Literary Exploration discussion

I love the look and feel of real books, but recently I got an iPad and am slowly converting to ebooks.

Which do you prefer to read?

I will always love real books but I'm slowly changing to ebooks. For me it comes down to portability and storage.

Ebook prices for the most part still aren't cheaper than I can get from Book Depository. And regional copyrights mean it can be very hard to get some ebooks in Australia.

On the other hand I don't have to wait and rather than have bookshelves taking up all the space in my house I can have all my books in one spot. I love my Nook Color and am finding it great to read with.

Whilst I'll still get the occasional real book most of what I read will now be ebook.

I agree with Kim. The real thing is always the best to enjoy and I love my hardbacks and trade paperbacks. I have my Sony reader as well which is the best option for reading on the go.

I do love been able to carry over 1000 books where ever i go :)

Hmm I see you've added audio in to the mix now. I've not tried an audio book in many, many years but my experience then wasn't very good. For one it was on cassette and the other is I don't really like being read to.

I like to read at my own pace and I have my way of thinking how characters sound and hearing someone else read changes that. I know it can be convenient to some people but for me I would always prefer to read it myself.

Kim wrote: "Hmm I see you've added audio in to the mix now. I've not tried an audio book in many, many years but my experience then wasn't very good. For one it was on cassette and the other is I don't really ..."

I think audio books have their advantages and disadvantages. I like to have one playing in my car

I couldn't listen to a book while driving. I would either concentrate too much on the book and crash or concentrate too much on driving and miss most of the book.

I spent over an hour today reading ebook comparisons and agonizing over whether to stay with print or go electronic. I really hate to lose printed books and don't want to admit that the art of choosing, cover binding, paper and font died a long time ago. I'd much rather hold a book than a kindle. I hate the fact that I have no space to store books. I recognize that saving trees also means filling a landfill with expired batteries.....what to do?

CK wrote: "I recognize that saving trees also means filling a landfill with expired batteries"

I wouldn't say that. I haven't seen any replaceable battery powered ereaders so far. They all seem to use rechargable batteries like current mobile phones.

Kim wrote: "CK wrote: "I recognize that saving trees also means filling a landfill with expired batteries"

I wouldn't say that. I haven't seen any replaceable battery powered ereaders so far. They all seem to..."

Yes, I suppose 1 lithium battery every two years is a smaller footprint than the 50-100 books consumed in the same period of time. Except that paper decomposes and plastic/chemicals not so well.

More importantly: Do you have an ebook? Are you happy with it? do you have any difficulty getting the books you want and are they abridged in any way? On another list, one reader mentioned that the titled of chapters were missing from his ebook.

I have been reading ebooks instead of hard books for the last 5 years. The last 500 books that I have read have all been on an electronic device of one type of another. I started reading on a Blackberry, moved to the Droid and now I am on a combination of a Kindle and a laptop.

I tried picking up a real book a couple weeks ago and I just couldnt do it anymore. My eyes were straining and I had to remember to bring it with me everywhere i went whereas my Kindle usually carries 100 books or so and I can shift from one to another.

It took me some time to switch because I was a hardcore bibliophile. But now that I am there, I wouldnt switch back for anything.

Brad wrote: "I have been reading ebooks instead of hard books for the last 5 years. The last 500 books that I have read have all been on an electronic device of one type of another. I started reading on a Bla..."

Brad: thanks for your input.

Brad wrote: "It took me some time to switch because I was a hardcore bibliophile. But now that I am there, I wouldnt switch back for anything. "

Do you still collect books? They still look good on display

CK wrote: "Do you have an ebook? Are you happy with it? do you have any difficulty getting the books you want and are they abridged in any way?"

As I wrote in my first post I have a Nook Color ereader and I'm very happy with it.

So far I've not had any difficulties getting the books I want though I will still get some hard copy books if they haven't been epublished.

As for whether they are abridged or not unfortunately there is no way of telling unless I compare it to a hard copy and I'm not going to do that every time I read an ebook. So far all the books I've read on it seem fine.

