iPad and Kindle: The demise of the Book

[OakLeaf]

When was the last time you used the yellow pages?
(I do that on line too, besides, it's so much more up to date!!)

Seriously? That must be a regional thing. When I'm looking for a particular business of course I'll look for their website, but when I'm shopping for a business, around here the online advertising is sparse and usually VERY out of date. I always use the yellow pages to shop.

[OakLeaf]

Oh, and I have read (yes, online) that the backlighting on some of these devices could actually be keeping people awake at night...

True of computers and game consoles, but ereaders aren't backlit. That's why they're so much more readable than ordinary screens. (It's also why I find it a real PITA to have to have a second device, aka a book light, to read in the dark.)

[Catrin]

I have had several digital readers, but always wind up selling it and returning to books. There just isn't any comparison. It is nice that they have the e-ink technology and that they are not back-lit, but I enjoy actual books more. If they DO go away, it won't be in our lifetime.

[Dannielle]

Guilty. I haven't bought an actual book since I got my iphone (over a year ago). I read constantly but always on my phone now.

[sundial]

I still prefer the tactile experience of turning yellowed pages of a classic novel.

[crazycanuck]

I'd rather have a book and feel comforted by them around me.

I'm sort of like shefly & buy books (new or used) rather than waiting waiting waiting at the public library. The university library however, has all the books i want

[OakLeaf]

I feel guilty leaving even a trashy pulp novel behind in a hotel room where I know it'll just get thrown away, but there's just so much I want to carry when I travel ... and I don't have time to look for a library or a Goodwill. Never mind if it's something I actually wanted to read and bring home.

Never mind the weight and volume of books. Airlines are enforcing luggage weight and size restrictions these days ... or for motorcycle travel, I can enforce my own "restrictions."

[shootingstar]

Guilty. I haven't bought an actual book since I got my iphone (over a year ago). I read constantly but always on my phone now.

Do you use a bigger screen? If not, still reading a book or just emails?

My jobs in the last 20 yrs. means being in front of the computer. It's a relief for my eyes to do something else for several hrs. away from the LED.

Online of major /city daily newspapers, entire version is still not all there online..unless I pay for full access. Otherwise I just borrow sections of papers at the cafe.

I'll read my selection of 3-5 stories in online daily newspaper ..but it's time-consuming to watch some screen refreshing with some of the ads, etc. That's why I veer off to read hard copy if available..for free. I do read Momentum online but I think some stuff is missing from the hard copy version. So sure journal articles that I read online..if they are under 10 pgs. I lose patience reading online.

Do I care about having an e-reader at this time in life? No, other expenses are more pressing. Besides I know some major public libraries are loaning out e-readers so if I want to try it ... So I'm not worried about being out of "sych".

My books get dogeared, especially the ones I like, with different bookmarked pages where I jump around randomly. Like the one I'm reading now for the 2nd time, about a woman kayaking solo along the northwest coast.

[Dannielle]

No, I don't use a bigger screen. I love reading on the smaller screen of my phone. Someone offered to give me a Kindle but I turned it down. I prefer the backlit screen (I can read in bed without a lamp...I just turn my phone's brightness setting all the way down so it's comfortable for my eyes) and the smaller, more lightweight device.

I'm not a fan of the grayness of the screen of ereaders like the kindle. I like having the option to change the color of the page and text. With the kindle iphone app I even have the option to have a black screen with white writing...really nice for reading in a dark room.

I love that I can bookmark things, highlight things, add notes...and easily find what I'm looking for later on. And I love that ebooks are cheaper. I've been known to browse bookstores (I still prefer shopping when I can thumb through a book) and then buy the books I like on my phone.

I don't spend my workday on the computer (a small part of it but most of the time I'm sewing) so my eyes never complain.

[nancielle]

I guess I'm one of the archaic ones as well as I prefer to actually hold a book than a digital device. I haunt the library book sales when they're held and have been able to amass a professional library at very little cost (I try to limit spending to $20 at these sales but have gone slightly over . ) I've found books that I can pass on to clients and not be concerned if I get it back or not.

Maybe someday I'll break down and buy one but for now I just prefer the feeling of holding a book and making notations or somehow marking pages for future reference.

