8tracks, cassettes, laser discs, and books?

[avignon]

Are ereaders going to replace books? If so, is it going to happen almost all at once the way stores replaced 90% of their cassette inventories with cds seemingly overnight?
This is my nightmare. I love books. I love everything about them-the way they look on a shelf, the way they smell. When I buy a book, I literally try it on first because I always curl up to read in the same position which is just not so cozy if the book doesn't fit right. And a trip to a bookstore or library is like church, hushed and reverent.
People had fleeting affairs with these other forms of media, the tapes and stuff. But books are of all time. We have history with them. Surely people won't be so willing to give them up, right?

[M|X|Y]

My gf is a librarian... I sent this to her not too long ago

http://www.boingboing.net/2011/04/14/found-sign-why-the-i.html

not sure if i agree

[kaiser soze]

I'm torn over this -

Pro-book

1) Books are invaluable sources of long lasting and historical information and entertainment.

2) Books are visceral, people like holding something, the smell of it, collecting them, the way they fill space.

3) Books equate intelligence, imagination, and dedication. People display and share their libraries proudly as an accomplishment and resource.

4) Not everyone can afford e-readers and their media, e-readers can be stolen, and can be damaged/corrupted. Books can be provided to the poor or sent to 3rd world nations.

5) Keeps people employed and in business. Libraries, Book Stores, manufacturing the books...

Pro- E-reader

1) Books adverse effects on our environment - Very few publishers of books/periodicals recycle and use recycled materials.

2) Publishers exploitation at the cost of education. This disgusts me royally, new editions seemingly every other semester with increased costs?! E-readers will minimize this (hopefully) and possibly lighten the load you have to lug across campus.

3) Modernization of media. Everything is going digital, why not books? Cross-platform (e-reader/mobile/pc)

4) Increase exposure of lesser known authors (conversely this could flood markets with quack writers as well)

4) Books litter homes, would help people de-clutter - I know I have parted with many beloved reads.

I think both have their place and I believe the cross-over will be much longer than other forms of media. Periodicals have survived and they are exceptionally disposable, so books should be able to hold out.

[M|X|Y]

Pro-book:

You can't go and change the content of all books at once, on the back-end, without anyone knowing about it.

Paper books make revising history a little harder.

[kaiser soze]

yeah I actually thought of that one, but my list was getting long already

books have been hacked - by publishers

[synch]

Laser Discs haven't been substituted by anything.

Just saying.

[avignon]

a book isn't necessarily just the words written in it. It is a whole, a work, a piece of art-whatever you want to call it. Case in point, I own three copies of Charles Dickens' A christmas Carol. One is in a leatherbound volume of collected works by Dickens, another is illustrated by Arthur Rackham, and the last is a pop-up, the art done by Chuck Fisher. 3 completely different volumes of the same story with attributes that would be lost to the digital copy.
And by the way, POP-UP BOOKS DON'T WORK ON AN EREADER! :( (n)

[kaiser soze]

I was shocked to see e-readers advertised towards children

(n)

[avignon]

Laser Discs haven't been substituted by anything.

Just saying.

So does a laser disc have any characteristics that a dvd version of the same movie wouldn't have? Other than the fact that you could serve pizza on it?

[avignon]

I was shocked to see e-readers advertised towards children

(n)

What's worse is those commercials with the babies reading flashcards. Creepy!

[synch]

So does a laser disc have any characteristics that a dvd version of the same movie wouldn't have? Other than the fact that you could serve pizza on it?What do you mean by other than the fact? That's kind of the redeeming quality.

I love Laser Discs. Don't judge me :(

[avignon]

I am judging you. Only Tron should own laser discs!

[MC Moot]

Books!...I prefer my reading material to be irradiation free...particularily if one is in the bath...my books are amongst my most valuable posessions...I've been building my "library" for over 15 years now...I love they way they look,I love categorizing them by style,substance,period,form and author...I love typeface...I love weeding through them,grabbing a box of those that don't make the keeper cut,every few months and taking them to my second hand bookstore to trade them in for credit...I love my browsing that store for gems and deals and second copy's to give away...yes,books,everytime!

[kaiser soze]

appears to be a similar sentiment with music collecting - cataloging, artwork, sentimentality, the ability to touch it/show it....oooh baby

[rirv]

I can't see e-readers replacing books at all. Whereas the benefits of, say, an mp3 player with a few thousand songs or hundreds of albums are manifold due to the way people listen to music, this doesn't translate with an e-reader. I find with books that you are only ever reading one or two at a time and if going on a holiday can easily manage to carry enough material with you. I think an e-reader would cause you to lose concentration and change books halfway through.

[avignon]

Books!...I prefer my reading material to be irradiation free...particularily if one is in the bath...my books are amongst my most valuable posessions...I've been building my "library" for over 15 years now...I love they way they look,I love categorizing them by style,substance,period,form and author...I love typeface...I love weeding through them,grabbing a box of those that don't make the keeper cut,every few months and taking them to my second hand bookstore to trade them in for credit...I love my browsing that store for gems and deals and second copy's to give away...yes,books,everytime!

I'm going to arrange mine by likelihood of rereading so that the ones that i want to keep but most likely won't be reaching for in the near future will be on the very bottom, the stuff i refer to often or am planning on reading soon will be at eye level and the super cool stuff will go at the very top, but only because we're getting an awesome ladder that slides along the cases and
i want an excuse to climb on it alot.

[Documad]

a book isn't necessarily just the words written in it. It is a whole, a work, a piece of art-whatever you want to call it. Case in point, I own three copies of Charles Dickens' A christmas Carol. One is in a leatherbound volume of collected works by Dickens, another is illustrated by Arthur Rackham, and the last is a pop-up, the art done by Chuck Fisher. 3 completely different volumes of the same story with attributes that would be lost to the digital copy.
And by the way, POP-UP BOOKS DON'T WORK ON AN EREADER! :( (n)

I collect books and vinyl records. But I have to say, someone showed me an Illustrated Alice in Wonderland on an ipad recently and it was pretty cool. The characters move -- better than pop up.

[kaiser soze]

hmm - it is interesting

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPAZCH7dTik

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GVPOCCnAfc&feature=related