[mogui]

I really enjoy conventional books -- particularly paperbacks. It is an old comfort activity of mine. I will never give it up willingly. Recently when I traveled I had my Palm device with me, and on it many ebooks. But I bought a paperback in the Hong Kong airport. It just felt so nice to hold a book again.

I like my Palm (TRGpro) for carrying around town. There are always those times when I must wait for something. Out comes the Palm, and I find something I can read to pass the time.

When I am traveling, I prefer my new Sony Reader. On the 4G SD card within it, it can contain more books than I can probably read in a lifetime. It is even more readable than some paperbacks because I can adjust the font size to suit the condition of my eyes and the lighting. It will remember where I was in any of the books contained on it, so I never have to buy those little sticky tabs again. I can read more than one book at a time and never worry about forgetting where I was.

When I felt satisfied that I could keep all my music on my computer and carry an MP3 player if I so chose, I converted my CD collection and gave the disks away! Now I am doing the same with my conventional books. I see no need to keep a paper copy if I have the e-book on my computer. I can store 10 books or a million with equivalent effort.

But I will always love paper books. I will always buy them. I will always keep a collection of reference books like atlases with their big colorful easy-to-read pages. Having the best of both worlds makes my life easier and more pleasant.

As the world gradually discovers the convenience and (sometimes) economy of e-books, readers will become more popular and e-book download sites cheaper and more common.