Virtual Options Coaching & Training workshop resource materials for NEFLIN's (Northeast Florida Library Information Network) E-book & E-reader workshop held for staff at the Jacksonville Public Library, March 2012

1. Virtual Options Coaching & Training
Social Media Managed Services Technology Training
E-book & E-readers Class
Free E-Book Software
http://www.writingsimplified.com/2010/12/free-e-book-resources.html
E-books come in a variety of different formats (mainly for proprietary and personal preference purposes)
and depending on what file type each e-book you download comes in, you may need to also download
a software program capable of reading each file type. Most of these e-book programs support most (if not
all) file types, so you’ll only have to download one.
Calibre By far a FAVORITE e-book management software, Calibre
supports ALL major file formats, lets you convert from one
format to another, is compatible with all eReaders, and is
compatible with Windows, Mac, and Linux.
Adobe Digital Editions This software supports PDF and EPUB files, lets you annotate
pages, and offers a “library” from which you can download
and purchase e-books. It has built in support for the Sony
Reader and is PC and Mac compatible.
Reader Library Software Sony makes this program and it is fully compatible with all Sony
eReaders (of course). It is also PC and Mac compatible. As far
as file type support, the page only mentions the ability to read
library books in the software, which means it supports EPUB.
Microsoft Reader Made by Microsoft, this program also has a built in
“marketplace” from which you can purchase new e-books. No
information about file type compatibility is provided. It is only
PC compatible.
Kindle Reading Apps Amazon.com makes a software program that reads its
proprietary file type (.AZW) and MOBI files. Of course, it allows
you to browse Amazon.com for more e-books to purchase and
download. PC and Mac compatible.
Borders eReader Apps Supporting the .PDF, MOBI, and .EPUB file types, this software
links you directly to Borders.com’s marketplace for e-book
browsing and purchasing. PC and Mac compatible.
Barnes and Noble Nook Apps Barnes and Noble is also getting in on the action with their
eReader. It is PC and Mac compatible and supports .EPUB,
.PDB, and .PDF files.
Fan: http://www.fb.me/virtualoptions | training@virtualoptions.net | 407-588-7246 | Web: www.virtualoptions.net

2. Virtual Options Coaching & Training 2
Free E-Book Sources
Now that you have a program that will let you read e-books, it’s time to download some e-books. My
personal favorite genre of e-book is the free kind so here are a few websites (in order of personal
preference) to get your free e-book library started.
• ManyBooks.net: http://manybooks.net/
• Amazon.com’s Limited Time Free E-Books: http://www.amazon.com/s/?node=2279458011
• Free-eBooks.net: http://www.free-ebooks.net/
• GetFreeEBooks.com: http://www.getfreeebooks.com/
• Open Library: http://openlibrary.org/
• Project Gutenberg: http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page
• The Internet Archive : http://www.archive.org/details/texts
Comparison of E-book Formats
http://www.ask.com/wiki/Comparison_of_e-book_formats
Comparison of E-book Readers
http://www.ask.com/wiki/Comparison_of_e-book_readers?qsrc=3044
Digital Rights Management
Article: “It's time for a unified ebook format and the end of DRM”
http://radar.oreilly.com/2012/02/unified-ebook-format-end-drm.html
How DRM works:
http://computer.howstuffworks.com/drm.htm
ALA: Digital Rights Management (DRM) & Libraries
http://www.ala.org/advocacy/copyright/digitalrights
DMCA: The Digital Millennium Copyright Act
http://www.ala.org/advocacy/copyright/dmca
The Dangers of E-books and organizations against their use
http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/the-danger-of-ebooks.html
Electronic Frontier Foundation: https://www.eff.org/issues/drm
Digital Book World » Podcast Feed
http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/digital-book-world-podcast/id357422466?ls=1
No Shelf Required blog
http://www.libraries.wright.edu/noshelfrequired/
© 2012, Virtual Options LLC All Rights Reserved.
Email: training@virtualoptions.net Web: www.virtualoptions.net Fan: http://www.fb.me/virtualoptions
All materials are proprietary. This workbook includes data that will not be disclosed outside the workshop class and will not be
duplicated, used, or disclosed, in whole or in part, for any purpose other than participant use.

