It’s such a hot topic, I thought I’d weigh in (today). In another month, everything may have changed radically, so this is a moving target, but it’s on everybody’s mind.
As an editor, I’d become accustomed to carrying around very large, very heavy bags of paper (submissions, manuscripts, etc.) Every morning and evening I had what I called my “sherpa routine”, hauling massive materials on my back up the three flights to my office. Then, I got an e-book reader, and I felt as though I’d lost 20 pounds (if only). I quickly discovered that I can’t use it for editing, because my notes won’t come off the reader, but I can use it for submissions and for pleasure reading, and I sure do use it for that!
It’s very, very wonderful to be able to save all those trees (not to mention my back) however, there are some annoyances–the books I want aren’t always available when I want them, I can’t lend or share the e-book with anyone else, and the device itself isn’t ideal. Can’t read it in the bathtub (although I’ve been told that’s why plastic bags were invented, I’m not that daring!) and I can’t read it on take-off and landing (I guess that’s what knitting is for). My particular device doesn’t allow me to organize the files other than alphabetically or by author name, so I can’t keep it as orderly as I’d like. Griping aside, though, I like it, I use it a lot, and I wouldn’t ever be without one again. I still edit on hard copy 8 1/2 x 11 paper and I still buy plenty of printed books (in fact, it’s about time to get a new bookcase or two, or seven) and I still read cereal boxes, billboards, and anything else that passes my eye (compulsive anyone?).
I hear new devices are coming out this fall (in time for Christmas?) and I’m definitely up for checking them out and maybe replacing the one I have. Rumor is that when the one perfect device hits the market, and/or, when the format issue is solved so that there’s a universal e-book file that all the devices can use, similar to the MP3 format, the whole e-book universe is going to take a flying leap forward.
In all this conversation about formats, sometimes we lose track of the fact that what we’re buying isn’t really the paper or electronic file, but the story itself, or if you really want to get to the sizzle, it’s about the reading experience–so while some devices/formats are more conducive to say, airplane or bathtub reading, in the end it’s got to be about the story–I still have to have a heroine I can relate to, a hero I can fall in love with, a world into which to escape, and an ending that leaves me completely, totally, unequivocally happy, happy, happy!
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Great post, Deb. I haven’t made the leap to the e-reader yet. I spend far too much time with my face in a screen, so I think I may always prefer the hard copy for leisure reading. However, as I view my towering stacks of books waiting to be read, I can definitely see the advantage of the e-reader!
I read on my thinkpad. I’m not a fan of solo use gadgets so I like having something I can read, type, and surf on.
I don’t understand why PDF is not the standard format. That is ALL business uses so almost every reader has to be compatible with PDF (or have some sort of conversion program available for PDF). That’s why all I buy are eBooks in PDF.
I prefer books in eBook form. It took me about 50 books or so to get to that stage (most review books are now eBook which is why most reviewers have already switched)
I read e books on my laptop when I’m away in my touring caravan as it saves me lugging huge piles of books with me to fill up the cupboards and annoy the rest of my family so I keep looking at e readers.
I’m on the road now (and since I’m paying $12/day for Internet service, I figured I’d do a little blog hopping while I’m taking a break). I brought no paper books this trip at all, only my antiquated but still much-loved eBookwise. I might not have found first choice books to add before the trip, but I definitely found enough choices to cover a week away from home.
(And I find the in-flight magazines are sufficient for those ‘no electronic devices’ moments)
A very similar discussion is going on at Smart Bitches, which echoes your point about a universal reading device.
What the device manufacturers seem to ignore is what the reader is looking for — which is a device that lets them read the story with no extra effort in purchasing, formatting, or uploading.
I have a Kindle 1. I paid $399 for it. Obviously price wasn’t an issue for me, and I was comfortable with the price of the Kindle Edition book price, so long as new releases didn’t go over $9.99 or cost more than the physical book, which I do find quite a bit and stop and say WTF? Seriously!? Don’t buy it and continue on to the next book in my want to read list.
I also don’t have an issue with the DRM or format. I’m very comfortable with my decision to go Amazon versus Sony or any other brand. I’m very comfortable with Amazon.com and do not foresee an issue with format going forward.
I think it’s great that the price for the Kindle has decreased by $140 since I bought mine. But guess what? I’ve saved more than that in my ebook versus physical book purchases.
I would love it if ebook prices were $5 or less because where’s the “value” in an electronic copy of the book?
I can talk Kindle talk forever so I’ll just follow and see what other responses are collected.
