Official "I still love it" thread - Page 8

PsyDocJoanne · 09-25-2008, 08:37 PM

balok--

>And I'm saddened to see that you (and almost all Americans, so don't take this personally) find nothing wrong with consumerism and materialism, and that you believe that living 34 miles away from your work place justifies the pollution you produce.

I'm speaking only for myself, and not for all Americans, but I'm really curious how you suggest I get back and forth to work each day? I'm assuming you're unfamiliar with the economic or geographic situation in South Florida.

Let me give you a primer. We have no USEFUL public transportation system (feel free to Google that and verify it); we have a tiny Metro system that covers all of about 10 miles; we also have a Tri-Rail system that covers slightly more ground, but is very limited in scope (one north/south route, that's it). Our public buses do not run reliably, and there aren't many of them. I've done the math, and it would take me significantly longer to get to my office via public transportation (1.5 hours vs. ~50 minutes to an hour). South Florida is wholly and totally about commuting.

Why not just live closer to my office? Here's the economic part of the equation. To put it in easy to grasp terms, to rent an apartment near my office (which is in an extremely affluent area, and not of my choosing) might cost $1000-$1500/month, for a small one bedroom. To rent the same apartment, say, 30 miles away might be $750-$1000.

Despite my rampant consumerism <insert sarcasm here>, I can't justify that. So I'm all ears if you have a solution for me, other than driving a small, fuel-efficient car.

And on the subject of consumerism:

>(you Americans) find nothing wrong with consumerism and materialism

Not true. There are a lot of non-materialistic Americans who have curtailed their consumerism and live relatively austere lives. I'm not one of them. I like things, and I don't really see a problem with that. It stimulates the economy, for one thing; for another, those things often bring me pleasure. Did you know that in addition to my consumerism and materialism, I also do pro bono work; I donate vigorously to charities of my choosing; I recycle and make other environment-conscious efforts; and I volunteer my time? I feel just fine about how I'm doing with my responsibility to my neighbors, my community, and on the whole, my general environment.

I'm ready to put this to bed, balok. As I said, what once was fun is now just tedious.

balok · 09-25-2008, 09:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PsyDocJoanne

balok--

Quote:

And I'm saddened to see that you (and almost all Americans, so don't take this personally) find nothing wrong with consumerism and materialism, and that you believe that living 34 miles away from your work place justifies the pollution you produce.

We have no USEFUL public transportation system (feel free to Google that and verify it); we have a tiny Metro system that covers all of about 10 miles; we also have a Tri-Rail system that covers slightly more ground, but is very limited in scope (one north/south route, that's it). Our public buses do not run reliably, and there aren't many of them. I've done the math, and it would take me significantly longer to get to my office via public transportation (1.5 hours vs. ~50 minutes to an hour). South Florida is wholly and totally about commuting.

It's not the fact that you commute that I am denouncing, it's the fact that it doesn't seem to bother you. I can understand that you have to do it to make a living. But if you and others like you spoke out against it, and voted for leaders who share your views, then there WOULD be useful public transit, and cities would be designed in a way that would allow you to live near your office.

I live about 10km from work, and take public transit, which still produces greenhouse gas (albeit less than a private car). I would like to live downtown, but there's no reasonably-priced housing. Aware of this problem, I will vote for candidates who oppose urban sprawl and propose alternative work paradigms, such as telecommuting (working at home using a computer and phone).

P.S. If you find it tedious to reply, then don't!

PsyDocJoanne · 09-25-2008, 10:24 PM

balok, I'll PM you.

To everyone else, my apologies. This started as a great thread about why we love our Sony readers, and has disintegrated into antagonistic ramblings about things not even related to ebooks. I've been partially responsible for that, and for that, I'm sorry.

Moderators, please slash and burn all of the irrelevant content in this thread as you see fit.

pilotbob · 09-25-2008, 11:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PsyDocJoanne

...and you can also meet my husband

Oh, now you've gone and spoiled the innocent flirting fun. I guess you'll have to meet my wife too.

zelda_pinwheel · 09-25-2008, 11:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Oh, now you've gone and spoiled the innocent flirting fun. I guess you'll have to meet my wife too.

pfff !

Roy White · 09-26-2008, 01:30 AM

Pschdoc, I too reacted with a stunned... WWHHAAA??? When I read the comment "I've read everything of interest to me in the public domain." Wow theres like a Jillion books in the PD and I'm constantly finding new old Authors that are awesome. I download books by the dozens from this site and read 50 pages or so then abandon them without regret if they suck but I've found tons of great books. Although I have to admit that I almost fell asleep reading your list...
I can just see myself standing buried in the stacks at the library trying to decide if a book is worth lugging home just to abandon when it sours.
I'm reading The Last Day of a Condemned Man by Victor Hugo right now. Extremely contemporary Argument for the abolition of the death penalty written in 1830. A great read. Written from the standpoint of the condemned man in the last few hours of his life, his thoughts and feelings, its got me grabbed royally so I'm HUNKERED down with it right now readin away!!!

