What Do You Do When A Book Isn't Available For eReaders? - Page 3

issybird · 02-02-2011, 04:42 PM

Read the DTB, of course.

There are a LOT of books out there that will never be digitized. Not old enough for Gutenberg/not popular enough to be sold. I'm not going to cut myself off categorically from a host of treasures. Nor am I going to scan, etc., even for personal use.

I'll add a price component. If it's an agency ebook that costs $14.99 or more, and I can get it at Amazon for little over the cost of shipping, I choose option B. I've always got a few books going at once and so long as they're not all DTBs and not as portable or reading-in-bed friendly, why not?

caleb72 · 02-02-2011, 04:57 PM

I will still go DTB if I want the book enough. In Australia we have the geographic restriction issue up to our ears, so this kind of decision possibly comes more often than for those in the U.S.

Because I went ebook initially to stop accumulating paperbacks in my house, I do try to moderate my DTB purchases.

Regards
Caleb

Piper_ · 02-02-2011, 06:17 PM

This is actually a dilemma I recently dealt with that's kind of jaded me...

Usually, I just hit the "tell the publisher" link and wait, since buying the paper version is a demotivator for their publishing of e-versions.

But recently, I caved. There are a lot of historical fiction books/trilogies I've been dying to read, about the time period and people I'm into, that after 2-5 years are still available in paper-only. So I finally went ahead and ordered the pbook of one, thinking I could then just go to this wondrous darknet to get an ebook copy to actually read. (a Camp Middle-Grounder here.)

Alas, I couldn't find it (or, heck, any historical fiction) down there (at least not in the obvious places I know about), and I was stuck with the paper version.

At first, I wasn't too miffed. I love my paper books, and I probably would have bought the p-trilogy anyway, after being sure I loved the book. But I couldn't half-enjoy reading the book, due to my being under the weather and its being heavy with tiny print.

So now I'll have to scan it and make my own ebook copy. Meh.

What jaded me though, was googling around and seeing some of the authors' and publishers' attitudes toward ebooks, and then adding those to some of the prices of the ones they do have out - ebooks priced higher - up to double the cost of the paper version.

Anyway, before all this, I would have done what I intended - I'm die-hard about making sure authors get paid, especially since the books I like take so much research and effort. But now, I'm feeling so miffed about it, I'm not only refusing to buy the pbooks retail, I've been half-tempted to buy them from Half-Priced books, just out of spite. lol

Elfwreck · 02-02-2011, 06:24 PM

Buy DBT used, probably from Amazon.
Chop spine off book at work. (We have a print center.)
Scan book; run tiffs through deskew program; throw into FineReader to auto-OCR.

Call that half an hour. Could be an hour if the pages are being troublesome. The auto-OCR might take a while, but I won't be watching it for that.

Export as RTF (yeah, without correction, which means it's gonna have a lot of OCR errors)
Open in Word, strip out section breaks/page breaks; look for obvious chapter heading formatting & add page break before those.
Fix font & paragraph formatting: make all 100% size, not condensed or expanded; make all single-spaced paragraphs; indent by .25"; increase font size until main body text is at least 14 pt.

That's maybe 10 minutes of work.

Add title & author doc info; save onto Sony Reader as RTF.

Read ebook.

If I really like it and intended to read it again, go back to FineReader & correct the OCR; re-export corrected version; do real formatting instead of quick-and-dirty conversion.

Clancy_s · 02-02-2011, 06:38 PM

Depends how old the book is - if published pre digital and not popular enough to be digitised yet I'd get a copy from a library or buy second hand.

If new I'd skip it - there's only 2 authors I like enough to consider buying if they'd opted out of digital and they both happen to have opted in, with concurrent release of digital and p versions.

carld · 02-02-2011, 06:51 PM

Reading DTBs is a strain on my eyes, so I mostly don't bother. If I can't get something as an ebook I might try to get it through the library. There's pretty much no chance that I'll buy it. If the library doesn't have it I'll just say "Ahh well" and move on.

