All About eBooks

The results of a on-line survey, conducted in Q: How did you discover the last good book you
October 1999 by the African American Literature read?
Book Club (AALBC.com), showed 61% of those
surveyed were not familiar with eBook readers 43% Word of mouth recommendation
(electronic book readers). 24% Display in book store
1% Sales person in book store
An article in January 2000 issue of Emerge 14% Online, web site, email
magazine states: "…finding folks in the African- 14% Read a book review
American publishing community who are aware 5% Traditional Ad, TV, mail, magazine
of the technology [electronic books] is like being
on a treasure hunt with an outdated map. Calls to Source: African American Literature Book Club - http://aalbc.com/survey.htm
Black editors, writers, agents and publishers lead mostly nowhere."

Despite their lack of popularity, eBooks have the potential to radically change, in a positive way, the
way we; read, disseminate information, and even define our culture. The goal of this document is to
explain what eBooks are, why they are important, how one may benefit from this evolution in
technology.

What is an eBook?
The Gartner Group, a Stamford, CT. based information technology consultancy, lists electronic books as
one of the top 10 emerging technologies for 1999.

Simply put, an eBook is a special computer file, which contains the text of a printed book. The file
may be read on a personal computer (PC), a personal digital assistant (PDA), or an electronic device
designed specifically for reading eBooks (eBook reader). eBook readers have many features that are
simply not available with standard printed text.

It is economically feasible to publish low demand titles

No shipping and handling charges when purchased online
Books never go out of print
Authors have the ability to self publish and distribute their own books inexpensively
eBooks may be download quickly at home, or kiosk in store, via an Internet connection
eBooks cost less than traditional books
Look up words with dictionary software (included with most eBook readers)
Search for specific text - find that quote in seconds
Annotate or highlight text
Teachers may prepare customized e-Textbooks for their students
Read in the dark or low light conditions
Carry several books in one small package
Subscribe to magazines, newspapers, and other periodical content
Choose different fonts (text) sizes in which to read
Copyright protected through software (prevent unauthorized duplication of eBook content)
eBooks may be customized to suit an individual’s specific interests and tastes
Save eBooks on the Internet or Personal Computer (create your own virtual library)
Enjoy content which includes audio and full motion video
Create links between multiple eBooks
Lawyers and doctors may carry volumes of material in a small package
The visually impaired may switch to audio mode and have en eBook read to them.
Reduce environmental waste (save trees, and reduce pollution from delivery trucks)
Reference material in eBook format may be easily updated
Libraries may "Loan" eBooks by setting a time period in which an eBook may be read
No expense for overstocking or missed sales from out of stock books

Before eBooks can create literary nirvana and truly benefit the general public, five things must
continue to develop and improve; (1) Content creation and publication; (2) eBook software; (3) eBook
reader hardware; (4) eBook standards formation; and (5) eBook education, distribution and
promotion.

Content Creation and Publication

The Current State of Publishing

Content refers to the original creative work we are all interested in reading. Whether it is in printed or
electronic format compelling content is what drives us to purchase reading material. Remarkably the
fashion in which written material is packaged has not changed much in hundreds of years. In fact, it
can be argued that the quality of both the physical characteristics and content of books has declined
over the last generation. Mass market paperbacks have taken the place of leather bound editions,
and commercial fiction gets prime real estate in book stores, while the literary fiction collects dust in
the rear.

The printing, storage, distribution and marketing of a book makes publishing a very risky business.
Understandably, publishers will publish what they believe will sell in large enough volumes to turn a
profit. Simply publishing what one believes will be profitable is usually inconsistent with publishing a
wide range of quality literature that appeals to a diverse readership. eBooks promise to reduce the
financial risk of publishing.

eBooks have the potential to allow the market place to operate in a more rational fashion. In the
purest form; an author writes a book which the reader then reads. In today’s marketplace many other
factors are inserted into the process before a book ever reaches the reader. In fact, more often than
not, the book is killed before it can reach the reader’s hands.

Even after the traditional book survives the arduous publication process, its life may be limited for a
host of reasons. Some of those reasons include decisions that limit; how many copies should be
printed; how will the book be distributed; and how long will store keep the book in stock.

An Author Must Be More Than An Author

Today an author must also be a showman, with the ability, time and desire to tirelessly self promote.
Authors need to do this in order to generate enough interest in their book to keep it on store shelves.
Imagine requiring a professional basketball to learn brain surgery in order to play on the team.
Occasionally we’ll find someone with both skills but it is much easier to find someone with one.
Similarly, the skills required to write a great novel are unrelated to the skills required to promote that
same novel. In today’s environment a writer, especially a relative unknown, is at a serious
disadvantage if they don’t have the energy, temperament, time and charisma to sell their book.

eBooks Makes Publishing More Accessible

With eBooks the cost of book publishing is greatly reduced. One simply has to take the text of a book
and convert it into a format useable by an eBook reader. The cost of storage and distribution is
negligible. An eBook is simply data stored on a computer.

The only risk associated with authoring an eBook is the time invested in writing it. Today most
authors write their books on computers. A eBook can be generated from the original document on the
computer in a few minutes. The resulting file may be

uploaded to an eBook retailer for immediate availability on-line. The

publication decision is left entirely up to the author. "…more than half of all book
titles will be sold electronically
The risk to the reader is less for two major reasons; (1) eBook within the next 15 years."
versions of a book cost less than their paper based counterpart and
(2) Typically readers are allowed to download, for free, a chapter or Dick Brass, Vice President of Technology
more of the book to read at their leisure. Unlike the trailer for a Development at Microsoft
movie, this is an actual sample of the book, not just the highlights.
The reader gets a chance to read the author’s material and make a determination of whether or not it
will satisfy their need. This is happening today; on-line book sellers provide excerpts (essentially
eBook excerpts) for their on-line customers.

Of course one might argue that the current publishing process helps screen out bad books by
preventing them from reaching the marketplace. The publishing industry is currently rife with stories
of excellent books that can’t get published and poor ones that do. Publication of eBooks moves the
publication decision from the publisher to the author. As a result, the reader is allowed to read, not
what the publisher decides to publish, but what the author decides to write.

