Details:
Summary:
Following the publication of the first electronic books at the end of 1998, VTT Information Technology has carried out several studies to evaluate the technical and commercial potential of electronic book technology. This research compares the latest models of electronic books with the first generation of e-books and the conventionally printed products. The technical comparisons include, for example, the image quality factors affecting text quality. The readability and usability of electronic books are evaluated and expectations regarding the technology are investigated. Several pilot projects have also been launched for applying electronic book technology to new publishing processes. This paper will describe the initial experiences with e-book publishing in different environments, such as universities and libraries. Our studies reveal that electronic publishing and electronic books offer several advantages to publishers, consumers, and authors and may result in radical changes in the publishing industry. This will require that publishers adopt a new way to distribute their publications and that the technology develops as expected. All in all, it is very difficult to predict a time when the electronic and the printed book will truly compete with each other, but it seems quite inevitable that successful electronic books will emerge in the course of time.