Sony E-book

[Marmora Man]

Does anyone have one yet? What do you think?

I like the idea of carrying around a small library (160 books can be stored apparently) of favourite and current books. At the same time I love books as artefacts in their own right - old books with other's names in the fly pages, or notes in margins. My own battered copy of The Count of MOnte Cristo (Christmas present in 1963) can evoke memories of childhood, my grandmother and Christmas lunch - just by opening page 1, a e-book willnever do this.

[Jah Lush]

You can stick yer e-books up yer arse. (Not you of course Mamora Man) And yer IPods too for that matter. A home is not a home without books covering the shelfs or records and CDs for that matter. My home is overflowing with all of these things and to some it might be clutter but to me I'm surrounded by the things I love. Call old fashioned but I'll stick to what I like thanks.

[cdonline]

Agreed, the idea's pants.

I don't have nick nacks, but I find it reassuring to have all my books, cds and records around. There's also the tactile element with books, opening the pages and the creases in the spine that show up as you go through the book. And even the smell of them and the dis-colouration as they sit on your shelves for years.

[BJL]

Jah,

I have a home stuffed with records and CDs. And I have an mp3 player so I can listen to my music wherever I am. I don't see the contradiction.

MM,

Have you seen the Kindle? I've heard good things about it.

[lozzyloz]

Not sure it'll ever replace books but sounds like a neat idea in this ever shrinking world, especially if you're travelling and you can't pack enough books. Not sure how compatible it will be with sand and sea though. I prefer to handle a book, but then I said that about my vinyl when CD's were introduced.

[SeanMacGabhann]

I'm totally un agreement with books and CD's being physical objects which rather than clutter the home, actually make it

BUT

Havin an iPod is just not something I can give up - Having all of those CD's which make my home, available to me when I travel for work or whatever is MILES better than me having to plan which 10 (or whatever) CD's to take - arriving at a faraway destination in a completely different mood to the one I anticipated means I'm not stuck with an irreversible decision

Another good feature is the way it can lead you from random track to random track in your collection, making choices you never would but which make you think "oooh I like that"

Sound quality is an issue but the compromise is more than acceptable for me. This wasn't an invention that made me rethink anything- it's an invention I was waiting for since I was little. And I still buy the CD and convert it - I don't download stuff usually. So it's best of both worlds

Books on the other hand... different story completely. I have never wanted a library in my hands. I'm an avid newspaper reader but NEVER bother r eading them online when I'm travelling because it's just a completely different experience. And even if the experience improves with the development of eReaders, which it will, you can't "convert" an existing set of books to electronic form, as you can with CD's - at least you can't for the forseeable future.

I like a gadget but I'm leaving these eReaders on the shelves for now

[Sonners]

I heard a review of one on the radio last week and the girl said that there aren't chapters on the e-book as in a normal book which would make the practice of "I'll just read to the end of this chapter and then go and do..." impossible which I think is a massive disadvantage.

I also agree with those above who love having a house stuffed full of books!

[Marmora Man]

One of the problms I have is the house is so stuffed with books there's no room for more, unless I build an extension. I can, with regret, clear out some poor choices, unreadables and airport books but the rest are part of my life and history.

Maybe an e-book reader for travel to the beah / pool / distant jungle?

[indiepanda]

ebooks seem like a nice idea, but I don't suppose they would like being laid on or thrown on the floor which is what usually happens to my books when I fall asleep reading in bed.

Anyway, I like to have books in my home, they make it look homey. And I can't resist being nosy and looking at what other people have on their bookshelves when I visit.

Having said that, I do still need to get rid of some books.... I've bought way too many and need to be more ruthless about which ones I keep to read again! :-$

[Jah Lush]

In that case come to the next book swap where you can rid yourself of unwanted books and pick up some good new titles. Any books left over go to the charity shops. Job done.

[indiepanda]

I will if I can. There was talk at work yesterday about sending me out of town on a job for a few months so if that comes off I may just have to store them up for the new year when I am back.

[Ant]

Pfeh, eBooks? What a load of old tosh. I like to read pop-up books; I'd like to see them deal with that!

[Crona]

I do have shelves stuck with books and I love them. I don't see the point of carrying 160 books with you (even if you traveling the world). And there is nothing better to hold a book in your hands. But there are books and books.

