Apple iBooks manager could be based in Sydney

Sourcebooks, a U.S. book publisher, has used Apple’s iBooks Author tool to launch iPad editions of three Shakespeare plays on Apple’s iBooks 2 store.

There’s been plenty of buzz about the iPad mini and the potential role in could play in reaffirming Apple’s commitment education, and now CEO Tim Cook is spending some time on stage to discuss the sort of impact immensely-popular tablet has had in schools.

Well, there you have it. As more than a few pundits had predicted in the days leading up to the event, Apple has just officially pulled back the curtains on an updated version of its iBooks iOS app. The update may not pack the same sort of sweeping changes that characterized the last big version of iBooks , but there are quite a few notable tweaks for the e-bibliophiles among you to dive into.

Apple's education announcement featured a new version of the iBooks app to handle the company's new electronic textbook format, along with free software for creating those interactive textbooks.

Apple’s iPad 2 has gone in sale in 25 more countries, with queues reported in Sydney, Canada and the UK outside Apple Stores and some authorised resellers, but in Hong Kong you can buy one now, no waiting – at more than twice the price!

This is pretty important. My school is currently in a stage of digitalisation that wants to get rid of textbooks and replace them with tablets in class. They are, however, contemplating on using iBooks Author to allow teachers to create content for students. And as we know, files created with iBooks Author can only be used on Apple products.

Written by: Peter Dinham | Published in: MarketOpen Source software company, Acquia, continues its global expansion, opening its Asia Pacific regional headquarters office in Sydney, at the same time it has extended the reach of its cloud product line by adding two new cloud deployment options in Amazon Web Services’ Singapore and newly announced Australian data centres.

Top Hat Monocle, the Toronto, Canada-based service that provides a web-based clicker and online homework tool that aims to make large lecture-based classes more engaging, just announced that it is expanding its reach to the Asia-Pacific region, with a focus on Australia and New Zealand.

Apple’s iBooks 3.0 update just went out via the App Store, bringing the features it demoed on stage at the special Apple event earlier today.