing workflow

If you have an idea for a session, tutorial, or "lightning demo" we want to hear from you.

And if you're making plans for the Frankfurt Book Fair, don't forget to sign up for TOC Frankfurt, a one-day conference looking at these issues from a European perspective.

TOC Coming to Frankfurt

Andrew Savikas
July 1, 2009 | Permalink | Listen

I've had the opportunity to speak with quite a few of my industry colleagues in Europe during the past year, and it became increasingly obvious there was an opportunity to bring the Tools of Change for Publishing message to a European audience. So we've teamed up with the Frankfurt Book Fair to put on a special one-day TOC Frankfurt on Tuesday October 13, the day before the Book Fair begins.

Many of the topics (and some of the speakers -- including Tim O'Reilly, Cory Doctorow, and Sara Lloyd) will be familiar to TOC New York attendees, but tuned for a European audience. And while the program is still in development, we're also trying to include some fresh voices who can bring a more global perspective -- such as Kotobarabia's Ramy Habeeb and Guardian Media Group's Simon Waldman.

If you have your own ideas for a session, speaker, or topic, you can submit it right here (just a simple Google Form).

TOC blog readers get a discount on registration by using the code TOC09BL when registering.

Best of TOC Collection Now Available as Free Ebook Bundle

Andrew Savikas
February 11, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (20) | Listen

Hit a glitch with the cover image, but the full ebook bundle (PDF, EPUB, and Kindle-compatible Mobipocket) is now posted for the Best of TOC collection (details on the content here). They're also shutting the Espresso machine down within the hour, so you can still try to grab a print one while/if they're available (no promises, sorry).

At TOC: A Different Way of Doing Booth Books

Andrew Savikas
February 9, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (4) | Listen

At most of our conferences, we sell books from our booth, and last year's TOC Conference was no exception. This year we're trying something a bit different -- including a way to browse those books virtually:

• Test drive the Espresso Book Machine. Near the O'Reilly booth we've arranged a very special debut of the 2nd-generation EBM, and pre-loaded it with about 10 O'Reilly titles (including keynoter Jeff Jarvis' new book, What Would Google Do?, and a special "Best of TOC" compilation of some of the best writing from the past year about the future of publishing from our blog and around the Web.) You can buy any of the available titles, and have it printed on the spot. We did our best to pick titles that were well-suited to the Espresso.
• Try all the books on Safari. You'll hear a lot about digital books and reading at TOC, and while standalone ebooks and devices are a hot topic, Safari Books Online has been delivering subscription-based access to digital books for nearly a decade. We've set up something special for TOC attendees, and started off your virtual "bookshelf" with 10 of the titles on display at the O'Reilly booth. It's a chance to experience a successful digital delivery model (now on your mobile phone too) while exploring thousands of books, videos, and articles.

The EBM is brand new, so thanks in advance for your patience when checking it out -- it'll be on display next to the O'Reilly booth in the exhibitor room next to the main ballroom. The exhibit space is open from 10 am - 4 pm on Tuesday (plus the exhibitor reception from 6-7:30 pm), and then 10am - 5pm on Wednesday.

At TOC: Drawing for Pre-loaded Sony Reader Signed by Tim O'Reilly

Andrew Savikas
February 9, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

Though much of the ebook buzz today has been around Kindle and Plastic Logic, the Sony Reader has a real following, and the company's new touch-screen version is by far the most elegant-looking reader I've come across (check out this session on Wednesday for a look at the device landscape). Because Sony (wisely) supports EPUB natively, it's a great fit with our ebook bundles.

Sony has kindly donated a PRS-700 for the TOC Conference, and to celebrate crossing the 400-title milestone for titles available as ebook bundles today, we're giving it away, pre-loaded with as many of them as I can fit on an 8GB SD card in EPUB format, and signed by Tim O'Reilly. Here's a photo of the reader:

That's more than $12,000 in ebooks! All paid TOC attendees (sorry speakers, press, and staff) are eligible, and we'll announce the winner on Wednesday (you must be present to win).

