There are a number of products and processes available to create Portable Document Format (PDF) files directly from WORD files. If one’s goal is to create an unchanging image of the contents of a WORD file (in other words, a soft copy of a printed book), creating a PDF file is a perfectly good approach. However, PDFs are not ebooks and are typically not suitable to be read on an ebook reader.

A PDF defines exactly how a page will look. Thus, if a page defined within a PDF file is larger than the display area available on a particular ebook reader, the reader will be forced to scroll the document, both horizontally and vertically. This imposes a repetitive, distracting, and non-productive workload on the reader. Readers cannot concentrate on the content. Their reading experience is poor and frustrating.

The Ebook Difference

By design, an ebook adapts itself dynamically to the specific ebook reader being used to view it so that it is displayed appropriately. With an ebook, rather than scrolling, the reader need only make a single gesture to change pages. This more natural experience is analogous to that of reading a paper-based hardcopy book.