Do you buy ebook versions of books you already own?

[chlorine]

On the 6 books I've read on my cybook so far, three were paper books I owned and wanted to read, and two are books I could have borrowed in french edition to a close friend, but chose to read in english on the cybook (they were rather thick books, which helped in the decision).
(frankly as I write this I'm a bit appalled at this total, having read so few 'new' books on it makes my cybook look like a toy. But I plan to catch up in the future by reading books available freely!)

In the future, I'm like many others here and would ideally like to get an ebook version of the books I really liked, to always have them with me. As for many others, I have the price/availibility problem (but the availibility problem is so huge that it may well cancel the price problem), and I add a third one: current lack of folder support for the cybook. Having a large library on it does not seem manageable without it.

Originally Posted by Idoine

BTW, I'd like to have the books of my favorite Sci-Fi french author as ebooks as well

May I ask which author this is?

[HistoryWes]

I've only been buying ebooks since I got my 505, but I imagine that I'll have a few thousand paper books until I die. I have bought a few ebooks that I read in the past but no longer have a paper edition of, but I haven't bought any that I still have. Then again, many of my most beloved books are available as free ebooks, here and at feedbooks and manybooks. Those I am happily downloading and looking forward to reading again.

[Idoine]

Originally Posted by chlorine

...May I ask which author this is?

P.-J. Hérault !

[wodin]

Only very rarely, and if I do, I probably already have multiple copies of pBooks. For instance I will probably buy Tolkien's recently published eBooks; even though I already own several copies of pBook. The same would be the case if J.K. Rowling ever decides to publish her Harry Potter series on eBook. (no, I don't want a bootlegged copy)

[chlorine]

Originally Posted by Idoine

P.-J. Hérault !

I must confess I think I've never even heard of him... I'll check his books out when I get a chance!

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by wodin

The same would be the case if J.K. Rowling ever decides to publish her Harry Potter series on eBook. (no, I don't want a bootlegged copy)

"Harry Potter and the Unauthorised Ebook"

[ruth1304]

I have started replacing some pbooks when I can get an ebook for free, but I don't see the point in paying again for a book I already own even though I much prefer reading on my 505 - or at least not while there are new books to buy!

Also as a literature student, I wrote lots of notes on some of my books. This isn't easy for me to replace and means the pbook probably isn't much use to other people. If I do get rid of pbooks I try to make sure they go to a good home, I don't throw away books until they fall apart!

[Idoine]

Originally Posted by chlorine

I must confess I think I've never even heard of him... I'll check his books out when I get a chance!

He was published in the 80's -90's in Fleuve Noir Anticipation collection.
Now he's published by "Rivière Blanche" and "Les Editions de l'Officine".

[felixdoppler]

No, I make them. For me it started with a certain young wizard, I had typed up two books before I discovered that I could find almost anything online. Since then I have dl'd and converted them myself.

[Mrgauth]

Not only do I not buy them I hardly buy any ebooks. I have had my reader for over a year and only bought maybe 5 books. Most I read are free ebooks or paper. 99.9 percent of the time when I discover a book I want to read I first check the ebook version, which usually comes to about $9.99. Then I go to my local used book store and find a new condition used one for less than 1/2 that and buy it because I am not paying a 50% surcharge for an ebook. Til the prices drop considerably I may not make a dozen purchases in my ereaders lifetime. If they never drop then I won't buy an ereader after this one is gone most likely.

Short answer, no. I would love to, but....

[ImogenRose]

I sometimes do the opposite... buy paper/hardbacks of books I really love. I have never purchased an ebook of a book I have already.

[simplyparticular]

For literary fiction or nonfiction, no.

But for genre fiction, especially series' that aren't completed, I have repurchased pBooks as eBooks. It makes it so much easier to reread earlier books when a new volume comes out.

Bree

[Worldwalker]

I've bought a number of books I already own as ebooks. The complete P.C. Hodgell "Kencyr" series (I had all but one as pbooks), the Lankhmar books, Vonda McIntyre's Dreamsnake (which also got me a very nice letter from the author regarding my hope for other early books), two of the Wiz Zumwalt books, and some others. The reasons vary. Several of my Hodgell pbooks are collector's items, and I'd rather read them on my 505 than risk damaging them. My Lankhmar books are in sorry shape, and I've read two copies of Dreamsnake to pieces, so I wanted damage-proof editions. I wanted all the Wiz stories, which I had only some of in pbooks, so I bought the set (some of which are on the BFL, by the way, but of course only the ones I had in pbooks). Basically, I buy books that haven't held up well in physical form (often because I bought them used), or books that are part of a series that I have most of as ebooks, even if I have some of as pbooks, because I'm more than a bit OCD about complete sets.

I am, obviously, a re-reader. I like to revisit old favorites. And I have thousands of pbooks, so anything that can reduce the cubic footage (and weight on the floor) is a good thing.

Unfortunately, many of the books I'd like to replace are DRM-restricted. Yes, I know I could strip the DRM, but that isn't the issue. I won't support companies that use it; for what tiny difference it might make, I'm voting with my wallet. Otherwise I'd have the every available work byTolkien, and a whole lot more.

On the plus side, it looks like Baen is bringing out a lot of the Heinlein juveniles as ebooks. I'm waiting for a package deal on all of them.

There's also the matter of classics. Free eebooks (downloaded from here, PG, etc.) are replacing a lot of those, such as my rather musty set of Scott's "Waverly" novels (from an estate sale), and my Dickens, Twain, Poe, etc. Except that there are some I don't want to give up the pbooks of, even though I have a nice portable version on my 505. Sometimes the physical books have sentimental value, especially those received as gifts. Other times, they're something I want to collect for their own sake (such as my Ace "shorties" of Burroughs novels, with those awesome Frazetta covers) but want to read in portable form as well.

So ... basically ... it depends.

[lib2b]

For me, the answer is "sometimes." Fortunately, some of my old favorites that I love to re-read are public domain and available from many places as free e-books (Jane Austen, Anne of Green Gables, the Oz books, etc.). I absolutely downloaded those books to keep on my Nook even though I have pbook versions of all of them (and in the case of the Oz books, nice illustrated hardcover copies). I don't plan to get rid of the pbook versions, but I like having the portability of the e-books.

There are a couple of other authors or series that I like to re-read on occasion that I would consider buying again as e-books *if* they were DRM-free, and unless I really loved the covers, I'd then consider getting rid of my pbook copies, especially for the books that are really thick/heavy. I also keep my eyes peeled for promotional free e-book copies in the series and pick them up when I find them. I like this trend that seems to be emerging of authors offering up the first book in a series as a free e-book for a limited time to promote the release of the latest book in the series.

Mostly, I've just started buying e-books instead of pbooks, although in some cases, if I read an e-book and really, really love it, I may go back and re-purchase it as a pbook in order to be able to lend it, or if it has an especially lovely cover or interior illustrations.

I'm also more inclined to replace a pbook with an e-book if my pbook copy is falling apart and no longer in print or a paperback that is likely to not hold up to repeated readings.

[Bookster]

Er, no except for a couple of books I really needed into their own language and not in the horrible tranlation they were given in pbooks. In this case, I didn't even add them to my book DB. Technically, they're already registered.

It's more a question of how one perceive a book, IMHO- is it a physical thing or something else (a series of words in a certain order, for example)? Interesting topic...