Starpath ebook Options

Your course purchase includes an ebook copy of all the texts we use. These ebooks are presented in the Starpath Elibra format, which you can read about at www.elibrabooks.com. We have had the elibra system up and running long before things like iPhones and Kindles were ever thought of, and in fact the elibra experience (its presentation options, quality of the graphics and display, as well as file compression) is unsurpassed by any of these modern upstarts.

However. The elibra system only works on computers running some version of MS Windows. If you do run Windows, then you are better off with the elibra system. If on the other hand you run a Mac or have other reasons to want to run the ebooks in another device, then we do offer our ebooks as an option in the Adobe Digital Editions (ADE) format. These are pdf books that look great in any device that will run ADE. Phone screens are really too small for this, but they are readable even on that. The books look and work great on iPads and Android tablets. They are fully bookmarked, just as our elibra editions are. To read these on an iPhone, iTouch or iPad, or on any Android tablet running version 2.3 or newer, you need to install the free Bluefire Reader.

Our pdf ebooks must be purchased from an authorized ADE reseller, which we are not! There are many. We recommend our Pacific Northwest neighbors Powell's Books of Portland, OR. This is the largest bookstore in the world, and they early on got involved with ebooks. Most important of all, they are the only ebook seller that actually has a human person doing tech support on everything they sell. Other outlets do not offer tech support on ebooks. Powells also keep a careful record of all you purchased so you can get more copies if you need them. You can load the pdfs on to quite a few devices, but each must be registered with Adobe using the purchaser's ADE authorization.

Starpath elibra ebooks (PC only) are included in the cost of our online courses. The optional pdf formatted ebooks are a small additional expense. Our pdf textbooks are usually $5.95 or $9.95. Each online course typically uses one of each price, so it is an extra $16 to add your textbooks to your favorite tablet or Mac. (These new lower prices go into effect on Feb 26, 2012.)

Visit Starpath ebookshelf at Powell's books.

A reminder to Mac users
You have two options. First you can run the elibra reader ebooks by running a virtual PC on your Mac. This can be done with Fusion, Parallels, or Bootcamp. Or you can use the native Mac by downloading the ADE reader and using the Adobe pdf versions.