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Ebooks or Paper Books- What is your preference?
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Sharon
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Jan 31, 2014 10:49PM
Paper books most defiantly. There is nothing like having a book in your hand especially a brand new one. I think e-books would be very convenient for those who go on holidays or for people who travel a lot, but give me a paper book any day I love them.
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Im torn. I definitely prefer paper books but I also feel guilty about it from an environmental perspective. I do read ebooks and realise that it also consumes resources to produce
e-readers so that alleviates some of my guilt for loving and buying tree-books.
e-readers so that alleviates some of my guilt for loving and buying tree-books.
I don't mind ebooks, but I associate paper books with my childhood. I wouldn't be, like, devastated if we went totally digital, but there's a tactile, comforting element to paper books that it's hard to recreate with ebooks.
I don't read paper books any more unless someone gives me one as a gift. I haven't read paper books for years and neither has my wife or my daughter (except text books - she's doing a PhD). I read with ereader apps on my Android smartphone. My wife uses a Kindle. My daughter uses an iPad.I'm also a writer. My first novel was published in 2010 and I now have four novels out there. Not one of them is available on paper - although one was a best seller in 2012 and one was shortlisted for a major genre award this year. Digital-only is a growing trend, these days. So, if you only read paper books, you will find there are many new novels which are just not available to you.
Mod
Yes, I may be missing some sales (although most writers I know who are not published by the Big 5 publishers (and a couple of other, exceptional publishers) find that print sales are a small and shrinking part of their income). Also I can't really complain about them pulping the Tasmanian forests and other gross instances of deforestation and species extinction and still advocate for paper books, can I? I also don't read newspapers except online. There are more important things than book sales, even to a writer :-)
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I read both. My favourite form of relaxation is a lovely hot bubble bath and a book. It has to be a book because I would not take an eReader into a bubble bath. What if it slips through my fingers and into the water with a sad little hiss as it drowns? A book I can dry out - even get another copy. But a new eReader would cost a lot to replace.
I find that some eBooks to be more expensive than the published version so I won't buy the eBook in that case.
I work with a few avid readers and only a few of us use eReaders, the rest are physical book readers and have no intention of changing. I am certainly not going to blame them for the deforestation of parts of Tasmania.
There is room for both types of versions.
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Sally906 wrote: There is room for both types of versions.I agree! I don't think (and I hope) that both types are always available. I'm finally coming around to e-books, though I prefer paper.
Right now I'm getting paper books from the library, and I've been reading indie/self-published books on my computer and phone.
I have a Kindle, but don't like reading books on there for some reason.
I still buy books, my latest were the last Kevin Hearne and Rob Thurman. But I only buy ones I know i like and would reread. I have a library of old and faded books, from some of my grandma's Georgette Heyers that are bound up in hairbands to stop them falling apart to a batch of second hand Johnn Wyndhams and Edgar Rice Burroughs princess of Mars bought back in the '80s. I like to reread books and with a e-book you ca't flip to your favourite bit and I find flipping through e book bad for my eyes. Also I can't read an e-book everywhere in every twisted position I normally read books in due to glare. I mainly do ebook for work, resources and texts etc. My family and are the same, so while I have an ebook I took the time to do a paperback as well otherwise they'd never read my book. I just took delivery of 300 from POD publisher lightening source. If nothing else I have birthday and xmas presents for the next 10 years.
I love both, my Kindle and paperbacks... esp for the bath reason that Sally gives! The only reason I mostly read on the Kindle these days, is so I don't have to wear my annoying bifocals! And it's SO handy for travelling, and means I can actually take clothes, and not only books!
Liza wrote: "I love both, my Kindle and paperbacks... esp for the bath reason that Sally gives! The only reason I mostly read on the Kindle these days, is so I don't have to wear my annoying bifocals! And it's ..."Travel is were e-readers shine. I would pack at least 8 books when I went on holidays - aiming for small paperbacks with tiny writing for the checked in luggage then carry on at least 2 bigger books for the flight. Now it is just my iPad with 3 different reading applications and access to a couple of 100 books. I still carry on one physical book but this is just to read on take off and landing when electronic devices have to be turned off.
