Quote:
Originally Posted by GreenMonkey
Hardcovers will last forever. No tech worries. I know I'll be re-reading them in 30 or 40 years, god knows if an epub will work on a device 30 years from now.
And I can hopefully get them signed at some point! 
No tech issues/worries and they still work if my device isn't charged.
Easier to see maps and pictures (sometimes that kind of stuff is very hard to see on an ereader).
They're pretty.
There's no DRM (goes back to point 1). Not that I don't strip it anyway but I've got ideological issues with buying something and being punished with restrictions that don't exist with paper books. Spending $$ on DRM supports it.
And as a bonus, if it's a new release and I don't want to wait (the case with my favorite authors), often the hardcover is cheaper, or at least, about the same price. |
Very good points, indeed.
The point with figures and maps is particularly pertinent for people who read lots of nonfiction or History books, since i have never read an ebook without having a less satisfying experience when compared to the paper book. Besides, going back and forth to see a map in the first pages while you are reading a chapter halfway through the ebook is a pain...
I also agree that as a design object, a good paper book is way more beautiful, well thought and adequate to its function than a ebook, or a ebook reader, even though ebook readers have come a long way. I am never as pleased with any ebook as I am with a paper book in the field (ebook is purely functional, while paper books are a bit more than that).
From my experience, the editing, layout, and visual experience of a ebook has not been a priority of the publishers i have bought ebooks from. I find it not good at all in most cases, while in paper books it is the opposite, it is a minority the cases i can say that a paper book i bought was bad in those fields.
Another thing i like to see in my books is handwritten notes, and making those in an ebook, though possible, are not as easy, immediate, and good looking as they are in a paper book. I like to see handriting (mine or other people's in case it is a used book) in the margins of a good book. I find it a great frame for a nice text. And if the notes are insightful and intelligent, even better.