eBooks

Introduction for information specialists (publishers, librarians, media

professionals, etc.)

@kosieeloff

This is the time for eBooks

2010: Association of American Publishers reports eBook sales of members US$441 million (up 164% from 2009)

Rocket eBook Reader (1998)

This is the time of eBooks

Ebooks have existed for decades now (previous slide: old eBook readers in late 90’s)

First challenge: hardware & displays

Second challenge: software & formats

Third challenge: content, distribution, marketing etc.

What is an eBook?

Simply an electronic file – read on your device of choice

Various formats (more on main formats later) e.g. PDF

[Demonstration: various eBooks on my Kindle, iPad, laptop]

Why read eBooks?

1. Good reading experience now2. Less expensive (overall...)3. Environmentally friendly (except...)4. Space savings (what about ‘digital

space’?)5. Portability6. Reading aids (e.g. bookmarking,

sharing..)7. Searchability8. Navigation (referencing, hyperlinking)

Why read eBooks?

9. You can write in eBooks10.People with disabilities11.Always accessible12.Instant delivery (if your connection is

reliable)13.No shipping charges (except...)14.Enhancement opportunities (e.g.

multimedia)

How to read eBooks

eReaders

Computer / laptop

Media tablets (and, of course, mobile phones)

eReaders

Kindle (65% market share in US, 2011*) Nook Sony Reader Kobo iRiver Story, etc.

Not going into too much detail; in South Africa, you’re most likely to buy a Kindle or iRiver model (ease of delivery, service support etc.)

“A sheet of paper that can be electronically reconfigured instantaneously to display any page from any book,

article or document”

E-ink is what makes eReaders different

Amazon’s Kindle Touch and Kindle Keyboard

eReader prices are dropping steeply

Media tablets (tablet computers)

iPad (Apple) Playbook (Blackberry) Android devices

–E.g. Asus, Motorola (purchased by Google)...

Kindle Fire

Media tablets are unique in that 1) they operate on touch, and 2) they aren’t supposed to store your media

Apple iPad

http://www.apple.com/za/ipad/

http://za.blackberry.com/playbook-tablet/

Blackberry Playbook

Android-powered tablets (e.g. Asus EEE)

Zoomed in LCD (red, green, blue filters)

eReader or media tablet?

eReaders• Long battery life• Low cost (R900-R2,000 + S&I)

• E-ink display (typically)

• Low functionality

Media tablets• Limited battery life

• Expensive (R3,000-R10,000 + S&I)

• LCD display (typically)

• High functionality

Reading eBooks

Kindle for Blackberry, Android, iPad, iPhone..

Kindle for PC, Mac

Here, you see that you can read your books on any device, as long as you have the right app installed.

It’s sometimes more accurate to say people buy into a platform, not a specific piece of hardware or software.

eBook formats

PDF– Most familiar, but fixed-layout (?)

Mobi / PRC – Original format for PDAs, etc. (now owned by Amazon)

AZW– Amazon’s DRMed format

EPUB– Most accessible format

eBook stores

International (to an extent...)

– Amazon Kindle store– Barnes & Noble / Kobobooks– Apple iBooks

Independent– BooksOnBoard– Smashwords

Local– Kalahari– Exclusive Books– kindlebooks.co.za

Or at least, ones worth mentioning for the purposes of this introduction...

How to publish an eBook

Various ways, but it’s often safest to sell through a well-known vendor (e.g. Amazon), or to use an aggregator (e.g. Smashwords).

Locally, Kalahari.com and Exclusive Books also sell eBooks (details on request).

eBook aggregators

Digital rights management

Restricts what you can do with the material.

DRM is a necessary evil (or is it...)

Three major eBook DRM schemes:–Amazon DRM (.mobi)–Adobe DRM (.epub, .pdf)–Apple FairPlay DRM (.epub, .pdf)

Public domain books (Manybooks.net)

Manybooks isn't necessarily an eBook vendor; rather, a distributor of public domain titles.

Attaching eReader via USB cable

Directory with the eReader’s books

But what about getting books wirelessly?

http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/kindle/turing/photos/feat-kindle-store-300px._V251568840_.jpg

http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_200127470_k3land_gettingstarted?nodeId=200580340

Local area network. Very fast! Coverage limited

(need Wi-Fi hot spots)

Need to connect manually

Wi-Fi doesn’t guarantee internet access

Cellular network. Can be very slow! Wide coverage

(e.g. at the beach, or on the train)

Connected automatically

3G often guarantees internet access

Selecting a Wi-Fi network

Managing already purchased books (via your browser)

Kindle for PC

Kindle for iPad

Kindle for PC/iPad opens your browser for browsing

Select device (up to six / account) to send to

Select device (up to six / account) to send to

That’s it!

http://bit.ly/keloff

For more updates, information etc.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/kosieeloffEspecially for publishers & librarians

Google+: https://plus.google.com/101094585504476928154

Especially for content developers

I love tinkering with eBooks; join the #eprdctn channel on Twitter or contact me for a chat!

http://bit.ly/keloff