I collect ebooks. Its my attempt at a "green" initiative. :) I have a few hard backs, mostly really old favorites, but I probably have less than 20 in the house.

I was thinking of only buying real book if I really love the book. Ebooks work really well for everyday reading

I love real books and will probably always prefer that tactile aspect. But I have been listening to audiobooks for about four years now and they really work for me. I listen in the car on my daily commute to and from work. I also got a Kindle this year and am using that to read some freebies and some of my old favourites.

I recently started listening to audiobooks too. At first it was strange being read to, but now I'm a fan!

I love printed books too but I just returned from a trip to Europe during which time my Kindle died. Tragedy! I was reduced to reading airline magazines and newspapers in other languages. You can't beat the eBook if you're a traveler. No weight, lots of choices.

I have several printed books and I also have a Nook Color. I have a wife and two kids who read frequently. At some point we will all need to own our own e-reader unless we read at different times and keep the Nook at home. In this situation it is nice to have some printed books so we don't get log jammed waiting for everyone to finish reading. I intend, however, for each of us at some point to have our own e-reader. It saves a ton of room and you don't have to fumble trying to keep the pages open if you are reading on your back or propped up on one arm, etc.

Have you never dropped your ereader on your face while reading on your back? That can hurt.

Haha no Mary I've never had that happen. My only negative experience has been that sometimes my Nook forgets where I was up to and opens at the start again :( luckily I always update GR with my page number

It does hurt :(

It might hurt to drop an e-reader on my face, but at least I won't lose my spot as easy as I will with a printed book. I lay the bookmark on the bed beside me.

I now have a huge pile of unused bookmarks on my desk.

What about e-readers versus tablets for reading e-books? Which one do you prefer/would you consider buying?

I looked at iPads and Samsung Galaxy S and decided that as I already have a smart phone and a laptop a tablet would just be too expensive for my needs.

A dedicated ereader is cheaper and that's all I need it for.

In saying that I went with a Nook Color which is actually an Android tablet but as it's wifi only it doesn't have the costs of other devices. A requirement I needed was a colour screen as I use it for comics as well as books. If I didn't need that I would have just gone with a regular Nook or a Kindle.

Thank you for your immediate reply. I'm not really so much into smart phones and stuff but I would consider buying an e-reader. I hadn't heard before for the Nook color which is very appealing to me (of course I know that delivery in Greece will be expensive). Most probably I will have the Kindle.

I had to import mine from the US as it's not sold in Australia but I consider it well worth it.

The nook looks like the best choice, but I use an iPad; I didn't want a single purpose device

"I hadn't heard before for the Nook color which is very appealing to me (of course I know that delivery in Greece will be expensive). Most probably I will have the Kindle. "
Depends on what you are after. Anything backlit will strain my eyes. Some people don't care but I prefer to read in E-ink. I can read for hours and feel fine.

So Nook is backlit? Kindle is not, I have used one and what you say for your eyes is true for me as well. That's why I always print the web articles I am interested in. So, Michael, do you suggest Kindle?

Yes the Nook Color is an LCD screen. I don't get any eye strain or headaches though I've heard of people who do.

Both the normal Nook and the Kindle are e-ink. E-ink is pretty cool and as I said I would have taken one over the Color apart from my other requirements.

E-ink devices also have a much better battery time.

I have SONY touch and can expand the memory to 32Gb. The SONY is better designed as well, in my opinion, but the new Kindle is great, too. A friend of mine has got a Kindle, it's cheaper and the quality of print (E-ink Pearl) is excellent. I don't think you can expand memory on Kindle, but the internal memory (3500 books) will be sufficient in any case.

I love my Kindle, because it makes it much easier to read on the go. I used to play the "how many books do I have room to pack game" when traveling, but I no longer have to, which is nice.

That being said, I do still have two library cards and did put in a few requests for books today.

The Nook color also has expandable memory. I was able to read a novel in the dark with it. I know, not good for your eyes, however, if you are camping and have a full charge you can still read before bed without the use of a flashlight.

