iBooks 2 for iPad announced by Apple

Apple has recently announced iBooks 2 for iPad, a new version of the iPad application that allows users to enjoy digital versions of textbooks. The service now features iBooks textbooks, an entirely new kind of textbook that’s dynamic, engaging and truly interactive. With support for interesting new features including gorgeous, fullscreen books, interactive 3D objects, diagrams, videos and photos, the iBooks 2 app will let students learn using new interactive textbooks with just a tap or swipe of the finger.

The new iBooks 2 app is available as a free download from the App Store in the Books category.

What's New in iBooks 2 for iPad
+ iBooks 2 now with iBooks textbooks.
+ Experience gorgeous Multi-Touch textbooks designed for iPad
+ iBooks textbooks are filled with interactive features, diagrams, photos, and videos
+ Tap to dive into images with interactive captions, rotate 3D objects, swipe through image galleries, watch videos in full screen, and more
+ Use a finger as a highlighter when swiping over text in a textbook
+ Take advantage of Study Cards to help you memorize important highlights, notes, and glossary terms
+ Tap glossary terms to see definitions of key topics and concepts without leaving the page

iBooks Author is also available as a free download from the Mac App Store and lets anyone with a Mac create stunning iBooks textbooks, cookbooks, history books, picture books and more, and publish them to Apple’s iBookstore. Authors and publishers of any size can start creating with Apple-designed templates that feature a wide variety of page layouts. iBooks Author lets you add your own text and images by simply dragging and dropping, and with the Multi-Touch widgets you can easily add interactive photo galleries, movies, Keynote presentations and 3D objects.

Apple also announced an all-new iTunes U app giving educators and students everything they need on their iPad, iPhone and iPod touch to teach and take entire courses. With the new iTunes U app, students using iPads have access to the world’s largest catalog of free educational content, along with over 20,000 education apps at their fingertips and hundreds of thousands of books in the iBookstore that can be used in their school curriculum, such as novels for English or Social Studies. The iTunes U app gives iOS users access to the world’s largest catalog of free educational content from top universities including Cambridge, Duke, Harvard, Oxford and Stanford, and any K-12 school district can offer full courses through the iTunes U app.

With the iTunes U app, students are able to access new books right from within the app, and any notes taken in iBooks are consolidated for easy reviewing. In addition to reading books, viewing presentations, lectures and assignment lists, students can receive push notifications so they always have the latest class information.

Educators can quickly and easily create, manage and share their courses, quizzes and handouts through a web-based tool and utilize content and links from the iTunes U app, the Internet, iBookstore or the App Store as part of their curriculum. They can also upload and distribute their own documents such as Keynote, Pages, Numbers or books made with iBooks Author.

The iTunes U app is available as a free download from the App Store.