-- Ten years ago, it was almost impossible to imagine that something could replace a good old paperback that you brought with you wherever you went or read it in the comfort of your home, some widely popular magazine with the latest buzz or a newspaper hot off the press that you picked up at the nearest newsstand on your way to work. However, with the rise of digital technology and use of computers almost all spheres of our lives have been fundamentally transformed. Fueled by the Digital Revolution and the widespread adoption of digital computers, electronic publishing has gained massive popularity in a very short period of time.
What is electronic publishing?
A number of authors broadly define electronic publishing, which can also be referred to as e-publishing, digital publishing or online publishing, as non-print material that is produced digitally. Electronic publishing also includes the digital publication of eBooks, EPUBs, electronic articles, digital magazines, distribution of written information through CD-ROMs, DVDs, portable document files (PDFs) and development of digital libraries and catalogues.
According to the Statement on Electronic Publication by the Modern Language Association “this [electronic publishing] format has become a standard for scholarly communication” and “Electronic publications should receive credit comparable to that given to print publications”. Over the past couple of years, it has also become common to distribute books, newspapers and magazines to consumers through tablets and smartphones.
Advantages of electronic publishing
Electronic publishing as one of many revolutionary ideas in the last couple of decades with a great number of advantages has been able to catch up with traditional publishing and seriously challenge it.
Technical part of the process of publishing and distributing a book includes a large financial investment, hard work and great patience. The only thing one needs to publish an electronic book (also referred to as e-book) is a single computer and a decent Internet connection. This makes e-book a product that is fairly inexpensive to produce and distribute. Many authors who were not able to reach larger audience due to limitations of their traditional publishing houses or people who wanted to publish a book but could not afford to shell out tens of thousands of dollars for it got the perfect solution that meets all their needs. They could easily publish a book and market it online where readers from all corners of the world could get a chance to buy it and read it in a few clicks.
Another advantage of electronic publishing is the fact that any author or publisher can inexpensively collect valuable market-research data through electronic interaction with the buyer of an electronic publication. There is the possibility of sending a follow up e-mail to the person who bought the electronic publication which is a great way to get genuine feedback that can be of great importance to new and aspiring authors.
Storage is one of many advantages of electronic publications because more information can be stored electronically than on paper. The vast amount of storage online or on your electronic devices means that you can download and keep thousands and thousands of e-books, journals, magazines and other electronic publications. You no longer need to trudge around with a bag full of books. Store all your favorite pieces of reading on your e-reader, tablet computer or smartphone and bring them with your wherever you go!
Electronic publishing not only saves storage but it also saves precious time that has become one of the most sought after resources in today’s world. Electronic publications can be downloaded and sent across the globe in a matter of seconds. Publishing a traditional paperback takes a couple of months while you can publish an e-book in just a couple of weeks!
Almost all electronic publications can be easily accessible by anyone regardless of geographic location. As with the previous point, the only thing one needs is proper software, be it a computer program or an application, and a good Internet connection. This accessibility has made it simpler and more efficient for users to search and download data and information that they require.
Electronic publishing has one more advantage over traditional publishing and that is the possibility of keeping data up-to-date so that the buyer will be able to purchase the latest version of publications like encyclopedias or dictionaries which are updated almost on a monthly basis.
Disadvantages of electronic publishing
Even though electronic publishing has many advantages over traditional publishing, there are a couple of downsides to it, though.
Many people point out piracy and theft of valuable data as one of the major disadvantages of electronic publications. Even though hackers are continually finding ways to steal vast amount of information on the Internet, many electronic publications are still out of their reach. A great number of electronic publishers use Digital Rights Management (DRM) or some other method of protection against piracy which prevents unauthorized redistribution of digital media and intellectual property from being copied freely.
Another disadvantage of electronic publishing is that electronic publications, especially e-books, have not yet reached the popularity of paperbacks and other printed publications. According to an article in The Guardian “Ebook sales fell by 1.6% to to £554m in 2015, the first drop recorded in the seven years industry body the Publishers Association has been monitoring the digital book market. Meanwhile, sales of printed books grew by 0.4% to £2.76bn”. Publishers Association chief executive Stephen Lotinga explained this saying: “Digital continues to be an incredibly important part of the industry, but it would appear there remains a special place in the consumer’s heart for aesthetic pleasure that printed books can bring”.
Why choose electronic publishing
Electronic publishing has not only changed the lives of many readers and many authors as well, but it has also changed the way we perceive the book industry and what it takes to publish a book.
Once not long ago, you had to fork over five to ten thousand dollars to bring your dream book to life because traditional publishing houses rarely offer book deals to writers who do not have a huge reading audience ready to buy their book as soon as it comes out.
Nowadays, however, with the help of a number of different electronic publishers like BookishFellow, BookBaby or Vook you can publish an eBook in just a couple of simple and easy steps. The only thing you need is a manuscript in any of the common formats such as PDF or Word and a couple hundred dollars. Seize the opportunity and share your work with the whole world!
Contact Info:
Name: Nikola Radenkovic
Email: Send Email
Organization: BookishFellow
Address: 3420 w irving park apt 22
Website: http://bookishfellow.com/
Release ID: 187828
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