I was using a PDA and a laptop to read ebooks, and then I got an iPod Touch, which turns out to be the reading device for me. Sure the screen is small, but I can change the size of the fonts, and I just love being able to throw it into my purse or pocket and go with it. Even the PDA (a Dell Axim) was just a tad too big and heavy for that. I actually read more now because there’s always something available to read.
I’m a member of the Fictionwise Buywise club, which gives substantial regular discounts, and Fictionwise has also gone to a 15% discount plus 35% Micropay rebate for the first week on new books, plus all their other special promotions, so I’m paying a lot less for the ebooks than I was for print books. (I’m not trying to promote Fictionwise; there are a lot of etailers out there doing similar things and I do use others from time to time.)
Everyone has their ‘gotcha’ factor. For some people, it’s ease of use and the Kindle is perfect for that. For me, it’s about not getting locked into one source for ebooks. I want to see continued competition in that market, because price is important to me.
I’m using the Calibre software for ebook library management, which is wonderful for keeping all the multiple formats I’ve accumulated organized. (It’s free software but if you use it, donate to keep it going!)
I have an iPhone and I downloaded the Kindle app, which is pretty cool.
It’s nice to have something that small handy to whip out in the grocery store line for a few minutes of reading. It’s also pretty cool because it syncs with my Kindle, so if I read 10 pages on my iPhone, I sync my Kindle later that day to the page I left off on on the iPhone. Pretty handy if you ask me!
I haven’t gotten an e-book reader as of yet. I’ve heard a lot about them, both good and bad, about the formatting as well as the readers themselves. As an author, I like the idea of my book being available in e-book format, but as a reader, I still like the print version at the moment. After staring at a computer screen all day, it’s a bit easier on the eyes to read a print book. I may get one eventually though, especially if they come up with better formatting.
Terisa Wilcox
Terisa is forgetting that e-ink technology is NOTHING like looking at a computer screen but just about the same experience as looking at a print book. There is NO glare and it is just like looking at the print version.
I like holding my Kindle better than a print book. I can hold it with one hand or prop it on a pillow in my lap while drinking tea. I also read in bed very comfortably too. Nothing is more tedious than holding a print book while lying in bed!
Jessica, I agree with Terisa. I find reading on ANY screen in ANY digital format is hard on my already strained eyes by the end of a long day. I read student essays online (typically in Microsoft Word format) throughout the day, and reading my favorite fiction authors in a digital format seems to trigger the “comp teacher” part of my brain so that I catch more grammatical and usage errors.
It’s much easier for me to get lost in the story when it’s in a completely different format than work. It’s definitely not the same experience for me as looking at a print book, but I’m nearsighted with astigmatism and have to wear glasses, so that might play a role, as well. I think it’s based on personal preference, and what works for some doesn’t necessarily work for others…
Blue,
But again I don’t think you’re understanding. eReaders are JUST like print books minus the page flipping.
Plus, the text is adjustable to resize. I wear glasses all day and I can take them off while reading on my Kindle with minimal eye strain.
Reading digital works on your PC is hard on the eyes but it is completely different on the eReaders where this is none in my opinion.
Jessica, thanks for the response. I really do understand; I just disagree.
I borrowed a friend’s Kindle for a test drive, and I still firmly prefer print for the reasons I stated above. I understand why you–and plenty others–prefer the Kindle and various other e-readers, and I think it’s wonderful that technology has provided us with this option. In fact, I’m nearly finished with a PhD in Technical Communication, so I’m (very) far from being a techno-phobe.
For me, though, e-readers are not “JUST like print books minus the page flipping.” This may very well be true for you, but it just isn’t true for me. Which is cool. Truth is relative and all that…
I’ll admit that there was a time when I really wanted a kindle but it was right before my deployment to Iraq. Without internet for it, I couldn’t really justify the cost.
Being in Iraq has made me appreciate books even more, though and while I can completely understand the efficiency of an ereader, I love the feel and touch and smell of real books. It’s one of the few pleasures I have over here so it’s entrenched me more than less.
That being said, were I an editor, I can completely see the need!
I can see how that’s a pain but Kindle books can also be purchased on a PC and transferred to the device via the USB transfer cable. It would be the same thing if you would have purchased a Song eReader, which didn’t have the wireless access.
Maybe in the near future they will expand to Iraq with the new International Kindle, which has increased the wireless signal quite a bit.
I love books too. And I agree that I’d probably want the physical book with me that far away from home.