JaneD · 02-02-2011, 06:58 PM

Camp Angel here - I wouldn't buy it; movin' on to other ebooks. However, my motives aren't entirely angelic: like carld, my eyesight makes it hard for me to read smaller print in DTBs. And I'm too lazy/vain/cheap to buy eyeglasses just for reading.

Lirael · 02-02-2011, 07:29 PM

I won't buy it new. I *will* write a polite letter to the publisher expressing my dissatisfaction and my desire for the diversification of their ebook catalogue.

I'll attempt to get it from the library. If I can, yay! If not, I generally shrug my shoulders and move on to something else, unless, for some reason, it is a book that I absolutely positively 100% must read now, in which case I'll see if I can find a used copy. I'm hesitant to give publishers money for pbooks when I would prefer it if they gave more support to ebooks.

voracious71 · 02-02-2011, 07:42 PM

I still read DTBs..if I see it at the library in a DT version and there's a wait list for the ebook version, DT version it is.

I hardly ever buy DTBs anymore though.

susan_cassidy · 02-02-2011, 07:51 PM

I have bad eyes, and my Kindle has saved me. I don't buy DTBs any more for novels (and I read more than one a week, usually). If it isn't an ebook for novels, I just don't read it. I read an occasional astronomy or history book. For stuff with lots of pictures, I still get an occasional DTB.

vulcan_girl · 02-02-2011, 08:22 PM

If it's a book I want to read, I want to read the book and the format it's in doesn't matter. When people say they'll just read something else, I wonder if they mean until it's available or never if it doesn't. I find that I want a particular book, not just 'a' book but that doesn't seem to apply to everyone.

jocampo · 02-02-2011, 08:28 PM

If not available, I buy the paper book format from Amazon. But I must admit that if that happens, I already took Internet upside down in order to find the ebook version.

dordale · 02-02-2011, 08:30 PM

I'd buy the DTV...I still love to read paper books--about 50% of my reading is done on my eReaders, the rest is paper books. I love both and would hate to give up either!

dordale

David71 · 02-02-2011, 08:56 PM

A few weeks ago I was looking for What to Listen For in Music by Aaron Copland and saw that it was only available in paperback. I waited a couple of weeks while I finished reading a few other books and then went back to order it. Amazon had a note stating that it would be released for Kindle on the first day of February so I waited and bought that version yesterday. I'm glad I could buy it for my reader but would have been perfectly fine with reading the DTV.

I actually read DTVs on a regular basis as my local library doesn't do the ebook thing and since I have a Kindle I don't suppose that would help me anyway. My point is that I just enjoy the experience of reading and don't really care what form the book might take. I must say, however, that probably 75% of my reading is done on my Kindle.

Lo Zeno · 02-03-2011, 03:37 AM

I bought my e-reader to help me read more, I don't read because I have an e-reader. So yes, if I don't find the eBook version of a book, I'll try to obtain the paper version. Of course, since my home actually has very little space (I recently moved into a bilocal), I will not keep it, so I prefer first looking for it in the local library and then see if a friend can lend it to me. Buying one is the last option.

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02-02-2011, 04:42 PM	#31
issybird o saeclum infacetum Posts: 21,154 Karma: 234348875 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: New England Device: Mini, H2O, Glo HD, Aura One, PW4, PW5	Read the DTB, of course. There are a LOT of books out there that will never be digitized. Not old enough for Gutenberg/not popular enough to be sold. I'm not going to cut myself off categorically from a host of treasures. Nor am I going to scan, etc., even for personal use. I'll add a price component. If it's an agency ebook that costs $14.99 or more, and I can get it at Amazon for little over the cost of shipping, I choose option B. I've always got a few books going at once and so long as they're not all DTBs and not as portable or reading-in-bed friendly, why not?

