Frequently Asked Questions
General
- This site used to be called Libertary. Now it's Booktrope. Why the change?
- What is the concept behind Booktrope? And, has it changed from what I liked about Libertary?
- How can I join or support Booktrope's efforts?
Reading Books on Booktrope:
- How do I read a book on Booktrope?
- How can I easily scroll through a book as I'm reading?
- How can I search within a Booktrope book?
- How can I save my place in a Booktrope book?
- Why buy a printed copy through the link on Booktrope?
The Booktrope Business Approach:
This site used to be called Libertary. Now it's Booktrope. What's changed?
The name has changed but the site is still the same: the best free reading on the web. We have the same books. Your placeholders still work. You can log in with the same user name and password. And our whole philosophy is still very much the same.
Our publisher thought up the name Libertary, as a mashup of the words library and liberty. (Or for Alice in Wonderland fans, a portmanteau word.) Many people liked Libertary, but many other people found it very hard to remember or hard to spell (particularly problematic when typing in an URL). We chose Booktrope for our new name because it's easier to remember and more distinctive. It's also extensible. We're planning to expand our model to some new areas which we can name in a similar way. The first of these will be called Theatertrope -- it's coming soon.
So, we hope you like our new name.
What is the concept behind Booktrope? And, has it changed from what I liked about Libertary?
Our philosophy has not changed! Book publishing is in transition from a bookstore/library model emphasizing distribution of physical books to an electronic model based on the spread of knowledge. Booktrope's purpose is to bring books to readers in new ways through technology and to identify new revenue sources for authors and publishers. Of course many of us still like to read printed books; Booktrope's not actually trying to replace that. We publish printed books and distribute them in new ways, emphasizing online marketing and promotion of book sales. Look for the Libertary and Booktrope imprints. There are links to buy nearly all of our books on the left hand side of each book's pages.
We're going to keep making great books available for free reading. Books are written to be read. Our site is really not much different than the world of printed books, where no one is actually ever charged for reading. At most bookstores, you can browse and read as much as you want. You can borrow the book from a library or a friend. (Neil Gaimon makes this case eloquently in a video posted on our home page.) With printed books, you pay only if you want to own the book. We think books should be as free to read online as they are in printed copies.
In addition to free reading, we have great plans to make your interaction with books and with writers more meaningful, interesting, and fun. Keep an eye on Booktrope—we'll have more interesting things to read, and new ways to share your thoughts and interests with others.
How can I join or support Booktrope's efforts?
Spread the word! Follow us on Twitter (see our contact page for details), mention us on Facebook, or blog about our books. Or, just use this convenient link (there's also a "share this" link on our home page):
And if you want to readdly get involved, Booktrope needs book managers.
Book managers work with books that we're publishing in printed form as well as on our website. The Book Manager’s role is to promote and market the book, helping attract readers and increase sales. You work on your own time and from any location you wish and receive a royalty on every book that is sold—typically about $1.50-$2.50 per book. A book manager identifies and works with communities with interest in the book through web research and social networking and gets reviews and notices for the book. Booktrope provides you with information and support to make your efforts successful. Book Managers work closely with authors in developing the book’s promotional campaign, so you can get to know an author well while you’re earning money.
If you’re interested, please contact mkting@booktrope.com
Booktrope is looking for an intern and work-study students
Our internship and work study opportunities involve duties such as preparation of books for the website, copy editing on books to be published by Booktrope Editions, promotion of Booktrope books and our site, market research, and website design and development. The positions are in Seattle, WA. Internship may pay a small stipend. Pay for work study opportunities depends upon skills and experience.
If you’re interested, please contact info@Booktrope.com Please provide a resume and brief statement of why you'd like to work with us.
Published Authors: If you're an author with a book that's already published, Booktrope provides you a great opportunity to find more readers and increase your book's exposure. We work with books that are currently in print and also books that have gone out of print. If you'd like your book to be considered, please contact us by email at book.advocate@Booktrope.com. Learn more here.
Publishers: If you're a publisher Booktrope can help your books find new readers and help support book sales. Several other publishers are already working with us to connect books to readers in new ways Learn more here.
Creative Teams (writers with unpublished works, editors, and designers) Booktrope offers a new approach called "Team Publishing". It offers creative freedom and fair compensation. Learn more here.
Readers: If you're a reader, you can help by telling other people about Booktrope, and if you recommend one of our books to someone who prefers a printed version, please suggest they buy it through our site. Remember, they can come here and browse to their hearts' content before buying! Also, of course, you can support our site and our authors by donating. Our books are free to read, but authors and Booktrope need your support, so contribute by donating and by spreading the word.
How do I read a book on Booktrope?
Books are divided into sections or chapters for convenient reading. A Chapter Links list appears to the left of the book's text. Just click on any chapter to open it in the reading area of the book page. As you scroll through text, Booktrope shows page numbers that match, as closely as possible, the print edition of the book.
Some pages are short in the Booktrope edition because there isn't much text on that page in the print edition. (We don't put in blank space as would appear in a printed book.)
You can change the type size. Just use your browser's zoom function. (In Firefox and Internet Explorer, this is under the "View" menu called Zoom or Text Size; in Chrome it's under the tool icon.) Changing the type size affects how each book flows on the screen. So the pages won't always end with a whole line of text. Don't be concerned—it's just because different browsers cause differences in how text flows. Remember, Booktrope page numbers are designed to match the printed book.
