Quote:
Originally Posted by Kali Yuga
However, I have to say I don't think this is a fantabulous development. This ought to be a warning to those who view publishers as Pure Evil, since without them we are in an even more balkanized ebook world....
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Not exactly. Yes, there's a kind of Balkanization, but it does not have nice tidy borders. There's a sort of overlapping crazy quilt that I think breaks down into this:
(1) If you want a dedicated eBook Device, like the Kindle, Sonys, Nook &c, you are going to be limited to a linked ecology of bookstores, ranging from the major fenced off bookstores, to some third party bookstores selling books that can run on more than one dedicated device.
(2) If, however, you have a multimedia device, like the iPhone/Touch, or a computer, or perhaps the rumored Apple Tablet, you will be able to interface with all of the bookstores and read any book.
The immediate problem, from my point of view, is simply that I have a preferred dedicated eBook reader (Sony 300) on which I cannot read every ebook I'm willing to buy.
On the other hand, I can acquire and read any ebook I want on my iPhone or my computer. However, the problem here is that the portable device is either too large or too small for my convenient use - there is no useable portable multi-device approximating the size & weight of any of the dedicated readers, much less with the extended battery life a dedicated reader has.
So here's the result:
(1) A small, portable ebook reading device can be used to acquire and read any ebook, but is too small for deep reading by many, if not most, serious readers.
(2) A large, somewhat portable ebook reading device can be had to read every ebook, but does not lend itself to deep reading, and cannot be carried around without a hassle.
(3) A comfortable, portable, practical ebook reading device can be had, but it will not display all available books.
This situation reminds me of the situation I face whenever I want to buy a car. There are all sorts of options out there, but it seems that I can never get the precise ones I want in the same car. So I get a car that covers most of the bases, and live with it.