Have ebooks changed your reading habits? - Page 2

Barty · 06-27-2015, 12:12 PM

I just read more novels and narrative non fiction now that they are physically easier for me to do. I have poor eyesight and some physical handicaps.

ZodWallop · 06-27-2015, 02:37 PM

Since I got my Nook a few years back, I haven't read a paper book.

One way e-books have changed my reading habits is I read more classics. I enjoy downloading from Project Gutenberg and other free PD books.

Like (I'm assuming) most everyone else here, I have WAAAAAY too many books in my house. Surprisingly, I've noticed I don't have a big emotional attachment to my paper books. If I have an e-book version, I can happily donate/toss the paper book, live a more Spartan life.

GeoffR · 06-27-2015, 03:57 PM

The main change since getting an ereader is that I now buy most of my books new, because the ebooks are so much cheaper than paper, and that has had quite an effect on what I read.

Before I relied mainly on library borrowing and buying second-hand paperbacks, and so I didn't always read what I would have most liked to read, but instead made do with what was available. As a result I often only read one or two of an author's books or of a series, simply because the rest were either out of print, hard to find, too expensive to buy new, or too expensive to ship from overseas.

Now I am reading a lot of the backlist that I missed out on before, including re-reading and completing series that I had only read a few books from before.

Jack Torrance · 06-27-2015, 07:07 PM

Mostly in the area of clutter. A few years back, and I had a K2 for a while,, I was cleaning out a storage building and came across books I had been lugging around for years. I decided I'm done and took a yellow pad and a pen and started writing down authors names and book titles and aside from those I considered my collections I donated them all to the local animal humane society and started to rebuild my library in e-book form.

I buy the occasional hardback and may pick up a used paperback on occasion but even the. I prefer the kindle version.

My wife on the other hand still will only read a pbook and they arrive in the mail on a regular basis.

Atunah · 06-27-2015, 07:50 PM

Well first and most important my habits have changed from not reading at all anymore to being able to again. My first ebooks I read with my first kindle in 2008. My eyes could not handle the small font anymore and my hands hurt with paperbacks. And the smell of some of the old used books.

I also have one bookshelf only now for space. I used to borrow a lot of paper books before and bought and resold to not keep to much in the house.

I read much more now, its just easier on e-ink for my eyes. Its easier to follow series now.

And one of the most happy things I found was back list. In the genre I most like to read the 90's and early 2000's were haydays of some of the best of books. Yet, many were out of print and often with a very high price for a nasty old books. I am so happy to see a lot of this backlist being out there for me to read finally. Or again.

I been able to read and find more books in the genres/subgenres I like now with ebooks. Partly of course because of all the social media and online readers that have also embraced ebooks.

I read about twice a fast on e-ink compared to paperback, so I can now read twice as many books in a year. Win win

ZodWallop · 06-28-2015, 01:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Atunah

And one of the most happy things I found was back list. In the genre I most like to read the 90's and early 2000's were haydays of some of the best of books. Yet, many were out of print and often with a very high price for a nasty old books. I am so happy to see a lot of this backlist being out there for me to read finally. Or again.

Oh yeah. I love finding re-released stuff. Mid-list writers are getting a second chance, republishing old cult classics. And they tend to be cheap. $1.99, $2.99. Such a deal!

cromag · 06-28-2015, 02:09 AM

I first started reading "ebooks" in the 80s when I could get some classics, public domain novels, and reference books as text files on CD-ROMs. But even then, I had to read them on the computer screen -- I had no way to carry them around with me. I've been doing much, much more reading since I got a JetBook Lite, my first ereader.

The first reason is portability. When I go to get some work done on my car, accompany a relative to a doctor's appointment, etc., I can bring an ereader and choose from hundreds of ebooks. I especially like short (and very short) stories in these cases, and in the ebook world it's much easier to get short stories -- you can buy them (lots of them!) individually -- as opposed to the paper world, where you have to buy magazines or anthologies. Of course, I do also buy ebook magazines and anthologies.

And cost is very different for much (but not all) of the ebook world. It's not unusual for the first book in a series to be offered free or at a steep discount, so I'm much more likely to take a chance on a new series that I might like. I think that I go on to buy additional books in these series about half the time, so this strategy is paying off for quite a few authors.

I do still haunt a local used book store, mostly for old paperbacks and science fiction magazines that aren't available as ebooks, yet. But not as often as I used to.

GERGE · 06-28-2015, 04:01 AM

Turkey has a nice system for ordering books. I could order any in-print book with its stock price and have it delivered to me for free, but it took a month. So the biggest benefit for me was not waiting for a month.

For books out-of-print, I usually ordered from Abebooks; but as many out-of-print books are still not available as ebooks, this isn't changed that much.

Of course, the boom in genre fiction is very nice too.

roseprose · 06-28-2015, 12:47 PM

My habits have changed so much that when I read a paper book, I'm shocked that the size of the print can't be adjusted and there is no easy way to look up the meaning of arcane words, British slang, for instance.

