An electronic book, more commonly known as an e-book, is the virtual counterpart of a printed book. It is usually read on computers or on dedicated hardware known as e-book devices. The first e-book content was the Declaration of Independence and was created in 1971. It is now stored in a database called Project Gutenberg. That database currently stores 25,000 free e-books with over 3,000,000 downloads each month.

In the past, e-books consisted of old novels from Charles Dickens and other classic writers, but with the advance of technology, e-books from contemporary authors are now released simultaneously with the launching of the printed book. Now you can see people reading books on their laptops, and even on their cell phones.

There are many advantages of producing an e-book:

1) Cross referencing is easier with the creation of hyperlinks

2) E-books do not require physical space for storage, with approximately 500 e-books stored on one CD

3) E-books have no ?out of print? date which allows authors to earn royalties indefinitely

4) E-book devices allow the adjustment of text size, which makes it easier to read

5) Some e-book devices have text to speech software that converts e-books to audio books

6) An e-book is easier to read, since it doesn't need to be held open like a book

7) Production costs of an book is less and editing is much easier

8) E-books are easier to share and transfer, and acquisition is much cheaper since you can save on shipping charges

9) E-books save ink and paper.

Of course, just as there are pros to the production of e-books, there are also cons. These include:

1) The need for an electronic device to display e-books. Although e-books are generally cheap, these devices aren't.

2) Many people do not like to read large amounts of text on a display screen.

3) Disk failures and power outages affect your ability to read e-books due to its reliance on e-book devices

4) E-books are sometimes distributed without approval.

As more people are switching to online businesses, money making e-books have become available to help newbies jumpstart their online careers and earn a passive income. Here are some examples:

1) Internet marketing has become an enormous industry. There are many e-books that teach readers the basics of search optimization and other approaches for driving traffic to a website.

2) For people who love writing, there are e-books to teach writers how to start a blog for profit. Topics include blog monetization strategies and gaining an effective internet presence.

3) eCommerce enthusiasts can now find several ebooks that will help them set up their own sites, as well as advertising solutions and suggestions on the best shopping cart software.

4) There are several good e-books that can teach you the business models for making money from e-books.