Quote:
Originally Posted by MikeB1972
To be fair to the publishers :
Borrowing a pBook involves going to the library, finding the book, checking it out, reading it in the fixed time frame & then going back to the library to return the book.
Borrowing an eBook involves exactly the same as buying one but without spending any money.
At the moment it is far easier to buy pBooks than get them from the library.
Personally, I think you should have to go in to the library to check out eBooks as well - that way if your money is more important than your time, you can get library books like always, otherwise you can buy the book (And cut down on what is going to be an ever growing burden on the libraries as more people realise that it is as easy to borrow as buy in eWorld).
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Actually it obviously depends on ones location as to whether or not it is easier to buy a paper book or check it out from the local library. The same story as far as ebooks go. In my case buying a paper book involves at least a 80 mile each way trip to the nearest retail bookstore with the high probability that unless what I am looking for is a high seller that the book will not be in stock anyway. That leaves purchase over the Internet (say Amazon) with at least ten days or so wait, or obtaining it for free from my library that is within walking distance. Even if I must request the book through inter-library loan I am still likely to receive the book sooner, and still for free. The only impediment for obtaining ebooks fro free from my library at the moment is the fair probability that it will not even be available, or if it is I will have to join a wait list.
I think it comes down to thee fact that publishers have managed so far to convince law makers that buying an ebook is some how different from buying a paper book and so can justify not allowing libraries to add ebooks to their collections and lending those ebooks out just as they presently do paper books.