About ebooks
... our guide to ebooks & digital readers

Simply put, an eBook is a special computer file, which contains the text of a printed book. The file may be read on a personal computer (PC), a personal digital assistant (PDA), or an electronic device designed specifically for reading eBooks (eBook reader).

eBook readers have many features that are simply not available with standard printed text. Many mobile phones can also be used to read eBooks. You can download eBooks and read them immediately so there is no waiting for shipment and in most cases, they are cheaper than their 'hard copy' counterparts. eBooks also offer the convenience of size and portability, you can store your own personal library of eBooks on your PC, Laptop or hand held device.

An e-book can give you lots more than a paper book. You can store lots of books on one computer, for example. You can mark your page with an electronic bookmark and jump straight to it when you open the book.
Some e-books have built in dictionaries so you can click on a word and find out what it means. And non-fiction books may come with extensive collections of references and footnotes.

And of course an e-book does not have to be just words; it can include pictures and even sound clips and video or animated graphics.
It is possible to read an e-book on your desktop or laptop computer.

They do a reasonable job of displaying text and images but lack some of the features we normally associate with books - like portability and instant access.