Going by the book

Dare, dream and discover. It's not about paper or the printed word. It's about opening up the doors – to the known and the unknown. It's all about books. Read on and tap into a whole new world on the Net.
www.amazon.com

It is the mother of all sites as far as books are concerned. Comprehensive and even though cluttered, it is clear and easy to navigate. Considered the world's leading online bookstore, it opened its virtual doors in July 1995 with one mission – to use the Internet to transform book buying into the fastest, easiest and most enjoyable shopping experience possible. While the customer and product base has widened considerably (20 million shoppers from 160 countries), the founding commitment to customer satisfaction and delivery of educational and inspirational shopping experience continues.

Headquartered in Washington, amazon.com offers books, CDs, videos, DVDs, toys and games, electronics, free electronic greeting cards, online auctions, etc. Besides searching for books, music and more in a snap, one can get instant personalised recommendations based on prior purchases the moment one logs on. There's a Special Occasion Reminder service to make sure one never forgets to get a gift for that special someone again.

Other informative websites under the amazon.com family include www.imdb.com (Internet movie database, an authoritative source of information on movies and entertainment); amazon.livebid.com (the sole provider of live-event auctions on the Net); www.drugstore.com. (online retail and information source for health, beauty, personal care and pharmacy); www.gear.com. (fantastic deals on sports goods, new equipment in a wide range of categories); www.ashford.com (online retailer of luxury and premium products like vintage watches, fragrances, leather accessories, sunglasses and writing instruments) and www.eziba.com. (a leading online retailer of handcrafted products from around the world, voted best site in this category on the Web by Forbes, Time and National Geographic Traveller).


www.bn.com (Barnes and Noble)
Barnes and Noble is the second largest online distributor of books with 2.9 million customers in more than 215 countries (September 1999). Launched in March 1997, this online retailer focusses largely on the sale of books, music, software, magazines, prints, posters and related products. One can choose from millions of new and out-of-print titles, bestsellers, hard-to-find used books, rare first editions and more. The site also has bargain books discounted up to 91 per cent. With more than 750,000 in-stock titles, the site has the largest standing inventory of any online bookseller.

The site also offers book descriptions, reviews and excerpts, along with recommendations by the editors and online community of readers. Live author chats at the Auditorium are interesting with exclusive monthly author readings and an archive of more than 750 author chat transcripts. Besides gift certificates, loyal Barnes and Noble customers are rewarded with the Barnes & Noble MasterCard® Credit Card. Thus, on every purchase with this credit card, one can earn points that can be redeemed for Reward Certificates at Barnes and Noble.com.
www.bookfinder.com

This online store allows readers to shop for new, used and rare books from over 20,000 bookstores around the world. Originally developed in 1996 as a class project by founder Anirvan Chatterjee (its CEO today), it was recently relaunched as a literary shopping engine with a database of over 20 million books for sale, making it the world's largest book catalogue. The site has been recommended by The New York Times and the Library of Congress, U.S., and is a favourite among librarians and booksellers – people who buy and sell books for a living. It was also voted by Newsweek and Money magazine as "one of the two best book sites online (the other, in both cases, was amazon.com).


www.half.com
This interesting and clear cut text offers great bargains online on books, music, movies and video games. It's an innovative marketplace that connects buyers and sellers. This is not an auction site. If one wants to buy one can place an order, after which half.com notifies the seller of purchase, then e-mails you (the buyer) back once the seller confirms shipping of item. After the item is sent, half.com charges your credit card. Or if you have something to sell, unwanted books, CDs, games, you can turn it into cash by getting it listed here, free of cost. It matches buyers and sellers, is safe as it only reveals address details with tight privacy procedures. There's also a Wish List (order and get mail when it's available) and Pre-order option (item will be bought automatically for you when it becomes available).