Am I The Only One?? - Page 2

Stitchawl · 09-03-2010, 07:28 AM

When I got my first 'real' computer, (not the Commodore 64,) sometime around 1983,84... I began downloading books from Project Gutenberg. I was storing them on diskettes. Only thing I knew of for storage back then. I had a huge collection that I eventually moved onto CD's, then moved to external hard drives.

I haven't stopped downloading. Just kept getting larger external drives. I now keep my collection on 1.5 terrabyte drives. And keep on downloading. I can't find any reason not to!

Stitchawl

rakulos · 09-03-2010, 07:30 AM

You have to fill those 2 GB's of memory with books else the sky will fall in - obvious really

leebase · 09-03-2010, 08:05 AM

I found it helpful to start a "to be read" list. When I buy or get a free book, I look at my list and place it in a spot. You start to realize you aren't going to get to most books any time soon. If a book isn't going to make your list in a spot you will read in the next year or two, perhaps it's not worth downloading.

Lee

brecklundin · 09-03-2010, 09:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tiniree

I just got my first e-reader (the Nook) on Tuesday and am having a ball enjoying it.

But I have to ask: Am I the only one to go "overboard"

downloading free e-books when you first get your e-reader??? My family is cracking up saying I will never read all these books, but to tell the truth......I love knowing I will always have another option with me

if the current book I am reading gets boring.

Marie

Don't worry, everyone does it... then you start to add up the hours need to read them all and suddenly you calculate the number of hours until you die...it becomes sad and depressing really...enough to make a person give up reading completely or maybe watch The World According to Garp.

Latinandgreek · 09-03-2010, 09:47 AM

No, I overloaded on books and had them waiting for me in Calibre as soon as I ordered mine!

speakingtohe · 09-03-2010, 10:06 AM

Get started with a good book management program (calibre on mobileread. is tops and free, although well worth donating to) before you get too many.
Makes organisation a snap.

bar49 · 09-03-2010, 11:33 AM

[QUOTE=eric11210;1090739]My personal feeling is, if it sounds like something you may someday find interesting, even if it's not a genre you'd usually read, why not? Unlike physical books, free ebooks don't cost you a penny and they don't take up space.

Totally agree.

Besides, the searching, the finding, the downloading, the editing (using Calibre for example) can all be entertaining activities as well.

queentess · 09-03-2010, 12:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pilotbob

I started getting a bunch of free books... even read some of them, unfortunately. I found many of them, not all mind you, were worth what I paid.

BOb

Yeah. . .

But! I downloaded a Tor freebie in April 2009 and just got around to reading it in May 2010 and I LOVED it. Kicking myself for not reading it earlier, and I've since bought all the books in the series and all the books in related series! Tor is making a mint off me because of that free book... Every once in a while, there's a gem of a freebie

Though I would suggest only downloading things that actually sound interesting to you. I went through an "omg, free books!!!!" stage when I first got my ereader too, then promptly realized 75% of them didn't even appeal to me.

pilotbob · 09-03-2010, 12:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by queentess

Yeah. . .

But! I downloaded a Tor freebie in April 2009 and just got around to reading it in May 2010 and I LOVED it. Kicking myself for not reading it earlier, and I've since bought all the books in the series and all the books in related series! Tor is making a mint off me because of that free book... Every once in a while, there's a gem of a freebie

Yes, several of the TOR books where good. I liked Spin and Mistborn quite a bit. Four and Twenty Black Birds I think was the best of the free TOR lot.

Of course, there are thousands of classics which are also free. I have enjoyed many if not all that I have read, including the Sherlock Holmes books, The Count of Monte Cristo and many others.

BOb

LynnO · 09-03-2010, 02:55 PM

I can totally relate to loading up with free books. I'm getting a tiny bit more picky, but pick up almost all the free B&N classics. Have read 2. But someday......

Can you still get those Tor books? Not much of science fiction reader, but loved the two stories I downloaded for free.

As for romantic fiction, just look at it as another type of science fiction, along with almost all mysteries and thrillers.

I'm a total omnivore and laugh that people who read genre fiction of any type dis romances. Meh, none of the other genres are any more real, and all genres have both well written and poorly written selections.

phenomshel · 09-03-2010, 04:26 PM

I spent most of my life at least an hour's drive from the nearest bookstore. I "ran out" of new books on a regular basis. The local library system couldn't keep up with me, either. That's when my habit of "re-reading" favorites got started. Now that I can, I indulge myself by collecting everything I might possibly read. The idea of having anything I could want to read just a few clicks away is profoundly satisfying to me.
Oddly enough though, I still re-read. It's nearly time for my annual reading of "Be Buried in the Rain" by Barbara Michaels

phenomshel · 09-03-2010, 04:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Yes, several of the TOR books where good. I liked Spin and Mistborn quite a bit. Four and Twenty Black Birds I think was the best of the free TOR lot.

Of course, there are thousands of classics which are also free. I have enjoyed many if not all that I have read, including the Sherlock Holmes books, The Count of Monte Cristo and many others.

BOb

I have Four and Twenty Black Birds - haven't read it yet. I take it you recommend it, Bob?

pilotbob · 09-03-2010, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by phenomshel

I have Four and Twenty Black Birds - haven't read it yet. I take it you recommend it, Bob?

I really liked it... I read it after Dixie Gal gave it her high praises. So, yes, recommended.

BOb

JeremyZ · 09-03-2010, 05:20 PM

I did the same thing tiniree. If you're like me, you'll read a few of them, then realize it takes a lot more effort to read classics than modern stuff, due to the higher vocabulary level and old style phrasing. I usually have one classic going and take a break for modern fiction. I started Don Quixote a couple months ago. Read about 1/2 of it and really needed a break. I'll get back and finish it some day.

