The Kindle Monologues

scarlettwind:

I’m done being passive aggressive.

but seriously, Ereaders are great for people who can’t see tiny lettering, like my mother who uses a magnifying glass, people who want to carry more than one book with them at a time, and who want to use less paper.

Paper books are good for people who want to share books, smell books, be able to have a public library, pass down books, have a book that can be signed, not have to use batteries/chargers or deal with any software malfunction, see the beauty of a library, want to underline in their books like I do, appreciate the cover art and the book buying experience and want to see books being a part of history for years to come.

I’m sure there are other awesome reasons to buy Ereaders, but I can’t think of any because I’m not a personal fan.

With the exception of the whole “smell” thing almost everything you highlighted as a positive for physical books, also applies to eBooks.

Paper books are good for people who want to share books.

You can share eBooks just as easily. Public domain books are, of course, easier to share among friends, but have a browse of the Kindle & Nook tags around the holiday periods - there’s enough “sharing”¹ of commercial books as well.

be able to have a public library.

By that, I assume you mean have access / be able to use, public libraries? Again, totally “do able” with eReaders. You just need to 1: Find a public library system that’s still open, 2: Check they use OverDrive to supply their eBooks.

pass down books

As physical objects, the “lifespan” of an eReader depends on the owner - I’ve read about people breaking theirs after a week or two - on the flipside, I’ve seen people on the train [towards the end of last year] still using a Kindle 2. I know some people believe modern electronics - and in particular, electronics from Amazon & Apple, are designed with planned obsolescence in mind - until mine breaks down, I’m inclined to disagree.

But in terms of passing down [what should be] the most important aspect - the content, i.e. the text contained within them? There isn’t really all that much difference between eBooks and physical books.

 have a book that can be signed

There’s three ways, you could have eBooks that are signed by an author:

• Include the signature as an image, at the start of the book²
• Include a personalised image, at the start of the book [i.e “To Mike, thanks for buying this book, <Author signature>”
• Have the author sign the device. William Gibson, Neal Stephenson, and Michael Connelly, to name but three obscenely gifted authors, have all signed eReaders.

not have to use batteries/chargers or deal with any software malfunction

There are no modern eReaders [by “modern”, I’m referencing eReaders that use the now industry standard Pearl eInk screens, so really, anything 2009 onwards] that use “batteries” - they all contain a single lithium ion battery.

Now, in terms of battery life - it’s more dependent on how fast the person reads, than anything else [obviously there are differences from each machine, but the overriding factor, is the number of page turns]. Most modern eReaders are good for around 10,000 page turns, before they need charging.

10,000 pages. Assuming you’re reading a 500 page book [with the wi-fi & or 3G switched off] that’s a good enough battery charge to read twenty books.

I think most people can find time during that period, to recharge it for a few hours. Or to put it more simply - most cellphones need charging what? Once a week. Most fanatical readers, could get away with not re-charging the battery on their eReader for three / four weeks.

As for software malfunctions. I’ve had my Kindle since the start of December 2010. It’s had to be rebooted once [not counting when I hacked it], due to me freezing the web browser. I.E. the application “hidden” under an “Experimental” tag on the device, which really is only designed for the odd use here and there.

see the beauty of a library.

I guess this depends on what type of library you’re referencing. If you mean a public library - those that are still open, are moving more away from focusing their attention on physical books, and more on embracing digital forms of entertainment. You can still appreciate the “beauty” of a library in the 21st century - pop in, use their wi-fi to borrow an eBook from the library catalogue, and, if it’s your “thing”, take in the ambiance of the environment.

If you mean personal libraries - prior to owning my Kindle, I had roughly 1,000 physical books [in addition to 1,000 DVDs and Blu-Ray discs] crammed into a 1.5 bedroom apartment. Since getting a Kindle the number of physical books has been reduced to  - in all honestly, I’m not quite sure, but I’d venture less than 300.

Not because the device came with it’s own little Guy Montag accessory, that set about burning my physical books, but because I either sold, or donated to charity, books that I realistically wouldn’t be inclined either to re-read, or read at all. What remains are some of my favourite books, which, once I get a few new bookcases, will look somewhat aesthetically pleasing.

As the book industry transitions to a marketplace who predominately buy eBooks as opposed to physical books, one benefit to that [at least, imo] is that publishers will embellish more care and attention to the design, and quality, of their physical books - in essence, the emergence of eReaders and eBooks, will help to enhance the physical characteristics of paper books - especially hardcovers.

want to underline in their books like I do.

Personally - I’ve never underlined anything in a physical book [not quite sure why that is, other than not wanting to inflict my “musings” on anyone else who might want to read the book after me]. But eBooks - I’m always underlining passages. I can also, should I want, share ‘em via Facebook and Twitter, by hitting one button on the device.

They’re also handily stored - not only in the books themselves, but in a .txt file on the device, in a form that’s perfect for citing in articles / essays.

appreciate the cover art…

On the Kindle eInk devices, I’ll concede this isn’t something you can do - not even if you hack the device seven ways to Sunday. But the Kindle Fire - and more importantly, the eReaders and tablets from Barnes & Noble [the Nooks] and the devices from Kobo, all allow you to browse through your library, using the book covers, as illustrations.

You can also do the same on the iPad, any android tablet that runs the Nook & or Kobo app, and some other less well known, eReaders.

…and the book buying experience

Obviously this is a case of “different strokes, for different folks”, but here’s how I view the book buying experience, outside of my Kindle / online retailers of physical books such as Amazon, Play.com etc, etc.

Go out to bookstore. Hope they have the book I want in stock. Pay [in proportion to the price I’d pay online] a Kings ransom for said book, and come back home.

If they don’t have it - order the book, and wait for it to arrive in store. Then have to return to said store, and buy it again.

Physical books, ordered online: Order it, and wait for it to arrive.
eBooks, bought via my Kindle: Order it, wait a few seconds, start reading. 

Now - if you mean the browsing aspect of book buying - again, you can do that online. Between Amazons’ recommendation system, book review blogs, and reviews and recommendations from friends / online communities - I can easily find enough potential books to buy. And - assuming said book is availible for the Kindle, I can download the first chapter [or two / three, depending on the publisher] and read it, for free. I can then opt to either buy the full eBook - from within the sample itself, or else hop online and purchase a physical copy.

and want to see books being a part of history for years to come.

If your perception is that the move towards digital [and have no doubt - we’re still perhaps more than a decade away, but the day when more eBooks are sold than physical books, isn’t all that far away from becoming reality] inherently removes an art form from history - then surely movies, tv shows, and music have already gone?

Seems a little OTT to me.

I’m sure there are other awesome reasons to buy Ereaders, but I can’t think of any because I’m not a personal fan.

I could probably triple the above word count, were I to wax lyrical about the advantages eReaders and eBooks represent - to readers, authors, the industry as a whole, but given the possibility it’ll fall on deaf ears, I’ll just stick with what I wrote above.

¹I plan to address this at somepoint.

²Which when you think about it, is the same thing as the copies of The Fault in Our Stars, that John Green signed. Albeit without the potential health risk, from signing that many books!