Ebook Q&A

What ebook formats does BookLocker use?

Currently, all of our ebooks are available as PDFs, and we plan to add EPUB versions for many titles.

All our ebooks are DRM-free, which means you can read them on pretty much any device without hassle, including Windows, Mac, and Linux computers, as well as mobile devices such as iPhones and iPads.

What’s the difference between PDF and EPUB?

The main difference is that the pages in a PDF file have a fixed layout and are basically like snapshots of the printed book pages. In contrast, the words in an EPUB file can “reflow” based on the size of the page.

So a PDF looks good on a big screen, but is harder to read on a small screen (like a phone). EPUB is more practical on a smaller device. On screens like the iPad’s, either format works, but Apple’s chosen EPUB for their iBooks software and store.

What can I use to read an ebook?

Almost every computer has software like Adobe Reader for displaying PDF files. You can also get PDF and EPUB reader software for most mobile devices.

On Apple's mobile devices (iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch) you can use Apple's iBooks app to organize and read both formats. Click here for help with iBooks.

For other mobile platforms like Android, check their appropriate app stores or look on Google.

All of these readers can store the book file on your device so you can read it whenever you want.

How do I get an ebook from you once I’ve paid for it?

Each customer has a personalized download page that lists all the downloadable books they’ve purchased from us. After logging into your download page, click on the book you bought and you’ll see a screen with several choices for getting your book.

Note that our PDFs are sent to your computer “zipped”. So you may need to double-click on the “.zip” file to turn it into a “.pdf” file.

You can log back in at any time and download the book in any format we offer. And if we add formats in the future, you can come back and get those too, for free.

I need more help putting a book file on my mobile device.

Ebooks involve many different technologies and it can get confusing. We can’t give specific instructions for every combination of file, computer, device, and access method, but we’ve written a walk-through for Apple devices (iPad and iPhone):

	Loading Ebooks onto the iPad or iPhone

Our books use open, unrestricted formats (PDF and EPUB with no DRM) so they should work on pretty much any modern device.

Scroll to the top of this page if you didn’t see the question on the difference between the formats.

One of the books I bought is “No Longer Available”, what happened?

Our authors can request that we remove a book from our system at any time. When this happens, the book can no longer be downloaded by customers. Be sure to make backups of all your BookLocker purchases and keep them in safe place.