Print vs. Ebook: Which Do You Use?

[Bionic Jean]

You library might send books to your ereader though if you ask. Just for info, Melissa ;)

[Elizabeth]

I use both - print book when I read in the bath (dropping an ereader in water is not recommended) and my Nook for the ease of having hundreds of novels available at the touch of a button.

[Nefeli]

I started reading an ebook once but I didn't get to finish it... I always read print books because firstly I don't have to worry that they will run out of battery and secondly I love the smell of print books, I love admiring them on my bookshelf and lending them to my friends which obviously you can't do with an e-book...

[[deleted user]]

Nefeli wrote: "I started reading an ebook once but I didn't get to finish it... I always read print books because firstly I don't have to worry that they will run out of battery and secondly I love the smell of p..."

I can't wait to have a home where I can have lovely bookshelves but for now, ebooks enable me to have lots of books which I don't have the space for otherwise.

I would like it to be easier for share ebooks but me and my boyfriend swap kindles now if we want to share books!

[Bionic Jean]

Heather - if you share your Amazon account then you can share e-books! We didn't realise this at first, and only discovered it while I was investigating whether they would all be lost when someone dies, as it's a sort of permanent "loan". Chris and I have several devices, and can have any of our books sent in duplicate to any of them, whoever originally ordered it. It's very useful! (And also means I can snoop on his reading, "Did you really order, "The sexual habits of the lesser spotted quokka?"" LOL!)

Of course it may be a bigger ask even than moving in together...

[[deleted user]]

That's a good idea, Jean! I will suggest that as I'm always trying to get him to read books I love and vice versa. We have quite different tastes but can definitely share.

Moving in probably easier than sharing amazon accounts!

[Bionic Jean]

Well the only tricky time we've found is around Christmas and birthday-time when one of us has to promise not to look at the account! (We're both suckers for surprises :) ) It was suggested by Amazon themselves, so is all quite above board.

[Michael]

Give me a physical book anytime. I don't enjoy using a reader. I've nothing against them, and realize I can keep like a godzillan books on it, but it ain't the same. Call me old-fashioned. Call me a luddite.
Just give me a real book.

[Amber]

I use both as I love to read print and ebooks. I read the ebooks I get and the print ones I buy and borrow from the library too.

[Paulfozz]

ebooks certainly have their place; I have the kindle app on my phone for unplanned reading time or when I don't have a physical book; on the train, in waiting rooms, and so on. I think both formats have positives and negatives and it is great that it means that there's an option open for people with different needs. I'd hate to see the industry force people to use ebooks though, the end of printed books would be a terrible loss!

I personally didn't get on with the limitations and distractions of ebooks but it was cool to be able to search out old books to read on the unit, having the built-in dictionary was very useful and having a small gizmo does have its appeal when you are toting around a big, heavy hardback! However I love the physical aspects of paper books too much, I far prefer the reading experience of a real book and dislike the limitations of ebook 'ownership' too greatly to change over, and so I've given the Kindle to my Dad.

[Bionic Jean]

But books are still nice to have :)

[[deleted user]]

I like both regular books and ebooks. The only problem with an eReader is that you can't always see what kinds of books you have on it like you can a bookshelf in your house so then you tend to forget what you have on your device. Plus with a regular book you don't have to worry about keeping it charged all the time. I hate it when you are on a good part in the story and the warning pop ups saying to plug in your device!

[Paulfozz]

I've never liked that quote Jean; it's a poor comparison. It would be closer to say:

"books are no more threatened by kindle than High Street bookshops by internet shopping"

[Bionic Jean]

Added to stimulate just such conversation, Paul ;)

They did, of course, also say that television would be the death of radio...

[Michael]

print. i am a luddite.

[Paulfozz]

Jean wrote: "Added to stimulate just such conversation, Paul ;)

They did, of course, also say that television would be the death of radio..."

and everyone knows it was video that killed the radio star, not tv. ;-)

[Bionic Jean]

LOL! (Darn it I have that tune going through my mind now...!)

