Poll Electronic and Physical Books

[Relayer1]

Really? I would have said the opposite is true. A word search, or even a phrase search, so much better than flipping hardcopy pages and skimming and scanning.

I don't know, the search function is useful, but with a physical copy I often have a mental impression of roughly how far back, left or right page and how far down the page the piece I'm looking for is. Kind of 'muscle memory' rather than consciously. That just doesn't work with an e-reader.

 

[2of1million]

Ebooks only for me. Paper books make my arms hurt and the print is so small.

 

[Avro Arrow]

Parchment all the way. Too bad it's all in museums.

Pfft. A *real* purist would insist on pictographs on cave walls.

 

[JD]

Really? I would have said the opposite is true. A word search, or even a phrase search, so much better than flipping hardcopy pages and skimming and scanning. And an electronic bookmark that never falls out accidentally!

In the 80s, I had a rather awkward series of encounters with a Trek fan in our club. When he heard that I had all the commercial blueprints and tech manuals, he told me how his house had once flooded, and he lost everything made of paper, so therefore I should be kind and lend him all my Trek stuff - for free - so he could scan it (very early days of scanners) and put it all into his computer. He persisted for months. I just didn't trust him, not to mention it was breach of copyright.

I don't know, the search function is useful, but with a physical copy I often have a mental impression of roughly how far back, left or right page and how far down the page the piece I'm looking for is. Kind of 'muscle memory' rather than consciously. That just doesn't work with an e-reader.

I've found the oppisite to be true for me when I've been looking for stuff in a book. There have been times where I was curious if a certain thing was in a book I bought, so I just searched for it. I also forgot who a character was a couple times and just did a search to find where they were first described. Usually it will give you some kind of a highlight or something for your specific search in the results.

 

[Ktrek]

Really? I would have said the opposite is true. A word search, or even a phrase search, so much better than flipping hardcopy pages and skimming and scanning. And an electronic bookmark that never falls out accidentally!

Yes really. I am a very visual learner and my mind remembers pages. I can't explain it. I doubt I would ever find anything in my Bible if it wasn't for my visual memory. I have tried using an ebook Bible and the experience is not the same. My reference books are all marked up and I can flip a book open and in seconds find you something. I cannot do that in an ebook. It's just the way my brain is wired.

Kevin

 

[Kinggodzillak]

Try to go for e-books wherever possible, usually. May occasionally make exceptions for hardbacks, but haven't bought a new paperback for years and trying to clear out most of my collection just to make room.

When it comes to Trek books I've a problem, and that is being in the UK. Several dozen TOS & TNG are unavailable on Amazon, and...well, I want to read them. But on the Kindle.

It's frustrating because I know all the e-books are out there online in various places, nudge nudge wink wink, but I don't want to be going down that route. I want the authors to get paid and so on.

On the other hand I really want to read books like The Three Minute Universe again, and can't on Kindle. Unless I take the naughty route.

 

[Stephen!]

Generally I prefer physical books, but I'll probably buy a few ebooks eventually, since I have an Amazon gift card that's not been used yet and there's a few older Star Trek novels that I'd be interested in reading at some point.

 

[RedForman]

Started off with physical copies (paperbacks) and made the transition to electronic ones toward the tail end of the Vanguard/middle of the Destiny saga if I remember right. Anymore, the convenience factor of eBooks does it for me (unless I get a specific title as a gift or something).

 

[Nate]

Physical books for me. I look at a computer screen all day at work and a physical book is an escape from that.

 

[jaime]

Physical books for me. I look at a computer screen all day at work and a physical book is an escape from that.

Electronic ink e readers are far closer to a book than a screen.

 

[OverlordSpock]

I prefer a physical book, but completely appreciate the convenience of an e-book (I use iBooks on my iPad). I only purchase Star Trek books in physical form (with the exception of any e-book exclusives as well as one novel—That Which Survives—which I purchased on vacation and couldn't find a printed copy where I was vacationing).

For non-Trek, it's a toss-up on if I'll purchase a physical book or e-book. Generally, if I think I'll want to read the book more than once, I'll purchase a physical book. If I think the book is just a one-time read, I'll go the e-book route. I know that seems counter-intuitive, but it's the way my mind works with this.

I love browsing through a bookstore. I visit a local Barnes and Noble at least twice a month, if not more often. Back when my wife and I were still dating, we'd end many date nights at a local Borders browsing for hours (how I miss that store). As some others have already said, I also enjoy visiting used book stores and seeing what treasures I can find. You just can't do any of that with an e-reader.

I am sure that as I get older and as times move on, more and more I will move to reading on some form of e-reader. But, I will always prefer a paper book.

