Did you know that far from being a modern phenomena the concept of the electronic or ("e-book") goes back at least 40 years?
In 1971, MIchael Hart was given $100,000 worth of computer time with a Xerox Sigma V mainframe computer. He decided that the greatest value created by computers would not be computing, but would be the storage, retrieval, and searching of what was stored in our libraries. The first "e-book" was born—a copy of the Declaration of Independence. Those humble beginnings would become Project Gutenberg. Today Project Gutenberg houses 20,000 free texts and over 100,000 books are available through their partners. Today over 3,000,000 books are downloaded each month.
It has been a difficult journey for the e-book which I once saw described as a "solution in search of a problem" but with the advent of e-ink and affordable e-readers, not to mention the iPad phenomena, the e-book may finally have arrived as a real alternative to print books. For a comprehensive history of the e-book revolution go to http://www.ebookweek.com/history.html
To celebrate "Read an E-Book Week" my e-books are available at a 50% reduced price. Go to http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/alisonstuart and select the book of your choice. At the checkout quote coupon # RAE50 to receive your discount.
