[Web4lib] Amazon's Kindle e-book reader

[Robert L. Balliot]

Interesting -

I am not sure if people who will spend $400 for a book reader would have
been the people waiting in a queue to get a book from the public library.  

However, with the price of housing, fuel, health care, and education
becoming unaffordable luxuries - it may be that the only symbolic luxuries
open to the masses will be a costly handheld device and an expensive cup of
coffee.

A common theme uniting libraries has been our tendency to work toward the
goal of benefiting everyone with our services - including the most
vulnerable.  The commitment of equal service to all and sharing our wealth
is an important legacy of American public libraries.

It seems to be more and more difficult to find another private or public
entity that does not equate quality of service with ability to pay or social
status.

When we read about people trying to fund Sunday hours, library services
being cut back, and the ongoing struggle to provide equal service to all
when those who have the least lose the most, it can be hard to remain
optimistic.

Here is a great presentation by Larry Brilliant of http://google.org
 on why we should be:

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/177
 
*************************************************
Robert L. Balliot
1-401-441-5763
Skype: RBalliot
Bristol, Rhode Island
http://oceanstatelibrarian.com
*************************************************

-----Original Message-----
From: web4lib-bounces at webjunction.org
[mailto:web4lib-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of B.G. Sloan
Sent: Thursday, November 29, 2007 9:08 AM
To: web4lib at webjunction.org
Subject: [Web4lib] Amazon's Kindle e-book reader

 
  Interesting item buried in this piece:
   
  "I found it very interesting that I would be able to get a chapter of
virtually any book that Amazon currently provides, available in my hands
now, at no charge, for sampling."
   
  I hadn't heard of the "free sample chapter" thing before...
   
  Also a little bit on the impact on libraries (don't know that I agree):
   
  "If I were the manager of a local public library system, I would read
these articles about the Kindle device with some alarm, because part of what
this device will mean is that people don't have to wait in the queue to get
the book from the library, if that was how they're going to read it "
   
  Full text of article:
   
  http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=1851
   
  Bernie Sloan

       
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