From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia| click here for full page on ebooks

An e-book (for electronic book: also ebook) is the digital media equivalent of a conventional printed book. Such documents are either read on personal computers, or on dedicated hardware devices known as e-book readers or e-book devices.

What is An eBook and Why Would You Want One?

An eBook is an electronic book, one you read digitally on your computer, laptop screen or on devices called ebook readers.

You will find them in various formats and until the industry has a standard accessible in all devices these various formats will exist.

PDF format is a popular format for ebooks. All platforms are able to gain access and read PDF formatting. So regardless if you have a PC or Mac, you are in business! PDF requires the Acrobat Reader but this software comes on many new computers and if not included, it's a free downloaded from Adobe http://www.adobe.com.  There are still many who prefer printing out the pages of an ebook to read and PDF files have always been good for this purpose. Visit the IRS online and you will see every tax form they have available on PDF to print, fill out and send.

Other popular formats include:
HTML (which can be read on your computer screen, laptop or converted to read on the previously manufactured Nuvomedia Rocket eBook reader)
Microsoft LIT (requires the free Microsoft Reader installed on your computer, laptop or Pocket PC 2002 device)
PalmOS

So, why would you want an ebook? As you discover this new industry with your surfing over the Internet, you will discover ePublishers and eBookstores gradually growing in numbers. Take a look at what they offer and what they have to say about their authors and titles. Thousands upon thousands of authors write books yearly. Of those, a small percentage have the good fortune of being accepted by a publisher. This is not because they don't make the grade, but because of the vast numbers.

The Internet is a wide open medium. Excellent, talented authors can take their books to the Net, market/promote and sell those books themselves. Others are coming to the growing epublishing houses and taking that route. It is guaranteed as you journey through the epublishing world, you are going to find outstanding, spell-binding, and top-class works, which are well worth the read.

Will ebooks replace printed books? No, that will never happen. I love the smell of a new book and I will never read an electronic book on the beach!
The sheer physical pleasure holding a book gives me cannot be had electronically.

Yet I also embrace progress and anticipate the future with excitement. Our children are the ones who will comfortably slide into this world. Already they are at ease working on computers, doing research for homework, writing papers, let alone just surfing the Internet. Imagine a child having just one e-reader to carry to school where all the text books they need are stored within that one unit. No more backpacks or bookbags to lug around, be left on the bus or lost somewhere between school and home. Once the e-readers' price drops to $50 and the kids start showing up with them, it will become the cool thing to have. Five years ago you didn't see numerous people with cell phones and now it is common place. In time you will see these from the grade schools all through college.

Ebooks as an additional market and industry is growing by leaps and bounds. There are many ways you can profit from this and turn your product into a sellable online commodity.

We help people all over do this just this. See how you can get started today

	eBook   - An eBook is an electronic version of a traditional print book that can be read by using a personal computer or by using an eBook reader. (An eBook reader can be a software application for use on a computer, such as Microsoft's free Reader application, or a book-sized computer that is used solely as a reading device, such as Nuvomedia's Rocket eBook.) Users can purchase an eBook on diskette or CD, but the most popular method of getting an eBook is to purchase a downloadable file of the eBook (or other reading material) from a Web site (such as Barnes and Noble) to be read from the user's computer or reading device. Generally, an eBook can be downloaded in five minutes or less. Although it is not necessary to use a reader application or device in order to read an Ebook (most books can be read as PDF files), they are popular because they enable options similar to those of a paper book - readers can bookmark pages, make notes, highlight passages, and save selected text. In addition to these familiar possibilities, eBook readers also include built-in dictionaries, and alterable font sizes and styles. Typically, an eBook reader hand-held device weighs from about twenty-two ounces to three or four pounds and can store from four thousand to over half a million pages of text and graphics. A popular feature is its back-lit screen (which makes reading in the dark possible). Some eBooks can be downloaded for free or at reduced cost, however, prices for many eBooks - especially bestsellers - are similar to those of hardcover books, and are sometimes higher. Most eBooks at Barnes and Noble, for example, are comparable in price to their traditional print versions.

Benefits to creating an ebook "Ebooks may be one of the best business opportunities of 2008 ... Creating an ebook costs virtually  nothing  and the profit potential is huge." Click here to add this page to your favorites Here are the rankings of Amazon.com’s best selling ebook last year (1 being most popular and 4 being less popular). 1) hard cover book 2) Ebook 3) Audio CD 4) Audio cassette As you can see, this ebook ranked second only to hard cover distribution. Not bad for a relatively new industry. So what does this mean for you? It means that you need to get involved in the ebook industry while you can still beat the competition. The best time to get involved in this industry was about 2 years ago, but the next best time to get involved is now. However, before you get too excited let’s discuss some of the technicalities of writing, creating and selling an ebook and how the Ebook Architect program can help you with the writing, creating and selling and your ebook. How to write and create an ebook? Writing and creating an ebook can be a very challenging and daunting task. That is why we have created the Ebook Smart Writers program to help walk you through the steps of both idea conceptualization and writing. Too many ebook authors put too little time into creating their ebooks. Click here to sign up for the SmartWriters E-book Program to help you get started writing your ebook today.

 

 

How to Make Money With Ebooks   For many authors the thought of getting professionally published is little more than a dream. That was until the advent of the internet started threatening the very existence of publishers. As the internet started gaining momentum, real world publishers started finding strategic ways to ensure a peaceful co-existence with online publishers and self published authors. However to this day, traditional publishers are seeing only a small growth rate of 5%, while ebook sales soar at about a 30% growth rate. The exciting news for many authors is that you now don’t need to subject yourself to the rejection notices and snobbery of the publishing community. You can now simply publish and sell your book online in soft cover, hardcover or ebook format and make extraordinary profits (more so than you would have made from an established publisher). Countless authors are brining in thousands of dollars on a monthly basis promoting their works online. It’s a reality that people are incorporating ecommerce transactions into their daily routines and a good portion of those transactions involve the acquisition of information and entertainment. Many authors have a hard time getting their heads around the fact that people are buying books and ebooks online. Many authors believe that customers need to “shop in real stores” or “ebooks won’t work because people need to hold and see the book”. These statements couldn’t be further from the truth. The fact remains that books stores such as Amazon dot com have sales in the billions of dollars; proving that people WANT to buy books online. As well Stephen King had released a book exclusively in ebook format. The book became one of the most anticipated releases as well as THE MOST successful book (not ebook) release in human history. People flocked to web merchants to buy his book, again proving that customers buy books and ebooks online. So why do so many authors ignore the net? Mainly because they are stuck in their ways. They have a 1997 mentality and refuse to change, and by doing so limit their financial success as authors. The bottom line is, you don’t need to be a Stephen King, or an Amazon.com to sell online. Countless “unknown” authors are making a killing online and for the first time, getting recognition as an author. SmartWriters guide will teach you how to self publish on line for next to nothing. As well, we have added a member’s only online marketing community where you can keep up with the tricks of the trade, learn the latest book promotional and sales ideas, meet other authors and ask questions. To visit the site - go to SmartWriters Forum