Authors Decide What Gets Published

One might also argue that the public would prefer for the publishing industry to filter out the "bad"
books and make the final determination of what gets published – particularly in an eBook
environment where virtually anyone can publish and the number of titles available has increased
dramatically. Again, the individual reader, if given the opportunity and complete access to
information, is much better at determining what will best satisfy their needs. A perfect example of this
is the World Wide Web: Today there are perhaps 3,000,000 web sites. Obviously no one has time to
visit them all. But good news travels fast online. We learn pretty quickly where to find the good web
sites.

Separating the Good from the Bad

Again, since much of the risk of publication is Q: How did you discover the last good book
reduced, with eBooks; we will have a greater you read?
number and variety of books from which to choose.
It would be naïve to think that they will all be worth
43% Word of mouth recommendation
reading. Today roughly 50,000 to 60,000 books are
24% Display in book store
published a year. As eBooks become more
1% Sales person in book store
popular, and eBook reader costs come down we
14% Online, web site, email
can expect the number of eBooks published to
14% Read a book review
escalate dramatically in a few short years. Dick
5% Traditional Ad, TV, mail, magazine
Brass, Vice President of Technology Development
at Microsoft says "…more than half of all book titles Source: African American Literature Book Club -
will be sold electronically within the next 15 years." http://aalbc.com/survey.htm
How will readers determine which books to read
when there will be an overwhelming number of books from which to choose?

A recent survey of over 900 individuals determined that the most common way one learns about
books they enjoyed is through a word of mouth. As access to the Internet continues to proliferate the
"word of mouth" recommendations will be communicated via the World Wide Web. Even today, 14%
of those respondents indicated that they learned about their last good book through an on-line
source. A few years ago this percentage would have been virtually zero.

Today there are, an increasing number

"After 130 years or so of paper galleys, Publishers of web sites, news groups, discussion
Weekly's Forecasts department has gone digital, boards, and email newsletters dedicated
reviewing an upcoming nonfiction title using a digital solely to the promotion of African-
reader to review an electronic galley". Publishers American books. More importantly, one
 Weekly's Forecasts department has gone digital, will find web sites that provide
reviewing an upcoming nonfiction title using a digital information on very specific and narrow
genres. These web sites will address
reader to review an electronic galley".
audiences and topics that are
considered to small or narrow to be
Publishers Weekly (PW), an international news magazine
addressed by traditional means today.
for the book publishing and book selling industry, reviews
Soon readers will be able to learn about
about 6,000 books a year. By accepting galleys in eBook
good new books more easily than they
format, PW will allow authors to submit books, for review,
do today.
more quickly and in a more efficient manner. PW will also
eliminate the need for reviewers to carry around several,
Established book reviewers are already
often bulky, galleys.
reaping the benefits of eBooks. eBooks
will allow reviewers to review more books than they would be able to with traditional paper books.

eBook Reader Hardware

While it is possible to read eBooks from most vendors on your PC or laptop. Purchasing a dedicated
eBook reader may be more convenient. The next few vendors sell specialized eBook reader devices
and or software. There is quite a bit to choose from in terms of price and functionality – which tends
to make the selection process.

One important aspect of eBook readers currently available is that, an eBook purchased for use with
one vendor’s eBook reader may not always be read on a different vendor’s eBook reader. For
example, an eBook title formatted for NuvoMedia’s Rocket eBook can not be read on SoftBook
Press’ SoftBook and vice versa. When purchasing an eBook reader one is committing themselves to
that vendor’s list of available titles and eBook reader’s features.

The following is a list of some eBook software and hardware vendors.

Glassbook Inc.
Waltham, Massachusetts
781-434-2000
Glassbook Reader http://www.glassbook.com
Software

Pricing information not available

The Glassbook Reader uses Adobe PDF as the preferred content format. Which recreates the exact
look of the printed book. The Glassbook EBX reader software will run on any device capable of
reading PDF files, like your desktop or laptop PC, Windows CE devices and other hand-held
information appliances.

The Glassbook Reader software supports EBX. EBX helps guarantee copyright protection for authors
and publishers, while maintaining a consumer's right to give or lend and eBook to another consumer
or library. When EBX is implemented, a consumer will only ever have one working copy of an eBook.
For example, an eBook produced with Glassbook software may be download it to a friend's computer
so he can read it. Simply define a duration for the "loan"; during that time, the original buyer can't use
the book.

Glassbook is also developing its own eBook reader called the R2. The R2 will feature a full-color
6"x9" screen and should be on the market in the near future.

Advantages: Format of content design maintained, color display

Disadvantages: Product currently unavailable

Additional Glassbook products include

Library Server

The Glassbook Library Server gives public, academic, and corporate libraries the ability to purchase
eBooks and lend them to patrons, while still maintaining the copyright of the book.

Glassbook Bookstore Kiosk

The Glassbook Bookstore Kiosk gives bricks and mortar stores the ability to sell eBooks. Appropriate
locations include coffee shops such as Starbucks, bookstores, airport shops and hotel gift shops. It
provides eBook browsing and buying from a PC-based kiosk.

Glassbook Commerce Server

Glassbook Commerce Server provides secure Web server-based eBook preparation, storage,
distribution, and fulfillment to publishers, distributors, and booksellers. The server is based on EBX
providing secure copyright and distribution over the Internet.

The Glassbook Reader

The Glassbook Reader is available now. Click here to download a free copy.

NuvoMedia NuvoMedia
Mt. View, CA
Tel: (650) 314-1200
www.nuvomedia.com

Recently acquired by Gemstar International Group Limited (click for more info)
Rocket eBook

Rocket eBook Rocket eBook (Actual size is 5" x 7½" x 1½, 22oz) Cost $199, with a full refund
after 60 days if dissatisfied. Rechargeable battery life 20 to 40 hours.