DrNefario · 06-28-2015, 01:50 PM

I still read plenty of paper books, but I think ebooks have changed my reading in two main ways:

- It's so much easier to get hold of things. It's easy to look them up. Easy to buy them. And you can start reading pretty much instantly. I'm never really stuck reading something I don't care for. I used to pick up cheap books that might be ok just because I might otherwise get stuck with nothing new to read. That's never going to happen again.

- Availability. Even if I don't have my reader with me, I'm still likely to have my phone, and it's easy to make sure I have a few short story collections on there. I can take one ereader on holiday and not worry about running out of reading matter.

DiapDealer · 06-28-2015, 02:14 PM

Ebooks been berry, berry good to me.

Apache · 06-28-2015, 03:22 PM

I am ehooked on ebooks. I still have my PB collection, but they are for emergencies like a long complete power failure.
Apache

pwalker8 · 06-28-2015, 05:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Apache

I am ehooked on ebooks. I still have my PB collection, but they are for emergencies like a long complete power failure.
Apache

That's why I have

1) a Kudo solar powered battery case for my iPad (both iPad and iPad mini)
2) a mophie case for my iPhone
3) a mophie battery pack that will recharge my iPad twice (it also holds a charge for a very long time)
4) multiple UPS's.
5) a solar charger from Solio.

and as a last resort, a Sony PRS-T2 which will last for up to two weeks on a charge. (Just need to remember to keep my calbre library synced with my laptop and lots of batteries for the flashlight).

As long as it's not the zombie apocalypse, I'm set!

cromag · 06-28-2015, 06:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Apache

I am ehooked on ebooks. I still have my PB collection, but they are for emergencies like a long complete power failure.
Apache

Quote:

Originally Posted by pwalker8

That's why I have

1) a Kudo solar powered battery case for my iPad (both iPad and iPad mini)
2) a mophie case for my iPhone
3) a mophie battery pack that will recharge my iPad twice (it also holds a charge for a very long time)
4) multiple UPS's.
5) a solar charger from Solio.

and as a last resort, a Sony PRS-T2 which will last for up to two weeks on a charge. (Just need to remember to keep my calbre library synced with my laptop and lots of batteries for the flashlight).

As long as it's not the zombie apocalypse, I'm set!

My JetBook Lite and an economy-sized pack of AAs. I've already been through a couple of extended outages, most recently post-Sandy, and being able to read something wasn't one of my problems!

PandathePanda · 06-29-2015, 01:03 AM

I normally read what was available. Reading a series from the beginning to the end was most of the times not possible.

Currently I read a lot more, as ebooks make reading a lot more affordable, and easier, as the nearest bookstore is about 150-200 km away, and a decent bookstore is between 300-400 km.I still read pBooks, Mostly "ancient" ones, those that's not yet digitized (and until I get a Scanner won't be)

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06-27-2015, 12:12 PM	#16
Barty doofus Posts: 2,551 Karma: 13089041 Join Date: Sep 2010 Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kindle Voyage	I just read more novels and narrative non fiction now that they are physically easier for me to do. I have poor eyesight and some physical handicaps.

06-27-2015, 02:37 PM	#17
ZodWallop Gentleman and scholar Posts: 11,480 Karma: 111164374 Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Space City, Texas Device: Clara BW; Nook ST w/Glowlight, Paperwhite 3	Since I got my Nook a few years back, I haven't read a paper book. One way e-books have changed my reading habits is I read more classics. I enjoy downloading from Project Gutenberg and other free PD books. Like (I'm assuming) most everyone else here, I have WAAAAAY too many books in my house. Surprisingly, I've noticed I don't have a big emotional attachment to my paper books. If I have an e-book version, I can happily donate/toss the paper book, live a more Spartan life.

06-27-2015, 03:57 PM	#18
GeoffR Wizard Posts: 3,821 Karma: 19162882 Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Te Riu-a-Māui Device: Kobo Glo	The main change since getting an ereader is that I now buy most of my books new, because the ebooks are so much cheaper than paper, and that has had quite an effect on what I read. Before I relied mainly on library borrowing and buying second-hand paperbacks, and so I didn't always read what I would have most liked to read, but instead made do with what was available. As a result I often only read one or two of an author's books or of a series, simply because the rest were either out of print, hard to find, too expensive to buy new, or too expensive to ship from overseas. Now I am reading a lot of the backlist that I missed out on before, including re-reading and completing series that I had only read a few books from before.

06-27-2015, 07:07 PM	#19
Jack Torrance “Here’s Johnny Posts: 186 Karma: 3863056 Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Overlook Hotel Colorado Device: Kindle DXG - 9.7 iPad - iPhone 12PM - Macbook Pro	Mostly in the area of clutter. A few years back, and I had a K2 for a while,, I was cleaning out a storage building and came across books I had been lugging around for years. I decided I'm done and took a yellow pad and a pen and started writing down authors names and book titles and aside from those I considered my collections I donated them all to the local animal humane society and started to rebuild my library in e-book form. I buy the occasional hardback and may pick up a used paperback on occasion but even the. I prefer the kindle version. My wife on the other hand still will only read a pbook and they arrive in the mail on a regular basis.

