Blackwell bookshop announced on 20 June 2008 that it is to install an "Espresso Book Machine" that will allow customers to print out fully-bound books in just seven minutes. The self-service machine, which will eventually be installed in 50 stores across the UK, offers a choice of around one million titles. A smaller and more sophisticated version of the machine prints books in just three minutes. The older version has already been installed worldwide in 11 sites and Blackwell hopes to eventually have the faster machine most of its stores. High street bookshops can offer a range of books that will compete for the first time with online stores such as Amazon - will we be able to obtain our genealogy books (even obscure ones) in local shops? Will they be less expensive? See the URL http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/news/millions-of-books-to-choose-from-ndash-yours-will-take-only-minutes-to-print-851587.html Liam "A bird in the bush is worth two in the cat"

Interesting - Maybe I spend to much time in the PC world and not enough in the real world of books (at present). I always have and still prefer a real book as opposed to one produced or viewed via a PC. This method as the article states allows one to obtain books that are out of print. So a quick check via Google has informed me that we have Books On Demand located at the University of Alberta Bookstore. Now have another place to check out but will probably have to wait till the Fall comes along - summer is far to short in this part of the world to be sitting in bookshops or FHC. http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6346866.html Back to cutting the grass................................. Thanks for info. Bob Cdn =============================== Liam Martin wrote:<SNIP>...Blackwell bookshop announced on 20 June 2008 that it is to install an "Espresso Book Machine" that will allow customers to print out fully-bound books in just seven minutes. The self-service machine, which will eventually be installed in 50 stores across the UK, offers a choice of around one million titles. ... ================================