[LauraT]

Paulfozz wrote: "I've never liked that quote Jean; it's a poor comparison. It would be closer to say:

"books are no more threatened by kindle than High Street bookshops by internet shopping""

I am afraid that bookshops are thretenec by shopping on line, at least in Italy Paul!

[LauraT]

Paulfozz wrote: "Jean wrote: "Added to stimulate just such conversation, Paul ;)

They did, of course, also say that television would be the death of radio..."

and everyone knows it was video that killed the radio..."

Arg. I was a teen ager when that song came out!

[Kelsey]

I love my Kindle, but recently I've been reading mainly print books. I sit in front of a computer all day at work, and when I come home I do not want to look at a screen anymore.

[Sally906]

Kelsey wrote: "I love my Kindle, but recently I've been reading mainly print books. I sit in front of a computer all day at work, and when I come home I do not want to look at a screen anymore."

I have to admit this is my thought process sometimes. I usually have 4 books on the go and they are split 50/50 between print and eReader :)

[LauraT]

Sally906 wrote: "I have to admit this is my thought process sometimes. I usually have 4 books on the go and they are split 50/50 between print and eReader :) "

More or less like me, even if it is rare that I have more then a paper book per time, while I have an audiobook and a couple of ebooks running

[Skylar]

For the convenience, I've been using ebooks.

[Alannah]

I remember when the kindle first came out, I refused to get it, however my mum had got it for that Christmas. Since then, I have been using it more and while I always preferred having the paperback or hardback I have noticed that lately I've preferred the kindle because it is more convenient.

[Gavin]

Michael wrote: "Give me a physical book anytime. I don't enjoy using a reader. I've nothing against them, and realize I can keep like a godzillan books on it, but it ain't the same. Call me old-fashioned. Call..."
This! To me ereaders feel artificial like having one of those robot dogs instead of an actual dog; kinda the same, but made of plastic, so not really the same. And I like the feeling of holding a book and, at least for the time I'm reading, distancing myself from technology. In this sense, and e-reader feels like going to the beach just to sit there texting in your cellphone. (Metaphor game on point today lol). Anyway, I have read some e-books of books that either I can't find where I live or that are e-book only short-stories, and I do understand where people are coming from with the advantages of e-readers, but, for example, I don't need to carry thousands of books wherever I go.

[Gail]

Kelsey wrote: "I love my Kindle, but recently I've been reading mainly print books. I sit in front of a computer all day at work, and when I come home I do not want to look at a screen anymore."

That is interesting - what kind of Kindle do you have? My Kindle keyboard isn't like looking at a screen at all. It's just like looking at a paper page, but clearer and easier to read. But my Kindle Fire is the same as looking at a screen.

[Toni]

exclusive Kindle user here, and love it. no more dust collectors for me or limited space. find titles fast, receive them fast and less expensive. can make notes, bookmarks, trade between my husband and my account purchases, weightless and carry w/ me everywhere. also love Amazon for their service, can't say enough positive things about them.

[Xan]

I find myself using an e-Reader for several practical reasons:

(1) It's easy to carry in my backpack. Try that with several books. Some books double as boat anchors.

(2) Quick access to a dictionary has advantages, and the flash card feature on the newest Kindles is useful.

(3) Then there are the highlighting and note features, great for capturing important moments and for writing book reviews once I finish reading. Post-its are a drag.

(4) I can also change font size, which is important because my eyes are not as good as they once were -- I suffer from eye strain after reading about 20 pages or so. I can read longer without suffering eye strain by manipulating the font size.

(5) When I borrow an e-book from the library, the book is returned when the loan period expires. No late fees, which, if you knew me, is a problem.

But even with these advantages, I still like books. E-Readers just don't have that feel of a book I am so fond of, and when I finish an e-book, I can't slam the book shut and look at it with a feeling of accomplishment. Nor can I place it on my bookshelf for myself and others to admire.

