2. Electronic books, or E books, are editions
of books available electronically in a
variety of formats
E books may be used on a variety of
devices, including: ◦ E reader , such as a
Kindle or Nook, Mobile device, such as a
Smartphone or tablet ◦ Personal computer
E books may be text only, or
they may contain all of the same
material as the original book.
3. E books are often available
for lending at the local library.
Some libraries also lend E
readers
Some libraries also lend
electronic editions of
magazines and periodicals.
Libraries may provide E
books in a variety of formats,
or they may only be available
in one format. Check with
your local library to be sure
your device is compatible
with their
E books
4. Ebooks.com sells E books
compatible with a number
of devices. The site does
require downloading free
software to your personal
computer in order to
transfer the E books to
your device.
Kobo.com sells a wide
variety (over 3.5 million) of
E books compatible with
their E readers.
E books are also available
from many other retailers
Many online booksellers
also sell electronic editions.
Amazon.com sells
electronic editions
designed for their Kindle.
Barnes & Noble
Booksellers, as well as
Books-a- Million, sell
E books designed for the
Nook.
There are also online
booksellers dedicated to
E books.
5. Books which are public
domain (often 75+ years old)
are often available for free in
an E- edition.
This is an inexpensive way
to acquire some books, but
there are problems
◦ Some may be scanned from
the original, and have poor
image quality.
◦ Some are transcribed from
the original, and may have
typographical errors.
Free E books are available from
a variety of online resources.
◦ Project Gutenberg
(www.gutenberg.org) provides
transcribed documents of many
books, often in a .txt or .pdf
format.
◦ Books related to Christian
History are available from the
Christian Classics Ethereal
Library (www.ccel.org) in .pdf
format.
◦ www.free-ebooks.net
provides free books from
independent authors (primarily
unpublished or public domain
books.
6. E books are convenient
◦ Hundreds of books can be
carried on a single device.
◦ Books may be read
anywhere.
E books help build a
community of readers
◦ Most major E readers, such
as the Kindle or the Nook,
enable users to see passages
highlighted by other readers. ◦
It is easy to post quotes from
the book to social
media.ywhere.
Notations on the text are
saved electronically, instead of
taking up the margin of the
page.
It is possible to access only
the highlighted passages of a
text.
◦ This feature assists
students.
Authors starting their career
may find it easier to publish
electronically than traditionally.
7. E books do not provide real ownership.
◦ A physical book may be lent to a friend or
family member, re-sold, or traded in for a
credit to another book at a used-book seller.
◦ An E book cannot be re-sold or lent to
another person. Risk of losing books or
notations.
◦ If an E reader is lost or stolen, some texts
may be lost, and any notations not backed
up will be lost.
◦ If an E reader is damaged or ceases to be
functional, some items may be lost.
Cost of E books is not significantly lower than
paper editions.
◦ The cost of a Kindle edition from Amazon on
a bestseller is generally not significantly lower
than that of a regular edition.
◦ When factoring in the inability to re-sell the
book, the total cost of ownership may be
higher.
Difficulty in highlighting/underlining and
taking notes.
◦ Although it is easier to save notes, typing
on most E reader keyboards is more difficult
than writing.
8. Conclusion
E books are a new
medium with some clear
advantages and
disadvantages by
comparison to
traditional books .
E books are becoming
more widely available
. E books are ideal for
some people
(particularly young
people or disabled
people), but are not yet a
suitable replacement for
traditional books for the
entire population.