Welcome
This guide is here to provide information about eBooks and eReaders to the legal community.
Vocabulary
You'll hear a lot of words tossed around when talking about eBooks and eReaders. Here's a quick run down on a few of them.
eInk - A type of display which emulates a printed page and requires an external light source to view.
Backlit - Another display type which looks a lot like a computer screen and does not need an additional light source.
Text Flow - A display feature which allows users to view a full page of text in their preferred font size and style.
ePub - The eBook format currently most favored by public libraries for lending.
DRM - Digital Rights Management - A way for companies to lock down information, determining who can use it and how.
Wi-Fi Capable - eReaders which can connect to the Internet via a wireless connection.
eReaders
There are a lot of eReaders on the market, from the trend-setting Kindle to the more recent nook Color. Here's a breakdown on some of the most popular eReaders currently available.
| Sold By | Wi-Fi Capability | Type of Display | .ePub Support | |
| Kindle 3 | Amazon | Yes | eInk | No |
| nook Wi-Fi | Barnes & Noble | Yes | eInk | Yes |
| nook Color | Barnes & Noble | Yes | backlit | Yes |
| Reader Touch | Sony | No | eInk | Yes |
| Kobo | Borders | Yes | eInk | Yes |
Desktop Software and Apps
You don't have to just read eBooks on a device created for that purpose either. Most eBook manufacturers also support desktop versions of their eReader software, so you can read an eBook on your laptop or home computer. There are Apps available too for if you prefer to read on your tablet or smartphone.
| Desktop | Apple iOS | Android | Blackberry | |
| Kindle | PC / Mac / Linux | iPad / iPhone | Android | Blackberry |
| nook | PC / Mac / Linux | iPad / iPhone | Android | Blackberry |
| PC / Mac / Linux | iPad / iPhone | Android | Blackberry | |
| Adobe Digital Editions | PC / Mac / Linux | iPad / iPhone | Android | Blackberry |
| Reader | PC / Mac / Linux | iPad / iPhone | Android | Blackberry |
| Kobo | PC / Mac / Linux | iPad / iPhone | Android | Blackberry |
| MobiPocket | PC / Mac / Linux | iPad / iPhone | Android | Blackberry |
eBook Formats
eBooks also come in many formats. These are some of the most popular.
PDF (.pdf) - A very popular eBook format from Adobe which most eReaders support. Because PDFs are meant to recreate a larger printed page, there are sometimes problems with text size and display on eReaders.
Kindle (.azw) - Native format for Amazon's Kindle products which typically comes with DRM protection to limit sharing.
EPUB (.epub) - Another popular format, particularly favored by public libraries. Most eBooks loaned in this format come with DRM protection.
MobiPocket (.mobi) - MobiPocket has also released software to easily convert files from .epub to .mobi.
Text (.txt) - A basic plain text format which is easy to create, but cannot contain images.
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