will e-books ever take off?

[R3MF]

every year or so there is another attempt to launch the e-book market, as if it were new, and every year it fades into obscurity.
i believe this is because books are perceived as the ultimate convenience, pick it at your leisure, leave it on the shelf, loan it to a friend, do whatever you like with it. this stands in stark contrast to the restrictive DRM to be found in encrypted e-book formats.

well here is the latest attempt from sony and waterstones:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/new...off-the-paperback.html

if you feel you would like to voice an opinion, comment under the linked article and make your voice heard.

i would also like to hear your thoughts here.

for myself, if i could buy e-books from amazon or waterstones in pdf format i would jump at the chance, but we need the big guns to change there tune and follow the music industry with unencrypted pm3 tracks.

 

[Zenmervolt]

That's the Sony PRS-505. I've had mine for almost a year now. Far from "new", it's just announcing that a certain retailer is now going to carry them.

ZV

 

[IGBT]

..for some mabe but for most there's nothing more pleasurable then a printed book in hand.

 

[BeauJangles]

I don't see a need for e-books. Libraries provide books for free.

 

[imported_Imp]

I'd like to think no. There's just something about having a physical object infront of you that reacts to the rooms lighting (i.e. not backlit), you can fold and throw around without fear of voiding warranty.

Then again, I read more words on my monitor per day than I do in books/newspaper a week.

 

[txrandom]

I use the computer enough. I'd rather relax on the lazy-boy and read a book. I wouldn't mind getting an ebook with the purchase of an actual book.

 

[rezinn]

I would rather read an ebook than a regular book. On a plane you needn't leave the light on and disturb your neighbors, you don't need to turn pages and hold books open or find a place to store 160 books.

The questions I have are how much do the ebooks cost (they'd have to be like 80% less for me to actually buy one of these), and how is the quality/readability of the screen.

 

[0roo0roo]

resolution has to be higher.
price has to drop 80% less as said.
i prefer time stretching audio books to reading now most of the time. you can do chores and such while "reading" audio books.... with a book ur just stuck

 

[xanis]

I'm not a fan of ebooks. The whole reason I read a book is to take a break from technology.

 

[silverpig]

Originally posted by: Xanis
I'm not a fan of ebooks. The whole reason I read a book is to take a break from technology.

One might argue that the printing press was the first piece of technology...

 

[fatpat268]

Ebooks would take off if the devices were affordably priced, and the ebooks didn't cost nearly as much as regular books.

 

[Cogman]

I would like to see them take off. The text on some of the newer books looks a lot like print. For me, that is worth it in many ways. The thought of being able to store a library in the palm of your hand just seems really cool to me on many levels.

At very least it would cut paper waist, since one Ebook can have 1000's of books, easily.

 

[Slew Foot]

An e-book on a treadmill does not take off.

 

[Saint Michael]

Originally posted by: silverpig

Originally posted by: Xanis
I'm not a fan of ebooks. The whole reason I read a book is to take a break from technology.

One might argue that the printing press was the first piece of technology...

One who is wrong may argue that, yes... whatever happened to the wheel?

 

[bonkers325]

no. reading on an LCD is a different experience versus reading an actual book

 

[0roo0roo]

they also need two pages,....

 

[Lonyo]

Also what happens if you want to flip between two pages? (Say to check notes or whatever).
Unless they allow you to bookmark a second page to flick to quickly and then go back to where you were it would suck for most academic books.

 

[CKent]

The general public is too stupid and averse to reading for this to succeed.

 

[Bateluer]

I'd be into eBooks greatly, if 1)the readers were about 1/4th of their current cost, 2)the ebooks themselves contained no DRM and I could back them up to my hdd, flash, etc, and 3)the ebooks were sold at a lower price than their printed counterparts.

With a decent reader costing between 300 and 400 dollars, with ebooks costing the same or more as the printed book, and with all the restrictions in place, they will never take off.

 

[frostedflakes]

Originally posted by: Cogman
I would like to see them take off. The text on some of the newer books looks a lot like print. For me, that is worth it in many ways. The thought of being able to store a library in the palm of your hand just seems really cool to me on many levels.

At very least it would cut paper waist, since one Ebook can have 1000's of books, easily.

Replacing paper waste with electronic waste, which is probably far more damaging.

Not to mention most people probably don't throw out a book when they're done reading it. They keep it, loan it out, sell it, donate it, or do about anything other than throwing it away.

Of course, the geek in me is attracted to e-readers. They'll have to get to <$100 for me to even consider one. Might be nice for college students as well. Not only could e-textbooks be cheaper (whether the cost savings would be passed onto students, who knows -- Amazon's digital books aren't much/any cheaper than printed), but it opens up the opportunity for embedded content, for example video and sound.

 

[l0cke]

If these readers where cheaper and took pdfs I would have 1 at least by now.

 

[IGBT]

Originally posted by: CKent
The general public is too stupid and averse to reading for this to succeed.

..there's some truth to that. so many people no longer read books.

 

[KaOTiK]

I read more tech manuals on software and techniques then I do actual books anymore sadly. I listen to audio books here and there though while working.

Only problem I have is mainly with the devices themselves, like I really wouldn't mind buying that Sony one, but they are just way to expensive then on top of having to buy the ebook as well. Not really seeing any benefit in it due to the cost.

 

[yhelothar]

i like ebooks.
especially considering you can easily find most popular books online.
most books that i wanted to read, i was able to find the ebook for it online.

 

[Ctrackstar126]

I have a sony ebook reader and i love it. I have a lot of trading books some tech books and a few novels i read on there and I find it worthy if you know where to find ebooks. I actually save money on it because of the amount of books i read and a lot of the books I read I cant get at a library.