I would like to see the e-book used for school/university or for work as it will save people carrying all these heavy books. Even for downloading the newspapers every morning before you go to work (although you loose the pleasure of turning those pages). And lets not forget how much paper will be saved. Also studies showed that older people welcomed the introduction of the e-book as they will be able to increase the font size. So I am not ready to dismiss the e-book yet because I think it has potential. I think they advertise it wrongly. It should be aimed for organizations and educational institutions and not for the everyday reader.

[Shu.Kurimu.Sensei]

Be great for black and white comics though eh? :)-D

[Ondine]

on another site someone commented to me that this device will quickly be replaced by a version with a backlight and/or a wifi connection

[will dex]

oh dear oh dear. Having just launched the EReader on to our high streets on Thursday i feel slightly responsible for the above concern.

I dont know if Jah Lush will play song game with me after this as his post is the exact opposite of everything i spend all day doing!!!.

anyway..., the e reader is great, if you love reading. Its just like the ipod if you love music, and lots of it.

There have been ereaders in the states for a while (theyve sold 100,000) and the sony isnt the first attempt at such a device (see 2001). its hard to explain the device unless you get to touch and see it, as its not a tv screen on a piece of metal, its a page on an easy to view medium. Its concieved to be easier to read than a printed book, and isnt like reading off a conventional screen at all.

Id say go into HMV oxford st or waterstones next week and check one out in the flesh.

ps , with the 100 free books its actually really a good deal, and for those that want physical copies there will be some promotions coming where if you buy the ebook, you also get the physical copy free... everyones happy

hmmm

*goes to Quiet room for a stiff drink*

[giggirl]

Oh dear, I don't know if Jah Lush will play song game with me any more either; I can't bear clutter and books that I've finished with are, well, finished with. I pass them on. I don't like to keep things. Except shoes.

[Moos]

I wonder whether the ebook will change the way we read?

(inevitably everyone will end up getting one for the reasons of convenience that have already been listed above... first to take on holiday... then to take on the commute. And of course our homes will continue to be stuffed with books, although natives of the digital age will think we are weird)

If you have 160 books at your command and you're sitting on a beach or a train, will you not be choose to flit from book to book and end up reading scraps of books rather than whole ones in sequence?

On a related point a friend of mine recently sent me an interesting if speculative article about the Internet changing the way we think and even the way pathways are forged in our brains - as you read, you 'power browse', follow clickthroughs and zip about until the concept of concentrating on one thing for a long time becomes harder. I can PM it to anyone interested - he sent it to me as an email and it's too long to post.

Edit: clearly the internet is doing nothing for my brain - it's only just occurred to me to google a link to the article

[Ant]

I'm going to get one and fill it with hundreds of books, then I'll put all the pages into shuffle mode. Should make for interesting reading.

[SeanMacGabhann]

Unless they are William Burroughs' books. In which case you'll be none the wiser

[Ellwood]

i'm not too keen, a ?150 ebook is more of a tasty thing to nick than a month eared ?6.99 book.

[Keef]

Exactly!!!

[Ant]

They started selling them at Watersone's the other day. They shifted about 50 in the big Piccadilly branch - and they were also on sale at a further 200+ branches. (No figures for sales across the whole chain yet.)

http://www.thebookseller.com/news/66532-waterstones-sells-50-sonys-at-piccadilly.html

[dulwichmum]

I love the idea of the Kindle, because I read newspapers and magazines all the time and I hate getting off the bus looking like a coal miner because of the black ink coming off everywhere. Teenagers are so accustomed to using things like MSN and texts and downloading music, I can see E books really catching on with them. I like the idea of keeping a Kindle for ages and not having to pop my old newspapers and magazines in the recycling every morning. Also not having to miss the bus because I am in the shop buying my paper in the morning. I think reading books would be a bit of a hardship on a Kindle thingy, I love to read a certain number of chapters at each sitting.

E books should be great for kids who have to carry lots of books to school. Imagine not having to lug great text books everywhere. I read that it will be difficult to search withing the book for particular quotes or characters - but it is only a matter of time, as with all technology. I love Ants suggestion of putting the pages on shuffle!

[missd]

i love books and love seeing all my books on shelves. i cant give away my books and like the fact that they're all part of me so to speak.

I also look at other people's bookshelves when i'm round, i always do it! it tells you a lot about a person!

i accept that they take a lot of space, but one day hopefully i'll have a whole room or two with wall to wall floor to ceiling bookshelves and then i can go read in my library in a lovely comfy chair under a beautiful lamp with a cup of tea or a gin. i'm not going to get that if i start reading books electronically!

so not for me