06-27-2015, 07:50 PM	#20
Atunah Wizard Posts: 1,817 Karma: 23400001 Join Date: May 2012 Location: USA Device: K1/K3/BasicK Voyage/Oasis1/Oasis3	Well first and most important my habits have changed from not reading at all anymore to being able to again. My first ebooks I read with my first kindle in 2008. My eyes could not handle the small font anymore and my hands hurt with paperbacks. And the smell of some of the old used books. I also have one bookshelf only now for space. I used to borrow a lot of paper books before and bought and resold to not keep to much in the house. I read much more now, its just easier on e-ink for my eyes. Its easier to follow series now. And one of the most happy things I found was back list. In the genre I most like to read the 90's and early 2000's were haydays of some of the best of books. Yet, many were out of print and often with a very high price for a nasty old books. I am so happy to see a lot of this backlist being out there for me to read finally. Or again. I been able to read and find more books in the genres/subgenres I like now with ebooks. Partly of course because of all the social media and online readers that have also embraced ebooks. I read about twice a fast on e-ink compared to paperback, so I can now read twice as many books in a year. Win win

06-28-2015, 02:09 AM	#22
cromag Surfin the alpha waves ~~ Posts: 26,381 Karma: 459765791 Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: New Jersey Device: Jetbook Lite & Mini, Nook STR, Kobo, Hanvon N516, Kindle 2, Androids	I first started reading "ebooks" in the 80s when I could get some classics, public domain novels, and reference books as text files on CD-ROMs. But even then, I had to read them on the computer screen -- I had no way to carry them around with me. I've been doing much, much more reading since I got a JetBook Lite, my first ereader. The first reason is portability. When I go to get some work done on my car, accompany a relative to a doctor's appointment, etc., I can bring an ereader and choose from hundreds of ebooks. I especially like short (and very short) stories in these cases, and in the ebook world it's much easier to get short stories -- you can buy them (lots of them!) individually -- as opposed to the paper world, where you have to buy magazines or anthologies. Of course, I do also buy ebook magazines and anthologies. And cost is very different for much (but not all) of the ebook world. It's not unusual for the first book in a series to be offered free or at a steep discount, so I'm much more likely to take a chance on a new series that I might like. I think that I go on to buy additional books in these series about half the time, so this strategy is paying off for quite a few authors. I do still haunt a local used book store, mostly for old paperbacks and science fiction magazines that aren't available as ebooks, yet. But not as often as I used to.

06-28-2015, 04:01 AM	#23
GERGE Guru Posts: 733 Karma: 5797160 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Istanbul Device: Kobo Libra	Turkey has a nice system for ordering books. I could order any in-print book with its stock price and have it delivered to me for free, but it took a month. So the biggest benefit for me was not waiting for a month. For books out-of-print, I usually ordered from Abebooks; but as many out-of-print books are still not available as ebooks, this isn't changed that much. Of course, the boom in genre fiction is very nice too.

06-28-2015, 12:47 PM	#24
roseprose Member Posts: 18 Karma: 9084 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Chicago, IL Device: Sony prs-950 daily edition	My habits have changed so much that when I read a paper book, I'm shocked that the size of the print can't be adjusted and there is no easy way to look up the meaning of arcane words, British slang, for instance.

06-28-2015, 01:50 PM	#25
DrNefario Wizard Posts: 2,207 Karma: 12029046 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: UK Device: Kindle, Kobo Touch, Nook SimpleTouch	I still read plenty of paper books, but I think ebooks have changed my reading in two main ways: - It's so much easier to get hold of things. It's easy to look them up. Easy to buy them. And you can start reading pretty much instantly. I'm never really stuck reading something I don't care for. I used to pick up cheap books that might be ok just because I might otherwise get stuck with nothing new to read. That's never going to happen again. - Availability. Even if I don't have my reader with me, I'm still likely to have my phone, and it's easy to make sure I have a few short story collections on there. I can take one ereader on holiday and not worry about running out of reading matter.

06-28-2015, 02:14 PM	#26
DiapDealer Grand Sorcerer Posts: 28,635 Karma: 204624552 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD	Ebooks been berry, berry good to me.

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06-28-2015, 03:22 PM	#27
Apache Readaholic Posts: 5,280 Karma: 90000484 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: South Georgia Device: Surface Pro 6 / Galaxy Tab A 8"	I am ehooked on ebooks. I still have my PB collection, but they are for emergencies like a long complete power failure. Apache

06-29-2015, 01:03 AM	#30
PandathePanda a toy panda Posts: 2,568 Karma: 26020474 Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Onboard the Queen Anne's Revenge Device: Various Android dvices	I normally read what was available. Reading a series from the beginning to the end was most of the times not possible. Currently I read a lot more, as ebooks make reading a lot more affordable, and easier, as the nearest bookstore is about 150-200 km away, and a decent bookstore is between 300-400 km.I still read pBooks, Mostly "ancient" ones, those that's not yet digitized (and until I get a Scanner won't be)