[Linda]

Without question I prefer a good old fashioned hardback, but my iPad is a Godsend when I travel. It's certainly more convenient to be able to have a book sent to you instantly, but I still prefer going to the Library or bookstore and walking out with a book - I always end up finding other enticing reads while I'm there. Hubby prefers ebooks.

[E.A.]

I use both, mostly e-reader now. It's easier to carry and it can hold more, buts there's nothing like an old fashion book.

[LauraT]

Emily-Ann wrote: "I use both, mostly e-reader now. It's easier to carry and it can hold more, buts there's nothing like an old fashion book."

;)

[Shirley]

I'm not sure if this has been mentioned, but with my kindle (fire) what I like is that I can read it in bed without keeping my husband awake, as I don't need the bedside lamp on. Much as I love paper books, they can't do this for me!

[LauraT]

Shirley wrote: "I'm not sure if this has been mentioned, but with my kindle (fire) what I like is that I can read it in bed without keeping my husband awake, as I don't need the bedside lamp on. paper books, they can't do this for me!"

Or for our husbands either!!!

[Leslie]

As I have commented here before, I use both.

One thing that I miss with the ebooks is the ability to quickly see how much is left in a chapter. I don't know why I care about that but I do often flip through the pages of a print book to see how long to the next chapter.

[[deleted user]]

I do that as well Leslie! I often read in snippets and have to finish my chapter before I will put the book down, even if it's just to make a drink

[Leslie]

Heather wrote: "I do that as well Leslie! I often read in snippets and have to finish my chapter before I will put the book down, even if it's just to make a drink"

Yes or even to go to the bathroom!

[Shirley]

Heather wrote: "I do that as well Leslie! I often read in snippets and have to finish my chapter before I will put the book down, even if it's just to make a drink"

Me too!

[Evelyn]

Definitely print. I don't have an eReader of my own, but I did borrow a friend's kobo and read a book on it. I did not enjoy the experience. It wasn't a book to me. I also like checking how many pages to the end of the chapter for some unknown reason. But it's really more about the format. Other than quickly checking in on goodreads and Facebook, all of my screen time is work related. Reading is something I do for leisure, and reading on a screen took away the pleasure for me. I check my two sites on my iPad, then happily put it away and pick up a print book and settle in for my me time. I do not know why I can't seem to transfer leisure/pleasure to a screen......

[LauraT]

Leslie wrote: "As I have commented here before, I use both.

One thing that I miss with the ebooks is the ability to quickly see how much is left in a chapter. I don't know why I care about that but I do ofte..."

This I think is one of the biggest drawback of ebooks!!!

[Gail]

My Nook Simple Touch tells me how many pages I have left in the chapter. I wish the other eReaders did that - it is very handy.

[Paulfozz]

Gail wrote: "My Nook Simple Touch tells me how many pages I have left in the chapter. I wish the other eReaders did that - it is very handy."

Yes, that's very useful Gail.

I may use the kindle app on my phone more now that I have a windows phone (which has a larger screen than my old android phone and doesn't take minutes [quite literally!] to load the kindle app!), but I'd much rather read a real paper book than from a screen or e-ink; especially if it's a nice quality edition, like the folio society one of Oliver Twist I've just started (mmm… just feel the texture of that paper!).

[Shirley]

Just as Leslie likes to see how many pages are left before the end of a chapter (I sometimes do this, too!), I also like to flick back, and re-read part of it, or find a part with a certain character in, and this is not as easy in an ebook - there is nothing like flicking back in a proper book. Does anyone else feel the same? Especially when you are reading Dickens - I tried reading a Dickens on my kindle and it wasn't as good - there are too many characters to keep up with - so I have resolved to always read books like that in the paper version...

[Paulfozz]

Shirley wrote: "Just as Leslie likes to see how many pages are left before the end of a chapter (I sometimes do this, too!), I also like to flick back, and re-read part of it, or find a part with a certain charact..."