Safari Books Online Goes Mobile

Allen Noren
February 9, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (9) | Listen

Like much of the publishing world, I'm eager to hear about Amazon's latest version of the Kindle. But that's not the only news today. I'm sitting here at TOC and talking to John Chodacki from Safari Books Online and, with a smile on his face, he's showing me beta version of m.safaribooksonline.com. (In full disclosure, Safari is a joint venture between O'Reilly and Pearson.)

The smile is well deserved. It looks great, it's fast, and I love the stripped-down navigation and lack of clutter. It's got a couple of bugs, and I don't like that I can't read our highly designed Head First books, but it's a Beta.

The mobile version will be released on 23 February, and if you're a Safari subscriber and have feedback, send it to safarimobile AT safaribooksonline DOT com. If you're not already a subscriber, you can get a free trial.

TOC 2009 (Almost) Sold Out!

Andrew Savikas
February 8, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (1) | Listen

The 2009 TOC Conference, starting tomorrow in New York, is now Sold Out almost sold out. We rearranged some of the seating to make room for a few more. Get in before we really sell out. It's encouraging to see so much excitement about the future, despite the challenges of the present.

Stay tuned to this blog throughout the week for updates from the show, or for realtime coverage, follow hashtag "#toc" on Twitter. We'll also have coverage (including video if all goes well) of tomorrow's Amazon announcement.

Neat TOC-Inspired Videos on the Future of Learning

Andrew Savikas
February 4, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

Last May, Rutgers Univeristy English Dept. Chair Richard E. Miller sent in a nice note about how the 2008 TOC Conference had inspired him and his colleague, Paul Hammond:

The conference that my collaborator, Paul Hammond, and I attended in New York this winter was transformative for us. We returned to the university with a very clear sense of what we needed to be doing to bring the humanities to the table for discussions about the future of higher education.

Richard sent me a follow-up note recently, and though regrettably he won't be attending this year, he's posted a delightfully optimistic video discussing the present and future of writing, reading, learning, and publishing:

I am sorry that Paul and I won't be attending TOC this year. Last year's event was one of the most influential, transformative experiences I've had at a conference. Alas, in a story I'm sure you're hearing everywhere, the collapse of the economy and the state of New Jersey's educational budget makes it impossible to fund the trip this year.

The most recent work that Paul and I have completed reflects how much TOC has influenced our thinking about the future of academic publishing. I presented this at the Modern Language Association's national conference late in December. Paul and I have presented it together at Apple's national sales meeting in November and will be presenting it at national meetings of Apple CIO's in February and in April. We'd love to know what you think of it.

It's called "This is How We Dream."

Part 1:

Part 2:

(Here's Part 1 and Part 2 if you can't see the embedded videos.)

Related Story:

• Why TOC is an Idea Much Bigger than O'Reilly

Spots Still Open for TOC Roundtables

Andrew Savikas
January 21, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

Despite a grim few months for the industry, attendance for the 2009 TOC Conference has remained consistently ahead of last year's numbers (and remember -- we sold out last year, so reserve your spot now). Last year's show made it clear New York was the right place to be, and this year's program and speaker lineup are shaping up to be an amazing three days (I'm admittedly partial, so don't just take my word for it).

One of the best things about a conference like this is the chance to connect in person with people you've perhaps only met online or follow via a blog or Twitter. It's also a chance to get key players at the same table to agitate for new standards or practices. We added Roundtables this year to the program to give you a chance to schedule informal meetings of like-minded attendees. For example, there's a great panel scheduled for Wednesday afternoon on the universal standards that goes beyond just typical sales and distribution -- a companion roundtable to try and flesh out some concrete next steps would certainly be of interest to a lot of attendees. Sound like something you'd sit in on? Sign up to lead it.

There's limited slots open for the Roundtables, which are scheduled for Tuesday evening, Feb. 10. Plan to grab a drink at the sponsor reception, check out a few of the lightning demos, and then take a seat at one of the Roundtables.

