Apple's Textbook Project Code Named 'Bliss' and Inspired by Al Gore's 'Our Choice'?

AppleInsider reports that it received a tip earlier this week claiming that Apple's digital textbook project rumored for unveiling tomorrow has been developed internally under the code name "Bliss". The source also indicated that the project was inspired by Apple board member Al Gore's Our Choice e-book app focused on global climate change.

our choice harvesting wind
Al Gore's Our Choice app

Some of the source's information, including details on Roger Rosner's role in the project, was corroborated yesterday by The Wall Street Journal, increasing confidence in the remainder of the claims.

The person who contacted AppleInsider indicated that Apple's Internet software chief, Eddy Cue, is responsible for the distribution side of the new e-textbook initiative. But Rosner is said to be in charge of development of the editor used to create digital textbooks, as well as the reading software that will allow students and teachers to view the files.

The person said the internal code-name for the project is "Bliss," and said the software will allow publishers to make textbooks more interactive.

Our Choice, which was selected for an Apple Design Award at last year's Worldwide Developers Conference, is an immersive, interactive app produced by Push Pop Press. The firm founded by former Apple engineers had planned to expand its efforts in the interactive book-as-app market with additional titles, but the plan was cut short when Facebook acquired the company last year.

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
maxresdefault

Apple Releases iOS 18.4 With Priority Notifications, Ambient Music, New Emoji and More

Monday March 31, 2025 10:03 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4, the fourth major updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating system updates that came out last year. iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4 come two months after Apple released iOS 18.3 and iPadOS 18.3. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to...
top stories 2025 03 29

Top Stories: WWDC 2025 Announced, iPhone 17 Pro and iOS 19 Rumors, and More

Saturday March 29, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent. A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...
Magic Mouse Green

What to Expect From the Magic Mouse 3

Saturday March 29, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Apple is reportedly working on a new Magic Mouse. Below, we recap what to expect. The two key rumors for the Magic Mouse 3 so far include a relocated charging port, along with a more ergonomic design. It was briefly rumored that the Magic Mouse 3 would also feature voice control, but that was misinterpreted information. Relocated Charging Port While the Magic Mouse switched from...
iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Expected Next Week - Here Are the Release Notes

Friday March 28, 2025 2:01 pm PDT by
With the second release candidate of iOS 18.4 that Apple seeded out today, the company finally provided us with release notes that give a full rundown on what to expect. There's an Apple Vision Pro app, new Apple Intelligence features for notifications and additional language support, plus an Apple News Food feature for Apple News+ subscribers, and several updates that should improve the...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Six Things to Know About Apple's Upcoming Foldable iPhone

Friday March 28, 2025 3:54 pm PDT by
We've been hearing rumors about a foldable iPhone for almost a decade now, but it looks like we might finally see the device come to fruition in 2026. We're going to be waiting many more months for the foldable iPhone, but so far we're hearing good things. Apple wants to make it creaseless. It's taken Apple multiple years to design a foldable iPhone that it's satisfied with because Apple ...
iOS 19 visionOS UI Elements

Apple Codename Provides Clue About iOS 19's Rumored New Design

Sunday March 30, 2025 6:40 am PDT by
Multiple sources have claimed that iOS 19 will introduce a new design with more translucent buttons, menus, notification banners, and more, and there is now another clue that points towards this glass-like appearance. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said the new design project is codenamed "Solarium" internally. A solarium is a room with glass walls that allow in plenty of sunlight, so this...
ipad pro 2024

Gurman: New iPad Pro and MacBook Pro Models With M5 Chips to Launch Later This Year

Sunday March 30, 2025 6:06 am PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPad Pro models with the M5 chip will "launch this year," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said the new iPad Pro models have progressed to an "advanced testing" stage, and he expects mass production of the devices to begin in the second half of this year. If that timeframe is met, the new iPad Pro models could launch...

Top Rated Comments

WiiDSmoker Avatar
172 months ago
Global warming is a hoax pushed for political gain.

WTF is this ignorant crap?
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mudbug Avatar
172 months ago
I for one am SOOOOOO ready for a content creation tool for creating immersive book experiences on the iPad that doesn't require coding.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Stang Avatar
172 months ago
Anything to do with Al Gore is doomed for failure.

Just like the internet....wait.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
twitter Avatar
172 months ago
that looks good! books and iWork 2012 would be perfect
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ronm99 Avatar
172 months ago
Has anyone performed any studies on the effect lcd screens have on young eyes? :confused:

I know I 've had to put glasses at 33 from computer use and know a lot of friends who had their eyesight hurt after extensive computer use.

As much as I feel excited about this, I have to be reserved about it too...

My understanding is that computers hurt the eyes due to the fact that you are constantly focusing on an object at the same distance away. As people age, they become far-sighted because their eyes become less flexible which limits their ability to focus on things that are close to them (thus requiring reading glasses). You can help your eyes during computer use by occasionally focusing on things far away and then looking back at the computer again.

I've never heard of any studies that say that LCD screens hurt the eyes.

If the above is correct, then there should be no difference between reading a book and reading on a computer screen.

----------

Image (http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_bj0fdAQOI98/S97tnLCbtZI/AAAAAAAABzQ/2LxOhemm4vw/s400/Fat+Albert.jpg)

He's touched McDonalds once or twice.

----------



All depends on the period of time you are measuring temperatures. And there is no proof that it's man made or that anything can actually be done about it. That is why it can be called a hoax.

This is getting off-topic, but I would like to add that calling something a "hoax" is saying that the scientists are deliberately trying to mis-lead people. You may or may not agree with their conclusions, but calling global warming a hoax is going too far.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
pheenix11 Avatar
172 months ago
Are these digital textbooks going to be significantly cheaper to make up for the fact that you can't resell them at the end of the semester?
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)