08-31-2009, 09:27 PM | #16 |
Enthusiast
Posts: 35
Karma: 154
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: upstate NY
Device: PRS500
|
It's nice to know before downloading, anyway
Don't know how he does it, but Mr. McClintock over at manybooks.net lists word count and page count for all his titles.
I really thought the page count was accurate for the small font on the Sony 500, but now I'll have to double-check. Good thread. Chris |
08-31-2009, 09:34 PM | #17 |
Grand Sorcerer
Posts: 8,478
Karma: 5171130
Join Date: Jan 2006
Device: none
|
Well, just listing word count is easy enough... I write in Word, and it gives me the count as I go. Page count is too dependent on what you read and how you read it. It might be slightly useful as a rough comparison, but no more than that.
|
Advert | |
|
08-31-2009, 09:41 PM | #18 |
Fanatic
Posts: 535
Karma: 972
Join Date: Jul 2009
Device: The new iPad
|
yes. in the future, i guess everyone will be saying.. "this book has a word count of xxx and i was able to read it at appproximately xxx days"
weights and pages of books doesn't really have to matter already. |
08-31-2009, 09:43 PM | #19 |
Zealot
Posts: 129
Karma: 550
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Iowa, USA
Device: Kindle Touch
|
The page numbers in ePubs tend to be pretty close to at least one edition of a given book; not close enough to switch between eBook and paper book without scanning a few pages to find where you are, but close enough to say "I'm half way through my 300 page book" and know you'd be saying the same thing if you were reading paper.
Last edited by Zero9; 08-31-2009 at 09:46 PM. |
08-31-2009, 09:44 PM | #20 |
Wizard
Posts: 3,442
Karma: 300001
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Belgium
Device: PRS-500/505/700, Kindle, Cybook Gen3, Words Gear
|
I go by pagecount on my Sony, e.g. 300 pages is short, 600 is average and 1000 is on the thick side.
BTW, the picture in the first post is 404. |
Advert | |
|
08-31-2009, 09:48 PM | #21 |
01000100 01001010
Posts: 1,889
Karma: 2400000
Join Date: Mar 2009
Device: Polyamorous
|
I've never wondered how long an E-book is, and I've read hundreds of them. Just doesn't matter to my reading experience.
|
08-31-2009, 09:53 PM | #22 | |
Zealot
Posts: 129
Karma: 550
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Iowa, USA
Device: Kindle Touch
|
Quote:
I expect I'm practically alone on this. |
|
08-31-2009, 09:58 PM | #23 |
Wizard
Posts: 3,442
Karma: 300001
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Belgium
Device: PRS-500/505/700, Kindle, Cybook Gen3, Words Gear
|
I don't really pay attention to chapters. Some writers don't even use them (e.g. Sarah Hoyt).
|
08-31-2009, 10:27 PM | #24 |
Guru
Posts: 714
Karma: 2003751
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Ottawa, ON
Device: Kobo Glo HD
|
The very first device that I used to read books (aside from computer screen) was Palm Vx. The resolution was so small compared to gizmos that we use today, the experience was so different... It was convenient, it allowed me to carry a decent library everywhere. No bells and whistles, just barely "formatted" text.
I found out that it was sufficient. One could read the book, even on that tiny screen. Stripped of all excess baggage, the meaning of a "book" was forever changed for me. They come in two forms: good reads, and those written for someone else. If a book can not make me forget that I am reading it on Palm Vx screen, it is not worth my time. I don't care how it is bound, I don't care how much effort was invested into typesetting, how nice is the font... it is not for me. The size? Ten pages of boring text are too much, thousands of pages of interesting read are not enough. Last edited by Ankh; 08-31-2009 at 10:30 PM. |
08-31-2009, 10:32 PM | #25 |
Addict
Posts: 229
Karma: 887
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Utah, USA
Device: iPad, iPhone 4
|
Personally I favor the word count method. I don't agree at all that there is some kind of aesthetic problem. In fact, I've always hated the whole page count concept in books because rarely are two books' page "value" equal whether it be because of lots of paragraph breaks, font sizes, margins, paper size, etc. page count has always been fairly meaningless in books, paper or otherwise.
Word count is used in an industry where judging length of content is far more important than casual reading of books. I'm speaking of course of media industries like radio or television. It's important to be able to estimate the time it will take to read a copy with relative accuracy. This is done almost universally by word count. Clearly word count has its own flaws, where you have 1 vs. 7 syllable words but in any work of meaningful length that averages out quite quickly, whereas in a book, the page size vs. another book's page size will never reach equilibrium because it will not change throughout the course of a book. At any rate, there's obviously going to be some kind of... nostalgia for aspects of paper books for people who have read their whole life. I just hope we can all realize how meaningless those elements really were and smile at the potential progress on offer with eBooks as we look forward. |
08-31-2009, 10:37 PM | #26 | |
Addict
Posts: 229
Karma: 887
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Utah, USA
Device: iPad, iPhone 4
|
Quote:
I like the idea of breaking a book down into its consumable portions, but the author's got to be able to indicate that some way, and not be limited to calling those breaks chapters. |
|
08-31-2009, 10:40 PM | #27 | |
Addict
Posts: 229
Karma: 887
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Utah, USA
Device: iPad, iPhone 4
|
Quote:
Maybe percentages will become the defacto way of vaguely indicating progress? My Kindle tells me percent as well as some magical number specific to amazon. At this point I've been using the percentage if I cared to indicate my progress through a book. I've yet to worry about indicating how long the book is in total because frankly, that metric seems unimportant to me. I've read short books in long times because of boringness, and the inverse as well. It's funny how easily we can get hung up on measurements though. |
|
08-31-2009, 11:45 PM | #28 |
Home Guard
Posts: 4,729
Karma: 86721650
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Alpha Ralpha Boulevard
Device: Kindle Oasis 3G, iPhone 6
|
Paper books can mislead you also. I remember buying a thick hardcover Stephen King novel. I think it was Insomnia, but the margins were very wide and book wasn't as long as it seemed at first.
|
09-01-2009, 12:51 AM | #29 |
Addict
Posts: 281
Karma: 37762
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: NW Washington State, USA
Device: K3
|
I like to have at least a general idea of the length of the books, mostly because there are times when I prefer a shorter or longer book, for a variety of reasons. I think for my purposes a word count would be the best indicator (once I figure out how the numbers translate into my current perception of book length). After I start a book though, knowing what chapter I'm in and/or approximate percentage would be all the information I would care about.
|
09-01-2009, 12:53 AM | #30 | |
Fanatic
Posts: 581
Karma: 5952
Join Date: Aug 2009
Device: PRS-505, PRS-350
|
Quote:
I didn't know about the Kindle feature that showed (roughly) the size of books. Pretty cool. I wish my Sony did that. |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Free Book (Kindle/Christianbook) - The Big 5-OH! | koland | Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) | 6 | 06-07-2012 11:08 PM |
A.A. BIG BOOK | jnconnolly | Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) | 22 | 10-05-2011 09:13 PM |
big book--how to break up | monsieurms | Workshop | 8 | 02-03-2010 11:36 PM |
The Big Book - eReader friendly ? | rquesty | Sony Reader | 8 | 09-03-2009 05:53 PM |
BIG BOOK LIST ...but... | mariaperreta | Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links) | 1 | 12-11-2008 11:31 AM |