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Advantages and Disadvantages of Electronic Books
Ebooks are becoming more and more popular among people.but everything has two sides, in this article. Let us learn the advantages and disadvantages of ebook.
advantages and disadvantages of ebook
An ebook is a book in electronic format. It is downloaded to a computer, PC, Mac, laptop, PDA or any other kind of computer, and is read on the screen. It can have numbered pages, table of contents, pictures and graphics, exactly like a printed book. It is very simple and easy to purchase and download ebooks through the Internet. It is exactly like purchasing any other product. The only difference is that after payment you will either be directed to a download page or receive the download link in an email. All you have to do is click on the link and the ebook will automatically download to your computer, to a folder of your own choice.
Ebooks are basically text, images, and even audio/video packaged into a single electronic file. For example, if you type a document in MS Word (or OpenOffice Writer), then save that document, that is already an ebook.
As you can see, you may already have been involved in ebook publishing without your quite knowing about it. While an ebook can exist in different formats (i.e., PDF, EXE-compiled HTML pages, PDA format), and the most used format is epub, and people usually need to convert pdf to epub format for reading. Ebooks usually share similar advantages and disadvantages. Then, let us learn what is the advantages and disadvantages of Electronic Books
Advantages of Ebooks
1. Low update cost. When the author needs to update certain parts of the ebook, she simply edits the electronic document, saves the updated version, and then informs customers about the new release.
The customers are either sent to the download page on the web, or are emailed the new version.
In the case of a printed book, the publisher will probably have to make a minimum production run of 1000 copies. This takes time and money.
2. Multimedia format. Unlike your usual printed books, ebooks can contain not only text and images, but also audio and even video. This way, if the reader isn't the type of person who likes to read paragraphs of text, he or she can choose to listen to the audio version. If your ebooks are of pdf formats and you want to read it as a text format, then you can convert pdf to text. It is east for ebooks. Some ebooks even have flash applications that allow the reader to "interact" with the contents (i.e., drag images around using the mouse). This is useful for kinesthetic learners.
3. Searchable. A number of ebooks sport a Search button, which allows you to quickly jump to the page containing the word you're interested in. Ever try opening a dictionary (the printed one)? Try an electronic version and marvel at the speed of the search feature.
4. No shipping cost. Since we're dealing with electronic files, you can simply download them from the web. There's no need to ship any physical product halfway around the globe, and you won't have to wait as long as you normally would when ordering books from, say, Amazon.
Disadvantages of Ebooks
1. Not convenient to read. Who wants to sit in front of a computer or screen for hours just reading your ebook, right? Aside from gaining weight, sitting for prolonged periods of time can cause muscle strain, backache, and even an elevated cholesterol level.
2. Printing cost. It's painful to read off a screen, and some people prefer to read text on paper. If you distribute an ebook, your customers will most likely print it. And if your ebook is quite long, the printing cost will be shouldered by your readers. It is the same to dwg autocad users, your customers may prefer to read your graphic by printing it out, but dwg format is not compatible on many printers, but pdf format can. thus, you need to convert dwg to pdf. A printed book, on the other hand, is already bound and ready to take anywhere.
3. Piracy. In the printed book world, people who want to "share" your book will photocopy it, and then send it to their friends. With ebooks, your file can be easily emailed to someone living thousands of miles away. It can even be placed in a public server for anyone to download. With paper books, you can easily read even while standing (inside the elevator, for example). That's not the case with ebooks.
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