Related TOC '09 Information:

• Conference Registration
• Conference Speakers
• Conference Schedule
• Conference Sessions
• Conference Tutorials

Early Registration for TOC Conference Ends Tomorrow Today

Mac Slocum
December 18, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (3) | Listen

The $200 early registration discount for the Tools of Change for Publishing conference, held Feb. 9-11 in New York, ends tomorrow today. Event information and registration details are available at the conference site.

The roster for the third annual TOC conference is nearly complete, and we're excited by the caliber of tutorials, sessions and speakers (and we aren't alone in that regard).

Confirmed sessions include:

• Keynotes from Tim O'Reilly, Jeff Jarvis, Sara Lloyd, Cory Doctorow, Jason Epstein, Nick Bilton, and Jason Fried
• Half-day tutorials covering ebooks, social media, community building, XML, print on demand, and copyright
• "Google Book Search and Copyright" with Jon Orwant
• "CEO Roundtable" with Eileen Gittins, Clint Greenleaf, Michael Hyatt and Bob Young
• "Building a Better Web-based Book" panel discussion
• "Managing the Human Side of Change" with Scott Berkun
• "What's Your Mobile Strategy?" panel discussion
• "The Rise of eBooks" panel discussion
• "The Long Tail Needs Community" with Gavin Bell
• "Greening the Book Industry" panel discussion
• "Success Stories and Failures in Digital Publishing" case study session

Additional speakers and sessions can be found at the Tools of Change for Publishing conference site. Be sure to register now to save $200.

Registration Open for Tools of Change for Publishing Conference '09

Mac Slocum
October 29, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

Registration is now open for the next Tools of Change for Publishing conference, being held Feb. 9-11, 2009 at the Marriot Marquis Times Square in New York City. From the press release:

The third annual TOC Conference will decipher the tools of change for the industry and help cut through the hype in order to reach a more profitable future in publishing. From authoring, editing, and layout to distribution and consumption, new technologies will continue to change all aspects of publishing. TOC 2009 will focus on industry-wide strategic issues, like the changing retail and supply-chain landscape. In addition to examining "long-view" trends, the conference will also supply practical tales from pioneers already experimenting and innovating on the digital frontier of paid content.

Confirmed speakers include:

• Laurel Touby, founder and CEO of MediaBistro
• Jeff Jarvis, blogger and author of What Would Google Do?
• Nick Bilton, New York Times R&D Lab
• Chris Baty, creator of National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)
• Jason Epstein, chairman, OnDemand Books

Here's a sampling of planned sessions:

• "What Does the Future Look Like for Book Publishers?" by Sara Lloyd of Pan Macmillan
• "The Rise of eBooks" by Mark Coker of Smashwords, Inc., David Rothman of TeleRead.org, Joe Wikert of O'Reilly Media, Russell Wilcox of E Ink, and author April L. Hamilton
• "Smart Women Read eBooks" by Kassia Krozser of Booksquare.com
• "Youth and Creativity: Emerging Trends in Self-Expression and Publishing" by Julie Baher of Adobe and Bill Westerman of Create with Context
• "eBooks: How Soon Is Now?" by Peter Balis of John Wiley and Sons
• "If at First You Don't Succeed: Using Agile to Relaunch XML at Cengage Learning" by Greg Shepherd of Cengage Learning
• "Lessons from a Book's Simultaneous Publication in Print and on the Web" by Stephen Smith of Crossway Books
• "The Long Tail Needs Community" by Gavin Bell of Nature
• "What Happens When Anyone Can Edit Your Book, Online?" by John Broughton, author of O'Reilly's Wikipedia: The Missing Manual
• "Speaking the Same Language: Universal Technology Standards in Publishing and Bookselling" by Lila Bailey of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, Otis Chandler of Goodreads.com, Aaron Miller of BookGlutton.com, Kevin Smokler of Booktour.com, and Tim Spalding of LibraryThing
• "Making an Impact with Travel Content--in Print, Online, and Mobile" by Ensley Eikenberg of Frommer's
• "Where Do You Go with 40,000 Readers?: A Study in Online Community Building" by Ron Hogan of Beatrice.com, Patrick Nielsen Hayden of Tor Books, and author John Scalzi
• "Crafting a Digital Road Map: One Publisher's Path to Success" by Adrienne Kinney and Andrew Malkin of Rodale
• "If Shakespeare Had a Hard Drive: The Challenge of the Born-Digital Belletrist" by Matthew G. Kirschenbaum of the University of Maryland
• "Building Old World Publishing Values into New World Automated Workflows" by Phil Zuckerman of Applewood Books