Rocket eBook gives you the ability to hold up to 41,000 pages of text and graphics in the palm of your
hand-that's about 200 books. Weighing in at only 22oz., it also gives you access to over 2,000 free
titles plus thousands of bestsellers, lets you make notes in the margins, find specific passages
instantly, set bookmarks, underline text and even change font size and orientation. It also comes
equipped with a backlight that lets you adjust the intensity, so you can read anywhere.

Scores of publishers including Prentice Hall Press, Random House, Inc. and St. Martin’s Press as
well as news providers like Bloomberg currently supply content for the Rocket eBook.
Advantages: Market leader eBook
Disadvantages: Low quality graphics, monochrome display

Rocket eBooks available at following web sites:

http://www.powells.com
http://www.barnesandnoble.com
http://www.rocket-library.com

Other Products

The Rocket eBook System:

A proprietary network infrastructure that allows Rocket eBook end users to purchase and download
electronic content from participating Web based retailers.

The Rocket-Library.com community allows anyone to upload content and make it available online visit
http://www.rocket-library.com for more information.

SoftBook Press
900 Island Drive
Redwood City, California 94065-5150
(650) 620-4100 telephone
(650) 632-1801 fax
www.softbook.com
SoftBook
Recently acquired by Gemstar International Group Limited (click for more info)

6"w x 8"h (9.5"diagonal), 2.9 lbs. grayscale, backlit, touch-sensitive LCD – Rechargeable battery life 5
hours

There are two purchase options: A one time payment of $599.95, or a one time payment of $299.95
plus the purchase of a $19.95 per month content package for 24 months.

This leather bound reader does not require a PC.

To purchasing content from the SoftBookstore, simply connect your SoftBook Reader to a phone line
to shop their Internet-based SoftBookstore. Once there one may subscribe to many national news
and business publications, technology magazines, and professional journals. or buy the latest
bestsellers, business books, fiction, and literary classics. Everything purchased is stored on a
personal "bookshelf" which may be downloaded at at anytime.

Content is currently being provided for the SoftBook Reader by many prominent news and publishing
organizations like the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Time, and Fortune. Publishers who also
provide content, including their best-sellers include; McGraw-Hill, Simon & Schuster, MacMillan
Publishing, Warner Books, St. Martin's Press, and Harper Collins.

At no additional charge SoftBook is providing 100 literary classics including 20,000 Leagues Under
the Sea, Jules Verne; Little Women, Louisa May Alcott; The Time Machine, H.G. Wells; White Fang,
Jack London; Red Badge of Courage, Stephen Crane.
Advantages: Large display, PC not required

Disadvantages: Short battery life, Software must be purchased to generate content for this reader.

Books available from

http://www.softbook.com/consumer/bookstore.asp

Other Products

SoftBook Auto Publisher

An application that automates the conversion of magazines, books and other documents from Open
eBook HTML into SoftBook Editions for electronic distribution. The primary benefit is dramatically
reduced cost of preparing electronic content for commercial publishers and business applications.
SoftBook Auto Publisher is a server-based application that allows immediate conversion of
documents (text and graphics) from the industry-standard Open eBook HTML format into a
compressed and encrypted SoftBook Edition for fast, secure distribution over the Internet without
manual intervention.

Everybook Inc.
Middletown, PA
(717) 939-3995
http://www.everybook.net
EB Dedicated Reader

Professional Professional (12" x 9" x 1.9") Cost $1,600 available commercially 2Q 2000

Everybook uses existing print files from publishers, and displays them exactly as they would appear
in print. Since the majority of publications created in the last 15 to 20 years were composed
electronically, Everybook does not violate existing licensing agreements by changing the files to be
sold and displayed.

Each EB comes preloaded with a dictionary, a thesaurus and a Bible. Information-intensive

professionals may also have their legal or medical collections preloaded on the removable storage
cards.

The EB's on-screen toolbar allows for highlighting, annotating and bookmarking, as well as
navigation. You can also off-load designated pages to any printer or PC, with a standard USB-port.
Publishers will determine which pages print and which do not, according to their copyright and
licensing arrangements.

You attach your EB to any touch tone phone line anywhere in the world to connect to the Everybook
Store. A three-dimensional virtual reality bookstore, personalized to your choices, appears across the
two full-color, high resolution screens. You use the full-page touch screens to wander through the
bookcases, pull books off of shelves, and look at covers, tables of contents, and excerpts. You then
touch the icon for purchase information and put the publication in your shopping cart.

Once your debit, credit, or e-cash account has paid for the books, you can choose to download them
now, or let the EB dial out in the middle of the night for a remote download to your EB.

Features include:
2 pages side-by-side
Full 8" x 11" pages
No scrolling (PDF formatted documents)

A lower cost Personal version will be available Q4 2000 9" x 6" x 1.9" Cost TBD

Advantages: 2 books may be open simultaneously

Disadvantages: Price

PalmOS and
Windows CE Devices
compatible with
many vendor’s
products

Librius
peanutpress.com Bellevue, WA 98004
[email protected] (425) 454 7557
http://www.peanutpress.com www.librius.com

peanutpress.com is the first electronic Originally Librius intended to sell their own
book publisher to offer contemporary eBook reader, the Millennium eBook, but
fiction and non-fiction books, newspapers, have decided to stay of the fray and have
and magazines for reading on handheld focused attention on developing their own
computers including the Palm Pilot, proprietary (non-standard) eBook software
Handspring Visor, and Windows CE designed for the Palm-OS and Windows CE
machines. Peanutpress reader software has operating systems.
been downloaded over 1 million times
Books available from
http://www.books2read.com

AvantGo
San Mateo, CA 94402
AportisDoc (650) 638-3399
http://www.AvantGo.com
Portland, OR
(503) 736-3240 AvantGo currently supports hundreds of
 http://www.aportis.com thousands of individuals accessing news,
sports and weather information from the
AportisDoc provides the solution for storing Internet as well as creating their own Channels
documents of unlimited size on your PalmPilot. using the AvantGo.com interactive service.
It lets you read, search through, and annotate
documents in an efficient, compressed form, There are many options for reading eBooks;
enabling you to carry larger and more from existing devices like PDA’s and PC’s to
documents. the newer dedicated eBook reading devices.
As more vendors develop products and
competition heats up, as in the PC industry,
we’ll see prices continue to drop while
functionality improves.

