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Formatting is obviously an important aspect of any printed book. Because of their screen size and appearance, PDA's often cannot in my opinion successfully replace printed texts: I am currently slogging my way through "Bleak House" on my T3 and I cannot take it in the way I did the print version many years ago: Dickens' long paragraphs lose their thrust and continuity on a PDA screen. I tried reading both Proust and Joyce on my T3 and gave up: I think that, were the authors alive today, they would lay out their texts differently to accomodate this new medium.
I find current news and straightforward fiction - mysteries and thrillers, for example - easiest to read on a PDA.
I am bewildered by those who carry a 100 books on their handhelds. What on earth for? Are we preparing for some calamity where, in case we are stranded for a long period of time away from our libraries, we will have the library with us, just in case? It's like some of my friends who, like me, own 20-40gig iPods, and who carry 100's of hours of music around: when will they listen to it?
Philippe Radley
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