02-02-2011, 04:57 PM	#32
caleb72 Indie Advocate Posts: 2,863 Karma: 18794463 Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Melbourne, Australia Device: Kindle	I will still go DTB if I want the book enough. In Australia we have the geographic restriction issue up to our ears, so this kind of decision possibly comes more often than for those in the U.S. Because I went ebook initially to stop accumulating paperbacks in my house, I do try to moderate my DTB purchases. Regards Caleb

02-02-2011, 06:17 PM	#33
Piper_ ~~~~~ Posts: 761 Karma: 1278391 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: USA Device: Kindle 3, Sony 350	This is actually a dilemma I recently dealt with that's kind of jaded me... Usually, I just hit the "tell the publisher" link and wait, since buying the paper version is a demotivator for their publishing of e-versions. But recently, I caved. There are a lot of historical fiction books/trilogies I've been dying to read, about the time period and people I'm into, that after 2-5 years are still available in paper-only. So I finally went ahead and ordered the pbook of one, thinking I could then just go to this wondrous darknet to get an ebook copy to actually read. (a Camp Middle-Grounder here.) Alas, I couldn't find it (or, heck, any historical fiction) down there (at least not in the obvious places I know about), and I was stuck with the paper version. At first, I wasn't too miffed. I love my paper books, and I probably would have bought the p-trilogy anyway, after being sure I loved the book. But I couldn't half-enjoy reading the book, due to my being under the weather and its being heavy with tiny print. So now I'll have to scan it and make my own ebook copy. Meh. What jaded me though, was googling around and seeing some of the authors' and publishers' attitudes toward ebooks, and then adding those to some of the prices of the ones they do have out - ebooks priced higher - up to double the cost of the paper version. Anyway, before all this, I would have done what I intended - I'm die-hard about making sure authors get paid, especially since the books I like take so much research and effort. But now, I'm feeling so miffed about it, I'm not only refusing to buy the pbooks retail, I've been half-tempted to buy them from Half-Priced books, just out of spite. lol

02-02-2011, 06:24 PM	#34
Elfwreck Grand Sorcerer Posts: 5,187 Karma: 25133758 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: SF Bay Area, California, USA Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3 (Past: Kobo Mini, PEZ, PRS-505, Clié)	Buy DBT used, probably from Amazon. Chop spine off book at work. (We have a print center.) Scan book; run tiffs through deskew program; throw into FineReader to auto-OCR. Call that half an hour. Could be an hour if the pages are being troublesome. The auto-OCR might take a while, but I won't be watching it for that. Export as RTF (yeah, without correction, which means it's gonna have a lot of OCR errors) Open in Word, strip out section breaks/page breaks; look for obvious chapter heading formatting & add page break before those. Fix font & paragraph formatting: make all 100% size, not condensed or expanded; make all single-spaced paragraphs; indent by .25"; increase font size until main body text is at least 14 pt. That's maybe 10 minutes of work. Add title & author doc info; save onto Sony Reader as RTF. Read ebook. If I really like it and intended to read it again, go back to FineReader & correct the OCR; re-export corrected version; do real formatting instead of quick-and-dirty conversion.

02-02-2011, 06:38 PM	#35
Clancy_s Zealot Posts: 133 Karma: 1010308 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Newcastle, NSW Device: Kobo Glo HD	Depends how old the book is - if published pre digital and not popular enough to be digitised yet I'd get a copy from a library or buy second hand. If new I'd skip it - there's only 2 authors I like enough to consider buying if they'd opted out of digital and they both happen to have opted in, with concurrent release of digital and p versions.

02-02-2011, 06:51 PM	#36
carld Wizard Posts: 2,698 Karma: 4748723 Join Date: Dec 2007 Device: Kindle Paperwhite	Reading DTBs is a strain on my eyes, so I mostly don't bother. If I can't get something as an ebook I might try to get it through the library. There's pretty much no chance that I'll buy it. If the library doesn't have it I'll just say "Ahh well" and move on.

02-02-2011, 06:58 PM	#37
JaneD Addict Posts: 322 Karma: 1057749 Join Date: May 2010 Location: LA, CA Device: Kindle Paperwhite 2013	Camp Angel here - I wouldn't buy it; movin' on to other ebooks. However, my motives aren't entirely angelic: like carld, my eyesight makes it hard for me to read smaller print in DTBs. And I'm too lazy/vain/cheap to buy eyeglasses just for reading.

