SciFi and Fantasy Book Club discussion
What Else Are You Reading?
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What if any ebook formats do you read?
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e pub, or whatever I get in barns and noble. pdf are sometimes hard to read, because the writing is so small.
Ron wrote: "Kateb wrote: "10 years is the format answer I want. what will still be useful in that time, jpeg has lasted, tiff but pdf has changed , doc changed, so paper books as a back up will continue for ..."
ta, I was thinking maybe I was wrong to be concerned, as a computer teacher it seemed a reasonable comment.
I prefer non-DRM mobi for anything I don't get from Amazon. Comics I read in CBR format.
DRM is the big problem with archiving. MOBI, EPUB, and AZW are ZIP files containing the book as HTML or SGML and a manifest.
DRM is the big problem with archiving. MOBI, EPUB, and AZW are ZIP files containing the book as HTML or SGML and a manifest.
Ron wrote: "Wasn't that long ago that 3.5 inch floppy discs were what was happening. Now? Try to find a new computer sold with that type of drive on it."We're talking about pieces of data vs hardware, though. For something that'll last, give me an unencrypted ebook over a paperback any day. The glue will go bad, the paper will age and eventually fall apart. But I can keep transferring my ebook to new storage and converting it to whatever format I need.
E.g. whereas my old 286 is dead and gone, never to return, I can still pull up DOSBox and load my old disk images of the games I had then with no problem.
Filipe wrote: "Hello I have a Kindle. And Calibre - so the format is not a issue for me (because Calibre does all the work).
Calibre allows me to transfer a book to the iPad or the Android Phone.
Best Regards"
I use Calibre too, to reformat for my Aluratek Libre Pro. I tend to convert to a few formats and see which looks the best and runs the best. Usually it's RTF.
Ben wrote: "Ron wrote: "Wasn't that long ago that 3.5 inch floppy discs were what was happening. Now? Try to find a new computer sold with that type of drive on it."We're talking about pieces of data vs hard..."
and how long ago was that? my 30 year old books are still readable. never said I wouldn't have ebooks, but I "back" up my favs with paper versions. Then again I still have a few computers running different systems. Linux is holding out longer. So yes you can convert a lot of stuff, Many people aren't capable. This suggestion was for those still struggling with what format ebook will I buy ?
I tend to prefer non-DRM ebooks regardless of format. I definitely convert any books to ePub for use on my Nook since that's the format I have the easiest time editing.
Ron wrote: "Kateb wrote: "10 years is the format answer I want. what will still be useful in that time, jpeg has lasted, tiff but pdf has changed , doc changed, so paper books as a back up will continue for ..."
Maybe you can't buy a computer with a floppy drive, but you can still find usb floppy drives you can plug into your computer. There are a lot of things that aren't backward compatible, but more so in programs than in file formats or hardware. And Calibre will probably keep up with the new file formats and still be able to convert to older formats. That's pretty much what they do and everyone seems to use Calibre these days. As far as hardware, I think the formats that were flakey are the toughest to go back to ( and who would want to). I'm thinking of Syquest drives, which were notorious for losing data and not functioning properly. Zip drives were more stable, but weren't in use all that long before cd's and dvd's replaced them. And you can still buy cd, dvd and now Blu Ray burners if you want to save stuff that way. I have to admit, when I bought a new MacBook Pro last year, I really wanted an optical drive, even though, they're considered outmoded now. I'm not above using my MacBook as a DVD viewer and I still own a lot of them. So, I bought a refurb of the last that had one.
As you might have guessed, I'm into retro computing too. It isn't as tough to keep this equipment running and usable as some might guess. As far as files going back to the early 90's, I can still access and open all of my word processing files from then. More complex programs like Adobe Illustrator files, don't fare as well, but as long as you have versions from along the way, you can usually leapfrog forward to some extent. But sometimes it's easier just to recreate the file.
And here's another thought. Any books currently being sold electronically, if file formats change, Amazon and B&N certainly won't be recreating them from scratch. They're going to want easy conversion too.
Ron wrote: "Wasn't that long ago that 3.5 inch floppy discs were what was happening. Now? Try to find a new computer sold with that type of drive on it. "Yes, but there was a period of time when it was common to have both 3.5” floppy drives and CD drives on the same computer. When the day came that my next new computer didn’t have a 3.5” floppy drive, I took the obvious steps to move my data to a format I could still access. It wasn’t like one day I was using 3.5” floppy disks and the next day 3.5” drives had disappeared off the face of the earth. Even now, you can buy 3.5” floppy drives from Amazon for about $10-$15 which hook up to modern computers via USB. Hardware and formats do change and become obsolete, but there is a long transition period during which you can still convert your old technology to new technology. There are also always companies that offer services for people who don’t want to do it themselves.