As for the argument in this thread... Could it be we have a troll among us who loves to just stir up the dust for the fun of watching it fly? hhhmmm..... FISH ON???>>??

Peto · 09-26-2008, 03:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by balok

A book wouldn't have made such a loud noise in a similar context, so you can throw books out your window without waking up neighbours.

What's with the car avatar, aren't you ashamed? That's like putting up a picture of a smoke stack, or a McDonald's burger, or a Wal-Mart... all icons of consumerism, pollution, materialism, and obesity.

Hahaha, but again, I didn't throw a book, I threw hundreds. Who would wake more neighbors?

astra · 09-26-2008, 06:07 AM

Unfortunatelly, I have not read even one book from public domain on my Sony Reader and I am not going to in a near future, let's say 10 years at least. I read only contemporary books and find public domain extremelly boring.

Dr. Drib · 09-26-2008, 08:48 AM

So why do we still love our Reader - even if we do/do not like PD books?

Don

Slite · 09-26-2008, 08:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr. Drib

So why do we still love our Reader - even if we do/do not like PD books?

Don

I know exactly why I love mine, cause it's so much more convinient than the p-book, I can lug along my entire library in it, I can switch books easily if I start reading one and find out I don't like it, which happens to often

Dr. Drib · 09-26-2008, 09:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Slite

I know exactly why I love mine, cause it's so much more convinient than the p-book, I can lug along my entire library in it, I can switch books easily if I start reading one and find out I don't like it, which happens to often

You've touched upon one of the two main reasons I love mine, the other reason being that many of the classics and a good number of contemporary authors I enjoy are now becoming available for my Reader.

Don

eBookNerd · 09-27-2008, 12:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by astra

Unfortunatelly, I have not read even one book from public domain on my Sony Reader and I am not going to in a near future, let's say 10 years at least. I read only contemporary books and find public domain extremelly boring.

I used to say the same thing. Public Domain books reminded me way too much of books I was forced to read in high school and college. Then I downloaded a couple of them while practicing with my reader - and I liked them! Wow! It's a totally different game when you are allowed to choose your own reading materials.

astra · 09-27-2008, 02:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eBookNerd

I used to say the same thing. Public Domain books reminded me way too much of books I was forced to read in high school and college. Then I downloaded a couple of them while practicing with my reader - and I liked them! Wow! It's a totally different game when you are allowed to choose your own reading materials.

I read fantasy genre. The real fantasy started to develop only after The Lord of the Rings, then good series started to emerge such as Black Company and Wheel of Time...There is no equivalent to this in the past. If you like romance or detective stories or classics then PD books are for you. Definitely, not for me. I get bored even with old school fantasy such as Earthsea.

BobLenx · 09-28-2008, 10:52 AM

Public domain books boring?

Twain? Wilde? Wilke Collins? Stoker? Shelley? Tolstoy Dostoevsky? Wells? Burroughs? Dickens? Hardy? Verne? Wolfe? Cooper? Hawthorne? Doyle? Fitzgerald? Dumas? Lawrence? London? Hilton? Orwell? Poe? Sinclair? Melville? Stevenson?

Boring? Good grief - these rank among the greats of the art of writing. I mean, Wilke Collins INVENTED the modern mystery novel.

Actually I have owned my Sony eReader for about ten months and have NEVER purchased an eBook yet. Everything I have read on it is in the public domain - about 80 so far.

There are very few modern authors I care to read, and those I pick up at the library for free. I find most new books to be somewhat interesting, but with relatively shallow thinking behind them - about as mind engaging as your average television show. Dean Koontz is at least familiar with the English language and can turn a phrase - love the "Odd" books.

There is just something about settling down for a week with a 500 plus page book by Charles Dickens and knowing you are reading something with great layered plots, amazing characters, descriptive environment, social commentary, wonderful writing - a book that tens of millions of people over many decades have enjoyed before you - a book that millions more will be reading well into the future. There are always multiple levels of meaning to anything written by Dickens.

I never find myself skipping along rapidly to get through a boring section, which is common with many modern authors I read. Dickens doesn't build up to hit you with one big zinger at the end - he hits you with zingers throughout the novel. I have wept while reading Dickens - and I have grinned openly and laughed - I have felt pity - and guilt - and remorse - and happiness - and sadness - basked in the warmth of a kitchen fireplace with the characters - savoured the rich odors of the evening meal cooking - wiffed the smoke curling from the lips of the pipe and cigar smokers relaxing after dinner - shivered in the cold snows and rain - felt their pains and grief and loss - revealed in their delight - I've witnessed their birth - watched them grow to adulthood facing reality and responsibility - in good times and bad - and have been by their bedside when they passed into imortality with tears pouring down my cheeks.

