Those "I just like the feel of a book in my hand" people

[duckeedoug]

I'm sure that some of the members may have read the USA article posted on Wednesday, but for those that haven't this article is right in line with this particular thread. Happy reading:

http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/n...terstitialskip

[OakIris]

Originally Posted by duckeedoug

I'm sure that some of the members may have read the USA article posted on Wednesday, but for those that haven't this article is right in line with this particular thread. Happy reading:

http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/n...terstitialskip

I hadn't seen that article, so thank you for that link. The article definitely belongs in this thread!

Holly

[desertblues]

Originally Posted by duckeedoug

I'm sure that some of the members may have read the USA article posted on Wednesday, but for those that haven't this article is right in line with this particular thread. Happy reading:

http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/n...terstitialskip

Nice article indeed. But why is an ereader, also in this article, often compared with a paper book? The two don't have to contest. They're separate and equal as carriers of the content, tenor of someone's written thoughts.

I live and work in a bookish environment and am sure that a lot of people I know never will read their books on an ereader. Some are a bit afraid of the technical aspect of ereading, others don't want to be dependent on ' gadgets' for reading and others prefer a ' real' book and browsing in bookmarkets/stores.

Non-ereading persons often don't realize that it's not a question of making the choice for ereading and sticking to it. I eread a lot, but there's lots of books that are not available as digital content; so I read them on paper. I also collect antique books and browse in bookmarkets.

Isn't it all about getting pleasure out of the expression of ideas? Reading about those ideas or about adventures. Testing one's own mind versus the ideas of the writer, in paper or as digital content?
But also the joy of handling and recognizing how an beautiful old book is made, or wonder at the ingenuity of a lightweight Kindle?

[GA Russell]

Thanks for that link, Doug. I thought the article was quite fair. And I was pleased that the accompanying article included in its review of five devices the Aluratek Libre.

I do disagree with the point made about the 80% who do not plan to get a device. The speaker said that most readers are perfectly content with a book. I am more inclined to think that the people who are not interested in eBooks are, for the most part, not readers.

[Ea]

Originally Posted by CW Johnson

It does? I was simply trying to point out that he/she may have lost sales by publicly announcing his/her lack of common ground with those who listen to Glen Beck and read bible stories.
I had a very similar experience on facebook when I found myself publicly disagreeing with a fan of my books over a silly political matter. I've decided to try and stay as neutral as possible as a result; at least in public areas where I might alienate prospective readers.

I think that's a wise decision. I've found myself not wanting to even try read a certain author because of said author's political view on a certain point - even if I think it is wrong of me to judge the author's writing on such a basis. But I simply can't forget it.

[Ea]

Originally Posted by SolRaven

2 moves in less than a year and I was so over keeping so many books around just because I loved the way they looked. It was time to prioritize, or... hire movers who will also unpack.

That's just as bad as lugging the boxes around - and takes forever.

[beppe]

Originally Posted by Ea

I think that's a wise decision. I've found myself not wanting to even try read a certain author because of said author's political view on a certain point - even if I think it is wrong of me to judge the author's writing on such a basis. But I simply can't forget it.

I am sure that it is just an episode and that the particular author's political view touches a nerve that is very sensitive, for one reason or an other.

I have found my self as you (sometimes) and some other times I have kept reading on. Lately I have been quite disturbed by one opinion of my preferred author on police fiction, maybe the author that gives me more pleasure to read, now.

I kept reading her as she is so brilliant, and in her work her political opinions do not show. Also the point in question might not have touched me profoundly as other subjects might have done.

I have the impression that if one simply can't forget it , there is an emotional, irrational component that is usually impossible to explain and that is better to accept plainly and, as you do, honestly.

[John1997]

Originally Posted by balok

I completely agree. I've found that I'm more efficient in legal research when using real books. In fact, as a young lawyer, I definitely think I have an edge over other lawyers my age who favour electronic tools and neglect printed volumes. Some inexperienced researchers will even miss important cases because their "keywords" in their database query, even when well chosen, were unable to bring forth all relevant results.

I don't see how an ebook reader could be of use to a lawyer, except possibly for reading entire treatises or long cases.

It's a mixed bag for a lawyer. I keep relevant statutes and the current rules of procedure on the JBLLite and it's convenient to have them handy. Judges don't seem to care if the point is familiar. Case law is another matter. They may be public record, but Lexis-Nexis-West are not going to give up their indexed material.