Don’t get me wrong, I understand that many people just enjoy the physical medium and feel more comfortable using it. That’s just personal preference, and people like what they like. The thing I have more trouble understanding is the fear of digital formats going obsolete. When you look at the history of formats changing over the years, you also have to look at the history of how people have dealt with those changes.
There are plenty of things that can put physical documents at risk also. Unlike digital documents, they can only exist in one place at a time. They’re vulnerable to natural disasters like fires, floods, tornados, etc. Poorly behaved children or pets that damage or eat them. Careless movers that damage or lose them. Yourself, if you go overboard with the decluttering and then regret it later. And of course they wear out with age and use. I have digital documents that are 20 years old, still perfectly accessible to me, going back to when I first moved out into my own place and started using my computer to track things like finances. I have very few physical documents or books that are even that old, because I hate clutter and I'm not much of a collector. I'm more likely to hang onto something if it's in a digital format.
Very well said, YouKneeK. I couldn't help but raise my eyebrows nearly to the hairline at the original comment about digital formats never lasting. I mean, for the layman if perhaps they have very little computer experience, maybe, but anybody who knows their way around a computer reasonably enough for 2016 should be capable of file conversion and backup, or at the very least be able to learn how to do so! I only started using the Internet at school when I was eleven years old, and as an adult I'm a trained web & graphic designer with 120+ websites under my belt, but even I'm not the "geekiest" reader I know so far as format and conversion etc. are concerned. I have more than three thousand paper books, but I have more than six thousand ebooks, too. Many cross over and are backed up digital against physical, but a good number of my older books have never yet been made into ebooks. (I own an OCR scanner, though, so I admit I'm quite tempted to back up the less delicate out-of-print items for myself.) And, equally, I have not been able to afford paper copies of all my ebooks - yet. We shall see.
When people have brought up the format issue in the past (and what if someone like Amazon went under), I pointed out there will ALWAYS be money in helping people transfer over easily and completely. So if Amazon (or Nook) went belly up, their market shares are large enough that someone would want to capture that market. There are companies converted outdated physical media like slides to digital. That's way more time intensive then a file conversion.
Lara Amber wrote: "When people have brought up the format issue in the past (and what if someone like Amazon went under), I pointed out there will ALWAYS be money in helping people transfer over easily and completely..."Switching from slides to digital doesn't involve breaking licensing agreements by circumventing DRM, though. I hope that these books can be carried forward. I don't know if it'll necessarily be able to happen by completely legal means unless the laws change unfortunately.
Epub all the way, I've tried Pdf but the formatting came out all wrong on my Ereader ( a Letto).
I find I read Kindle books almost exclusively. It's not because of the format, it's the shopping experience. Amazon Australia (that's where I live) is pretty naff but Amazon UK and US are great sites with huge selections and I find them easier to use and faster than Kobo, B&N, etc. - and *anything* is easier to use and faster than iTunes!I don't suppose the majority of readers care to fiddle about converting formats (I use Calibre if I have to). They find a shop/reader combination they like and stick to that.
An option many people don't use, but which is actually excellent, is to buy from Smashwords. You get your books in loads of different formats (you can have each book you buy in every format if you like). Only "indie" authors publish there - so you won't find the big-name writers - but prices are usually way lower than on the other sites and plenty of great quality books are to be found there.
I've had a kindle paper white for about 6 months now. First e-reader I've ever owned or used. After 40 years of reading paper books it took some getting used to. However I can't put the damn thing down now. I even take it in the bath with me and usually stay there until I'm a wrinkled shivering prune.
I occasionally read Kindle, but I prefer iPad. Actually, I prefer printed books.
I used to buy everything in epub when available or convert it with calibre. for the last few years though I decided to join 'the dark side' and just use Kindle for all my reading. I know some people like to bash Amazon but for my the benefit of having all my books in the same place and being able to download them wherever I happen to be, is just too convenient.
Michael wrote: "I used to buy everything in epub when available or convert it with calibre. for the last few years though I decided to join 'the dark side' and just use Kindle for all my reading. I know some peopl..."I'm the same way. Having everything on one place, and the integration with Overdrive is just so convenient.
To me, bashing Amazon in a SF book club makes no sense. Jeff Bezos is using a lot of those profits for his Blue Origin project. We all want progress into space don't we?
I agree. Amazon has helped authors. I try to buy books from independent bookstores when I can, but sometimes I can get things on Amazon that I can't get elsewhere and sometimes I need books right away.
I curious to know, how many readers have converted to ebooks? I'm from the great wild North of Toronto, Canada (a.k.a. Other according to CBS--if you're a basketball fan). We're still very much into brick and mortar book stores. How about everyone else in the world? Books are ebooks?
I did a break down of my books last year 50% audio 10% ebook download, 15% dead tree book, 25% purchased ebook. The audio was mostly library checkouts with a few whispersync purchases.
