What is an E-book?

An e-book, sometimes known as an "electronic book," is a book that can be read on a computer, tablet, or mobile device due to its digital pages. An eBook can be created using non-editable text and visual components. It is often available for download in the form of a PDF.

Synonyms

• Digital book
• Electronic book
• Online book
• Digital edition
• Virtual book
• Downloadable book

E-Book formats

There are a lot of different E-Book formats available if you look for them. Actually, dozens. It seems unlikely that many of these formats will be used in practice, though. To make things easier for you, we'll only look at the three that are well-known for being user-friendly and able to be utilized in a format that is generally available: PDF, AZW, and EBUP.

1. PDF files (.pdf)

A PDF, often known as a portable document format, isn't exactly a true eBook by our standards, but it's the format most people are used to. Adobe-created PDFs, which are known for being user-friendly and able to store unique layouts

On a small screen, they might be challenging to read because they maintain their format and aren't reflowable. Despite this, they remain one of the most often utilized eBook formats, particularly among marketers. 

2. AZW (.azw)

Amazon created AZW files specifically for its Kindle eReaders. Complex information such as highlights, notes, and bookmarks can be stored in these files. However, only Kindles or devices with Kindle applications can access AZW files. Furthermore, the only place to obtain them is the Amazon online bookshop.

3. EPUB files (.epub)

EPUB, or electronic publishing, is the most commonly accepted format, and it can be read on a broad range of devices, including PCs, smartphones, tablets, and most eReaders (except Kindles). Because EPUB files can flow, they are eBooks and are more convenient to read on tiny screens.

What are the Advantages of E-Book?

1. Speed: If the desired title is available, you can download the book right away.
2. Portability: Several books can fit on a single device, making it perfect for travelers. PDAs are the ideal device for carrying guidebooks.
3. Print on demand: Books do not need to go out of print.
4. Interactivity: Readers can also write notes, highlight text, bookmark pages, search, and click hyperlinks to get more information.
5. Customization: The ability to modify the font size and backlighting makes it perfect for those with difficulty seeing.
6. Add-ons: A lot of ebooks come with dictionaries, searchable text, and other features.
7. Open market: Authors can avoid the publication procedure by publishing digitally
8. Eco-friendly: Books without paper save forests.

What are the Disadvantages of E-Book?

1. The number of books available in electronic format remains very restricted.
2. E-books cannot be printed from a computer once they have been downloaded.
3. A lot of e-books aren't offered in a format that works with Macs.

Characteristics of an E-Book

To begin with, e-Books are documents that can be viewed on a computer, tablet, smartphone, or other digital device. But once again, given that other files, like Word documents, can be viewed on digital devices, e-Books have unique features that set them apart.

E-books Shouldn’t Be Editable

One unique feature of an e-Book is that it shouldn't include editable text. It is usually best to convert an e-Book into a format that makes editing impossible. Thousands of individuals might be able to alter any work without the author's consent because it is accessible on digital devices.

Therefore, much like a physical book, text can't be changed in any manner for it to be considered a true eBook.

E-books are Reflowable (with an Exception)

Reflowability is another crucial component of genuine e-books. This implies that the e-Book will always adjust to the size of the screen you're using to view it; the text will maintain its formatting with line breaks, and the chapters and images will adapt to match the dimensions of the device you're using.

However, PDFs are an exception. According to the features that set e-books apart, PDFs aren't officially considered eBooks as they can't be changed and aren't reflowable. However, because PDFs are so simple to acquire and distribute, businesses have begun to utilize them as "unofficial" e-Book formats, even if they are still commonly used.