Advantages: Uses existing PDA technology (5 million Palm PDA’s sold)

Disadvantages: Small screen, poor platform for graphic laden material

eBook Reader Software

Many Choices

Just as there are many options for eBook reader hardware, there are more choices for eBook reader
software. From a reader’s perspective, once the eBook reader hardware has been made, the
software decision is made as well. However, from an author or publisher’s perspective the decisions
are far from over.

Each eBook reader requires that the text of the book be in a specific, usually proprietary format. That
means if an author wants his book to be read on the PalmPilot, SoftBook or Rocket eBook readers,
he needs to have it formatted in three completely different ways.

To complicate matters further, the eBook format chosen will also determine, at least today, determine
who and how your book will be sold. For example, barnesanoble.com sells eBooks, but only rocket
eBooks. PalmPilot owners must go to peanutpress.com or another similar site which sells eBooks
formatted for the PalmPilot – keep in mind each vendor’s eBooks will be formatted differently and will
require adding additional eBook reader software. It is very much like the early days of word
processing software for personal computers: An Apple PC created document could not be read on an
IBM PC. It is likely consumer demand, as in the PC industry, will drive more interoperability between
vendor’s products.

Converting a Document into eBook Format

Fortunately, creating eBook documents for the major vendor’s platforms, for most books, is relatively
easy. This document is available in three eBook formats. Visit http://aalbc.com/about_eBooks.htm to
download this document in one of the following eBook formats:

1 – EB Dedicated Reader or Personal Computer

Using Adobe Acrobat 4.0 software to convert to a Adobe® Portable Document Format (PDF)
formatted document. PDF is the open de facto standard for electronic document distribution
worldwide. PDF is a universal file format that preserves all of the fonts, formatting, colors, and
graphics of any source document, regardless of the application and platform used to create it.

2 – Rocket eBook

Using the RocketWriter™ which allows Rocket eBook™ owners to easily create their own titles in
RocketEdition™ format. Simply save documents as HTML files and "drag" them into the
RocketLibrarian™, the software used to download and manage RocketEditions.

3 – PalmPilot PDA

Using the Peanut MakeBook Java program, which reads a text file which has been formatted using
either the Peanut Markup Language or a subset of HTML, and writes a Palm OS .pdb file which can
then be hotsynced to your Palm device for reading with the Peanut Reader.

The original source file for this document is Microsoft Word 97. It is 22 pages long, over 7,000 words,
about 500KB in size, includes about 19 photographs, graphics screen prints or graphics and includes
several shaded text boxes.

1 – EB Dedicated Reader

Using Adobe Acrobat 4.0 software to convert to this document into an eBook which could be read on
the EB Dedicated Reader is as easy as printing a file (see below)

The original word document was

simply printed to the Acrobat
PDFWriter driver. The resulting
PDF file (eBook) could be read
on the EB Dedicated Reader or
a Personal Computer. The
primary advantage of the PDF
eBook format is that the resulting
eBook document will look just
like the original, in this case,
Microsoft Word document. The
page numbering, colors, position
of text and graphics is
maintained. The original work is Figure 1
recreated at a high level of
fidelity while reducing overall file size.

Adobe’s reader software for the PC is free and available via download from Adobe’s web site
(http://www.adobe.com). Adobe’s PDF file format is so ubiquitous, it is the "open de facto standard
for electronic document distribution worldwide". The vast majority of people who have read eBooks
today have read them on their PC’s (see Figure 1). The biggest disadvantage with this eBook format
is that it will never really be practical for use with PDA or other very small screen reading device. With
PDF files the page is recorded, almost like a snapshot. The resulting eBook page is best read on a
device with a relatively large screen, like the larger display eBook readers or an PC.

A PDF version of this document my be viewed here http://aalbc.com/ebooks/All About eBooks.pdf

The PDF eBook file format is, by far, the easiest process for generating the best results.

2 – Rocket eBook

Conversion to the Rocket eBook format requires taking the original document and converting it into
an HTML document. Any HMTL editor will do the trick, in fact MS Word comes with an HTML export
utility. The most immediate problem with the HTML conversion process is that the resulting file will
not look like the original source document. Yes it will be legible, but it will lose a lot of formatting. For
simply formatted text the process is simple. For more complex documents, creating a file with the
exact format in HTML may be impossible. The new HTML source will need to be reviewed carefully
to ensure it is acceptable.

Once the HTML source document has been created you may use RocketWriter™and "drag" them
into the RocketLibrarian™, the software used to download and manage RocketEditions. The resulting
file may be uploaded into the Rocket eBook. Also using the RocketWriter™ which allows Rocket
eBook™ owners to easily create their own titles in RocketEdition™ format.

Figure 2 (below) illustrates how font color, background shading, and image quality is modified during
the conversion from HTML to Rocket eBook format.

(Original HTML source file is located http://aalbc.com/bio.htm)

Figure 2

Another characteristic of the Rocket eBook format is that the text may be displayed in landscape or
portrait, different font sizes may be used as well. The position of the text and pages numbers change
to accommodate the different screen sizes.
One may also share their documents on the Rocket-Library.com web site. Importing a web page is as
simple as copying and pasting a selected URL into the RocketLibrarian.

This document may also be found on Rocket-Library.com; just click here

The least costly way for a publisher to convert the titles into Rocket eBook HTML is to create HTML
documents themselves. If a publisher is not familiar with HTML, there are a number of very instructive
books on how to construct HTML documents. Since all pages displayed on the World-Wide-Web use
HTML, the skills necessary used to "mark-up a document" (a colloquialism for creating a document in
HTML), are fairly widely known.

3 – PalmPilot

The program used to convert this document into PalmOS format may be obtained from this site

http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Mark_Pierce/MakeDocW.zip

MakeDocW it is a very
simple windows based
program which take an
plain text file as it's source
and converts it into a
document which may be
read using the AportisDoc
software on a PalmOS
PDA.

