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Boston Chapter

The previous column introduced electronic ink, a technology whose impact on technical writing is probably still a few years away. However, there is a related technology that’s available today – eBooks.

eBooks are electronic books, similar in concept to online books created in the 80's using tools like Window Book and Owl Guide and today using WinHelp or HTML. What separates eBooks from their ancestors is their superior recreation of the book "experience."

Figure 1 – A typical eBook viewer – NuvoMedia’s Rocket eBook	Unlike electronic books that must be read on desktop PCs or laptops, eBooks are really  portable. Viewing devices range in size from 9" x 12" tablets to pocket-sized devices comparable to 3Com Palms, to actual  3Com Palms and Windows CE devices. See Figure 1. The viewing devices ("viewers" from now on) are also light, 5 oz for a Palm or CE handheld; 22 oz for a dedicated eBook viewer. In other words, eBooks are starting to actually look like a book you’d buy at an airport newsstand.
The Rocket eBook is actually more of a "tablet" than a book. Figures 2 and 3 show another model that actually tries to look like a book.
Figure 2 – A more "book-like" viewer – Everybook’s Everybook - closed Figure 3 – The Everybook – open

eBook viewers also support the book experience by having a book-like shape and by letting users "turn the pages" as an alternative to scrolling.

Let’s take a more detailed look at various elements of eBooks – the vendors, the technologies, some initial standards, and some pros and cons.

As of September 1999, the vendors fall into two groups:

• Full-service hardware, software, and content providers
• Software and content-only providers.

Three vendors form the full-service group – Everybook (the Everybook), NuvoMedia (the Rocket eBook), and Softbook Press (the Softbook). These vendors are going after the trade press (such as novels, romance, and self-help), periodicals markets, and pursuing partnering deals. For example, Barnes and Noble sells NuvoMedia’s Rocket eBook viewer and nearly 800 titles for it on Barnes and Noble’s web site. All the vendors except Everybook offer single-panel, handheld "slates". (Compare figures 1 and 3.)

Two vendors form the software/content-only group – Librius, which offered its own viewer until recently, and Glassbook, which focused solely on conversion, "library" control, and viewer software from birth. Both vendors support eBooks for Palms, Windows CE devices, notebooks, and unspecified "information appliances." The direction taken by these vendors, especially Librius’ leaving the viewer market, offers some interesting ideas about the direction of the eBook market and the future of the full-service vendors.

The main issue is that an eBook viewer is a single-purpose device. Single-purpose devices are efficient but you have to buy and carry a lot of them. But suppose you add word-processing and e-mail capabilities to a dedicated viewer? You get a Palm or Windows CE device. So why buy a dedicated eBook viewer when you can buy a general-purpose devices that does the same things and more? Full-service vendors are also competing with general-purpose publishing formats like Windows CE Help or bSquare’s bReady (for CE devices) or Peanut Press (for Palms).

If you’re a high-volume trade publisher, the vendors will probably be delighted to handle the technical details for you. However, if you’re a documentation manager, you may want to bring the technology in-house. If so, you’ll need to know about the underlying code format and the publishing tools.

Code format is important. Using an open format like HTML eliminates the risk of painting yourself into a corner with a proprietary format for which there’s little contractor support. Table 1 provides a rough list of which eBooks support which code format.

You’ll want to research the vendors carefully to look for surprises. But, as this table indicates, most of the vendors at least pay lip service to HTML. Many have also announced their plan to adhere to a new HTML and XML-based standard called the Open eBook Standard. This suggests that you might be able to code your content, always the bulk of the work, using your familiar WYSIWYG HTML tools, or, in the case of Everybook, using Acrobat.

Many vendors also provide some publishing tools. The most complete appear to be those from NuvoMedia, Softbook, and bReady. Peanut Press has its own tag language (Peanut Markup Language) and compiler but no true toolkit. CE Help is indirectly supported by conversion utilities in some Windows Help authoring tools like RoboHelp, but you’re largely on your own today. (If you remember the chaos of the early days of Windows Help, you’ll find the eBook environment very familiar.)

Proprietary formats are generally fatal these days, and eBook vendors and related companies are working on two open standards to avoid another VHS versus Beta battle.

The major one is the Open eBook Standard, designed to promote interoperability among eBooks. Despite the newness of the eBook market, parties involved in setting this standard include not only eBook vendors but publishers like Random House, Houghton Mifflin, and Bertelsmann, hardware vendors like HP and Nokia, and general heavyweights like Adobe, Lucent, and Microsoft.

The second standard is EBX (Electronic Book Exchange), a specification for copyright protection in eBook distribution. EBX, championed by Glassbook, plans to support the Open eBook Standard and Adobe’s PDF format.

Both of these standards are still evolving and are best reviewed in more detail at their web sites.

eBooks have two strong points for technical documentation:

• Portability – Field engineers or technicians can carry hundreds of pages of reference material in a shirt pocket.

• Flexibility – It’s easy to change or update material in an eBook.

But eBooks also have several significant drawbacks:

• Hardware cost – eBook viewers cost $300 to $1,600, exclusive of content. Although inexpensive for business equipment, this cost may be significant if your client has already bought Palms or CE devices that offer similar functionality.

• Usage problems – The vendors are trying to copy and extend the book "experience," but it’s still not the same. The resolutions are lower than real books and you have to worry about battery life, recharging, and dropping the viewer while reading in the tub. eBooks just aren’t as convenient.

• Competitive threats – An eBook viewer is a special-purpose device. As general-purpose devices, new information appliances, and books based on electronic ink come into use, will the dedicated eBook vendors be able to compete?

In summary, eBooks are a fascinating technology with a major "cool" factor, but be prepared to do a lot of research before you commit.

Some of these links may have changed between the time of writing and the time of publication.

EInk Corp., www.electronic-ink.com

Everybook, www.everybook.net

Glassbook, www.glassbook.com

Librius Millenium eBook, www.librius.com

NuvoMedia Rocket eBook, www.nuvomedia.com

Softbook Press, www.softbook.com

Palms, www.palm.com

Peanut Press, www.peanutpress.com

CE devices - see Handheld PC Magazine, www.hpcmag.com

bReady, www.bsquare.com

CE Help, www.microsoft.com/windowsce

Open eBook Initiative, www.openebook.org

Electronic Book Exchange Standard, www.ebxwg.com

Neil Perlin has twenty years experience in technical writing, with fourteen in training, consulting, and development for various types of online documentation including WinHelp, HTML Help, and some now known only in legend. Neil writes about online documentation and lectures frequently to computer societies, the STC, and other professional groups. Neil provides training, consulting, and development for online documentation through Hyper/Word Services of Tewksbury, MA. You can reach him at nperlin@concentric.net or www.hyperword.com.

Copyright Neil Perlin 1999 submitted to the STC for use in Hyperviews:Online.