E-books

Group 5 members ~ Sam Sachs, Kyle Long, Alex Morrow, James G

E-Books are books in the digital form, basically a book you are able to read on the computer, cellphone, and other electronic devices.
 * What are E-Books user:Kyle.Long**

The digital form allows convenience of spreading literary works to a wider audience - even around the world. It can be much more easily accessed than traditional books, including forms such a cell phones. Readers can preview many books, without commitment, to find whether or not the material is something they would consider purchasing. E-books are the same as the pre-digital expression since both forms still follow the traditional make-up of the literary piece. For example, E-novels still have plots - beginnings, middle, end, with in-depth characters and stories.
 * What makes this form different from pre-digital expression and what ways is it the same?**

The different is that with electronic literary works there is much less censorship, which would NOT happen with a physical book because of all the bridges it must cross until it's allowed to be viewed by the masses.

It allows new authors to publish their work and to promote their name to readers without having to exhaust resources. It also allows promotion through a mass media tool so readers and publishers alike can gauge the author's style and prose.
 * What can you do in this form that draws people to it?**

People can utilize this electronic tool not just for novels but to popularize forms such as instruction manuals, self-help books, recipe books, textbooks, etc.

E-books are also much better for referencing and analyzing. Being able to search keywords, quotes, names, etc. can be tremendously helpful for people using the book as a reference - for example, a student writing an essay can directly quote the book without have to 'dog-ear' the page or skim through hundreds of pages to find what they're looking for.

//"Baen Books, who do a lot of series publishing...sells the hell out of a new book - and the backlist."// Meaning, publishing companies such as Baen Books give away electronic editions of books to provide readers with a sample of the author's style to decide whether or not to buy the book - or related works by that author. It is basically a marketing tool in this sense - a free advertising method - that not only publishing companies, but authors can use as well. It is particularly beneficial to new authors who are trying to make a name for themselves.

But also, it can simply be a way to have your voice heard - as Cory Doctorow says, "The primary incentive for writing has to be artistic satisfaction...Ebooks get you that". I agree - not everyone will use the electronic form for writing to the task of generating capital, some doing for pure pleasure. It would be nice to think that authors write because they like writing, just like game developers make games because they like doing it, just like artists, musician, etc. This form of production has spread to all forms of media, and in no way has any sect of media significantly suffered by it, but just the opposite in fact.


 * Has anyone in your group created content in this form before?**

No however all of us have admitted to USING this kind of content. And all for the same reasons of easy reference, access and most of the time...the lack of cost.


 * Find at least three noteworthy examples of the form and provide links, along with at least a three sentence description explaining what makes these examples particularly interesting.

[|Handbook of Adhesion]**

This book is a hub for over 250 articles by 60 authors aimed towards students and researchers to develop better understandings of the subject matter. There are several different subject covered in this book about developing scientific research. It's interesting to have this collection of works in one place online that anyone can access and use as research or reference.

[|Easy Microsoft Windows 7]

As mentioned above, instruction manuals are a very practical thing to have online - especially when you can conveniently tab over to it while probing around your Windows 7 interface and learning how to use it. Having access to something like this can be an amazing tool when learning a subject or testing something out - especially with functions such as keyword search. Index's are old news.

[|"For Dummies" Ebook Collection]

What do you want to learn? This eBook collection has 360 books that will help you not be a dummy about 360 subjects. The traditional paper versions of these books would FILL AN ENTIRE ROOM. Seriously. Having them all stored in one simple and convenient place that doesn't take up any space except for a couple MB on your hard-drive is really taking this technological form to the limit. It's amazing to think that within seconds of needing to learn a subject or refer to a technique or method of doing things can be accessed with ease. I don't think any traditional book could provide this kind of usability.

None of these are novels, yet they are all eBooks, they provide learners, researchers, and everyday people with a convenience that is unparalleled by traditional books.