I feel a sense of regret when I near the end of a novel like Little Dorritt or Bleakhouse or Oliver Twist or Nicholas Nickleby or The Old Curiosity Shop - I don't want them to stop. There is a sadness in losing old friends at the end of a Dickens novel. There is nothing like this for me in anything written by modern authors.

While I might agree that the pedantic approach of many English teachers in high school can make even a great novel boring, go back and give them a try as an adult with no reports to write, no tests, no anxiety about giving a wrong answer to a question., no pressure to have "chapters 23 through 34 read by tomorrow's class with a three-page analysis".

Bob

Peto · 09-28-2008, 11:38 AM

In my case, and I guess it's many others, PD is a sea of books with zillions of drops we cant make apart. I don't care whether the book is old or fresh, as long as it is written in a "crude way". For example, I was surprised with "No news from the eastern front" because he talked about explicit violence, masturbation, despise for the social conventions... All these things I took for modern and was very positively surprised to find them in a book from the 30s'.

Regretfully, my ignorance prevents me from finding books of the style I would enjoy inside all this mass, and sorry but I don't enjoy books where people look asleep when they die or only want to kiss the girl, much less books that praise war.

But I don't think it is a problem of the PD. The problem is mine. I am on my way to "War and Peace" and "For whom the bell tolls", trying to pry a wedge of interest in that ocean of written wealth I have been so far unable to enjoy but on the surface.

09-28-2008, 10:52 AM	#119
BobLenx Connoisseur Posts: 78 Karma: 308 Join Date: Jan 2008 Device: Sony505 K2 K3	Public domain books boring? Twain? Wilde? Wilke Collins? Stoker? Shelley? Tolstoy Dostoevsky? Wells? Burroughs? Dickens? Hardy? Verne? Wolfe? Cooper? Hawthorne? Doyle? Fitzgerald? Dumas? Lawrence? London? Hilton? Orwell? Poe? Sinclair? Melville? Stevenson? Boring? Good grief - these rank among the greats of the art of writing. I mean, Wilke Collins INVENTED the modern mystery novel. Actually I have owned my Sony eReader for about ten months and have NEVER purchased an eBook yet. Everything I have read on it is in the public domain - about 80 so far. There are very few modern authors I care to read, and those I pick up at the library for free. I find most new books to be somewhat interesting, but with relatively shallow thinking behind them - about as mind engaging as your average television show. Dean Koontz is at least familiar with the English language and can turn a phrase - love the "Odd" books. There is just something about settling down for a week with a 500 plus page book by Charles Dickens and knowing you are reading something with great layered plots, amazing characters, descriptive environment, social commentary, wonderful writing - a book that tens of millions of people over many decades have enjoyed before you - a book that millions more will be reading well into the future. There are always multiple levels of meaning to anything written by Dickens. I never find myself skipping along rapidly to get through a boring section, which is common with many modern authors I read. Dickens doesn't build up to hit you with one big zinger at the end - he hits you with zingers throughout the novel. I have wept while reading Dickens - and I have grinned openly and laughed - I have felt pity - and guilt - and remorse - and happiness - and sadness - basked in the warmth of a kitchen fireplace with the characters - savoured the rich odors of the evening meal cooking - wiffed the smoke curling from the lips of the pipe and cigar smokers relaxing after dinner - shivered in the cold snows and rain - felt their pains and grief and loss - revealed in their delight - I've witnessed their birth - watched them grow to adulthood facing reality and responsibility - in good times and bad - and have been by their bedside when they passed into imortality with tears pouring down my cheeks. I feel a sense of regret when I near the end of a novel like Little Dorritt or Bleakhouse or Oliver Twist or Nicholas Nickleby or The Old Curiosity Shop - I don't want them to stop. There is a sadness in losing old friends at the end of a Dickens novel. There is nothing like this for me in anything written by modern authors. While I might agree that the pedantic approach of many English teachers in high school can make even a great novel boring, go back and give them a try as an adult with no reports to write, no tests, no anxiety about giving a wrong answer to a question., no pressure to have "chapters 23 through 34 read by tomorrow's class with a three-page analysis". Bob Last edited by BobLenx; 09-28-2008 at 10:57 AM.

