Sequoia Reads: About e-Books

What is an e-Book?
An e-Book is a book in computer format to be read on an electronic device.  The most commonly found e-Book is an Adobe Portable Document File (PDF). The problem with PDF is the lack of any digital rights management (DRM).  To address this issue, there has been many e-Book readers developed for the PC over the years.  Some of the earlier ones include MSeReader and Adobe e-Book Reader, both ca. 2000. There were also e-Readers developed for smart devices. The biggest issue has always been howDRM is managed.  I've lost access to many books because I can't remember which credit card I purchased the book under, which is how they verified ownership of a book.

e-Book Readers
You don't have to have a special device to read e-Books. There are software available to allow you to read e-Books on your home computer,SmartPhone, iPod Touch.  More on that in a moment.

There have been several attempts at mass marketing portable e-Book readers in the past, including Franklin's e-BookMan (1999-2002). In the past two years, there has been a lot of buzz around Amazon's Kindle and Sony's Readers, and most recently, Sony's nook.  There are several other smaller players.  Just what are these devices and why are they so special?

Features of an e-Book Device
Current generation of e-Book Devices have the following features:

• e-Ink. This is a type of electronic paper.  The film contains millions of dots that are electrically charged.  A change in the charge will change the dot from white to black. Unlike computer screens, which isback lit , electronic paper reflects light like paper.  The advantage is that it only draws power when a page is "turned."  E-Paper is also purported to be reduce eye fatigue because the image isn't being refreshed constantly on the screen, like a computer or television screen.  The downside is that you can't read this at night without auxiliary light.  At this time, e-Ink is only available in black and white.
• Portability. For the most part, this is a dedicated reading device.  Most have web browsing capabilities, but they are very limited.  The size of most of these devices are the size of a trade paperback (8" x 6"), but less than 1/2" thick.
• Storage. Typical storage capacity of these devices are about 2 GB, approximately 1,500 books.
• Internet Access. The latest generation comes with Wireless and/or WiFi, which allows you to shop and download books without the need of your computer.  Both Sony's nook and Amazon's Kindle comes with unlimited free wireless.  Sony's nook comes withWiFi.
• Battery Life. Because e-Ink only draws power when you turn a page, you can expect upward of 2 weeks of use on a single charge, if you have your wireless turned off.

Where can I find e-Books?
At this time, sources for purchasing books are tied with the type of device you own.  Sony has it's own e-Book store or you can purchase books from Barnes and Noble.  For the Kindle, you can only purchase from Amazon.  Price of e-Books range greatly from free on up.  (The most expensive one I found was $6,270.42 for Selected Nuclear Materials and Engineering Systems, Part 4.)  Most books sell for an average price of $9.99.

There are also a lot of out of copyright books available on the internet.  These can be downloaded to your computer and transferred to your device with some manipulation.  The first place to look for free books is in Project Gutenberg.

Can I lend my copy to someone else?
Sony's nook gives you the ability to lend an e-Book to someone with the same device for a period up to 2 weeks, but you can't renew it.  Amazon allows you to share a book between devices registered to the same account (up to 6 devices).

How much do these devices cost?
These devices range from $199 to $489.

Are there cheaper options?
Yes. There are lots of options for trying out e-Books without the cost of buying a e-Book device.  You won't experience the e-Ink technology, but you can get a feel for what the e-Book buzz is all about.

• Your public library. Yup. You read that right. Many public libraries have e-Book versions available for check out.
• Amazon's Kindle for PC & iPhone. You can download the free Kindle app from Amazon for the PC or iPhone/iPod Touch.  You can download one of hundreds of free books to try it out.  You will need an Amazon account to do this.
• Barnes & Noble's Reader for PC, Blackberry & iPhone. You can download the free reader app from Barnes & Noble for the PC/Mac, Blackberry, or iPhone/iPod Touch.  You can download one of hundreds of free books to try it out.  You will need a Barnes & Noble account to do this.

Digital versions of The Cruise of the Snark by Jack London:

• Northern California Digital Library (linked over from Palo Alto Public Library)
• Project Gutenberg
• Amazon
• Barnes & Noble