Quote:
Originally Posted by dickon25
Clearly, this operation is not widespread in the States or in the rest of Europe ??
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Not so widespread in the States, no. We have thrift shops here that usually have a section of books, but the selection usually that great--mostly old, yellowed mass markets, or Reader's Digest condensed books. So yeah, you might have a lucky find now and then, but you can't ever go in
expecting to score something good. I like the sound of the way things work in the UK, though. I imagine on whole, you guys are more literary than we are and therefore have better selections.
Anyway, I don't think the OP was entirely serious about his stance, but rather was stimulating discussion. The charity thing may be a concern, but the real disadvantage of ebooks for me is the very real potential of closing down b&m bookstores. B&m's already have taken a hit with the rise of Amazon, but at least there was an appeal for people to be able to still go to a bookstore to browse the shelves. If ebooks take off (and I think they will), there will be less and less reason for people to go out to b&m stores. I usually don't like shopping at all, but I've always enjoyed going to bookstores, they've always given me a sense of comfort and solace (I'm sure most here can relate.) The big corporate stores like Borders and Barnes & Noble might still be able to hold out since they sell ebooks as well, but indie stores (already struggling to compete) might just get drowned out. Just look at the demise of b&m record shops since the advent of mp3s. They still exist, but they're not nearly as prolific as they used to be.