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09-25-2008, 08:37 PM	#106
PsyDocJoanne Loves her 505 and her Z4! Posts: 157 Karma: 631 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Weston, FL Device: Sony PRS-505	balok-- >And I'm saddened to see that you (and almost all Americans, so don't take this personally) find nothing wrong with consumerism and materialism, and that you believe that living 34 miles away from your work place justifies the pollution you produce. I'm speaking only for myself, and not for all Americans, but I'm really curious how you suggest I get back and forth to work each day? I'm assuming you're unfamiliar with the economic or geographic situation in South Florida. Let me give you a primer. We have no USEFUL public transportation system (feel free to Google that and verify it); we have a tiny Metro system that covers all of about 10 miles; we also have a Tri-Rail system that covers slightly more ground, but is very limited in scope (one north/south route, that's it). Our public buses do not run reliably, and there aren't many of them. I've done the math, and it would take me significantly longer to get to my office via public transportation (1.5 hours vs. ~50 minutes to an hour). South Florida is wholly and totally about commuting. Why not just live closer to my office? Here's the economic part of the equation. To put it in easy to grasp terms, to rent an apartment near my office (which is in an extremely affluent area, and not of my choosing) might cost $1000-$1500/month, for a small one bedroom. To rent the same apartment, say, 30 miles away might be $750-$1000. Despite my rampant consumerism <insert sarcasm here>, I can't justify that. So I'm all ears if you have a solution for me, other than driving a small, fuel-efficient car. And on the subject of consumerism: >(you Americans) find nothing wrong with consumerism and materialism Not true. There are a lot of non-materialistic Americans who have curtailed their consumerism and live relatively austere lives. I'm not one of them. I like things, and I don't really see a problem with that. It stimulates the economy, for one thing; for another, those things often bring me pleasure. Did you know that in addition to my consumerism and materialism, I also do pro bono work; I donate vigorously to charities of my choosing; I recycle and make other environment-conscious efforts; and I volunteer my time? I feel just fine about how I'm doing with my responsibility to my neighbors, my community, and on the whole, my general environment. I'm ready to put this to bed, balok. As I said, what once was fun is now just tedious.

09-25-2008, 10:24 PM	#108
PsyDocJoanne Loves her 505 and her Z4! Posts: 157 Karma: 631 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Weston, FL Device: Sony PRS-505	balok, I'll PM you. To everyone else, my apologies. This started as a great thread about why we love our Sony readers, and has disintegrated into antagonistic ramblings about things not even related to ebooks. I've been partially responsible for that, and for that, I'm sorry. Moderators, please slash and burn all of the irrelevant content in this thread as you see fit.

09-26-2008, 01:30 AM	#111
Roy White Evangelist Posts: 482 Karma: 7696 Join Date: May 2007 Location: Turner, Oregon Device: Sony Reader	Pschdoc, I too reacted with a stunned... WWHHAAA??? When I read the comment "I've read everything of interest to me in the public domain." Wow theres like a Jillion books in the PD and I'm constantly finding new old Authors that are awesome. I download books by the dozens from this site and read 50 pages or so then abandon them without regret if they suck but I've found tons of great books. Although I have to admit that I almost fell asleep reading your list... I can just see myself standing buried in the stacks at the library trying to decide if a book is worth lugging home just to abandon when it sours. I'm reading The Last Day of a Condemned Man by Victor Hugo right now. Extremely contemporary Argument for the abolition of the death penalty written in 1830. A great read. Written from the standpoint of the condemned man in the last few hours of his life, his thoughts and feelings, its got me grabbed royally so I'm HUNKERED down with it right now readin away!!! As for the argument in this thread... Could it be we have a troll among us who loves to just stir up the dust for the fun of watching it fly? hhhmmm..... FISH ON???>>??

09-26-2008, 06:07 AM	#113
astra The Introvert Posts: 8,307 Karma: 1000077497 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: United Kingdom Device: Sony Reader PRS-650 & 505 & 500	Unfortunatelly, I have not read even one book from public domain on my Sony Reader and I am not going to in a near future, let's say 10 years at least. I read only contemporary books and find public domain extremelly boring.

09-26-2008, 08:48 AM	#114
Dr. Drib Grand Sorcerer Posts: 44,748 Karma: 55645321 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Peru Device: Kindle: Oasis 3, Voyage WiFi; Kobo: Libra 2, Aura One	So why do we still love our Reader - even if we do/do not like PD books? Don

09-28-2008, 11:38 AM	#120
Peto Legal Alien Posts: 288 Karma: 105 Join Date: Jan 2008 Device: Sony PRS-505/T1/Kindle PW2	In my case, and I guess it's many others, PD is a sea of books with zillions of drops we cant make apart. I don't care whether the book is old or fresh, as long as it is written in a "crude way". For example, I was surprised with "No news from the eastern front" because he talked about explicit violence, masturbation, despise for the social conventions... All these things I took for modern and was very positively surprised to find them in a book from the 30s'. Regretfully, my ignorance prevents me from finding books of the style I would enjoy inside all this mass, and sorry but I don't enjoy books where people look asleep when they die or only want to kiss the girl, much less books that praise war. But I don't think it is a problem of the PD. The problem is mine. I am on my way to "War and Peace" and "For whom the bell tolls", trying to pry a wedge of interest in that ocean of written wealth I have been so far unable to enjoy but on the surface.

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