[Web4lib] Amazon's Kindle e-book reader

[Dan Lester]

Hello Tom et al,

First, I hereby promise and swear that this will be my last comment on
the kindle, at least until I get one in my own hands (which isn't
likely, as I'd have to wait to see someone else's).

Tuesday, November 27, 2007, 8:13:17 AM, you wrote:

> It isn't so much the wanting to carry them. The fact that I _can_ is
> just a bonus. It is the notion of e-book reader as a library.

To quote a slogan used in a number of support groups for those
recovering from various addictions and related issues:

Just Because You Can Doesn't Mean You Should

Of course that works in lots of areas of life.

> Granted, the wall of books on the living room bookshelf is NOT going
> to go away any time soon for me, but I see that e-book readers are the
> functional equivalent. If I want to browse my books -- physical or
> electronic -- to decide what to read next, I first have to have access
> to my collection. With e-books, it doesn't matter if I'm on the road
> or at home. With print, I better have decided before I leave the
> house. Plus, with e-books, I can be reading several books at a time
> and there's no weight penalty.

Yes, you can do that.  But of the wall of books at home, how many,
other than reference books, do you read/use more than once?  I realize
that some people read the same books over and over, but it seems that
most have the wall of books (including myself) in place "just
because", since we're not likely to read them again.  Of course
there's always the irony of librarians having a wall of books at home,
but that's another issue.  :-)  And though I'm sure some read multiple
books at once, I'm not one of them.  Maybe it is the rapidly advancing
senility?  (I hope not, but as one retiring in less than a year.....)

> I still buy print books. Sometimes I have both a print copy and an
> electronic copy -- it depends on the book. But we're in a transition
> period --

Yes we are, at it will take a while to sort it all out, just as it did
on audiotape formats (while they were still relevant) and videotape
formats (while they were still relevant), and will on all sorts of
other devices/systems/products in the future.  And as we know from
Betamax, 8 tracks, Apple computers, and other systems, it isn't always
the first that wins in the marketplace.

> partly because so much about what constitutes a "good"
> e-book (gui, readability, browsability, etc) hasn't been resolved --
> or at least isn't implemented fully or consistently -- on the various
> devices.

Absolutely right.  And though I don't want to read a book on the 21
inche screen in front of me (or 17 on laptop), I obviously read a lot
of email and webpages that way.  I guess the difference is the
relatively limited number of seating/lying/standing positions in which
I can read them, plus the screen resolution/readability.  As to those
who can use the smaller devices comfortably, that's great, but after
six retina surgeries I have enough trouble with a cellphone and am not
likely to ever use a PDA.

> But... whatever. I'm already a convert. If you're not, then you're
> not, and this email won't convince you otherwise.

Oh, I'm not trying to convince anyone, and not taking your comments,
or those of others, as "true believers in the one right way to
electronic nirvana". And, about 3 MP3 players ago, I was sure I'd
never have an iPod, but now have an 80gb basically for the car and a
Shuffle that lives with my running clothes.

And to show that those who are converted one way can possibly be
re-converted, I long ago taught a number of semesters of "computing in
the classroom" on Apple ][.  Ever since have been on DOS/Windows.
When buying new personal laptop a couple months ago, I looked very
carefully at the ones on sale at university employee prices.  But
since it would have been an extra thousand bucks for a comparable
system, this time at least it was determined by budget.  But maybe
next time....

> Some blogger made a comment that he thought the One Laptop Per Child
> device might make an ideal e-book reader. It has a medium size, full
> color screen that can be lowered to eInk type resolution for power
> consumption savings.

Could be, but like the kindle, I've yet to have my hands on one of
those.

-- 
Best regards,
 Dan                            mailto:dan at riverofdata.com