02-02-2011, 07:29 PM	#38
Lirael Moomin Posts: 137 Karma: 202147 Join Date: Nov 2009 Device: Sony PRS-350	I won't buy it new. I will write a polite letter to the publisher expressing my dissatisfaction and my desire for the diversification of their ebook catalogue. I'll attempt to get it from the library. If I can, yay! If not, I generally shrug my shoulders and move on to something else, unless, for some reason, it is a book that I absolutely positively 100% must read now, in which case I'll see if I can find a used copy. I'm hesitant to give publishers money for pbooks when I would prefer it if they gave more support to ebooks.

02-02-2011, 07:42 PM	#39
voracious71 Addict Posts: 384 Karma: 1360936 Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Quahog, RI Device: Nook, Kindle PW4, Kobo Clara	I still read DTBs..if I see it at the library in a DT version and there's a wait list for the ebook version, DT version it is. I hardly ever buy DTBs anymore though.

02-02-2011, 07:51 PM	#40
susan_cassidy Wizard Posts: 2,251 Karma: 3720310 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: USA Device: Kindle, iPad (not used much for reading)	I have bad eyes, and my Kindle has saved me. I don't buy DTBs any more for novels (and I read more than one a week, usually). If it isn't an ebook for novels, I just don't read it. I read an occasional astronomy or history book. For stuff with lots of pictures, I still get an occasional DTB.

02-02-2011, 08:22 PM	#41
vulcan_girl Groupie Posts: 156 Karma: 1010345 Join Date: Jun 2009 Device: PRS 350	If it's a book I want to read, I want to read the book and the format it's in doesn't matter. When people say they'll just read something else, I wonder if they mean until it's available or never if it doesn't. I find that I want a particular book, not just 'a' book but that doesn't seem to apply to everyone.

02-02-2011, 08:28 PM	#42
jocampo Layback feline Posts: 3,034 Karma: 6980745 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: USA Device: Oasis 2nd gen, Sony DPTS1, iPad Pro 10.5"	If not available, I buy the paper book format from Amazon. But I must admit that if that happens, I already took Internet upside down in order to find the ebook version.

02-02-2011, 08:30 PM	#43
dordale Wizard Posts: 1,731 Karma: 3472866 Join Date: Apr 2008 Device: Sony PRS-650 & 350; Kindle Voyage; Kobo Aura HD, Aura One, and Forma	I'd buy the DTV...I still love to read paper books--about 50% of my reading is done on my eReaders, the rest is paper books. I love both and would hate to give up either! dordale

02-02-2011, 08:56 PM	#44
David71 Enthusiast Posts: 29 Karma: 12 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Ashland, AL Device: Kindle Touch	A few weeks ago I was looking for What to Listen For in Music by Aaron Copland and saw that it was only available in paperback. I waited a couple of weeks while I finished reading a few other books and then went back to order it. Amazon had a note stating that it would be released for Kindle on the first day of February so I waited and bought that version yesterday. I'm glad I could buy it for my reader but would have been perfectly fine with reading the DTV. I actually read DTVs on a regular basis as my local library doesn't do the ebook thing and since I have a Kindle I don't suppose that would help me anyway. My point is that I just enjoy the experience of reading and don't really care what form the book might take. I must say, however, that probably 75% of my reading is done on my Kindle.

02-03-2011, 03:37 AM	#45
Lo Zeno Addict Posts: 202 Karma: 4379 Join Date: May 2009 Location: Italy Device: Hanlin V3 (with lBook firmware & OpenInkPot)	I bought my e-reader to help me read more, I don't read because I have an e-reader. So yes, if I don't find the eBook version of a book, I'll try to obtain the paper version. Of course, since my home actually has very little space (I recently moved into a bilocal), I will not keep it, so I prefer first looking for it in the local library and then see if a friend can lend it to me. Buying one is the last option.