Ebook Readers Obsolete? - Page 2

yvanleterrible · 10-17-2007, 10:23 AM

While reading TadW's post in a diagonal fashion my eyes skipped from two expressions at the same time. What I read was "Book Processor".
I like it! In fact, I like it more than 'EBook reader', 'Reader' and all the ones we use.

What do you think of 'Book Processor' ?

NatCh · 10-17-2007, 11:28 AM

It's got a nice ring to it.

vivaldirules · 10-17-2007, 11:32 AM

I thought we were the book processors, no? Maybe you're right and my Sony is the processor and I'm the digestor. Okay, I could handle that.

yvanleterrible · 10-17-2007, 11:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vivaldirules

I thought we were the book processors, no? Maybe you're right and my Sony is the processor and I'm the digestor. Okay, I could handle that.

If you're a digestor you're a source of energy but please! Not in public!

Adam B. · 10-17-2007, 02:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TadW

I couldn't help but spill the bourbon and coke in my hands when I read this.

That post was made at 6:00 am in my time. Little early to be drinking isn't it?

Hadrien · 10-17-2007, 02:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Adam B.

That post was made at 6:00 am in my time. Little early to be drinking isn't it?

... or a little too late ? ;-)

nekokami · 10-17-2007, 02:58 PM

"Full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." Or, to paraphrase someone else's quote, "It's content, stupid."

I don't need to have my books reformatted to flash and wiggle and beep. I just want good stuff to read.

Sometimes I wonder what planet marketing types are really from. Then I remember how much people spend on colored fizzy sugar water....

NatCh · 10-17-2007, 03:13 PM

Hey! I like colored, fizzy sugar-water!

Alisa · 10-17-2007, 03:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nekokami

"Full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." Or, to paraphrase someone else's quote, "It's content, stupid."

I don't need to have my books reformatted to flash and wiggle and beep. I just want good stuff to read.

Sometimes I wonder what planet marketing types are really from. Then I remember how much people spend on colored fizzy sugar water....

I think the content model in their minds is what they think most people want to read: stuff like US magazine only with video clips. I do think the ephemeral nature of periodicals lends itself to electronic publishing and since it is advertiser-driven, they will want more splash, color and animation. Still, I think it is a far reach to say that a plain old book that is only text is obsolete. There are still plenty of us out there that love them and will continue to do so, but when you look at the entire consumption of the written word in dollar amounts, we're probably not the biggest market.

nekokami · 10-17-2007, 03:49 PM

You're probably right about what advertisers (and possibly magazine publishers) are thinking, but this is the way web pages have gone, and in my opinion many websites are nearly completely unusable because of all that "glitter." It may be the case that many digital magazines will end up looking like those websites.

Then again, I can see the value of publishing a magazine like MAKE or Scientific American with some video or animation to illustrate complex processes or ideas. Some non-fiction books might use this to good advantage, too. (E.g. Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time.)

But I still say, I read fiction, I like reading fiction, I don't want noise and movement in my fiction, and I think I'm not the only one!

Ok, I'll calm down now. I'll just go make a pot of tea, shall I?

yvanleterrible · 10-17-2007, 04:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nekokami

You're probably right about what advertisers (and possibly magazine publishers) are thinking, but this is the way web pages have gone, and in my opinion many websites are nearly completely unusable because of all that "glitter." It may be the case that many digital magazines will end up looking like those websites.

Then again, I can see the value of publishing a magazine like MAKE or Scientific American with some video or animation to illustrate complex processes or ideas. Some non-fiction books might use this to good advantage, too. (E.g. Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time.)

But I still say, I read fiction, I like reading fiction, I don't want noise and movement in my fiction, and I think I'm not the only one!

Ok, I'll calm down now. I'll just go make a pot of tea, shall I?

Not even a laser blast... or a tiny Tribble peep?

nekokami · 10-17-2007, 04:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yvanleterrible

Not even a laser blast... or a tiny Tribble peep?

NO!

Um... but sung versions of Tolkein's elvish songs or other examples of spoken "constructed" languages would be ok.

(Can you tell I've got my tea now?)

Alisa · 10-17-2007, 05:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nekokami

You're probably right about what advertisers (and possibly magazine publishers) are thinking, but this is the way web pages have gone, and in my opinion many websites are nearly completely unusable because of all that "glitter." It may be the case that many digital magazines will end up looking like those websites.

