Why we started reading with electronic book readers

[joblack]

As an information junkie I was always interested in the magic of (Internet) information.

My first ebook reader was an Irex Iliad in 2006 for a buck load of money. I think it was around 600 Euro. My friends thought I was crazy (spoiler alert: the same guys bought iPhones later ^^).

I did and do own a lot of paper based books. After I had to move I had backpain from all the "paper kicking".

The idea to have the 'world's information' on a small readable device is still very appealing to me. It will bring the dream of free (or at least cheap) information to everyone who seeks it.

[jabberwock_11]

The medical reference books I am referring to are true reference books, lots of chemical compounds, study results, dosing tables, insertion and origin points, etc. books that are nearly a thousand pages with zero pictures. Medical books with lots of illustrations are mostly student books and not used on a daily basis. There are a few exceptions like the PDR which has photos of the drugs for visual comparison, but those are the exceptions.

[SolRaven]

Originally Posted by jabberwock_11

The medical reference books I am referring to are true reference books, lots of chemical compounds, study results, dosing tables, insertion and origin points, etc. books that are nearly a thousand pages with zero pictures. Medical books with lots of illustrations are mostly student books and not used on a daily basis. There are a few exceptions like the PDR which has photos of the drugs for visual comparison, but those are the exceptions.

That would be even easier with an ebook. You can cross reference throughout the entire book with a simple search. You can add notes to the reference, add the reference to your notes, or a separate "chapter" that you create, and access it quickly and easily for a particular project or patient. If you do need to add an image, video or webpage, you can add that to that specific file, and make it searchable by using, "Search book and My notes."

At first it will seem weird, and awkward to use digital search instead of the appendix, but once you get used to it, it's easier and faster.

[xg4bx]

Simply put, they got down to a price that I was comfortable paying.

[shanghaichica]

I think the main reason was that I liked the idea of being able to carry arround hundreds even thousands of books with me in a single device. I've always loved books and reading but when you buy physical books you have to be conservative because they take up space. Now I can buy books until my hearts content and store them for future use. It doesn't really matter if it take me years to get round to reading something, whereas as I couldn't go on collecting physical books indefinitley.

ebooks are also much easier to organise and locate than physical books. Easier to search within books and across books, easier to annotate and keep track of those annotations. ebooks are also more comfortable to read than physical books. They all have a uniform weight, do not have to hold the books open, you can change the text size, font etc. Making the reading experience more comfortable. They are just an all round more efficient and comfortable experience of reading books.

I've always been open to the idea of reading on portable electrical devices. I started with an old PDA back in 2003. I've also tried with various phones over the years. The only thing that held me back getting a dedicated device was the lack of content and availability in the UK. The first ereader I bought was a Sony PRS 300. I would have had a kindle when they first came out if they had been available in the UK.

[Tarana]

I bought an ereader because I hadn't been able to read novels in more than 10 years due to eye damage. Large type books didn't help because it didn't address my specific vision problem (ghosting around letters). Now, I can adjust type size and font to get the right spacing and contrast to read comfortably.

Honestly, after only a DAY of use, I regret not having bought one the same year they came out. I've had my Kindle keyboard for 2 years now. The main disadvantage I see to using an ereader vs. buying a paperback is that it is harder to flip back pages to reread something (i.e. in a mystery). The second disadvantage is that you can't resell your 'used' ebook. On the plus side, it's way easier for me to share my library with family members, something that wasn't easy to do in the past. Also, cookng from an ereader - not so good.

[SisterEowyn]

I purchased my first e-reader because I had been seeing them occasionally and not only had I become very interested in the technology behind them, but I was in love with the ability to carry hundreds - or even thousands - of books with me, wherever I went. This was only consolidated when I learned about public domain books. I had been running out of space for paper books for a long time prior to purchasing the ereader, and it was causing me to become disenchanted enough to not want to spend my time reading.

[spindlegirl]

At the time I bought my first e-reader, I had just finished spending a lot of money on paperback versions of many of the classics (often, in september, they go down in price for 'back to school' student reads). When I discovered that 1000% of what I had been so carefully budgeting for, was available for free and I saw a friend on the bus with an e-reader, I stopped hesitating.

[QuantumIguana]

I downloaded 20,000 books from Project Gutenberg. They take up just a few gigabytes on my hard drive. It just makes me feel confortable to have them available on my computer rather than on someone else's server.

[hwlester]

Originally Posted by QuantumIguana

I downloaded 20,000 books from Project Gutenberg. They take up just a few gigabytes on my hard drive. It just makes me feel confortable to have them available on my computer rather than on someone else's server.

Plus you never know when Disney is going to get the government to extend the copyright again and bring some of those works back under copyright...

[Lsantiago7859]

I started using a Sony reader in 2006 as a present to myself when I stopped smoking. I was hooked then. I am still putting books on them that I will read, whether today or tomorrow. When I had an accident which messed it up, I got a Nook Classic which I wound up giving to my son, now like me. I also gave my grandchildren one each. Children have to carry enough in their backpacks. I see that these have made reading much easier for them. I love both my Nook Color and Nook Simple Touch, which I got for different reasons. I will always have an ereader. I will never buy dead trees - I stopped then.

[Sydney's Mom]

I had just gotten back from vacation when someone clued me in about the kindle. I had packed 14 books (2 weeks), and it turned out I didn't feel like reading more than 5 of them. And, I like electronic gadgets.

[CarolineNH]

I started reading on e-readers because of the difficulty of propping a book open to read hands-free. I frequently read while knitting or spinning yarn (and occasionally on fitness equipment at the gym). My best book-holding find has been a "Pageminder" (no affiliation), but with that you still have to put the knitting or wool down, grab the book and manipulate page and Pageminder to read the next page. My first e-reader was a Sony PRS-650, and I loved the ease of turning pages (but not the glare). I migrated to Kindles with the advent of the e-ink Pearl screen, and passed the Sony on to my oldest boy. I now have Kindle apps on all my electronic devices. I do still occasionally read paper books, but find the manipulation to prop and turn pages interrupts my reading far more than turning pages on my Paperwhite.

[maxiart]

Lets just say it was very uncomfortable to read on the computer

[DrNefario]

Originally Posted by Lsantiago7859

I started using a Sony reader in 2006 as a present to myself when I stopped smoking. I was hooked then.

Swapping one addiction for another? (At least the new one's a bit healthier.)