Is it hard to part with your books (REAL books) - Page 2

VictoriaP · 03-09-2009, 02:22 PM

If every book I owned was leather bound, on fine paper, made the true old fashioned way, I'd regret giving them up. But the way things currently are, no.

I love "real" books, don't get me wrong. But I cannot wait to get 90%+ of the paperbacks out of the house. When we got married, we merged two very large libraries and even years later, we still don't have enough room for them all. We're both re-readers, which means that in general books aren't something that neither are sold nor donated. They take up tremendous amounts of space and are impossible to keep organized or dusted. And they breed like rabbits, with dozens added every year. Having a Kindle is changing all of that, and ultimately I'm hoping that the only paper books left in the house are the hardcovers, limited editions, etc. that we truly love. There are still hundreds of those, we won't be deprived. LOL

It's far more comfortable to read the Kindle than a paper book. It's astonishing to think about how many books you can now store in so little space. It's an utterly amazing feeling to reach the end of a book, only to realize you can buy the sequel and start reading it (!) without leaving your bed at 2 AM. (Yes, this is a problem if you're supposed to be up in the morning....)

And as others have said, there are still plenty of paper books to buy; not everything is available in e-format, and not everything is suitable to read that way.

No regrets here.

InlawBiker · 03-09-2009, 02:31 PM

This is my one big problem with e-books - they're not permanent. I have been using computers a really long time, and I know that formats change. Eventually the formats we're using today will be replaced. There may be a way to convert my purchased e-books to whatever comes next. Maybe not. Who can say? I've kept a lot of documents over the years on various storage formats - disk, zip drives, etc - they're very hard to read data from now.

There's also the risk of data loss. As of now, all of my family photos, movies, and my music is digital. Next comes my books. I even back them up. That's all well and good, but most people don't back up. It's technical, a hassle and difficult to do right.

I can say for sure that my paper books will still be usable in 20-30 years. So I'll keep my favorites and probably get rid of the rest.

Greg

TallMomof2 · 03-09-2009, 02:47 PM

I only keep the rare fiction hardcover usually until I can acquire a legal ebook version or I find the time to scan, OCR, proofread, and convert. I am slowly converting a number of craft books to reflowable PDF. Eventually, I'd like to have only a few favorites in physical form and the rest in electronic form.

BookishDreamer · 03-09-2009, 03:03 PM

Before I bought my Reader, I'd started weeding out the bookcases. I had a plan of rereading every book to decide whether to keep it or donate to the local library book sale. I still plan to donate the majority of my books but I probably won't reread them all first. The hardest part of the process is finding time to sort the books and lug them downstairs to the car.

I only have two bookcases. My goal is to repurpose one for craft supply storage. Therefore, the books have to go. I'll keep my favorites and will probably purchase paper replacements for a few rather decrepit looking books that I've had since high school. Life in a backpack is rough on paperback novels.

I'm replacing some of my favorites with audiobooks. In some cases, listening to the audio is better than reading the book.

Dreamer

DixieGal · 03-09-2009, 03:20 PM

It feels great to get rid of the books and then look at clean shelves! (2 wks, and they are already getting re-filled with fossils and rocks and gemstones.)

Sonist · 03-09-2009, 03:30 PM

I like real books. I've bought first editions of things I really like, and I am not getting rid of them.

But I am a total convert to ebooks. I find them easier to read than most paperbacks, and the dictionary and search functions are becoming indispensable to me.

I do find the 6" still too small, though. Somehow, for me, reading a book on the 8" screen iLiad is more satisfying, even though the Kindle UI is much better.

kwjones · 03-09-2009, 03:37 PM

If I could find my favorite books in ebook format my bookshelf would be almost empty.

jeremy81 · 03-09-2009, 04:50 PM

Not for me. Some people think reading is as much about the experience of touching the pages and etc. but for me it's about the story. I think now that ebook readers are available paper books are a waste of resources and space. I do plan to keep a couple of my signed first editions but that's it. The only exception and/or downside is signed and/or first editions of your favorite books isn't possible with ebooks.

grisjuan · 03-09-2009, 05:02 PM

I find paper books to be a burden and try to get rid of them as quickly as possible after reading.

I spend quite a bit of energy trying to find good homes for my old paper books (giving to friends, donating to the library, paperbackswap.com, etc.). It is liberating to begin to put that behind me.

03-09-2009, 04:50 PM	#23
jeremy81 Enthusiast Posts: 37 Karma: 1180 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Oklahoma Device: Kindle Fire & Kindle 3	Not for me. Some people think reading is as much about the experience of touching the pages and etc. but for me it's about the story. I think now that ebook readers are available paper books are a waste of resources and space. I do plan to keep a couple of my signed first editions but that's it. The only exception and/or downside is signed and/or first editions of your favorite books isn't possible with ebooks. Last edited by jeremy81; 03-09-2009 at 04:53 PM.

