Why So Many Newby Writers Without a Device

[anamardoll]

Originally Posted by queentess

Yeah, what Harry said.

Except that I don't list a device either, out of pure choice. One of them is a Kindle, but I hated the extreme anti-Kindle and pro-Kindle views that were eating many of the forums and eclipsing anything I had to say. So I removed my devices and stopped visiting MR for a while. And I don't ever intend to list devices again.

Yeah, I'm just about to change my device list to "none", too, because it's becoming a club in discussions. You have an opinion on B&N but you don't own the new STR? YOU ARE A TROLL. Nevermind that you have the N1 and NC, begone troll.

I think it's a little, ah, silly to assume that just because a contributor doesn't have a device listed then therefore they don't have an eReader and are just here for the sexy Mobile Read money. Some people just don't feel the need to bling out their profile with every little detail about their personal life.

[anamardoll]

Originally Posted by elcreative

So I guess that nobody with abusive partner problems should be allowed on MR or commenting about organisations they work for or giving advice advice about the device their company makes or... there are lots of reasons why people prefer not to use their real identity at all on the internet, that was always one of its strengths for anyone who might be a bit insecure personally, worried about identity theft and or other reasons.

If anyone uses anonymity to hide behind for illegal/offensive behaviour then they can be kicked off and, if necessary, tracked by law enforcement to their real identity if the activity is criminal... it certainly doesn't require that everybody use their real ID, fine if you're happy doing it, many aren't and the presence of a few anonymous jerks is the price we pay for others freedom to express themselves...

Also, +1 to this. The insistence on a Real Name is extremely problematic. (And I'd imagine that a quick poll of MR moderators would find that few of them have Real Names listed in their siggies. If we can trust "anonymous" moderators, then why not commenters?)

I've known people in Real Life whose Real Name participation online backfired in a bad way through no fault of their own. I would not presume to insist that everyone use their Real Life name online for these very reasons.

[queentess]

Originally Posted by anamardoll

I've known people in Real Life whose Real Name participation online backfired in a bad way through no fault of their own. I would not presume to insist that everyone use their Real Life name online for these very reasons.

Even in real life, I don't give out my name to everyone who happens to visit, say, the same McDonald's that I do. Nor do I want them to hear everything I've ever said while in that McDonald's, forever and ever. The history of everything I've typed here in the past 2.5 years is available with an easy search.

I actually restrain myself a bit more on these forums than I do in real life... at home I can jump around and scream "Oooo, you idiot!" at someone. Here I don't do that because I know it'll bring the banhammer down. (And, you know, it's not polite...)

Originally Posted by anamardoll

You have an opinion on B&N but you don't own the new STR? YOU ARE A TROLL.

Yep.

Originally Posted by anamardoll

I think it's a little, ah, silly to assume that just because a contributor doesn't have a device listed then therefore they don't have an eReader and are just here for the sexy Mobile Read money.

Karma to you for the "sexy Mobile Read money" part

[Tome Keeper]

Originally Posted by anamardoll

Also, +1 to this. The insistence on a Real Name is extremely problematic. (And I'd imagine that a quick poll of MR moderators would find that few of them have Real Names listed in their siggies. If we can trust "anonymous" moderators, then why not commenters?)

I've known people in Real Life whose Real Name participation online backfired in a bad way through no fault of their own. I would not presume to insist that everyone use their Real Life name online for these very reasons.

I agree with that!

I have had my students search online for me via my real name before, and whilst there is nothing *bad* to hide, I don't really want them knowing the ins and outs of my life. Therefore I do not use my real name for anything not professionally related or absolutely required online (i.e. facebook, online stores).

[Timoleon]

Originally Posted by rhadin

I guess I view this differently. I do not find it problematic at all that people come to MR and post about their book yet do not list or own an ereader. I'm interested to discover what ebooks are available for me to read -- after all, isn't that what I have the ereader for? For me to get ebooks and to read them?

And I don't see any problem with their not participating beyond blurbing about their book. It is easy enough to skip the self-promo thread. I've noted that some very long-time MR members have only posted a few times yet there seems to be no complaints about them.

I find it more troublesome that people do not use their real names in message signatures. I've always believed that if you think you need to say it then you should say it with pride and put your name to it. Anonymous postings are more bothersome to me than an author who self-promotes his/her book but does nothing else here at MR or who doesn't own an ereader device.

Ditto! You've expressed my own sentiments exactly.

[theducks]

Originally Posted by anamardoll

Yeah, I'm just about to change my device list to "none", too, because it's becoming a club in discussions. You have an opinion on B&N but you don't own the new STR? YOU ARE A TROLL. Nevermind that you have the N1 and NC, begone troll.

I think it's a little, ah, silly to assume that just because a contributor doesn't have a device listed then therefore they don't have an eReader and are just here for the sexy Mobile Read money. Some people just don't feel the need to bling out their profile with every little detail about their personal life.

Having an opinion on brand X does not make you a troll.