This document (originally

a MS Word97 doc file)
was converted to plain text
prior to conversion to the
PalmOS doc format. The
adjacent graphic illustrates
the, single step,
conversion process to the PalmOS doc format.

The conversion to plain text eliminated all of the graphics from the source document. For a novel this
may not be a big deal, for virtually all of the information is contained in text. However for a document
such as this, which includes tables, graphs, photos, shaded text boxes and screen prints loosing the
visual content significantly reduces the effect of this document. Encyclopedias, magazines,
children's books and other visually rich documents are poor candidates for this type of eBook format.
Unless the source document was created specifically for reading on a PDA, this platform will have
limited utility in the eBook market, for all except the most avid readers

eBook File Comparisons

The resulting eBook files characteristics are shown below

Size of files Ease of Conversion Accuracy of

Type of Document Number of files
(Kbytes) to eBook Format Reproduction

Original Word 97 Doc 852 1 n/a n/a

Excellent
(Note: PDF file
viewed on PC only
Adobe PDF File 370 1 extremely easy was not viewed on
actual eBook
reader)

Good
HTML output required (Graphics were
HMTL Web Document 852 23
many modifications poorly
represented)

Poor
(graphics not used
with this format
PalmOS Doc File 24 1 Easy other format
provide support for
graphics)

In general, taking an existing document and converting it, with a high level of fidelity, to any of the
popular eBook format is not trivial. Formatting problems were prevalent with all the conversion
software used with the exception of the Adobe's software. The task is even tougher for documents
which are not in electronic format. Optical Character Recognition OCR) promised to make conversion
from plain paper into an electronic format suitable for conversion into an eBook reader file much
easier. However, OCR errors often makes it more efficient to transcribe the written or printed work by
hand.

The easiest documents to convert to eBook format are the ones which were designed with a specific
eBook reader/software in mind. For example if we were to write a book, we knew was destined to be
read on a Rocket eBook; we would not use large, color graphics to convey information -- simply
because the Rocket eBook has a monochrome display and can not display color graphics.

There is still a lot of work which needs to be done to facilitate the conversion and creation of eBooks.
The current state of multiple, incompatible platforms and software may stifle eBook adoption and
growth in the short term.

eBook Standards

"By adhering to Open eBook standards, publishers can format the content once and it will be readable
on all major eBook devices or with all major eBook software."

Standards, in this context, are the rules which define how eBook files are formatted. In much the
same way the English language defines the rules which allow us to exchange ideas with each other
verbally, an eBook standard makes it possible for eBook files to be read by any manufacturer’s eBook
reader.

Open eBook Specification

www.openeBook.org

"One element of the Open eBook initiative is a specification for eBook file and format structure based
on HTML and XML, the languages used to format information for Web sites. The goal of the
specification is to quickly create a critical mass of compelling content. A publisher will be able to
format a title once according to the specification and the content will be compatible with a wide variety
of reading devices.
The purpose of the Open eBook Publication Structure is to provide a specification for representing
the content of electronic books. Specifically:

• The specification is intended to give content providers (e.g., publishers, and

others who have content to be displayed) and tool providers minimal and
common guidelines which ensure fidelity, accuracy, accessibility, and
presentation of electronic content over various electronic book platforms.

• The specification seeks to reflect established content format standards.

The goal of this specification is to provide the purveyors of electronic-book

content (publishers, agents, authors et al.) a format for use in providing
content to multiple reading systems.

• This specification is based on the premise that in order for electronic-book

technology to achieve widespread success in the marketplace, reading
systems must have convenient access to a large number and variety of titles.

By adhering to Open eBook standards, publishers can format the content once and it will be readable
on all major eBook readers.

Standards also help protect the consumer’s investment in technology. For example, the Open eBook
compliant products will not become obsolete over night. Future enhancements to the Open eBook
standard define provisions for backward compatibility. If next model of the Maytag refrigerator, for
example, adheres to the Open eBooks standard, you may be able to display Sylvia’s or B. Smith’s
recipes without having to worry which vendor generated the eBook recipe.

Standards also have the negative effect of slowing progress for vendors who wish to introduce
enhancements. For example lets look at Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) web browser. IE browsers
supports enhanced functionality, which are not part of the current HTML standard. The good part is,
web pages taking advantage of the Microsoft specific enhancements can do some really cool stuff.
The bad part is that if you view the page using a browser other the IE the page may not display
properly – even though that browser may adhere to the current HTML standard.

The Open eBooks standard is based upon extensions to HTML 4.0, the very same format used on
web pages.. This specification defines a format which allows anyone to create content that will work
on all devices that adhere to that format. As discussed earlier the software required to create eBook
content is freely available via the internet at no cost.

Today, eBook files come in many proprietary formats. For the purpose of our discussion I’ll focus
upon the format promulgated by the Open eBook Authoring Group -- the open eBook 1.0
specification. The open eBook standard was finalized in November 1999. Future version of this
standard may provide provisions for multimedia and copyright protection.

Again, vendors wishing to provide additional functionality in their eBook readers, which is not
specified in the current Open eBook standard will trade this off for interoperability with other vendor’s
readers. This will continue, standards notwithstanding, as vendors vie for competitive advantage, in
order to garner market share for their eBook readers and software.

Open eBook Authoring Group

There are over 50 companies who are part of the Open eBook initiative. eBook supporting publishers
include:
 Bertelsmann Warner Books Houghton Mifflin

Franklin Electronic Publishers Langenscheidt Penguin Putnam Inc.

HarperCollins Publishers Inc. Microsoft Press Simon & Schuster

Macmillan Publishing Golden Books

The EBX™ Electronic Book Exchange

www.ebxwg.com

The EBX Standard is the open industry copyright and distribution standard Glassbook is
championing. This standard is designed to work with both Adobe's PDF format eBooks and the Open
eBook format eBooks. EBX guarantees copyright protection for authors and publishers, while
maintaining a consumer's right to give or lend and eBook to another consumer or library. When EBX
is implemented, a consumer will only ever have one working copy of an eBook.