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03-09-2009, 02:22 PM	#16
VictoriaP Addict Posts: 298 Karma: 491576 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: Kindle PW2; Kindle Touch; Kindle 2; iPad Mini; iPad1	If every book I owned was leather bound, on fine paper, made the true old fashioned way, I'd regret giving them up. But the way things currently are, no. I love "real" books, don't get me wrong. But I cannot wait to get 90%+ of the paperbacks out of the house. When we got married, we merged two very large libraries and even years later, we still don't have enough room for them all. We're both re-readers, which means that in general books aren't something that neither are sold nor donated. They take up tremendous amounts of space and are impossible to keep organized or dusted. And they breed like rabbits, with dozens added every year. Having a Kindle is changing all of that, and ultimately I'm hoping that the only paper books left in the house are the hardcovers, limited editions, etc. that we truly love. There are still hundreds of those, we won't be deprived. LOL It's far more comfortable to read the Kindle than a paper book. It's astonishing to think about how many books you can now store in so little space. It's an utterly amazing feeling to reach the end of a book, only to realize you can buy the sequel and start reading it (!) without leaving your bed at 2 AM. (Yes, this is a problem if you're supposed to be up in the morning....) And as others have said, there are still plenty of paper books to buy; not everything is available in e-format, and not everything is suitable to read that way. No regrets here.

03-09-2009, 02:31 PM	#17
InlawBiker Connoisseur Posts: 94 Karma: 544 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Seattle WA Device: Kindle 1.0	This is my one big problem with e-books - they're not permanent. I have been using computers a really long time, and I know that formats change. Eventually the formats we're using today will be replaced. There may be a way to convert my purchased e-books to whatever comes next. Maybe not. Who can say? I've kept a lot of documents over the years on various storage formats - disk, zip drives, etc - they're very hard to read data from now. There's also the risk of data loss. As of now, all of my family photos, movies, and my music is digital. Next comes my books. I even back them up. That's all well and good, but most people don't back up. It's technical, a hassle and difficult to do right. I can say for sure that my paper books will still be usable in 20-30 years. So I'll keep my favorites and probably get rid of the rest. Greg

03-09-2009, 02:47 PM	#18
TallMomof2 Kindlephilia Posts: 2,017 Karma: 1139255 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Snowpacolypse 2010 Device: Too many to count	I only keep the rare fiction hardcover usually until I can acquire a legal ebook version or I find the time to scan, OCR, proofread, and convert. I am slowly converting a number of craft books to reflowable PDF. Eventually, I'd like to have only a few favorites in physical form and the rest in electronic form.

03-09-2009, 03:03 PM	#19
BookishDreamer Cultural Artist Posts: 1,128 Karma: 12829 Join Date: May 2008 Location: Georgia Device: Sony 505, Kindle 2	Before I bought my Reader, I'd started weeding out the bookcases. I had a plan of rereading every book to decide whether to keep it or donate to the local library book sale. I still plan to donate the majority of my books but I probably won't reread them all first. The hardest part of the process is finding time to sort the books and lug them downstairs to the car. I only have two bookcases. My goal is to repurpose one for craft supply storage. Therefore, the books have to go. I'll keep my favorites and will probably purchase paper replacements for a few rather decrepit looking books that I've had since high school. Life in a backpack is rough on paperback novels. I'm replacing some of my favorites with audiobooks. In some cases, listening to the audio is better than reading the book. Dreamer

03-09-2009, 03:20 PM	#20
DixieGal Hi There! Posts: 7,473 Karma: 2930523 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Ft Lauderdale Device: iPad	It feels great to get rid of the books and then look at clean shelves! (2 wks, and they are already getting re-filled with fossils and rocks and gemstones.)

03-09-2009, 03:30 PM	#21
Sonist Apeist Posts: 2,126 Karma: 381090 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: The sunny part of California Device: Generic virtual reality story-experiential device	I like real books. I've bought first editions of things I really like, and I am not getting rid of them. But I am a total convert to ebooks. I find them easier to read than most paperbacks, and the dictionary and search functions are becoming indispensable to me. I do find the 6" still too small, though. Somehow, for me, reading a book on the 8" screen iLiad is more satisfying, even though the Kindle UI is much better.

03-09-2009, 03:37 PM	#22
kwjones Groupie Posts: 178 Karma: 1546 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Rising Sun, MD Device: Sony PRS-505; Motorola Droid	If I could find my favorite books in ebook format my bookshelf would be almost empty.

03-09-2009, 05:02 PM	#24
grisjuan Enthusiast Posts: 38 Karma: 404 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Washington, DC Device: iPhone 3GS	I find paper books to be a burden and try to get rid of them as quickly as possible after reading. I spend quite a bit of energy trying to find good homes for my old paper books (giving to friends, donating to the library, paperbackswap.com, etc.). It is liberating to begin to put that behind me.

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