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Book Formats
Audiobook
A reading or performance of a book recorded on cassette or CD, often released in abridged and/or unabridged forms. Sometimes, the author will read the work, but usually a professional reader is used.
Hardcover
Pages are encased in a rigid cover that's, in most cases, then sheathed in a dust jacket. These books, which are often the first available edition of a title, are usually more expensive and durable than paperbacks.
Large Print
Hardcover books printed with larger type on the page. These books are usually designed for visually impaired readers.
Library Binding
A version with a specially fortified binding and durable hardcover that is designed to withstand repeated use. Often used for children's titles and usually more expensive than standard hardcover editions.
Mass Market
A small-format, low-cost paperback -- usually 4 1/4" x 6 3/4" -- most often used for genres such as mystery, romance, and sci-fi, as well as bestsellers with broad commercial appeal.
Paperback
A large-format softcover book -- ranging in size from 5 1/2" x 8 1/4" to 8 x 11" to larger -- most often used for literary titles. These well-bound books usually sell for a price higher than mass-market paperback editions.
Pop-Up Book
Books featuring artwork that springs into a 3-D form when opened.
Spiral Binding
A wire-bound book that allows the pages to lie flat while open. Often used with cookbooks and reference manuals such as road atlases.
Audiobook Formats
Audiobook
A reading or performance of a book recorded on cassette or CD. In some cases publishers will issue audiobooks in up to four versions: abridged cassette, abridged CD, unabridged cassette, and unabridged CD. Sometimes, the author will read the work, but usually a professional reader is used.
Cassette
A thin, plastic container that houses audio recordings on magnetic tape.
CD
The compact disc, or CD, is a digital medium capable of storing up to 74 minutes of audio. More convenient than cassettes, CDs allow books to be divided into tracks, much like chapters, for easy access. CDs are usually more expensive than cassettes.
Unabridged
A version that includes the entire text of the printed book.
Abridged
An abbreviated version that retains the printed book's key plot elements and meanings. The procedure for shortening a book will vary, but living authors almost always approve abridgements of their work.
Music Formats
CD
The compact disc, or CD, is a digital medium capable of storing up to 74 minutes of audio. Introduced in 1982, CDs are now the recording industry's most common format.
Gold CD
High-quality audiophile recordings reproduced from the original master tapes. These discs are manufactured with a layer of 24-carat gold and are more expensive than standard CDs.
SACD
The Super Audio Compact Disc is the digital successor to the CD and is a higher-resolution format that provides superior stereo sound as well as an enhanced capability for multi-channel mixes. SACDs require an SACD player.
Hybrid SACD
SACD discs designated "Hybrid" play in a conventional CD player (or CD-capable computer drive, DVD player, etc.) but will not represent the full range of super audio. An SACD player is required for full enjoyment.
CD Single
A competitively priced audio compact disc with abbreviated running time, usually featuring a single track with remixes or other extras.
DVD Single
As the name suggests, DVD Single is a digital-age update of the old 45 rpm record -- a music format that showcases at least one music video and other features.
Cassette
A plastic container that houses audio recordings on magnetic tape.
DVD Audio
A DVD that is usually dedicated to enhanced sound reproduction. While some DVD Audio releases also contain accompanying video footage, not all do. These items will not play on a CD player.
DVD Formats
DVD
An acronym for Digital Video Disc, DVD is a next-generation form of the compact disc (CD) capable of rendering a digitized movie for playback with picture and sound quality that far surpasses that of VHS tapes.
Wide-Screen
Wide-Screen presentations mirror a film's original, theatrical height-to-width ratio, with thin black strips across the top and bottom of a traditional television screen. The plus side of this is that you view the film pretty much as the filmmakers intended you to see it. The minus side, though, is that the image itself could be smaller, a drawback when viewing the film on a 20-inch or smaller TV or computer monitor. With a Wide-screen DVD, viewers watching on newer Wide-Screen TVs (with 16:9 height-to-width ratio, as opposed to the standard 4:3) can enjoy the picture as it was originally presented in theaters.
Full-Screen (a.k.a. Pan-and-Scan)
Full-Screen presentations adapt a movie to fill a TV screen's contours, eliminating portions of the picture deemed expendable by the producers. This means the film has been cropped to provide maximum impact for your TV or computer. As a result of the pan-and-scan presentation -- created by panning around the film image and scanning the crucial characters and action -- less of the filmmakers' original vision appears on your screen.
Superbit DVD
High-resolution Superbit™ DVDs use all available space on each disc to optimize the quality of the movie's image and sound. That is why there are no special features on Superbit DVDs. While these discs play in all DVD machines, their enhanced performance is best appreciated on today's high-end home entertainment systems. To make up for the dearth of extras, some Superbit titles include one or more additional DVDs with traditional DVD special features.
DVD Single
As the name suggests, DVD Single is a digital-age update of the old 45 rpm record -- a music format that showcases at least one music video and other features. You'll need a DVD player to get the most out of these singles.
VHS Formats
VHS Video
By far the dominant videocassette format in use today, VHS has become, to many, synonymous with "Video Home System." Unlike the digitally based DVD, the sound and picture are recorded onto the videotape in analog form. VHS cassettes are packaged three different ways, described below:
VHS Slip or "Slipsleeve"
"Slipsleeve" VHS packaging consists of a cardboard box, open at the bottom, that snugly encloses the videocassette. This is the most common form of VHS packaging and is designed to minimize the shelf space consumed by your tape collection, as the box is barely larger than the tape itself. (Rough dimensions: 7 1/2" high x 4 1/4" wide x 1" deep).
VHS Clam or "Clamshell"
"Clamshell" VHS packaging consists of a plastic box opening at the spine, like a book, that encloses the videocassette. This form of VHS packaging is more durable than the standard cardboard slipsleeve and is especially popular with parents eager to protect frequently used tapes. Clamshell packages take up more shelf space (Rough dimensions: 9" x 5 1/2" x 1 1/2").
VHS "Bullet"
"Bullet" VHS packaging resembles VHS clamshell packaging but features thicker plastic and a more streamlined shape. Its hard protective shell, while still thicker than a cardboard slipsleeve, doesn't eat up as much shelf space as a clamshell (Rough dimensions: 7 7/8" x 4 3/4" x 1 1/4").
