A conversation on the joys/benefits of e-reading :)

[Timboli]

I have to say the transition from physical books to ebooks was pretty seamless for me.

I read now at my age when I have a urge to read something in particular. In the past, I would have read from boredom a lot of the time, but these days we have so many options and distractions, I actually read less.

I used to for many years, read over a 100 books a year, many quite thick. The last two years, I have broken even with 10 each year. So far this year, I have already passed that, so it is a variable thing depending on so many factors, and nothing to do with being an ebook, which I now prefer to read, but doesn't dictate what I read or how often.

Yes, ebooks have a sort of convenience, but unlike others have said, I find it just as challenging to decide on what to read next as in the past with my collection of physical books. I guess it depends on how organized you are, and I am very organised. But with so many, it is still a challenge, and often about gauging what mood you are in.

Browsing an organised series of physical bookcases is really not all that different, to browsing a list on your device. If anything though, quicker and easier to pull out a book and check the blurb than doing so with an ebook.

Several years back, I started reading books in a specific order, forcing myself to always stick to that ... not that I always did. It was a way of sensibly getting through my huge backlog, but in the end I think it affected my reading Mojo, and just less got read overall. Chiefly because reading a book you are not really in the mood for, slows you down and gets put aside at the slightest pretext. Sometimes I would fall into the trap of moving onto another book, but depending on the genre, I try to keep things from getting mixed in my head, especially when going back to a book after a significant absence. Sometimes I would develop a bad vibe for a perfectly good book, because I was not in the mood to struggle on with it. Coming back to one of those books was always difficult, though some turned out true gems in the end ... no doubt my mood had changed to one more suitable.

I still try to read in something like that order I devised, but far less strictly now. Part of that, is because of the issues mentioned and partly because I have come to the acceptance I cannot possibly read all I have in the Earthly years remaining to me. So now, perceived pleasure is the main governing factor, and I tend to organize ahead based on that, but with great flexibility.

If I have just finished a murder mystery and are still in the mood for that, then I will read another one, perhaps by a different author ... instead of moving onto Fantasy or Scifi or some other genre. I also try to mix up old and new publications, but generally read an author by the order their books were published, regardless of series or not.

Getting back to the main question.

The one real benefit for me with ebooks, is font size, and that is not across the board, as many physical books are perfectly okay. Aside from that, everything else is just a bonus, and I perfectly understand why so many still haven't moved to ebooks. That said, I perfectly understand others feel differently and good on them.

The one thing I both love and hate about ebooks, is the uniformity ... sure you can have variance of font type, but its more than that.