Ebooks vs. Real Books

MissTattoo

I like the feel and smell of books. I have four bookcases full of them. I like the idea of e-readers. It seems like in some places it's just easier to have an e-reader. Like at the gym. I see people fumbling with actual books and trying to keep the pages flat vs someone reading on an ereader and not having a problem. It's easier to put a Nook or Kindle in your purse vs a huge book. (Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows! I swear I got upper arm strength from carrier that around. lol)

I don't think anything will replace real books. After all, when technology fails during the Zombie wars, all we will have left are books. ^_^

numindan

I'm a huge fan of books in all shapes and formats. Since we moved to a smaller house a few years ago we've had to become pickier about the number of books we keep outside of the electronic realm.

I started reading eBooks in the summer of 1997 on my iPaq. Many years and over 1000 ebooks later and I'm still reading like mad.

One downside of being an early adopter of eBooks were the format wars. I have books in many different formats because, back in the day, apps or early eReaders read multiple formats. I'm finding such devices harder and harder to find (with the exception of my beloved JBL eReader). I do have a first generation Nook and tried the Kobo (utter disaster). I've no interest in the Kindle since, of all th ebooks I have, the smallest percentage are in an acceptable Kindle format. No matter which eReaders I try out, I always seem to come back to the JBL. I've yet to encounter a format in my eLibrary that it can't read. So, instead of having hundreds of "bricked" books due to the format wars, I can still access and read all 1000+

I'm also saddened to see the slow deaths of my favourite eBook stores such as eReader and Fictionwise. They got bought out, then swallowed up, but the larger conglomerates (like Barnes & Noble). Files are missing from libraries as licenses have shifted from those storefronts to the B&N online presence. Selection has dwindled greatly.

But that's a rant for another day...

MsMarlaMae

I love ebooks. I will never buy another fiction book that isn't an ebook. It is so easy to carry all the books you want for an entire vacation. It is so nice not to have hundreds (or thousands) of books all over the house. Also, with arthritis in my hands, it is so much easier to hold and turn the pages in an ebook. I will still keep my "real" reference books and cook books though.

I like having hundreds of books in my house. I can't imagine a home without them.

I have a kindle, a kindle fire and hundreds of books in my house.

Having one (or two) ebooks doesn't mean the other has to go away.

jarrettfam

I read almost all my books on my Kindle. Since I bought my Kindle two years ago, I've read over 200 books on it. Way more than I would have read of real books in that same time. I do not miss the "real book" feel or smell.
Here is the break down for me:

Pros for e-books:
Real books are harder for me to hold due to my arthritis and the fact that I tend to read in bed a lot.
I like to read between 2 and 5 books at a time of different types of books, so this way I can carry all five at once and they way almost nothing.
My kindle fits in my purse, which my books did not.
I can highlight my books just as easily. I can jump straight to a highlight instead of flipping a hundred pages hoping to see it.
I can still share books with my mom since she has a Kindle, too.
You *can* still borrow books...see below.

Cons:
I have to turn it off for landing and take off on airplanes. Drag.
I can't download books when visiting my team in Canada. I have to download them in advance.
Sometimes the translation to e-book is rough-i.e. extra typos, or punctuation mistakes. At least I hope those didn't make it to print!
Borrowing books is weirder.
Borrowing on the Amazon Prime library program is practically irrelevant since you only get one book per month and I can read 2 books in a week.


HTH

I agree with you. I love my kindle fire! I feel lost if I forget and leave the house without it! It is so nice to be able to carry 2500+ books and 20+ movies with me everywhere. I have 6 kindles registered to my account. Me, my daughter, 3 mothers (in-law, real and a very close friend) and my phone! We all share the library! Plus I let friends from church 'borrow' them! When I got my first kindle almost 3 1/2 yrs ago I donated my books to the library and some friends. I kept my special books (my collectors or antique ones)! I do still love the smell of a paper book but the convience of the kindle has me spoiled rotten!

ZombieSlayer

Love the Kindle (original version), but it will never replace real books.

The Nuk is like a tablet-Lite. If you want a tablet just get a real tablet. If you want an e-reader, get a Kindle. (*Note* Do not have the Nuk Simple, which I understand does not have a backlight).


We got our first Kindle for Xmas 2011 (from me to husband), by New Year's, we had two Kindles and a Nuk. :laugh:

KellyMirth

Considering that books have been around for several thousand years, I doubt they will just disappear. Both my son and my husband have kindles and really like them but I have stuck to the real thing. The kindle was awesome for my son on our two week driving vacation last summer, although we ended up spending a bit of money getting him new books regularly. I do see how they make sense for trips and for keeping a large selection of books in a small space but I still love my books. I love the feel, the smell, the weight of a good novel. I also think you get a feel for what someone is like by seeing what they are reading, what they have read and what their favorite books are. I once took a picture of my bookshelf as a "self-portrait" for a photography class, it just sort of summed me up better than anything else could. Having said all of that, anything that encourages people to read more is okay by me.