I have opinions (boy do I have em'), that is why I bought Y instead of X.
I still read about the new models (and wade through the sales hype),
I keep looking for a candidate to replace my existing reader when it dies

Does that make me a Troll, to discuss the pros and cons of a model that I don't own?

[queentess]

Originally Posted by theducks

Does that make me a Troll, to discuss the pros and cons of a model that I don't own?

It doesn't at all. But it's perceived that way by a growing minority. *shrug* It's just easier for me to not list devices.

[anamardoll]

Originally Posted by theducks

Does that make me a Troll, to discuss the pros and cons of a model that I don't own?

Of course!

Everyone knows that in order to have an opinion on an eReader, you have to own every model of that brand (K1, K2, K3 or N1, NC, N2, etc.) and you have to have used it every day with every possible format it supports.

And if your opinion of that device isn't 100% positive, then WHY AREN'T YOU IN THE OTHER FORUMS COMPLAINING ABOUT THEIR DEVICES, TOO?

[edit by moderation].

(That was all total sarcasm, I swear. )

[Phogg]

Originally Posted by anamardoll

Of course!

Everyone knows that in order to have an opinion on an eReader, you have to own every model of that brand (K1, K2, K3 or N1, NC, N2, etc.) and you have to have used it every day with every possible format it supports.

And if your opinion of that device isn't 100% positive, then WHY AREN'T YOU IN THE OTHER FORUMS COMPLAINING ABOUT THEIR DEVICES, TOO?

[edit by moderation]

(That was all total sarcasm, I swear. )

I thought to have an opinion you had to trace your ereading device geneology back to late 90s PDAs.

[Catlady]

Originally Posted by rhadin

Why? What does listing a device demonstrate?

Are we not making a mountain out of a molehill? Should we insist that people list the books they are reading to prove that they read and that they are reading ebooks rather than pbooks? Maybe quiz them about the book to verify it?

But first, can we not insist that everyone sign their messages with their full legal name? Why permit posters to hide behind a cloak of anonymity. Let's roust out those whom we would like to censor.

???

It was just a mild suggestion, nothing that should have provoked such an extreme reaction.

[Elfwreck]

Originally Posted by rhadin

I guess I view this differently. I do not find it problematic at all that people come to MR and post about their book yet do not list or own an ereader. I'm interested to discover what ebooks are available for me to read -- after all, isn't that what I have the ereader for? For me to get ebooks and to read them?

And I don't see any problem with their not participating beyond blurbing about their book. It is easy enough to skip the self-promo thread. I've noted that some very long-time MR members have only posted a few times yet there seems to be no complaints about them.

Agree, 100%. I don't care if they're just spamming as long as it's in the right forum; I'm interested in new ebooks regardless of whether the authors want to talk about other ebook issues.

I find it more troublesome that people do not use their real names in message signatures. I've always believed that if you think you need to say it then you should say it with pride and put your name to it. Anonymous postings are more bothersome to me than an author who self-promotes his/her book but does nothing else here at MR or who doesn't own an ereader device.

As "elfwreck," I have over a dozen years of activity online. Under my legal name, I have almost none. Pseudonyms are not the same as cowardice. (Was "Mark Twain" hiding his identity?)

The claim "everyone should be willing to hand their legal names out to everyone they talk to online" implies that we're all safe if we do so--that we have no stalker ex-boyfriends, no employers who'd be willing to fire us for lifestyles or just politics that don't agree with the boss, no local communities that would physically attack us for what we say online.

I'm active in Pagan and LGBT communities. I'm fortunate to live in an area where those don't get me attacked--but part of why I live in this area is so that I can be safe; I can't seriously consider moving to a place where my rent'd be cut in half. I use a pseudonym as a buffer between my online activities and my personal life; I don't need online busybodies grabbing my copyfight activism posts and making angry calls to my boss demanding that I be fired.

Using a name other than one's legal-for-taxes identity is not a matter of cowardice; it can be basic safety. (Would you encourage children to use their legal names online? Or fake names? Or obvious pseudonyms while everyone else is using legal-sounding names, so they're easy to spot?)

[mr ploppy]

Originally Posted by Phogg

I thought to have an opinion you had to trace your ereading device geneology back to late 90s PDAs.

I used to take them to work and print them out on their laser printer.

[Lemurion]

I don't list all my devices - just the ones I currently read on.

I can see the argument that some people are too focused on writing to have a dedicated device, but at the same time, I'd like to think that anyone who really wants to get into eBooks wants to read them as well as write them.

[Penforhire]

I get the group distaste for drive-by "check out my book" authors. I feel similarly.

But I imagine a larger issue is how e-readers are still a premium luxury item. It still costs >$100 for a dedicated E-ink device that THEN costs about the same as paper books to read typical current e-books. Maybe I'm wrong. Any netbook costs more than that but PC's/laptops have multiple uses and have greater utility to more people.

[Purple Lady]

Originally Posted by elizilla

Maybe it's just a publishing industry thing, to read ebooks on phones instead of readers.

Maybe that's why there are so many poorly formatted ebooks out there?
I do some reading on my phone and I can't really see much formatting when I do.