An electronic book , also known as an e-book or eBook , is a book publication made available in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, readable on the flat-panel display of computers or other electronic devices. E-books can be read on dedicated e-reader devices, but also on any computer device that features a controllable viewing screen, including desktop computers , laptops , tablets and smartphones. In the s, there was a trend of print and e-book sales moving to the Internet , [ citation needed ] where readers buy traditional paper books and e-books on websites using e-commerce systems. With print books, readers are increasingly browsing through images of the covers of books on publisher or bookstore websites and selecting and ordering titles online; the paper books are then delivered to the reader by mail or another delivery service. With e-books, users can browse through titles online, and then when they select and order titles, the e-book can be sent to them online or the user can download the e-book.