The Struggle of the Electronic Book
Elhuyar Fundazioa
Every time we hear something about the ebook, a book comes to mind in PDF or similar format, with the only option to download it and read it to your computer. But as we're talking about a billion dollar market, the thing is not so simple: big companies come into play and, as everyone wants most of the cake, things start to mix.
Let's start slowly: What is the e-book? Well, that's something you know: a book that has been published on screen. These books are purchased online and each reads them on their own computer, PocketPC or eBook. Many times these books can not be printed and can only be read on the computer that is loaded and thus protect against the piracy. It seems silly to think that someone will want to read books on the screen, but when big companies see an incredible market there it will be for something.
There is actually some background: Stephen King is probably the best known. This writer has published his last books only online and has manifested his intention to continue publishing them like this. The British writer Frederick Forsyth has also announced his intention to publish online the collection of short stories "Quintet". For writers this has a great advantage: its benefits skyrocket, since runners are reduced.
Security security security security
So far, the biggest problem that has been found in this system has been security. How to ensure that users are not copied and left? To do this, they have created specialized encryption systems and systems to ensure the safe sale of books. For example, Adobe has opted for the PDF format by creating a system called Web Buy. This allows you to buy the electronic edition of any book through the Internet, but this book cannot be printed or copied and can only be read on the computer that is loaded down.
However, security is not guaranteed at all. We see again the case of Stephen King: His first book published online was "Riding the Bullet". There were pirate copies of the book on the web that offered the possibility of printing the day after its sale.
In any case, let's not think that there are few books published in electronic format. Today we can find thousands of books in this format, in which, in addition to books, magazines and newspapers are published.
Technology technology technology technology
EBook readers are the artifacts used specifically for reading electronic books. One of these electronic readers can receive a large number of texts. For example, a 340 Mb hard disk reader can store 850 four-page books. The Travelstar electronic reader has a 12 Gb hard disk and can receive twelve million pages of text or fifty magazines with photographs.
But the current problem is not the capacity of the ebook, or the quality of your screen: the problem is the format. Due to the market entry of several companies, each one wants to establish its own format for reading, which confuses readers: you can download a book in PDF or Microsoft Reader format. To read the book you can use the electronic reader or read it on a PocketPC. The difference is that the electronic reader is used exclusively for it, while the PocketPC is a pocket computer that besides reading books has other uses. The problem is in the quality of the system: being a multi-purpose tool, the screen quality of the PocketPC and the book reading service are worse than those offered by the reader. The reader is also much more comfortable, since it is smaller and useful. In addition, since PocketPC are computers, they are much easier to make, so some publishers do not risk offering their Best Sellers in this system. But these technologies are completely new and will gradually improve. In the case of PocketPC, it seems that Microsoft wants to make a big bet to adapt to this electronic book reading system, for which it has specially created the Microsoft Reader format, as well as agreements with Barnes and Noble and Amazon.
However, we will have to see the success of this business commitment in readers. Recently, the third meeting on electronic books was held in Washington. It explained that, according to a recent survey of 1,140 book buyers, only four people considered the e-book to replace paper and only 60% knew that Stephen King's latest book could be obtained in electronic format.
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