Early registration, which offers a savings of $200, will end Dec. 18, 2009. Registration information and additional details are available through the Tools of Change for Publishing Conference site.

Share Your Success Stories and Failures (and Get In Free)

One of the ongoing goals for the TOC Conference is to encourage the sharing of success stories and of the lessons learned from failed experiments and initiatives. For 2009, we're going to try something a bit different to add to the discussion, and we want your help.

Tell us about your experience with a new technology, technique, or strategy based on the shifting publishing landscape. We're particularly interested in efforts based on what you learned at a previous TOC Conference. We'll pick four submissions to present as part of a panel at the 2009 TOC Conference. If you're selected, you'll receive a complimentary admission to the full conference.

We're looking for personal accounts. We want to hear the key actions that led to success or failure, as well as what you've learned from the experience. Submissions can be in whatever format best suits your story: text, video, etc.

Send your story to toc AT oreilly.com before Nov. 10.

Related TOC '09 Information:

• Conference Registration
• Conference Speakers
• Conference Schedule
• Conference Sessions
• Conference Tutorials

Share Your Success Story (or Lessons Learned from Failure) at TOC 2009

Andrew Savikas
October 7, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

One of the ongoing goals for the TOC Conference is to encourage the sharing of success stories and of the lessons learned from failed experiments and initiatives. For 2009, we're going to try something a bit different to add to the discussion, and we want your help.

Tell us about your experience (good or bad!) with a new technology, technique, or strategy based on the shifting publishing landscape. We'd especially love to hear about efforts based on what you learned at a previous TOC Conference. We'll pick four submissions to present as part of a panel at the 2009 TOC Conference. If you're selected, you'll receive a complimentary admission to the full conference.

We're looking for personal accounts. We want to hear the key actions that led to success or failure, as well as what you've learned from the experience. Submissions can be in whatever format best suits your story: text, video, etc.

Send your story to toc AT oreilly.com before Nov. 10.

Call for Participation Now Open for TOC 2009

Andrew Savikas
July 21, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

The Call for Participation is now open for the 2009 TOC Conference, Feb. 9-11 at the Marriott Marquis in New York City.

As usual, we'll be accepting proposals for 45-minute breakout sessions (or panel discussions), 5-minute "lightning demos", and for longer 3-hour workshop tutorial sessions. For the latter, we're looking for people who really know their stuff, and are prepared to engage the audience with hands-on, practical material.

Some of the topics we'll be exploring at TOC 2009 (and accepting proposals about) include:

• Ebooks
• Alternative business models for paid content - both online and in print
• Content for mobile/smart phones (that includes the iPhone)
• Web-based marketing and promotion
• New digital publishing and authoring tools
• Managing the human side of change and innovation
• Case studies of successful (or unsuccessful!) new publishing initiatives
• Riding the wave instead of fighting the tide, such as using file-sharing sites to increase sales
• Strategies and tactics for effectively using print-on-demand
• Moving beyond books: selling merchandise, community, experience, and other scarce goods in a world of "free"
• Strategies and tactics for incorporating ebooks into your publishing program
• Tools and challenges for an efficient all-digital workflow
• Revising your P&Ls for the economics of digital publishing
• Understanding and responding to the changing retail landscape

We received far more great proposals last year than we could possibly find space for, and in some cases while the material was interesting, it wasn't the right fit for the audience or the rest of the schedule. To increase the chances of your proposal being accepted, here's some tips:

• Include as much detail about the planned presentation as possible. The more we know about what you plan to present and why it matters, the better.
• Be thorough! If you are proposing a panel tell us who else would be on it. If you are going to have a product announcement or software release, let us know. If you feel this is something that hasn’t been covered at TOC before, let us know.
• Keep it free of marketing. Nothing annoys an audience more than an unexpected sales pitch.
• Keep the audience in mind: they’re forward-minded, professional, and already pretty smart
• Clearly identify the level of the talk: is it for beginners to the topic, or for gurus? What knowledge should people have when they come to the presentation?
• Give it a simple and straightforward title or name – fancy and clever titles or descriptions make it harder for people (committee and attendees) to figure out what you’re really talking about

We're keeping the CFP open until August 25, but I encourage you to submit your proposal before then. There's always at least a few "must haves" that roll in along the way, and as they do the number of slots available to other sessions shrinks -- so your best bet is to be a "must have" session (see the tips above).

Submit your proposal!

Why TOC is an Idea Much Bigger than O'Reilly

Andrew Savikas
May 1, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

One of the reasons we at O'Reilly believe so strongly in what we're doing with TOC is that we see it as something much bigger than ourselves. While we of course value the opportunity to create a context for conversation (whether that's in person, online, or in print), the real payoff is seeing what others do after spending time thinking in that context.

This great note just came over the transom from Richard E. Miller, English Department Chair at Rutgers, who wanted to share what he'd worked on following February's TOC Conference:

The conference that my collaborator, Paul Hammond, and I attended in New York this winter was transformative for us. We returned to the university with a very clear sense of what we needed to be doing to bring the humanities to the table for discussions about the future of higher education.

That led to a Web publishing venture, which had a near immediate impact on our efforts to bring attention to the New Humanities project. We are continuing to work with and off the presentations we attended, matching our best efforts with the efforts that were on display at the conference. We've got a three minute account of this up now:

Mostly, though, we wanted to thank you for putting together such a compelling and thought-producing event.

Richard E. Miller
Chair, Department of English
Executive Director, Plangere Writing Center

Save the date and plan to join the conversation at TOC 2009, Feb. 9-11, again at the Marriott Marquis in New York City. Sign up for the conference newsletter to catch updates about registration, speakers, the program and more.

TOC Tutorial DVDs Now Available

Andrew Savikas
April 30, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

DVDs from four of the eight TOC 2008 tutorials are now in-stock. If you attended the conference, check your email for information on how to save 50%. If you missed TOC 2008, you can still save 30% on the DVDs using discount code TOCD3 (and sign up for the conference newsletter to make sure you don't miss TOC 2009).

The available tutorials are:

• Digitizing Your Backlist
• SEO (Search Engine Optimization) for Publishers: Beyond Book Search
• XML for Publishers
• Making Mobile Work

And if you buy two, the third is free. More details here.

The (Online) World of the Economist

Peter Brantley
February 12, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

In New York for the O’Reilly Tools of Change for Publishing conference, I had the opportunity to speak with Wendy Elman, the VP of Marketing at The Economist’s economist.com. Ms. Elman’s background is in book publishing, and she joined The Economist in July 2007.

Ms. Elman commented that the driving goals of The Economist are to earnestly seek change, while carefully maintaining a highly-regarded and identifiable brand. It believes that seeking and embracing innovation is the surest way of ensuring its relevance as a destination and a source of thought-provoking dialogue.

The Economist’s web site has been relatively innovative for a publisher many might suppose would be rather conservative; e.g., it offers not only traditional RSS feeds but podcasts; and it is beginning to develop and provide access to video content. They are also cognizant that the world — particularly outside the U.S. — is mobile, and they are enhancing their delivery options to a diverse range of handheld devices.

Interestingly, The Economist recently supported online, moderated debates on the future of education, one of which specifically caught my eye, on the impact of social media on education.