I would recommend a Kindle or Sony Reader or any other e-ink device as they do work more like paper and are easier on your eyes. I do accaisionally use the Kindle app on my Android phone and for short periods it is OK. I have friends with iPads who don't see the point in a dedicated device but I think they miss the point. After all a book is a dedicated device.

I am a huge fun of ereaders. I probably over-specialize: I have a SONY PRS350 for books, a PRS950 for newspapers and some magazines and an iPad for Comics, academic PDFs and graphic-intensive magazines (such as Nat Geo).

But I just love it. The ease of transport, the ability to change font sizes (I have very poor eyesight), the capability of getting the reading material I want right away and, not last, the fact that much material is free or, at least, cheaper than in print... I am in a geek's paradise!!!

We have the Kindle DX (larger display) and are fully satisfied. We read books, older google books in pdf and have a subscription to National Review which is actually better than the magazine, just no color or ads.

I do not own any sort of e reader. I have the iBooks app on my iPhone, with a couple of books on the shelves, but I haven't used it. Call me old fashioned. I would MUCH rather have the feel, the touch, & the smell of a REAL book in my hands :)

I agree. I gave my Kindle to my daughter because I like to write in my books and frequently refer back to earlier sections of a book.
I also have the iBooks app and sometimes use it when I read on the subway if I'm reading a hardback book.

Nancy wrote: "I like to write in my books"

Argh this is something I could never do.

I love my real books but also love my Nook and am thinking of getting a Kindle to compliment it.

I love my iPad cuz I get to take thousands of books with me to work. But I do prefer real books

I prefer real books. Actually I've never tried reading an ebook. Dont think I'd ever bother.

I just like real books. I'm one of those people that constantly flicks back through a book, couldnt imagine doing that on a gizmo. I like standing at my bookshelf wondering what to take to work.

I'm pretty backwards when it comes to tech. The same as even though ipods are all the rage with music, I own a damn record player and enjoy pulling out the vinyl and giving it a dust, then hearing that crackle as much as actually listening to the music. (Yes they're mostly scratched
and mp3's would be more convenient, but convenience doesn't always win).

Plus just about every gizmo I buy gets broken/stolen (except my phone is about 7 years old)

I think I'm with Giraham on this one.
Audio books- just aren't my bag. Ebooks- I'm not opposed. Nook, Sony E-Reader, etc- just aren't my thing. I have to be able to read the book, see the book, have the book with me. Having it on a screen in front of me- just isn't my thing. And I'm also quite bad luck with anything technological, so.. it's a good thing that I don't have one.

Yeah, I guess I'm in the I love the real book in front of me crowd. I have often thought of buying a Nook, Sony E-reader, Kindle or other reading device and doing the download thing, but I'm more old school about it. I like to write in the book, make notes, especially when something is bugging me about the book, or I see something I really like, etc. Okay, I admit, a bit of a nerd...

Not to say I'm opposed to the other, but, right now, I really just love being able to explore bookstores, browse the fiction, non-fiction sections, and see, feel and read the real thing. I'm the type who is hunting down the nearest chair at Barnes and Noble after finding an awesome book in the fiction section.

I don't get this writing in the book thing. To me that's almost sacrilegious. I always take really good care of my books. No bent covers, no dog ears, no torn pages.

I'm with you Kim, I don't want to do anything to my books, I use a notebook or book journal if I need to write things down

I had this huge thing about not writing in books. I would hate it if someone would draw a line in book [even my college course books]. Now, I have moved on to posting post-notes on books, not on fiction books though

I hate the idea if keeping books in good order. I like to give a book s lived in look. It will get crushed when I fall asleep with it in bed and I'll drop food on it while I read during lunch or dinner or breakfast and it will get squished in my hand bag when I take it in my handbag to read in waiting rooms. I don't think books should be made to just look nice and shiny on your bookshelf. They are made to be read.

I just started reading books on the iPad while I was away and read everything I had packed, so KL handed me his iPad with so many choices. But it's not the same as curling up with a book. And I did drop the iPad on my face. The good thing about it is you can read it in the dark with no lights on.