The most satisfying classics to me have been Sherlock Holmes and Dickens.

rebarnmom · 09-03-2010, 05:34 PM

Welcome to the club Marie!

Hi! My name is rebarnmom and I've been addicted to ebooks for about two years now. My last download of free ebooks was yesterday- five from the Sony Reader Store and 1 from CBD. When will I read them? One never knows, but they're there for me when I'm ready for them!

09-03-2010, 05:34 PM	#30
rebarnmom Wizard Posts: 1,289 Karma: 4525055 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: rural Illinois, USA Device: Sony PRS-700 (traded in), Sony PRS-650	Welcome to the club Marie! Hi! My name is rebarnmom and I've been addicted to ebooks for about two years now. My last download of free ebooks was yesterday- five from the Sony Reader Store and 1 from CBD. When will I read them? One never knows, but they're there for me when I'm ready for them! Last edited by rebarnmom; 09-03-2010 at 05:39 PM.

09-03-2010, 07:28 AM	#16
Stitchawl Opsimath Posts: 12,344 Karma: 187123287 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand Device: Sony PRS-650, iPhone 5, Kobo Glo, Sony PRS-350, iPad, Samsung Galaxy	When I got my first 'real' computer, (not the Commodore 64,) sometime around 1983,84... I began downloading books from Project Gutenberg. I was storing them on diskettes. Only thing I knew of for storage back then. I had a huge collection that I eventually moved onto CD's, then moved to external hard drives. I haven't stopped downloading. Just kept getting larger external drives. I now keep my collection on 1.5 terrabyte drives. And keep on downloading. I can't find any reason not to! Stitchawl

09-03-2010, 07:30 AM	#17
rakulos Connoisseur Posts: 57 Karma: 36 Join Date: Aug 2009 Device: ipad, K3, acer aspire switch 10	You have to fill those 2 GB's of memory with books else the sky will fall in - obvious really

09-03-2010, 08:05 AM	#18
leebase Karma Kameleon Posts: 2,934 Karma: 26616647 Join Date: Aug 2009 Device: iPad Mini, iPhone X, Kindle Fire Tab HD 8, Walmart Onn	I found it helpful to start a "to be read" list. When I buy or get a free book, I look at my list and place it in a spot. You start to realize you aren't going to get to most books any time soon. If a book isn't going to make your list in a spot you will read in the next year or two, perhaps it's not worth downloading. Lee

09-03-2010, 09:47 AM	#20
Latinandgreek Warrior Princess Posts: 5,038 Karma: 9724231 Join Date: Sep 2009 Device: PRS-505; PRS-350, PRS-T1, iPad, Aura HD	No, I overloaded on books and had them waiting for me in Calibre as soon as I ordered mine!

09-03-2010, 10:06 AM	#21
speakingtohe Wizard Posts: 4,812 Karma: 26912940 Join Date: Apr 2010 Device: sony PRS-T1 and T3, Kobo Mini and Aura HD, Tablet	Get started with a good book management program (calibre on mobileread. is tops and free, although well worth donating to) before you get too many. Makes organisation a snap.

09-03-2010, 11:33 AM	#22
bar49 Member Posts: 14 Karma: 26928 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: S.Ontario Canada Device: kindle 2, PW2	[QUOTE=eric11210;1090739]My personal feeling is, if it sounds like something you may someday find interesting, even if it's not a genre you'd usually read, why not? Unlike physical books, free ebooks don't cost you a penny and they don't take up space. Totally agree. Besides, the searching, the finding, the downloading, the editing (using Calibre for example) can all be entertaining activities as well.

09-03-2010, 02:55 PM	#25
LynnO Member Posts: 24 Karma: 56 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Mountain West, USA Device: nook, color nook, droid 2	I can totally relate to loading up with free books. I'm getting a tiny bit more picky, but pick up almost all the free B&N classics. Have read 2. But someday...... Can you still get those Tor books? Not much of science fiction reader, but loved the two stories I downloaded for free. As for romantic fiction, just look at it as another type of science fiction, along with almost all mysteries and thrillers. I'm a total omnivore and laugh that people who read genre fiction of any type dis romances. Meh, none of the other genres are any more real, and all genres have both well written and poorly written selections.

09-03-2010, 04:26 PM	#26
phenomshel ZCD BombShel Posts: 4,793 Karma: 8293322 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: The Frozen North (aka Illinois, USA) Device: iPad, STB Kindle Oasis	I spent most of my life at least an hour's drive from the nearest bookstore. I "ran out" of new books on a regular basis. The local library system couldn't keep up with me, either. That's when my habit of "re-reading" favorites got started. Now that I can, I indulge myself by collecting everything I might possibly read. The idea of having anything I could want to read just a few clicks away is profoundly satisfying to me. Oddly enough though, I still re-read. It's nearly time for my annual reading of "Be Buried in the Rain" by Barbara Michaels

09-03-2010, 05:20 PM	#29
JeremyZ Addict Posts: 303 Karma: 1000702 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Chicago Device: Nook ST, Kindle 2, Samsung Galaxy Stellar phone	I did the same thing tiniree. If you're like me, you'll read a few of them, then realize it takes a lot more effort to read classics than modern stuff, due to the higher vocabulary level and old style phrasing. I usually have one classic going and take a break for modern fiction. I started Don Quixote a couple months ago. Read about 1/2 of it and really needed a break. I'll get back and finish it some day. The most satisfying classics to me have been Sherlock Holmes and Dickens.

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