The online debates deepened the magazine’s interest and engagement with its reading community; they were a purposeful entry into online, interactive dialogue. They produced a tremendously enthusiastic response, with well thought out posts from a variety of contributors, with no or very little spam. The engagement was so vigorous that requests for additional functionality were rapidly put forward. Readers, for example, have petitioned for the persistance and continuance of the debates in an economist.com venue, something under consideration.

Video of Tim O'Reilly and Kathy Sierra Now Posted

Andrew Savikas
February 12, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

Video of the conversation between Tim O'Reilly and Kathy Sierra that we showed Monday at TOC 2008 is now posted..

Video from TOC 2007 posted at Blip TV

Andrew Savikas
February 5, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

Check out video from most of last year's keynotes, now posted at blip:

In related news, we'll be making DVDs of four of this year's tutorials available for sale soon after the conference. I'll post more details next week.

TOC Attendees by Geography

Andrew Savikas
February 2, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

UPDATE: The maps  (click on the images below) are now updated with the same numbers shown Monday morning at the conference: these are preliminary numbers, and we have had more than a hundred additional registrations, but these are relevant nonetheless.

When we held the first TOC conference last year in San Jose, it was meant to signal that many of the changes in store for publishing would result from the technology coming out of Silicon Valley. Certainly an important statement to make in theory, but in practice many of the key players we set out to reach balked at the cross-country journey.

Moving the conference to New York this year puts us in the heart of the publishing universe, but it most certainly doesn't mean New York is the only game in town (or town in the game, I suppose...). I've been closely watching our registrations this year, and a look at the geographic breakdown reveals some interesting data. These numbers are still rough and preliminary, but interesting nonetheless.

Here's a worldwide breakdown of attendees (these maps were generated using DabbleDB, an awesome online database tool). While the majority of registrations so far come from the U.S., Europe is well into double digits, and we have at least a few attendees coming from almost every region on earth. (Note: click the maps to get an updated and interactive version.)

Looking at just the U.S., New York is certainly well-represented, but the majority of attendees are coming from elsewhere, with strong numbers from the Midwest and West (I should clarify that the California and Massachusetts numbers do include O'Reilly staff.)

While I still believe moving the conference to New York was the right decision, I'm excited to see so many people from well beyond the five boroughs eager to join the conversation.

Registration for TOC 2008 is still open, and you can save 15% with discount code toc08avs15 when signing up.

TOC 2008 Just Around the Corner

Andrew Savikas
January 31, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

On the Radar backchannel, Make's Phil Torrone shared a link about how author Paulo Coelho has "pirated" his own book using file sharing, with surprising results:

[U]ploading the Russian translation of “The Alchemist” made his sales in Russia go from around 1,000 per year to 100,000, then a million and more.

The use of technology like digitization, file sharing, the Internet is contributing to dramatic changes happening to the business of publishing. We launched the O'Reilly Tools of Change for Publishing conference last year (video on blip) to help publishers -- ourselves included -- begin to make sense of these changes. The name TOC (which publishing folks may recognize as the common acronym for a table of contents) was a nod to our intention to see the conference set the agenda for the future of publishing. We couldn't have said it better than TOC speaker Kirk Biglione:

TOC has emerged as the premier conference (possibly the only conference) designed to help book publishers come to terms with the range of technologies that are transforming their industry.

The second TOC conference is now barely two weeks away. You can preview the schedule and tutorials at the conference web site. This year's program includes several audience favorites from last year (including guaranteed profitability in publishing, hot new gadgets, and SEO (search engine optimization for publishers), and I'm thrilled about all of the new additions and speakers, including Seth Godin, Publishers Weekly editor-in-chief Sara Nelson, and Lulu.com founder Bob Young.

Right now, you can get a 20% discount when you register using discount code toc08rdr. TOC 2008 is Feb. 11-13 in New York City.

P.S. -- We're closing day two of the conference with another crowd favorite, a panel discussion with a group of teens. If you know any teens in the New York area interested in participating, drop me a line at toc AT oreilly.com