Adobe’s PDF (Portable Document Files)

Adobe® Portable Document Format (PDF) is the open de facto standard for electronic document
distribution worldwide. PDF is a universal file format that preserves all of the fonts, formatting, colors,
and graphics of any source document, regardless of the application and platform used to create it.
PDF files are compact and can be shared, viewed, navigated, and printed exactly as intended by
anyone with a free Adobe Acrobat® Reader. You can convert any document to PDF, even scanned
paper, using Adobe Acrobat 4.0 software.

AALBC.com publishes content in PDF format. Read more about PDF file format.

Microsoft ClearType™

Microsoft ClearType™ font technology improves upon the traditional PC "on/off" pixel rendering by
addressing the area beyond the traditional pixel boundary. With ClearType, letters on the computer
screen appear smooth, not jagged. Microsoft's technique includes adjusting the brightness of the
red, green, and blue elements within each color pixel. This "subpixel rendering" process smooths the
edges of letters that might appear jagged using today's standard anti-aliasing techniques. These
improvements in readability should help accelerate the adoption of electronic books (eBooks) and the
overall migration from paper to electronic forms.

ClearType font technology will work with existing systems. Readability will be dramatically improved
on color LCD monitors with a digital interface, such as those found in laptops and high-quality flat-
panel desktop displays.

Standards Continue to Evolve and Emerge

Each eBook vendor’s eBook may be read only on that vendor’s eBook. Some standard. The standard
is currently implemented by most vendors such that the raw data they require from the
publisher/author is, essentially, in standard HTML. The eBook vendor the takes that "standard" raw
book file and converts it into a format which is proprietary to that specific vendor’s eBook reader.

Publishers may also need to re-license the publications and many of their illustrations because of the
major changes made to the original publication during the conversion to eBook format.
eBook Trends

"Booksellers and their distribution network account for 40% to 60% of the consumer price of any
publication. Publishers are forced to pay for all aspects of publication and absorb all of the risk of failure,
before the possibility of payment, which is further delayed after the sale of the publication by their
distribution agreements."

"By removing the costs of printing, warehousing and the physical distribution of paper books (since returns
reach 40%), publishers will realize a dramatic improvement in profit per sale by using eBook. Furthermore
they will substantially reduce the risk involved in releasing new titles. eBook provides publishers a turnkey
e-business solution that allows them to focus on traditional sales channels. Librius has secured contracts
from 29 publishers for digital content and has identified potential anchor tenants as distribution partners

The current book production process is designed to produce a printed page. The output of this process
has, for a number of years, been a digital file used either to produce film or more recently as input for a
direct to plate system printing system. These files containing the title have been stored for future use.

Until now, these files have only become an asset by taking them back on press. This expensive and time
consuming proposition often prevented a publisher from realizing any additional revenue from an editorial
and marketing investment in a title.

African-Americans will Benefit

The publishing industry is underrepresented by African-Americans. Even for those involved, publishing,
outside of the independent publishers, is generally viewed as elitist with limited accessibility. There is also
a dearth of titles written by African-Americans, that don’t adhere to the popular, usually stereotypical,
trends of the day. With the exception of a few stalwarts very few new African-American authors (men in
particular) reach any level of sustained prominence. eBooks, because of their ease of publication,
promises to help change this trend.

African-American Authors with eBook Available

A number of African-American authors have taken already advantage of the potential of eBooks, and
currently have eBooks or other eMatter available on-line.

Mosaic Literary Magazine Mosaic Literary Magazine (past issues available for
free download)
African American Literature Book Club
http://aalbc.com/download.htm

Format: PDF

Shonell Bacon and J. Daniels

Luvalwayz: The Opposite Sex & Relationships
BookLocker
http://nubianchronicles.com/luvalwayz.html

Format: PDF, Pages: 356 Format: PDF, Pages: 356

Linda Dominique Grosvenor

Sometimes I Cry
BookLocker
http://204.73.168.110/bookpages/dgrosvenor.html
 Delores Thornton
author of Ida Mae
BookLocker
http://204.73.168.110/bookpages/dthornton.html
Kia D. Sidbury
author of Elect Expressions
BookLocker
http://204.73.168.110/bookpages/ksidbury.html
T.C. Matthews, author of Reflections
BookLocker
http://204.73.168.110/bookpages/tmatthews.html
Maxine E. Thompson
author of A Place Called Home
Black Butterfly Press - e-book title
http://www.angelfire.com/ca2/blackbutterflypress/page17.html
Anita Bunkley
author of TAMA
migthywords
http://www1.mightywords.com/asp/bookinfo/bookinfo.asp?theisbn=EB00011371

The Frankfurt eBook awards

The Frankfurt eBook awards will comprise seven awards totaling $160,000, including a $100,000
(U.S.) grand prize for a work published originally in eBook form. The additional awards will be given
in such categories as works converted from paper to electronic form, audio books, and technology
advancement in the field of eBooks. A panel of judges made up of authors, educators and publishing
industry professionals will constitute the awards committee. Chaired by Alberto Vitale, chairman
emeritus and former chairman, president and CEO of Random House, the committee plans to begin
evaluation of award submissions after January 2000 and announce the winners at next year
Frankfurt Book Fair.

Xerox – Electronic Paper

www.parc.xerox.com/epaper

Electronic paper is a reusable display material that has many of the properties
of paper: it stores an image, it is viewed in reflective light, it has a wide viewing
angle, it is flexible, and it is relatively inexpensive. Unlike conventional paper,
however, it is electrically writeable and erasable. This material has many
potential applications in the field of information display including digital books
[eBooks], low power portable displays, wall size displays, and fold-up displays.

Xerox has not announced a timetable for the distribution of products which
utilize electronic paper. The potential for eBook applications are enormous.
eBooks will be presented on paper and not behind glass as it is with current
eBook reader hardware.

Bell Lab’s - Electronic InkBell Lab’s - Electronic Ink Bichromal beads are
http://www.eink.com at the heart of
electronic paper idea.

