balok,
I've no doubt that by 2266 (the year you encountered Kirk and the rest of the Enterprise crew), you won't have a choice about pbooks vs. ebooks. In the meantime, I'd like to respond in a thoughtful manner to the points you made in your earlier post:
>until I read all there was that interested me in the public domain
Wow. I can't imagine ever reading EVERYTHING in the public domain that interested me. So I have a serious question for you--did you REALLY run out of public domain stuff to read? Fascinating!
>Now all I'm interested in is copyrighted material, so I would have to buy the books if I wanted to read them on the Sony Reader. I have a great public library at my disposal that can get any book I'm interested in, on PAPER, and for FREE.
Well, sort of free. I'm about to make some arguable points, but I think they illustrate my meaning. First of all, what is your time worth? For me to make a QUICK drive to and from the library, I'm looking at an investment of at least an hour, and that's if I've gone to their website FIRST and picked out what books I'm getting. If not, it's a good 2 hours including travel time. I can purchase and download a book in under 5 minutes. Based on what I get paid for my time, that's a lot cheaper. And how much is gas where you live? Here it's over $4 a gallon. Unless you live really close to a library, don't forget about the cost of gas. Additionally, those books need to get BACK to the library, which is more time, more gas, and more money, especially if they're ever overdue. Finally on this point, you don't get to own the books. I'm a rereader, and you may not be, so I understand it may not be a factor for you, but it is for me--I love instantly being able to read or refer to a book when I want or need to.
>So why would I buy an electronic book when I can read it for free, with unbeatable contrast, eternal battery life, and a robust construction?
Well, for all the reasons people have mentioned in this thread. Convenience, ease, and portability come to mind. In addition to that, how about because that way you don't have to find someone else's crumbs and chocolate smears embedded in your books?
C'mon, balok...get with the times! For an alien from the future, you're a bit of a retrogrouch!
Joanne