How can I easily scroll through a book as I'm reading?
Here's a good way to read. Open the chapter you want to read by clicking on it in the Table of Contents. Now place your curser at the bottom of the scroll bar on the right-hand side of the screen. When you finish reading what you can see on the screen, click on the scroll bar. The browser window will move down just far enough so you can continue reading what's next.
Of course if your mouse has a scroll wheel, another way to read is to simply use the wheel to scroll through the chapter.
If you have a Windows computer, you can also simply hit the "page down" key. The browser window will move down just far enough so you can continue reading what's next. (If you have a Mac, you might have to hold down the Apple key while you hit "page down.")
Booktrope shows page numbers in our books, but the "page down" key doesn't recognize the page numbers. (The scroll bar click doesn't either.) Here's why. When you're reading in a browser, the amount of text you can see depends on how big your screen is, what browser you're using, and so forth. "Page down" usually means the next block of text that fits, not the next page number.
Booktrope actually has page numbers for a different reason. The page numbers on Booktrope are usually the same as in the printed book. We put them in so that readers of our online books can talk about the same page numbers as people reading the printed books.
Also, some people like to read by moving the slider gradually down the scroll bar instead of page-downing. This can work well if you're good at moving the slider on the scroll bar, but it's easy to slide down too far. In that case, if you've noticed what page you're on, you can use the page numbers to find your way back to where you were reading.
How can I search within a Booktrope book?
Underneath the list of chapters (on the left hand side of the page), you can enter search terms. The search runs against the contents of the book you're viewing, and produces a list of the pages that have all of the words you entered. You'll see the list of pages in the reading area; it's like an index, but you also get to see context of the search term hits. Click on "read more" to go to that page in the book. Then, you can easily navigate to the full chapter and continue reading, using the link at the bottom of the reading page. Or you can use the back button on your browser to return to the search results list.
How can I save my place in a Booktrope book?
Save your place: To save your place while you're reading any of our books, just move your mouse up to the "PlaceHolder" bar and click on "Save My Place."You can create Booktrope PlaceHolders in each book you're reading, and you can create more than one Booktrope PlaceHolder in each book.
Return to your saved places: To go back to a place you've saved, just move your mouse over the "PlaceHolders" bar and click on a PlaceHolder. Your Booktrope PlaceHolders will be available whenever you log into your Booktrope account, whether you're using a laptop, a home computer, a tablet, a phone, or other device.
Your Libertary PlaceHolders are here: If you had PlaceHolders on Libertary, they're still here on Booktrope. Just log in and your PlaceHolders will be available.
Manage PlaceHolders: If you want to delete any of your PlaceHolders, just move your mouse over the "PlaceHolders" bar and then click on "Manage PlaceHolders" to open a list where you can delete the PlaceHolders you no longer want.
What places can you save using Booktrope PlaceHolders?: You can save your place when you're reading a chapter of a book. You cannot save your place on the following: our home page, forums, "about" pages, our FAQ, or any part of our website except for the chapters within a Booktrope book. But you can use the the PlaceHolders bar anywhere on the Booktrope website to link to any of your saved places.
Why buy a printed copy through the link on Booktrope?
Booktrope is about putting books online for free, but we think there is also an important role for printed books. For some people, it's more convenient or enjoyable to read a printed copy. Some people just like owning printed books. If you decide you want to buy a printed copy, and you buy one through Booktrope, it doesn't cost you more, but it does help us earn money and therefore stay in business (through affiliate fees or other arrangements).
If you talk to people about a book on Booktrope and they're interested in printed copies, it would be great if you'd recommend the Booktrope page to them. They can come here and sample the book to make sure they want it and easily buy the book through the link on the book's web page.
How does Booktrope support itself and its authors?
Booktrope generates revenues for authors and publishers as well as its owners. The most important factor is, free reading promotes book sales, as Neil Gaimon explains in the video on our home page. Here are some links to others who explain how and why free reading helps sell books and support authors and publishers:
- From the Journal of Electronic Publishing (Winter, 2010): http://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=jep;view=text;rgn=main;idno=3336451.0013.101
(Note that this study compared sales of books before they were available free on line, and afterwards; because the "before" period included the holiday sales season, the study may have underestimated the sales benefit of free online books.)
If you'd like to buy a printed copy of a book, for most books on Booktrope you'll find a convenient link to an online seller on the left side of the page. Authors receive royalties, and if you use the link on Booktrope to buy the book, the author uaually gets a little more.
For some of our books, readers are asked to support the site and authors by paying an amount they choose. Although these payments are not mandatory, many readers recognize the value of what they are receiving at Booktrope and will be willing to pay a fair price for it.
Booktrope Editions: Booktrope also publishes printed books (under our imprints, Libertary Editions and Booktrope Editions) which you can buy online or at select bookstores, and which you can read online here. Sales of printed Booktrope Editions are a key source of our revenue and a new opportunity for writers, editors and designers. Learn more here.
Doesn't this violate author-publisher agreements?
Booktrope hosts books only when we have permission from the owner of electronic rights. We do not urge authors to violate their agreements with their publishers. So authors who wish to place their books on Booktrope might need to obtain their publisher’s approval (unless the author has retained online distribution rights).
Contact:
Kenneth Shear, Publisher
Katherine Sears, Marketing Director