The technology has been identified and development is well under way. By the year 2003, we
envision electronic books that can display volumes of information as easily as flipping a page,
and permanent newspapers that update themselves daily via wireless broadcast. Just as
today's books give people easy access to everyday information, tomorrow's books will provide
the same easy access to the dynamic data of the information age.

The key elements of electronic paper would be plastic transistors,

developed at Lucent's Bell Labs, which have the same properties
as conventional silicon chips but are flexible and can be printed,
and E Ink's electronic ink. Electronic ink is comprised of millions
of tiny microcapsules filled with a dark dye and light pigment.
When charged by the electric field created by the plastic
transistors, the microcapsules will change color and create
images.

To form an Immedia™ electronic display, the ink is printed onto a

sheet of plastic film that is laminated to a layer of circuitry. The
http://www.eink.com
circuitry forms a pattern of pixels that can then be controlled by a
standard display driver

The main advantages of electronic ink are high visual impact, extreme thinness, lightweight
construction, curvability, minimal power draw, and wide viewing angle. The first product line,
called Immedia, is targeted at large-area displays for variable messaging. Each Immedia
display is controlled remotely, allowing customers to send messages worldwide from a single
desktop.

Future generations of electronic ink displays are being designed for applications as broad-
ranging as handheld devices, outdoor billboards, and electronic books and newspapers.
Ultimately we will permit most any surface to become a display, bringing information out from
behind computer screens and into the world around us.

On-line eBook Resources

eBookNet
http://www.eBooknet.com

eBookNet, your source for electronic books and electronic publishing: hardware, software and
content. eBookNet covers eBooks, digital tablets, electronic readers, electronic publishing,
news, hardware reviews, and forums.

netLibrary -- The Next Generation Library

http://www.netlibrary.com

netLibrary offers the world's largest library of eBooks. You may read eBooks online, search
through them instantly and even "borrow" them.

MesaView – "The Publisher’s ePublisher"

http://www.mesaview.com

MesaView’s services allow customers to distribute their content to customers in multiple eBook
Formats

Fatbrain.com
http://www.fatbrain.com

Fatbrain’s eMatter lets individuals and companies publish and securely sell their work in digital
format and receive a royalty on every copy sold. eMatter starts with authors uploading their
original content in Microsoft Word, Adobe PDF, Postscript or ASCII text formats. Fatbrain.com
secures those files in an encrypted Adobe PDF format. People can buy eMatter alone or with books,
training materials and documents. Once purchased, eMatter is downloaded and secured to an
individual’s computer. People can read or print eMatter at any time with no strings attached.

mightywords (Fatbrain.com new digital content marketplace)

http://www.mightywords.com/
Once you register to publish and purchase eMatter, uploading your individual documents takes about
five minutes a piece. All you do is enter information about your document, set your price, and upload
your file. You maintain full editorial control and own the copyright. mightywords takes a
commission (you set the price) and charges a $1.00 per month "storage fee".

eBookNet
www.eBookNet.com

A tremendous eBook resource – chock full of content. A virtual eBook community.

Adobe Systems Incorporated

http://www.adobe.com

Adobe ePaper® Solutions, you may take text files, paper documents, or Web sites, and can convert
them to Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) files with the original appearance preserved. Do
collaborative markups, create searchable libraries, or electronically publish any type of document
ePaper Solutions will help you communicate more easily and effectively. PDF files are also a popular
format for eBook readers.

Online eBook sellers

IUniverse - http://iuniverse.com
barnesandnoble.com - http://www.barnesandnoble.com
Rocket-Library.com - http://rocket-library.com
EBook Shoppe - http://www.eBookshoppe.com
Books3Read.com - http://www.books2read.com

Recent News Stories

Pocket PC OS (Rapier)
By Richard Kettner, Staff Writer, WiredGuy.com, March 23, 2000
http://www.wiredguy.com/reviews/sr/pocketpc/index.htm Pocket PC OS
(Rapier)
By Richard Kettner, Staff Writer, WiredGuy.com, March 23, 2000
http://www.wiredguy.com/reviews/sr/pocketpc/index.htm

"Overall, with the new Rapier version I think Microsoft has made a huge
improvement to their Palm-size PC Operating System. They have
simplified many of the features, and sped up the software significantly.
Screen Shot of Unfortunately until we can take a look at the hardware, we don't really know
Microsoft Reader exactly how each manufacturer's units will compare to their competition in
size, speed, or memory. I think that as long as Microsoft's partners
(Compaq, Casio, Symbol, and Hewlet Packard) have a similar level of improvement to that of the
Operating System, the Pocket PCs will be regarded as the PDA to own."
Microsoft Reader, which will come pre-installed on color versions of the PocketPC. The program
will also incorporate ClearType.

"Are you a bookworm? Download an entire book and read (or listen to) it at your leisure in brilliant
clarity. With Pocket PC's high-resolution display screen, Microsoft's revolutionary ClearType(TM)
technology closely mimics the printed page..." ~ Microsoft

Stephen King and Simon & Schuster to Publish New Story Exclusively on
eBook - March 8, 2000
http://www.simonsays.com/bookextras/Bullet_press.cfm

"Simon & Schuster announced today that a new story by best-selling author
Stephen King will appear exclusively as an eBook on March 14th (12:01 AM
EST). Riding the Bullet, a story described by King as "a ghost story in the grand
manner," will go directly to readers electronically, who will pay $2.50 for the
16,000-word story. The story will be a co-publication between Scribner and
Riding the Bullet Philtrum Press, King's own press, and electronically published through Simon &
(Click to order on-line)
Schuster Online. The announcement was made by Jack Romanos, President &
Chief Operating Officer of Simon & Schuster, Inc., and Susan Moldow, Vice President and
Publisher of Scribner."

SoftBook Press and Siemens Austria Develop Joint Electronic Book Pilot Project for
Education Market
Austrian Pilot Program to Showcase Electronic Books in Education - February 29, 2000
http://www.softbook.com/corporate/press/display.asp?id=63

"...The companies have signed an agreement to jointly convert textbooks into e-textbooks, set up
electronic libraries, and use SoftBook Readers for delivering educational materials to students. The
test will take place in Austria and other locations yet to be determined. Siemens AG Austria is
spearheading the effort and providing program management services.