 

[Tribbles and Bits]

Electronic all the way for me. As a frequent business traveler they take up much less bag space and offer a much wider and much more accessible selection if I finish or lose interest in a book sooner than expected. I don't miss physical books at all. I have not looked back since I received my first kindle.

 

[BillJ]

Electronic all the way for me. As a frequent business traveler they take up much less bag space and offer a much wider and much more accessible selection if I finish or lose interest in a book sooner than expected. I don't miss physical books at all. I have not looked back since I received my first kindle.

Nothing like going on vacation and having your entire library at your fingertips.

 

[JoeP]

Though I'm all Kindle with paperbacks, I gotta say, I'm constantly struggling with the collector side of my brain. I love the look of the books on the shelf, and the full colour artwork. It's tough sometimes!

 

[Sto-Vo-Kory]

Though I'm all Kindle with paperbacks, I gotta say, I'm constantly struggling with the collector side of my brain. I love the look of the books on the shelf, and the full colour artwork. It's tough sometimes!

I prefer to read paperbacks on my Kindle, but I too want to keep collecting the physical editions as well. I just wish the ebook version was included when you purchased a hardcopy Trek book, like the digital edition that comes with most Marvel comics or the Kindle Matchbook program when you buy select titles through Amazon.

 

[Avro Arrow]

Electronic all the way for me. As a frequent business traveler they take up much less bag space and offer a much wider and much more accessible selection if I finish or lose interest in a book sooner than expected. I don't miss physical books at all. I have not looked back since I received my first kindle.

I don't really have any comment on what you wrote, but I just wanted to say that I love your username!

I prefer to read paperbacks on my Kindle, but I too want to keep collecting the physical editions as well. I just wish the ebook version was included when you purchased a hardcopy Trek book, like the digital edition that comes with most Marvel comics or the Kindle Matchbook program when you buy select titles through Amazon.

This this this this this. Even if they couldn't justify including it for free, if they let you get the eBook version as a bundle for an additional dollar or three, I'd probably do it, then they'd be getting a few extra dollars from me on each book more than what they're getting now.

 

[tomswift2002]

I prefer physical. The tactile sense of touching real paper just draws me into a story a lot more than touching glass and plastic.

Plus I love being able to get new releases days before the actual release date, with no way o the publisher to "lock-out" the book when they realize it's been released early. Also, there are a number of books that, due to their age, are still only available in physical form.

But also, I have some books that, here in Canada, are in the public domain, but in the US are still under copyright. Now then if I travel to the US with a physical copy, there's no way for the American publisher to send a signal to "lock out" the book, whereas an electronic version could be locked out.

 

[Idran]

Is that something that's actually happened before? Because I honestly can't even think how. Like, there are so many technical hurdles to a system like that, I honestly am really curious how it would even be implemented in practice, because every time I come up with a potential solution to one problem I think of a brand new problem associated with implementing it.

Unless, like, one of the ebook-associated online retailers offers public domain books for free and you're not talking about downloading a DRM-free PDF or TXT file to an ebook reader?

 

[laibcoms]

Physical books… electronic books? What are those?

From where I live, our books are passed down from one person to another. We have a storyteller who beautifully tells the story to us. Pulling us in a whole new universe, living the lives of the characters.

I remember a new member of our community asked if these stories could be real at all. We do not know. It could be, because how can the storyteller tell these stories in an immersing way if these were only a by-product of his playful imagination, right?

One even submitted the possibility that the reason the Storytellers Guild only accept a handful few (and who were foreigners in our community at first) was because these people were travelers. Perhaps, bards. Witnesses to these events, their job, to preserve history and to pass it on to as many souls as possible.

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On a serious note… (well, I was serious above, for the most part), I buy physical books and ebooks if both are available. Physical books are for collection. Personally, ebooks still has not reached collectible-level.

It could be just me, since I'm a bibliophile. I have so many physical books I have not read, and have multiple copies of some too (same edition and different editions).

However, ebooks do give an advantage that is rarely mentioned -- lighting. You can read ebooks without worrying about light -- although still not advisable, a well lighted reading environ is still recommended.

I have both, but I'll buy the physical book for collection and buy ebooks for reading.

Oh, one more thing, ebooks also give you an option to have it read to you. But never do it while walking or driving, at least, if you are like me who gets immersed easily.

 

[Avro Arrow]

However, ebooks do give an advantage that is rarely mentioned -- lighting. You can read ebooks without worrying about light

That depends on the device. Most e-ink readers will still require an external light source (although devices like the Kobo Glo have built-in lighting).