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I have a bunch of Black Library books. They have yet to be touched. I'm thinking maybe I should unload them and then buy them again later in e-format when I get to a point where I can indulge in the books.

I used to be anti-ebook but lately I've been moving more and more to the format. In fact, the current book I'm reading is in e-format.

Is there something I should consider? On one hand I'll be freeing up shelf space and having access to the books in the palm of my hand (via an iPhone) would be cool... on the other hand... well I don't know what's on the other hand....

What say you folks?

I still prefer regular books. In fact, the few e-books I've got, since they where in PDF, where printed at home, then handsewn into a "real" book.

Now that we're at it, do you know if the e-books from BL can be opened on a regular pc and printed?

I bought a Kindle about a month ago to help keep my stock levels down and I have to say that I'm still in two minds. This is for a number of reasons. Digital versions still aren't as widely available as printed versions, they still cost a silly amount, companies like GW/BL are unlikely to support the Kindle format as they would lose control of their margins.

The plus side is the Kindle is nice, you can hold it one handed and adjust the text size.

In don't like not owning something. But still paying for it. Digital items just have no owner ship associated with them.

Download your films, your music, your books, then you burn your hard drive out and you've lost the lot.

A 100GB hard drive does not look the same as a bookshelf full of CD's, DVD's and book's. But maybe that's just me.

What's more, books are nice for those nights of summer when everyone with their AC on causes the energy to black out, and then the only thing you can do it light a candle and read a good book.

deejaybainbridge wrote:Download your films, your music, your books, then you burn your hard drive out and you've lost the lot.

If you steal them, yes. If you buy them, you have the license and can download them again whenever you want.

If my house burns down, the only thing I'll still own are my digital media.

Download your films, your music, your books, then you burn your hard drive out and you've lost the lot.

Not really. Take the Nook for example, Barnes and Noble's eReader. Most major titles are now available on eFormats, meaning that any book the typical person will want to read will be available if they want it in that format. Once purchased the book is registered to the users account.

The only way for me to lose my books is for Barnes and Noble to go out of business, which risks Nook being shut down. But other than that I won't lose the books.

The only books I still buy in physical copy are scholarly texts and only because eBooks typically have wonky page numbers which makes citing a eFormat unworkable compared to the physical copy.

Dark wrote:What's more, books are nice for those nights of summer when everyone with their AC on causes the energy to black out, and then the only thing you can do it light a candle and read a good book.

I hadn't thought of that... I suppose if I were to go camping or on a long trip and I didn't want to drain my phone's battery I'd probably want to rely on non-electrical reading.

Kindles have a fantastic battery life FWIW.

I like physical books too, and I'm currently reading A Song of Ice and Fire in hard copy (My Mums copies, she's a technophobe ) But I got the Horus Heresy christmas bundle in ebook format for Kindle, and it's really good having so many books fit. So if I wanted to take a series of books on a camping trip, I wouldn't need to carry all of them with me (For example, have you seen the size of the Song of Ice and Fire books? That would weigh a freaking tonne!)

I'd definitely go ebook again

I prefer physical books for a few reasons.

First, reading a book is not just about mentally processing the words on the page, it's also a tactile experience. Physically turning the page, the texture of the paper, etc. I really miss that on the e-books that I read.

Second, I hate staring at an illuminated screen for long periods of time. When I read, I like to read for a long time. A few hours at least. And after staring at my nook for that long my eyes hurt.

Third, depending on the book I am reading, I like to annotate. I enjoy reading with a pen and highlighter and making little notes in the margins, or highlighting a particular bit that I want to go back and find later. This is much easier to do with a real book than an e-reader where you have to select the highlighter tool, open up a note-thingy, etc. It's a hassle.

Fourth, a physical book just feels more. . . genuine. Call me a romantic, but a book just has this warmth to it that an e-reader lacks. E-readers have a cold, sterilized feel to them, at least for me. I can't quite describe the feeling that holding a book is. . . a book feels more like a finished thing. . . an object with its own personality and quirks and characteristics. E-readers just don't do the same thing for me.

I'm an avid reader and I have to say that the eBooks are no different for me than print. I don't think a person has to be all one or the other. For one, I don't yet care to read graphic novels on a screen, but novels and 'zines are fine.

On benefit that I enjoy with eReading is not having to lug around the x many books I may be reading at that time. I enjoy reading a bit of a book at a time and then pick up another and read it for a while. On my commute I can do that w/o 15 lbs of paper lying around. On the flip side, reading a book on a couch in the sun cannot be beat.

It boils down to the fact that you can do it more than one way; there is no one true way to read. (Or do anything else for that matter)

I like physical books, but I have so many e-books that I would have to buy another house to store them all in. As it is I have several (large floor to ceiling) book cases filled with books (fiction, non-fiction and reference/text book).

And I back up all my e-books on my computer so if my e-reader dies, I still have them and don't have to re-download them if I don't want to. Also stockpile e-books on the computer and rotate through ones that I have read and ones I have not on my e-reader.

I much prefer reference books in paper format as it is so much easier to flick between sections, but I have no issue with most books in e-format (though a "go to map" or "go to character list" button would help with some larger books with lots of characters/locations/etc ).

I'm for the whole tactile experience myself but I'm running out of room in my apartment and the idea of having things at my finger tips is getting more appealing... but... yeah... give me a nice spot on the couch, a good reading light, and a paperback and I'm usually good to go.

I was skeptical about e-books at first but now frankly the difference is negligible...