No question in my mind that research in printed volumes is still prime, but electronic searches are an important supplement.

I also do a lot of historical research, and for that there's no substitute for a well-stocked library with materials going back into the dark ages. I used to relax deep in the stacks reading, really browsing, through the debates at the constitutional convention. It made me appreciate the depth of knowledge and reasoning that went into the formation of this country.

Finally, there's what I call the 1984 factor. When I read a case in the hardbound Southern Reporter volume printed in the same year a case was decided, I can be pretty sure that's really how the opinion was written. If I read a case online, how do I know the wording hasn't been edited to reflect what some later person wanted the case to hold? Yes, there was always the possibility that West's editors might alter something. But the distribution of thousands of printed volumes in lawyer's offices and courthouses made it impossible to change once printed.

Just some late ruminations.

[tammycravit]

As a paralegal, I find my Kindle useful for a couple of things work-wise:

• I keep a lot of general reference material (statutes, jury instructions, etc.) on my Kindle for ready access when I need them.
• I read and brief a lot of cases for my supervising attorneys, and downloading them to the Kindle (using the email thingie to convert PDF to AZW) saves a lot of paper.
• When I'm in court with one of my supervising attorneys, I can create a collection on my Kindle and download needed resources to it, such as any applicable briefs, case law, etc. That way, it's all handy and searchable if I need it. (I'd create a collection for each case if I was doing a lot of this, but I'm not in court that often.)

I would absolutely LOVE if I could get the practice guides we use all the time in e-book form, but sadly, LexisNexis hasn't seen fit to publish them that way, so I get a new 5 or 6 pounds of dead trees every year instead. Heck, I'd even pay the same $125/year our main practice guide costs for the e-book, just to reduce the amount of paper I have to carry around.

[Snorkledorf]

Originally Posted by jphphotography

Also they say that the olfactory sense (smell) is very highly linked to memories, could it be that this aspect is a key hurdle in more people embracing ebooks and ereaders?

Now that you mention it, the smell of a new device does always bring me back to the day I got my Apple ][+ in 1981, so you might be on to something there! Just in the other direction in my case. So is that why I prefer ereaders?!

I did always bury my face in new textbooks in elementary school, so that's a nice category of memory for me...but balancing that out, some old books can get pretty rancid. A lot of moldy used books I scanned to PDF somehow lost all their yuckiness when they went digital.

All in all I'll just enjoy that new-technology smell each time I upgrade devices. Mmmmm...

Originally Posted by John1997

It was so much easier to synthesize all those related thoughts when I could just glance at different books to see how different authors had handled the same issue.

Maybe I need a dozen jbl's???

[thrawn_aj]

Originally Posted by tammycravit

When I'm in court with one of my supervising attorneys, I can create a collection on my Kindle and download needed resources to it, such as any applicable briefs, case law, etc.

Can you tell a judge to please wait because your ereader is stuck? More importantly (and I sincerely hope this never happens to you), have you ever had to do that yet?

[tammycravit]

Originally Posted by thrawn_aj

Can you tell a judge to please wait because your ereader is stuck? More importantly (and I sincerely hope this never happens to you), have you ever had to do that yet?

I can, but I've never had to. :-)

[greencat]

Personally I don't think it's an either/or. I love the feel/smell of old books but also the convenience of ebooks. As a regular traveller it's a major time, space and weight saver.

I keep my first edition Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes on the shelf while happily reading the latest spin off on my Kindle (and knowing that if I get bored I can pick up a business book instead).

[supermighty]

Originally Posted by desertblues

Non-ereading persons often don't realize that it's not a question of making the choice for ereading and sticking to it. I eread a lot, but there's lots of books that are not available as digital content; so I read them on paper. I also collect antique books and browse in bookmarkets.

Exactly. I do a lot of reading on my Kindle, but sometimes I want to markup a book or take notes. I'll get a paper copy just for this.

It doesn't have to be either or.

[ChrnoXIII]

personally, i am an avid reader. i can easily read for a whole day non-stop - i just get so absorbed in the book. now that i've got a kindle... its perhaps alot more dangerous... downloading books from amazon instead of hauling my lazy ass up to the library... haha...

i really like the convenience and the form factor of it. i used to bring fat, heavy books with me on the plane whenever i travel but now all i need is a kindle - and a moleskin case i've made for it. as small as a diary but holds way too many books for me to possibly read. - i love it