I almost never buy books, 99% of my e-book reads come from the library and I always check out through Amazon so I can read it on my kindle, sometimes I read through the kindle app on my phone.
I live 45 min north of Toronto and I have switched almost completely over to e-books. I own a kobo e-ink reader and prefer e-pub format buying most of my books from the kobo store or downloading from the library. There are a few authors that I follow that are only available through Kindle so for these I use the kindle app on an android tablet. I don't think that I have bought a "real book" in about 6 years. The only frustration that I have is that there are a few series that are available as e-books in the US that are not available here in their entirety (Alexander Kent aka Dougless Reeman if you are reading this hint hint). But other than that I have had no difficulties being a Canadian e-book reader.
From all 42 books I have read this year, I only have one in print version. Last year, from 62 books I only read 2-3 in print version. I only buy print for collection purpose nowadays not as my first read.
I use all formats. Kindle, epub from the library, print, and audio. I have no idea on percentages of each. I tend to use print for favorites, classics, and lit fic, while I use Kindle and audio for popular fiction. I like "fun" stuff in those two formats.
Silvana wrote: "From all 42 books I have read this year, I only have one in print version. Last year, from 62 books I only read 2-3 in print version. I only buy print for collection purpose nowadays not as my firs..."I have never tried to work out percentages, but for every 20 kindle books I read I would read one paper one. Most of my paper ones are collections from before kindle and I still re read them occasionally . I also buy paper versions of something I find I want to re read, so much easier to skim and go back to bits.
I use mostly Kindle for books I buy, but do download some audio from Audible .com. Apart from that, all my reading comes from the library in the form of either audible or epub. I'm sight impaired and can scarcely focus on print and paper for more than ten minutes. It's so much more pleasant to have an entire library of audible books on my iPhone to listen to wherever and wherever I want. I don't own a Kindle yet, but read through their free app on my iPad. Love that enlargeable font! I suspect, as more and more Baby Boomers age, reading on screen, or listening will be the preferred choice. But I still love books, the feel, the scent, the weight. Unfortunately, if it wasn't the print, the weight of a hardcover book would be a deterrent. Even fat paper backs are hard on arthritic hands.
I have a friend who has similar issues. He likes the easy-to-read print and cannot hold a thick book for very long.Personally, I have a Kindle app for my Apple devices and also have a few iBook selections. However, I still prefer a print book.
The ease-of-use and general comfort benefits of ebooks doesn't get enough mention. My wife has arthritis in her fingers and struggles to hold a paper book for long. She's not exactly vision-impaired but she too likes to increase the font size. She discovered Kindle about 5 years ago and has not read a paper book since then. I also read only ebooks (using mainly the Kindle app on my smartphone) but that's because I have my phone with me all the time so I'm never without a book to read.
That's it, having read all of this I am questioning why I still buy paper books. yes I will keep my old collection but in the future I will be buying kindle. I have learnt how to store them on computer so I wont lose them .
I have a Kindle, and usually read via the Kindle app on my phone, mostly for books too heavy to carry around with me.
Sometimes read Kindle. I still have my paperbacks and have plenty to go at. Would I try another format?
To be honest, there's no push. The Kindle is fine but I've donated mine to my wife. For me, quality genre time is researching stuff I've read - a desktop PC is a perfectly satisfactory device for this.
I am wondering about my paper books, I have a collection of about 700. My sons decided that if they bought the kindle version I would get rid of the "mess" , they are not great readers.So now I have two versions of the same book, which to keep???
I've wondered for years why publishers won't do the book + ebook combo. (As mentioned earlier - something like buy the book & get the ebook for an extra £.) I think this would work both ways to sell real books, and further expand the ebook market. My preferred choice of format was anything I could find and bring into work on a CD. But for the last 5 years, it's mainly been epub & Moon reader on my android phone. I've tried the Kindle app several times, but - even through talks with Amazon tech support - a new "Kirby's # Android" was generated with every book...so nothing is in one place, and it looks like I own 5 phones instead of one; And unfortunately, on one occasion I was told I had to repurchase a book in my purchase history to get access it.
I wish I had better luck with Kindle - I'd probably buy a paperwhite version, but I feel like their infrastructure is weak. As it is, I will likely get an android tablet, as I'm reading more than ever now. (Newbie here, obvious, I'm sure..be nice please.)
Kirby wrote: "I've wondered for years why publishers won't do the book + ebook combo. (As mentioned earlier - something like buy the book & get the ebook for an extra £.) I think this would work both ways to sel..."Amazon are starting to do that with Matchbook. On some books if you buy the hard copy you can get the Kindle book for $2,99 or less.
Both, as my two bookshelves limit just how many paperbacks and the odd hardcover books I can store, I tend to split my purchases between my Kindle and books. It took me awhile, but I that I am more accustomed to it, I like reading on the Kindle.
my problem is that I have been buying books for years, so some series I have had for 40 yrs. I have a huge book cupboard that is the length of a hallway and books are placed in double row a shelf.occasionally I re read some older books and often get rid of some as I still buy new ones.