I can't go without my kindle, I still buy physical versions of books I love, but I read quite a lot so the kindle not only helps with the not needing to carry two or three books at a time, but also with finances. I may have also just purchased an evening clutch that would fit my kindle in it *just in case* i get stuck somewhere when I'm out and can sneak in some reading.
When we moved into a smaller house, I didn't have room for my physical books anymore so I just use my iPad now! everywhere I go I have plenty of options to read. But I agree about having a paperback for on the plane - luckily I won one through goodreads for my Bali holiday in July!
I honestly can't read properly on my Kindle! I find that, unless I physically can hold the book and turn its pages, I just can't comprehend storyline. I don't know why… The light on the page of my iPad makes my brain go fuzzy. And, also, I like to smell my books. Can't do that with a Kindle :(.
I got a kindle as a prize and I quite enjoy reading it. One of the real pluses is the issue of accessibility. I live in a small rural town with only one bookstore and a town library which is very poorly stocked. Having a kindle allows me to access lots of different authors easily without a four hour drive to the nearest city.
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That would be ideal for you Katie! It's hard for me to imagine not having my well stocked library AND my Big W store nearby:)
If you were going to purchase a Kindle, where would you purchase it from?
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Brenda wrote: "Well I purchased mine from Dick Smith, but you would probably purchase from Amazon Stan..."Actually I got mine from Walmart. Much cheaper. What stores carry Kindles in Australia?
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We bought mine directly from Amazon a couple of years ago, and ordered the cover at the same time. It came quickly, in good condition, and sadly, was much cheaper than purchasing it from an Australian retailer.According to Amazon.com.au you can purchase at Target, Dick Smith and Big W now. http://www.amazon.com.au/gp/feature.h...
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Brenda wrote: "Oh Target now too Leonie? When I was first looking, Target had Sony eReaders only."Yes, I was surprised too, but there are links that lead directly there from the amazon.com.au site. I suspect that it's a comment on how popular ebooks are becoming.
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I use the Kindle app on my iPad a lot, it's really convenient for when I'm having a bad time with my carpal tunnel. I do love reading physical books, but I find them a lot more awkward to hold when I have to use my wrist braces. Plus with my iPad I can pretty much carry a large collection of books with me everywhere without all the weight. Now if only the battery life would last longer lol
So this discussion thread has been inactive for almost a year, but I was about to comment something on a different thread, then thought it didn't fit there, and this thread is exactly what I was looking for.As a university student, I much prefer Kindle/ebooks over actual books. Because I live on-campus, I can't have all my paper books with me (I have some, but nowhere near all of them); I physically do not have enough room for them. Add the fact that a paper book will take up much more room in my small bag than a Kindle, and it's just horrible. Also, the fact that a Kindle can hold so many books in that tiny, compact body is great for someone like me who loves to read and will buy books on impulse. I do prefer paper books, if they're below about 500 pages. If they get above that, they just get way too heavy and I much prefer to use an e-reader in that case. I also like the Kindle because books tend to be cheaper, but unfortunately this isn't always the case. I also sometimes read a book on my Kindle, then like it enough to buy the paper copy, but only if it's on special.
TL;DR: I like Kindle/e-books for the convenience, and the fact that I can fit hundreds of books in 200g of device.
Mod
It would definitely help if my textbooks were available as ebooks in terms of carrying around. Although I will say you can definitely get a good physical workout out of them, especially if you have many of them that are in excess of 500-600 pages.To answer the original question, even though I prefer paper books, I still think hieroglyphs and cave drawings are the way of the future. They're the best format because they obey the golden rule of storytelling: show, don't tell.
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