3. Virtual Options Coaching & Training 3
Formats and Devices
The same eBooks can be presented in a number of different formats; just like you can get the same song
with an mp3 or m4a extension, eBooks have a few common formats that you need to know about.
Plain text (.txt)
-this is the most basic of eBooks and contains nothing but the text itself. That means no headings, no bold
or italics, no formatting, colors or pictures. However, this simplicity also brings a lot of benefits; plain text
provides the smallest file size for the content, and pretty much any device is able to open and interpret it.
This makes plain text perfect for archiving large amounts of information.
Rich Text (.rtf)
-this is a step up from plain text and introduces formatting such as tables, text formatting and images.
However, while it is easily editable on a computer and can be read by most electrical devices, it isn’t
designed to be manipulated by eReaders. This basically means that while you’ll be able to read it on a
Kindle, for example, you won’t easily be able to change the size of the text.
EPUB (.epub)
– EPUB replaced the Open eBook format in 2007 as the standard for eBooks. Designed specifically to work
perfectly with as many devices as possible and to make text reflowing (that is, making text display properly
regardless of the size of the text or the size of the screen) work the way it should. Practically every piece of
eReader software or hardware is capable of reading EPUB files (notably, the Kindle cannot.)
Portable Document Format (.pdf)
– this is the format that you’re reading from right now! PDF files are based on an open format that has
been around since1993. Most computers, and many eReader devices, are able to open PDFs without a
third party program. While they’re great for sharing documents insinuations where there would normally be
compatibility issues, they aren’t great for use as eBooks as text reflow doesn’t work very well. This means
that in most cases PDF pages are displayed a lot like images and require the reader to zoom in and move
around the page to read it.
Mobipocket (.prc/.mobi)
– this format is based on the older Open eBook format (which has been largely superseded by the EPUB
standard). However, it’s still quite popular. Most .prc/.mobi files are found through the Mobipocket web
store.
Kindle eBook (.azw)
– every book you download from the Amazon store to a Kindle or to the Kindle app on your computer or
mobile device is an azw file. It’s actually almost exactly the same as a mobipocket eBook – it just uses a
slightly different indexing system.
© 2012, Virtual Options LLC All Rights Reserved.
Email: training@virtualoptions.net Web: www.virtualoptions.net Fan: http://www.fb.me/virtualoptions
All materials are proprietary. This workbook includes data that will not be disclosed outside the workshop class and will not be
duplicated, used, or disclosed, in whole or in part, for any purpose other than participant use.

4. Virtual Options Coaching & Training 4
Resource Links
The Free Online ePub Converter - http://www.2epub.com/
2EPUB allows you to convert PDF, docand other types of documents & books toePub format, the standard
format for ebooks, supported by almost every reading device including iPad, iPhone, iPod, Sony Reader,
BeBook, Nook, Kobo (for Kindle use .mobi). Input formats: doc, docx, epub, fb2, html, lit, lrf, mobi, odt, pdb,
pdf, prc, rtf, txt. Output formats: epub, fb2, lit, lrf, mobi
Dot e pub - http://dotepub.com/
dotEPUB is software in the cloud that allows you to convert any webpage into an e-book.
Simple booklet - http://simplebooklet.com/index-sb.php
Create a compelling digital brochure, flyer, or product guide for your business you can promote across all
your customer touch points.
Issuu - http://issuu.com/
Explore a world of publications by people and publishers alike. Collect, share and publish in a format
designed to make your documents look their very best.
Calibre - http://www.calibre-ebook.com/download
Calibre is an application that is used for managing your eBook files. Think of it as your own personal
automated library; you import the eBook files and it automatically sorts them for you, allowing you to
quickly search for the books you want and do all sorts of cool things with them that touch on in a moment.
In many ways, you can think of calibre as being a sort of iTunes for eBooks
This program sorts your books, allows you to access them quickly and makes it easy to transfer books to various
eReaders. Calibre is a cross-platform application, which means that it has versions for Windows,
Mac OS X and Linux. This means that you‟ll be able to use calibre nomatter what computer you use and that if
you use computers that use different operating systems they‟ll all work together in exactly the same way
Stanza - http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/stanza/id284956128?mt=8
Stanza is a app for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad which makes it really simple to get and read
eBooks. As well as providing access to Project Gutenburg and a number of eBook stores, Stanza
also links well with calibre to give you easy access to your eBook library without plugging your
device in.
© 2012, Virtual Options LLC All Rights Reserved.
Email: training@virtualoptions.net Web: www.virtualoptions.net Fan: http://www.fb.me/virtualoptions
All materials are proprietary. This workbook includes data that will not be disclosed outside the workshop class and will not be
duplicated, used, or disclosed, in whole or in part, for any purpose other than participant use.

5. Virtual Options Coaching & Training 5
Attribution for the class PowerPoint and other materials:
E-book Pinterest – Suzi Holler - http://pinterest.com/suziholler/books-electronic-audio/
eBooks and eReaders in Public and Academic Libraries
http://www.poudrelibraries.org/about/pdf/ereader-report-2011extended.pdf
Virtual Options Delicious Stack - http://delicious.com/stacks/view/PGJgsJ
© 2012, Virtual Options LLC All Rights Reserved.
Email: training@virtualoptions.net Web: www.virtualoptions.net Fan: http://www.fb.me/virtualoptions
All materials are proprietary. This workbook includes data that will not be disclosed outside the workshop class and will not be
duplicated, used, or disclosed, in whole or in part, for any purpose other than participant use.