Thursday, December 15, 2011

Finding E-books: A Guide

Created by J. Cheyenne Hohman, University of Kentucky*
This guide is an introduction to e-books: what they are, how to use them, and where to find them, at the Library of Congress and elsewhere online. An e-book (also referred to as an electronic book, ebook or digital book) is a text that can be viewed and/or downloaded onto a computer or other digital device. E-books cover a wide range of genres and subjects. Though many e-books are currently available in both digital and conventional paper formats, some are created strictly in digital format. Conversely, some conventional paper books do not exist in digital format, because of the book's copyright status, or the preferences of the book's publisher or author.
Reading E-books
Whether someone can read an e-book depends on the compatibility of the e-book's format with the device being used. Certain companies have their own proprietary formats that don’t work on desktop computers or with other companies' mobile devices. When searching for an e-book, make sure the format you choose is compatible with the device with which you plan to read it. For an overview of compatible devices and formats, see Devices and Formats. Most e-readers have a standard page layout that looks like the pages in a book; page-turning/scrolling varies by device or browser.
Library of Congress E-books
Only a small percentage of the Library’s collections can be found in digital form on the Library’s Web site. Available full-text books are mostly American publications published prior to 1923, which are no longer under U.S. copyright protection. Academic textbooks and recent works of fiction cannot be found in full-text/electronic formats on the Library's Web site, and recent nonfiction on the site is limited to Library of Congress publicationssuch as annual reports, illustrated collection guides, Federal Research Division country studies, and a history of the Library of Congress.

3 comments:

  1. It's pretty easy to find eBooks these days, because there are many sites of this kind...free or paid. It's great that we can have them in one place...on our online library and read these books when we want. I found All You Can Books, from where I downloaded quite interesting ones. Of course, we must have an eReader, because on the PC it's not the same thing unfortunately...at least for me.

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  2. Thanks a lot for sharing these ideas and your personal experience. If you have more sites where our users can load their favourite books, you're welcome. Do you have your own blog?

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  3. All you can books is a service wherein you can download and listen to all the eBooks that you want. For a low monthly fee (lower than the other eBook download websites) you can enjoy everything from classic literature to modern day fiction. All You Can Books makes for a great gift and since they are eBooks, you can take them anywhere. This website is great for the young and young-at-heart. College and high school students will find All You Can Books especially rewarding, since you don’t have to sit in one place to read a book for your English or literature class. Just head on over to Allyoucanbooks.com, sign up and start downloading the same books you are required to read for class. Then hop on your bike, head off to the park or beach and listen while you are on the go!

    AllYouCanBooks is the only eBook website out there that offers unlimited downloads every month /http://www.allyoucanbooks.net/

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