The purpose of the pilot program is to test a general business case for using SoftBook® Press'
electronic publishing system and electronic books for educational purposes. Unlike the United
States where curriculums are set by local communities, curriculums in many other countries are set
nationwide, creating an enormous opportunity to use electronic books for education. The system
offers the potential of replacing cumbersome, expensive, and heavy textbooks with the SoftBook
Reader, a book-sized electronic device optimized for reading that can hold over 100,000 pages
With a built-in phone or network connectivity, students can download books, lesson plans,
assignments, and supplemental texts from the Internet without the need for a PC."

Gemstar Enters Electronic Book Business Through Acquisition Of NuvoMedia, Inc. and
SoftBook Press, Inc. - January 18, 2000
http://www.nuvomedia.com/press/english/18jan2000.htm

PASADENA, CALIFORNIA - (January 18, 2000) - Gemstar International Group Limited

(NASDAQ:GMST) today announced its plan to enter the electronic book business through the
acquisition of the two leading eBook companies, NuvoMedia®, Inc. of Mountain View, California,
maker of the Rocket eBook™ (www.rocket-ebook.com), and SoftBook® Press, Inc.
(www.softbook.com) of Menlo Park, California, maker of the SoftBook® Reader.

Open Electronic Book Forum Formed To Develop Standards For eBooks - January 13, 2000
http://www.openebook.org/release011300.htm Open Electronic Book Forum Formed To Develop
 Standards For eBooks - January 13, 2000
http://www.openebook.org/release011300.htm

Washington D.C. January 13, 2000 - Representatives from over 30 companies and non-profit
organizations met recently with members of the Open Electronic Book (OEB) Standards Initiative
Authoring Group to facilitate the next step forward in promoting the growth of the electronic book
industry. This meeting, held in mid-December in San Francisco, resulted in the formation of the
Open Electronic Book Forum (OEBF).

Microsoft, Barnesandnoble.com team for e-bookstore - January 6, 2000

http://news.cnet.com/news//0-1007-200-1515572.html?tag=st.cn.sr.ne.2

In today's deal, Barnes & Noble will market the new eBook store through various promotional
services in all of its retail bookstores, the companies said. The new eBook store will be created on
the Barnesandnoble.com Web site by the middle of this year. Executives said that, at launch time,
thousands of titles will be available electronically to run on Microsoft Reader.

It's Time to Turn the Last Page - Books: Forget paper. Here come e-books—digital bits
injected into a handheld device with an ultrasharp display - January 1, 2000
http://newsweek.com/nw-srv/printed/us/ae/a64538-1999dec19.htm

What are the odds of that happening? Let's see. In the last 50 years, we've made computers
thousands of times more powerful, while shrinking them from the size of a basketball court to
something you can cradle in your palm. All while dropping the price tag from millions of bucks to a
few hundred. Does it really seem plausible that sometime next century we can't make a device that
approximates the size and heft of a book or magazine, with a screen that's every bit as easy on the
eyes as the Modern Library edition of "Sense and Sensibility"? Unless the world's computer
scientists suddenly get struck stupid, we're going to get those devices, and they'll probably cost so
little that we'll pay nothing for them—they'll be given away by content moguls so that we can buy
more 21st-century news, pictures and literature. "The cards have been dealt," says Microsoft e-
book czar Dick Brass. "The only difference is how fast people will play the hand."

Barnes & Noble set to print books on demand - December 9, 1999 Barnes & Noble set to
print books on demand - December 9, 1999
http://news.cnet.com/news//0-1007-200-1489335.html?tag=st.cn.sr.ne.3

IBM will provide the technology and manufacturing components for the operation, which will
eventually be available at all Barnes & Noble distribution centers, starting at the Jamesburg, N.J.,
facility before spring. New York-based Barnes & Noble and Barnesandnoble.com will use the
technology to print books to order, as the company looks to cut costs and better manage inventory.
The book retailer expects the service to be a boon for specialty titles that are out of print because
of small press runs.

Final Note

Electronic devices dedicated to solely reading books do not maximize the use of technology. PDA
like 3Com’s Palm Pilot are popular because they are miniature computers capable of a vide variety of
things including; managing contracts, playing chess, storing photos of the family, or allowing you to
read a great eBook – all in a package that is 4.5" X 3" and less than ½ an inch thick.

There are already electronic devices that serve as PDA’s and cell phones. There are cell phones that
can access the Internet. Why carry a cell phone, pager, PDA, laptop computer, and an eBook, when
it is technically possible to carry everything in the same device?

We are witnessing the beginning of a point where the function of a device is hardware
independent. Meaning as long as a device has certain physical characteristics, you may
program it to do anything. A PalmPilot which has an infrared transmitter may be programmed
as a television remote control or a "Gameboy" type device for playing games. A cell phone can
be programmed to keep track of contact information, A computer may be programmed to be a
entertainment center complete with television, graphic equalizer, and database of CD titles.
Electronic Devices dedicated to a single function are becoming a thing of the past.

Even devices as common as household appliances will do things unimaginable today. Image
the refrigerator of the very near future being connected to the Internet. The door may be a touch
screen which allows you to look-up a recipe for Hopping John, check the kitchen for the
required ingredients, and then place an order for the ingredients you are don’t have. Of course
the "system" looks for the grocer with the least expense products and withdraws the appropriate
funds form your bank account. Before any of this can happen, these devices need to know how
to work together.

In 1993 more books were sold in the United States than in any year before, $18 billion worth. It
is not likely eBooks will dethrone books, as the primary reading platform, in the next few years.
However, in our life time eBooks will be come so popular, that they will be referred to, simply,
as books.

Revision history
Document creation 1.02, 5 January 2000
3rd minor revisions 1.03, 7 March 2000
4th minor updates 1.04, 13 March 2000
5th 1.05, 09 April 2000

Copyright © 2000 African American Literature Book Club – http://aalbc.com