Definitely; it's one reason I refuse to buy the ebooks of the New Naturalist books I like - they are FAR cheaper but you lose the colour images and the ability to quickly flip back and forth. Plus of course the fact that the paper books hold their value (and many are worth much more when the print run sells out). Plus you don't get to enjoy the wonderful cover art on the ebook. I took that to a level of madness this year when I wanted a copy of Bird Migration - the ebook was £12.99 but I paid just over… £100 (I know!!!) for a mint condition signed hardback. I've never spent anything like that on a book before but it's a fantastic book and I don't think I'll lose money if I sell it on as it's quite a sought-after volume. Still makes me gulp when I think of paying that much for it though!

Ebook 'can' be good for books like Dickens though in some respects; I remember using the built-in dictionary quite a lot to figure out obscure words he used when I read Great Expectations on a kindle.

[Shirley]

Paulfozz wrote: "Shirley wrote: "Just as Leslie likes to see how many pages are left before the end of a chapter (I sometimes do this, too!), I also like to flick back, and re-read part of it, or find a part with a..."

yes, that's true, Paul, the dictionary is very good.

[Gail]

I like the Kindle Fire for the cover art - I love flipping through the carousel and seeing all the colourful covers. :-)

Ereaders are also great for if you're trying to read a book in a language you're not fluent in, because you can get free dictionaries in a variety of languages, so you can look up any word immediately. I used to buy regular books in French and never read them, because it was too fiddly looking up words in the dictionary all the tme. But on my Kindle, I even attempted reading Proust in French (haven't got very far yet, even in the English version, but still, it's great fun!).

[Gail]

The one thing I find hard to get used to on ereaders is that the pages adapt to the font and font size, etc - which on the one hand is great, because I really appreciate being able to change the font, but on the other hand, I'm used to pages being unchangeable. I'm used to remembering visually where on a page certain passages are, and flicking back to find them, knowing the exact place to look. Of course, with an ereader, you can simply do a search, if you remember words in the passage, and it's very easy to find that way, so it's not really an inconvenience - more a question of having to get used to a different way of doing it.

[dely]

Shirley wrote: "Just as Leslie likes to see how many pages are left before the end of a chapter (I sometimes do this, too!), I also like to flick back, and re-read part of it, or find a part with a certain charact..."

When I read an ebook with a lot of characters I use to underline them, this way it is easy to find them again also with the kindle because you must only display all the notes and underlinings. I know, with a paperback it is easier and faster, but I found out this solution when reading with the ereader. Better than nothing!

[Bionic Jean]

I do that too, dely! In fact it's one of the things I love about ebooks, the highlighting facility, and then I can just type a favourite quotation into the computer. Somehow, even using pencil, it can feel a bit of a sacrilege to underline in beautiful paper books.

I haven't used the dictionary on ereaders though, Shirley and Paul. The kindle is usually OK, but the Samsung tablet is so incredibly sensitive that it often seems to go off and do its own thing (!) so I don't use all the facilities. I've a feeling the kindle app on it has a few bugs as it is inconsistent... I do love the coloured "pretty covers", and that's partly why I got it, but sometimes I prefer the simplicity and user control of the earlier models.

Oh and I get annoyed when the cover switches to another version at will. One moment I can have the cover of the ebook I bought, and the next it will have changed to a completely different edition! Weird.

[Shirley]

Jean wrote: "I do that too, dely! In fact it's one of the things I love about ebooks, the highlighting facility, and then I can just type a favourite quotation into the computer. Somehow, even using pencil, it ..."

Yes, I like the highlight function too, especially when I am reading one for my book club.

I use the dictionary quite a bit, in fact I have been known to press down on a word on the printed page, when I have been reading on my kindle, and suddenly switch back to a paper book! I have to laugh at myself!!

[[deleted user]]

Shirley wrote: "Jean wrote: "I do that too, dely! In fact it's one of the things I love about ebooks, the highlighting facility, and then I can just type a favourite quotation into the computer. Somehow, even usin..."

Yup, been there myself! I really miss the dictionary function and when reading a paperback tend to just ignore words I don't know rather than look them up which is very lazy