[bkelly]

So many good points being made here that I agree with, such as the "standard" needing to identify and accommodate all "customers", and allowing reading devices to control the format/layout of EPUB books. But what I don't see being mentioned is the ADE tool that we have to use for downloading and managing Adobe books, which is an important component of the solution.

Unfortunately the ADE tool suffers from the same "one size fits all" mentality that EPUB books suffer from, and it could use a major overhaul to include flexibility for users who want to organize their books using criteria other than the default. For example, once I'm done reading a book on my pda/opus I update a spreadsheet to indicate the month/year in which I read the book, along with a rating (which follows Fictionwise's 4-star system). This is just a small sample of what ADE lacks -- I'm sure that if given an opportunity to provide input people (customers) would be able to come up with much more. But really, we're talking about digital file management, something that is also done for digital photos and music. This isn't new!

So until ebooks and their supporting systems come a lot further from where they are now, I'll continue to buy books in the Mobipocket and eReader format, and I'll continue to organize my library using a spreadsheet. This has worked for me for 10 years now, and the way things are going I see it as being my method of operating for the next few years, during which time I'm sure I'll see additional ebook formats come along and touted as being "the standard". I'll believe it when I see it...