I totally agree about websites now. I've gotten pretty good at tuning those ads out, but I'll occasionally leave a site if it gets too annoying. I would assume they've studied this, though, and decided it makes them more money in the long run, just not from folks like you and me. I wonder if it's just another symptom of me not being the consumer they're after. Actually, I'm not much of a consumer in general. I don't shop much. I actively try not to acquire superfluous stuff. I'm downright un-American. I'm probably a waste of time from the perspective of most marketeers.

nekokami · 10-18-2007, 09:38 AM

You and me both, Alisa.

I don't think website developers have studied this issue as thoroughly as one might think, though. Some advertisers/marketers, yes, but I think a lot of web admins just do what they've seen done elsewhere, and there's a lot of experimentation going on.

I think Google actually did a study that supported the effectiveness of their text-based ads, and I also seem to recall some study supporting "pop-under" ads, but I don't remember the details.

IceHand · 10-18-2007, 12:09 PM

Actually anything that looks like an ad will in most cases be ignored by the casual user, so Google's text-based ads are probably more effective than the flashy ones.

Look here for an interesting read about fancy formatting that gets ignored even if it's not an ad: http://www.useit.com/alertbox/fancy-formatting.html

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10-17-2007, 10:23 AM	#16
yvanleterrible Reborn Paper User Posts: 8,616 Karma: 15446734 Join Date: May 2006 Location: Que Nada Device: iPhone8, iPad Air	While reading TadW's post in a diagonal fashion my eyes skipped from two expressions at the same time. What I read was "Book Processor". I like it! In fact, I like it more than 'EBook reader', 'Reader' and all the ones we use. What do you think of 'Book Processor' ?

10-17-2007, 11:28 AM	#17
NatCh Gizmologist Posts: 11,615 Karma: 929550 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Republic of Texas Embassy at Jackson, TN Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3	It's got a nice ring to it.

10-17-2007, 11:32 AM	#18
vivaldirules When's Doughnut Day? Posts: 10,059 Karma: 13675475 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Houston, TX, US Device: Sony PRS-505, iPad	I thought we were the book processors, no? Maybe you're right and my Sony is the processor and I'm the digestor. Okay, I could handle that.

10-17-2007, 02:58 PM	#22
nekokami fruminous edugeek Posts: 6,745 Karma: 551260 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Northeast US Device: iPad, eBw 1150	"Full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." Or, to paraphrase someone else's quote, "It's content, stupid." I don't need to have my books reformatted to flash and wiggle and beep. I just want good stuff to read. Sometimes I wonder what planet marketing types are really from. Then I remember how much people spend on colored fizzy sugar water....

10-17-2007, 03:13 PM	#23
NatCh Gizmologist Posts: 11,615 Karma: 929550 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Republic of Texas Embassy at Jackson, TN Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3	Hey! I like colored, fizzy sugar-water!

10-17-2007, 03:49 PM	#25
nekokami fruminous edugeek Posts: 6,745 Karma: 551260 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Northeast US Device: iPad, eBw 1150	You're probably right about what advertisers (and possibly magazine publishers) are thinking, but this is the way web pages have gone, and in my opinion many websites are nearly completely unusable because of all that "glitter." It may be the case that many digital magazines will end up looking like those websites. Then again, I can see the value of publishing a magazine like MAKE or Scientific American with some video or animation to illustrate complex processes or ideas. Some non-fiction books might use this to good advantage, too. (E.g. Stephen Hawking's A Brief History of Time.) But I still say, I read fiction, I like reading fiction, I don't want noise and movement in my fiction, and I think I'm not the only one! Ok, I'll calm down now. I'll just go make a pot of tea, shall I?

10-18-2007, 09:38 AM	#29
nekokami fruminous edugeek Posts: 6,745 Karma: 551260 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Northeast US Device: iPad, eBw 1150	You and me both, Alisa. I don't think website developers have studied this issue as thoroughly as one might think, though. Some advertisers/marketers, yes, but I think a lot of web admins just do what they've seen done elsewhere, and there's a lot of experimentation going on. I think Google actually did a study that supported the effectiveness of their text-based ads, and I also seem to recall some study supporting "pop-under" ads, but I don't remember the details.

10-18-2007, 12:09 PM	#30
IceHand Linux User Posts: 323 Karma: 13682 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany Device: Kindle 3	Actually anything that looks like an ad will in most cases be ignored by the casual user, so Google's text-based ads are probably more effective than the flashy ones. Look here for an interesting read about fancy formatting that gets ignored even if it's not an ad: http://www.useit.com/alertbox/fancy-formatting.html

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