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I think the tablets and e-readers these days still suck. The interface is still rough around its virtual edges. I can't get into the "zone" if I'm reading a dig

I think the tablets and e-readers these days still suck. The interface is still rough around its virtual edges. I can't get into the "zone" if I'm reading a digital book - not yet. This may change in the future, as today is still the early childhood of this technology. I'm also concerned about volatility. Paper books last for decades, or even more if properly cared for. I struggle to keep e-documents even a few years old. This is a fundamental problem and it needs a proper solution, quickly. Finally, DRM gets in the way big time. Lending an e-book? Forget it. Finding one day that the content on your tablet was remotely deleted from the mothership? It's unlikely, but the reality is you're at the mercy of whoever made the tablet and they can certainly do so by invoking some obscure paragraph in the 200-page EULA that nobody ever reads. You're the "owner" of an e-book in name only; Amazon is the real big kahuna who calls all the shots. We will inevitably move to electronic formats, no doubt. But this is the Stone Age of e-books - these are the stone tablets of e-content. We're still in a very very early stage.

ghshephard 15y ago
Re: Zone - I'm not distracted by changing pages anymore. Just an unconscious muscle twitch and (with newer kindles, and all iPads), I'm onto the next page. I've had many a 12+ hour reading sessions, and several "Get sucked into a book" weekends with digital texts. Volatility - My books are in the Amazon Cloud. All of my digital books are still available to me. 100%. I have access to about 5% of the paper books I've purchased in my life. The _worst_ case scenario, is that Digital Books become as Volatile as paper books, if Amazon.com goes out of business, and I'm stuck with (horrors) the physical representation of the book as present on my kindle/iPad (and Laptop backup, and back blaze backup of my Laptop). The cloud changes everything for volatility. DRM Sucks. Big Time. With that said, Amazon's implementation only impact is that I don't casually lend books to other - which I typically never have anyways, so no impact on me. I too like (and frequently take use) of the fact that 100% of my books are available on my Kindle, iPad, iPhone, Laptop, and CloudReader. But - with that said - the DRM on physical books is pretty harsh too - You need to go to a photocopier to make a copy of the book. I just lend my mother my cloud reader account, and she can read any of my books on the web. Or lend a second friend my Kindle, and voila - he has all of my books. While I still have all of them on my iPad and iPhone. Or, if I don't have five lent out, I can pull them onto my old K2. I don't think DRM on the kindle has ever stopped me from reading, or lending a book to someone I know. It _does_ prevent casual lending. Agreed there. I haven't read a paper book in about 4 years. I find it bizarre to even consider moving back to them.

ghshephard 15y ago

Re: Zone - I'm not distracted by changing pages anymore. Just an unconscious muscle twitch and (with newer kindles, and all iPads), I'm onto the next page. I've had many a 12+ hour reading sessions, and several "Get sucked into a book" weekends with digital texts. Volatility - My books are in the Amazon Cloud. All of my digital books are still available to me. 100%. I have access to about 5% of the paper books I've purchased in my life. The _worst_ case scenario, is that Digital Books become as Volatile as paper books, if Amazon.com goes out of business, and I'm stuck with (horrors) the physical representation of the book as present on my kindle/iPad (and Laptop backup, and back blaze backup of my Laptop). The cloud changes everything for volatility. DRM Sucks. Big Time. With that said, Amazon's implementation only impact is that I don't casually lend books to other - which I typically never have anyways, so no impact on me. I too like (and frequently take use) of the fact that 100% of my books are available on my Kindle, iPad, iPhone, Laptop, and CloudReader. But - with that said - the DRM on physical books is pretty harsh too - You need to go to a photocopier to make a copy of the book. I just lend my mother my cloud reader account, and she can read any of my books on the web. Or lend a second friend my Kindle, and voila - he has all of my books. While I still have all of them on my iPad and iPhone. Or, if I don't have five lent out, I can pull them onto my old K2. I don't think DRM on the kindle has ever stopped me from reading, or lending a book to someone I know. It _does_ prevent casual lending. Agreed there. I haven't read a paper book in about 4 years. I find it bizarre to even consider moving back to them.