[DebSP]

I was sure I didn't want an e-reader because I love books also. Big library user in my youth and as much as possible in adulthood. Then I traveled to Europe last year and lugged books around with me. I ran out of books to read because I culled my books before leaving home to save space and weight. So I bought the Sony E-Reader. I love it. I can borrow books from the library without having to drive there now. (We share our library with the local High School and it somewhat limited anyways with long wait times). I took it on a 3 week road trip across the country and I used it a lot. Now, I did decide when I bought it to make sure I got the cover with the built in reading light. I have not bought a paper book since and I don't miss them. I was also a collector who found it hard to part with paper books after I purchased them so I was having storage issues! One thing about my e-reader that I like, I can read while eating a lot easier because I don't have the pages flipping over. (Yes I find a good book hard to put down even for meals!)

[KnottedYet]

I love books and my ereader (iPod Touch).

My reading universe isn't binary.

I doubt electronic media will kill off print any more than the invention of the printing press (or the typewriter, desktop publishing, word processing) marked the demise of handwriting.

There are times when I prefer to read a paper book. And there are times when I prefer to read on my iPod.

There are magazines I subscribe to in print (like Momentum, and also they need the money to survive) and there are periodicals of which I read the free version on iPod (New York Times, who doesn't need my money and who has a free streamlined version as advertising for the paid full version).

It's all good.

[stella2]

I didn't think that I'd like ereading. My partner persuaded me to get a kindle and I quickly came to love it. I then became convinced that I would never want an Ipad and would definitely never read books on one because the computer type screen would make my eyes ache. Well, you've guessed it, I now have an iPad. It is with me virtually all the time and I read books on it voraciously, I read much more than I ever did. I admit I prefer ereading to reading paper books. It's difficult to say why. I never put the book down and forget where, I never lose my place, I can have any book available within seconds wherever I am, but it's more than that, an intangible something. Apparantly, sales of electronic books are going through the roof. Hopefully, all of this won't mean the demise of the publishing houses since there will be an ever increasing market for ebooks. It will just mean some changes in the industry.

[SlowButSteady]

After about a year of deliberation, I purchased a Kindle in May.

Pro: Reads like paper and I love that I can electronically bookmark pages and preview books before I buy. I also love the fact that I don't have to drive the nearly 50 miles to the Barnes and Noble. It has got to be a much greener alternative. Less expensive to purchase, too.

I had a three book a week habit and storage space for books...well, I just kept having to stuff them in bags and when I had fifty pounds or so, I'd donate them to the local "friends of the library" fundraiser sale.

Con: My biggest complaint is that I can't read it in the swimming pool. I still have to buy a few trashy paperbacks for those days I'm floating around. Alot of texts and trade journals are not available in e-format yet. Magazine selections are (currently) limited.

I'm sure they are working on developing a color format that is not backlit, but right now it's not available. The pen & ink drawing formats are kind of classy, though.

Musings:
And on the "green" front, will outdated, used e-readers become a landfill/ environmental issue? Probably. Will the decreased use of paper products and fossil fuel offset the increased use of petroleum products to make the devices?? Or vice-versa?

On the economic front, loggers lose jobs due to decreased paper production. On the environmental front, there is a need for fewer pine plantations, which is both a good and a bad thing, imo. Since I am in the South, where pine plantations are an economic factor in more ways that just paper production, I still debate this. Pine plantations are also leased to hunters, who pay hunting license fees that support more diverse habitats and nongame species...I could go on and on.

I could even mention that fewer paper newspapers are becoming an issue in vet med and pet stores and pet groomers and boarding kennels as well as private homes, where used newspapers have been an industry standby for lining cages and paper training pets!

I don't want to get started on what's going on in the publishing industry.

[Dannielle]

Don't get me wrong...I do love books too. But there was a time they were taking over my home. I've reclaimed that space (most of it...still have bookshelves of children's books)

psst...you can take your kindle to the pool with this-
http://www.amazon.com/Kwik-Tek-Multi...4305374&sr=1-2

I use a smaller size with my iphone on the boat or when reading in the tub...and I keep it with me when biking just in case it starts raining.