Reading text on a computer monitor has become easier with every advance in display technology and computer software. Reading long texts on a monitor, however, is not always comfortable and most readers prefer to read printed copies of longer texts.

Adobe Portable Document Format  (PDF) is the standard for electronic document distribution worldwide. Adobe PDF is a universal file format that preserves all the fonts, formatting, graphics, and color of any source document, regardless of the application and platform used to create it. Adobe PDF files are compact and can be shared, viewed, and navigated  by anyone with free software. PDF files are the most universal file format and can be read on any computer with any operating system. Most regular computer users already have Abobe's acrobat reader installed and the reader is integrated into web browsers.

Microsoft Format:  Reading is a demanding task for the human brain. We learn to read text in books, magazines and newspapers that employ standard line lengths and standard fonts that are familiar. Microsoft's brightest have worked to improve  screen readability for eBooks and have  succeeded. The new screen fonts are easy to read, and the page size is comfortable to use. From a publishers point of view, the main limitation of the Microsoft eBook is poor control of page breaks. The eBook page is designed to be flexible and scalable so that it can be read on different kinds and sizes of screens. The reader will sometimes notice page breaks that leave a single line dangling in an empty page or a subsection title at the bottom of a page. These are relatively minor limitations that can be overcome.

Tablet PCs are the next step in the use electronic books.  A tablet is designed to making reading easy. The idea is that all printed media will be downloaded and read electronically. While we are used to reading newspapers, magazines and books the environmental cost of producing and distributing printed words is enormous. We would like the world to switch to electronic print. Tablet PCs have bigger, better screens than pocket PCs; they are easy to carry, easy to read, and accept handwritten input. They can store and entire library of books in an ultimately portable format. Tablet PCs are designed with a screen and an integrated keyboard that you can fold over like a notebook or as a screen that can be detached from the keyboard or hooked together at a docking station. The idea is that the tablet is small and light enough to be carried with you at all times, but big enough that reading  and writing real text is comfortable You can also write on the tablet with a stylus and record sound.