I am trying to decide whether to buy books or only kindle ebooks. the problem with ebooks is storing them off the kindle. Paper books are easier. I can lend my paper books to anyone!!!!
Kirby wrote: "I've wondered for years why publishers won't do the book + ebook combo. (As mentioned earlier - something like buy the book & get the ebook for an extra £.) I think this would work both ways to sel..."I've been a fan of Shelfie. They work with publishers to get you the ebook versions of physical books you own. I've had the most luck with Tor books, but I've seen other publishers listed (most or all of Neil Gaiman's prose, O'Reilly books, and Evil Hat game books, for a few examples from my list).
You take pictures of your bookshelves and it tells you which books are available. The step I've seen most people balk at is printing your name on the copyright page.
I keep wishing more people would use it so more publishers would sign on. Selfish, I know, but I love owning both versions of books.
Oh, and they work with audiobooks. I haven't used that part, though, so can't tell you how well it works.
I have three Kindles~ Touch, Paperwhite, and the Fire HDX7", but I wouldn't consider reading an e-book on the Fire...E-Ink only for me!
90% I read e'books on Kindle paperwhite. I seldomly buy paper books, mainly because I have my shelf full and haven't got a new one. But I like reading e-books and then buying my favorite ones.
I used to buy and read all my ebooks in ePub format. I started out many years ago on an old Palm Pilot and later used an ePub reader on my smart phones. After a while it seemed the ePub readers stopped being supported and I reluctantly switched over to Kindle. While I was hesitant at first, having my whole ebook collection available from the Amazon cloud no mater where I am (as opposed to on my home PC) is quite handy and of course Amazon makes buying books so easy. ;)
Nərmin wrote: "90% I read e'books on Kindle paperwhite. I seldomly buy paper books, mainly because I have my shelf full and haven't got a new one. But I like reading e-books and then buying my favorite ones."I like reading ebooks and then buying the ones I love as paper version. I notice someone commented that they are thinking of selling the paper one cheaper if you already have the ebook version. How is that idea going?
Mobi on my Kindle Paperwhite, the odd epub from NetGalley on the blue reader app on my iPad, the odd comic from NetGalley as a pdf on the same app. I really dislike reading books as pdf though, because reading them is really tedious.Generally I prefer reading on my Paperwhite to reading on my iPad. It is lighter and easier on the eyes.
If Amazon offers a used paperback cheaper as an ebook, I will get a paperback. I recently got hardback versions of favourite books for me actual bookshelf. I might repeat that on occasion.
I used the calibre software a lot a few years back, but I rarely use my PC anymore, so I got rid of it.
sorry in shock over getting rid of your PC. I have kindle on my PC, tablet, and I also have a kindle touch , plus a kindle with a night light.
then again if I like a book I will buy the paper version.
addicted , who me????
I use epub and mobi and use Calibre to switch between them. I also get pdf, but never as novels - craft books, cookbooks, and the occasional book that I have scanned. I have eye damage, so can't read paper books.I have 2 nooks, several kindles, and 2 fires, so pretty flexible.
I get most of my books from the library. They use the overdrive app which is available for windows or Mac, I use windows to read on my computer. I also download the books to my Kindle, but you must check out the book from your Amazon account. There is also an option to download EPUB and PDF files to your computer as well.
I've switched almost entirely to reading on my Kindle, and almost everything I read is bought from the Kindle store.I'm actually very uncomfortable with this. I don't like Amazon's overwhelming presence in bookselling in general, or ebooks in particular, and I don't like being locked into a device or ecosystem. Unfortunately my principles are not quite strong enough to resist the superior convenience of Amazon for everything.
In the rare event that I can't/don't buy from Amazon, I get a MOBI file if I can and send it to my Kindle email. If I can't do that, I'll get any other format and use Calibre to convert it.
I'm a software developer and I have strong opinions about software, and in my opinion Calibre is... not great. It's complex and overkill for the purpose of converting to MOBI (which is all many people use it for), and it's awfully cumbersome for its actual purpose (an ebook library manager). It's free and open source though, and I'm not aware of any real alternatives, so I probably shouldn't complain too much.
so paper books as a back up will continue for me"
Very good point! While I love my Kindle, I worked in the computer industry long enough to know that the industry is in constant state of change. What works now, won't work in the future. Or, might not.
Wasn't that long ago that 3.5 inch floppy discs were what was happening. Now? Try to find a new computer sold with that type of drive on it.
So, how are we to know that what we read on our Kindle, or, Kobo, or whatever, will still be readable in 5-10 years. If I spend a lot on an elibrary, will I still be able to access it in years to come? History of the industry, says no.