| Pages in topic: < [1 2 3 4 5] > | Off topic: The ultimate battle: electronic text reading devices vs books! Thread poster: Tomás Cano Binder, BA, CT
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Heinrich Pesch 
Finland
Local time: 12:35
Member (2003)
Finnish to German
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| Easy censorship | May 8, 2011 |
One advantage (?) of electronic media is that it much easier for authorities to change and censor content. You don't like it that your country lost the war? Just change all electronic content and soon nobody has any proof for the contrary. This will be true for the future. Some countries are already firmly on the road to centrally edited history.
| | | | | You want a computer, not a book | May 8, 2011 |
Fernando Toledo wrote:
1. Ability to change Font
But this way you alter the intention of the editor to use one font in particular, in line with the story, ambience, and time.
Fernando Toledo wrote:
2. Ability to change Font size (some people could read without glasses)
You can do that with a book too: simply move the book closer to your eyes!
Fernando Toledo wrote:
3. Control of light intensity on the screen
4. Mode "Sepia" for a more pleasant viewing
So imitating a real book I reckon? Go for the real thing!
Fernando Toledo wrote:
5. Searchable!
6. Direct consultation of any word in Wikipedia
OK, but this way you miss the chance of learning new things you did not expect to know, which is a positive side effect of searching for things in a paper encyclopedia.
Fernando Toledo wrote:
7. A device + thousands of books always the same weight / volume
8. Access to millions of FREE classics in many languages
OK, this is true. However, why would you need to carry thousands of books, most of which will be absolutely uninteresting for you? Also, you are probably reducing your chances of finding unexpected things since you will not feel the urge of visiting a bookshop. By having access to so many books over the Internet, aren't you at risk of becoming an agoraphobic?
Fernando Toledo wrote:
9. Direct purchase, no waiting
Exactly. The same you can do at a bookshop, where you also enjoy the chance of walking around surrounded by a sample of human wisdom and beauty, finding unexpected things. If you only buy books over the Internet, chances are that you will not grow your knowledge and wisdom at the same rate as if you buy books in a bookshop, with no exact expectations in mind.
Also, the ability to satisfy your desires immediately is clearly bad for you and for mankind as a whole: the most beautiful thoughts and creations have always been the result of unsatisfied desires.
Fernando Toledo wrote:
10. No left page (always uncomfortable due to the formation of curve)
Only if the editors were not careful dealing with the spine and thickness of the book. The left page can be read perfectly well in a book that was carefully designed. Also, reading to the right and left is good for your neck!
Fernando Toledo wrote:
11. Newspapers in a new dimension, links, dynamic, abonnements in different countries, social linked, etc.
But you are talking about reading the news with a computer, something which has disadvantages too: if you decide what kind of news you want to read, you are surely missing unexpected knowledge that could seem useless now, but can be decisive later on.
| | | | | Reading forever? | May 8, 2011 |
lindaellen wrote:
I can image taking it on vacation filled with travel books and novels.
I agree that it could be a useful gadget in that sense, but on the other hand, when you go on vacation it's best for you to carry only one book for the moments in which you really can't do anything else but wait in a rather dull place (airport, airplane...). All the rest of the time it's probably best to interact with the people and the landscape, watch things happen, and enjoy the scenery with all senses, even if still. I wonder whether the possibility to read forever is ruining the chances of noticing new things during the trip?
lindaellen wrote:By the way I have a large library and many books that I cherish and many that I read once and now gather dust. Not all books are created equal.
I entirely agree. If I went through my library right now, I would probably discard half of the books. I don't do it because I have the space for the books, but would probably have to do it if I had to move to a smaller home.
| | | | | I have to buy a cellphone every year... | May 8, 2011 |
Fernando Toledo wrote: Tomás Cano Binder, CT wrote:
- If you drop your bag with a book in it, there is no damage really.
- Books and children get along well. I recommend you to buy a paper mobil phone!!!!
I promise that I would do so if they existed! Unfortunately my phones don't last intact for very long. Maybe I am just clumsy!
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| That's right! | May 8, 2011 |
Michele Fauble wrote:
For me the greatest advantage of an "electronic text reading device" is the ability to purchase and download the books that I want in languages other than English.
Except that I can't.
So I haven't purchased an e-reader.
Exactly!
| | | | | Digital "old and rare" book catalogue? | May 8, 2011 |
John Fossey wrote:
The way its going, books written only for electronic reading may be inaccessible long before they're out of copyright.
I also think this will be the case.
The problem is not the technology to store the books and keep them up-to-date in the newer formats as they come along. The problem is that with electronic shops you only buy what you are looking for, and you don't bump onto completely unexpected things you could deeply enjoy if you knew of its existance. Thus, from the millions of books you could have access to, you will only be in contact with a tiny fraction of them since you don't really know what you have to look for.
In websites, editors will of course highlight the things they want to sell, not the random things that could become interesting for you.
Old, unexpected, rare paper books can be found in street markets and special bookshops, and you go to these places just as a kind of entertainment and "to see what happens". I reckon nobody will think that perusing an internet bookshop or electronic catalogue with no specific goal in mind is a form of entertainment.
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very vague arguments...
You are trying to protect your habitudes, not comparing formats. To go sundays to the "flea market" to found "treasures" has nothing to do with the theme. And so with almost all the arguments...
A book is a book. We are comparing the "format" and the experience of reading.
We have books in different formats throughout the history, from papyrus to the iPad, the format has changed every few centuries. Ask a 18 y... See more very vague arguments...
You are trying to protect your habitudes, not comparing formats. To go sundays to the "flea market" to found "treasures" has nothing to do with the theme. And so with almost all the arguments...
A book is a book. We are comparing the "format" and the experience of reading.
We have books in different formats throughout the history, from papyrus to the iPad, the format has changed every few centuries. Ask a 18 year old who grew up with these new devices if he could read (if he find it pleasing, ergonomic) a novel of 3000 pages on paper.
The only valid argument in favor of paper are collecting valuables objects and maintaining habitudes.
Also to have a opinion about the 2 formats or ways to read, you have to try/use both! To speak about wines does not make you a good taster/tester
My best argument is simple:
when I start to read a book in any my "readers" in ten seconds I am completely immersed in reading.... thats all
[Edited at 2011-05-08 10:12 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | It's not about habits... but about culture in a wider sense! | May 8, 2011 |
Fernando Toledo wrote:
very vague arguments...
You are trying to protect your habitudes, not comparing formats. To go sundays to the "flea market" to found "treasures" has nothing to do with the theme. And so with almost all the arguments...
Not really. It all depends on what you consider to be "literature" and the way to enjoy it. Stripping literature of the experience of finding the book in the bookshop, escaping from your daily routine to go to buy an intended book and find another pair of books that look promising, enjoy a nice coffee (or whatever) downtown out of impatience to read the first couple of chapters... the experience of the printed pages, etc. etc. It is all part of the literature experience!
Let me ask you this: couldn't you perfectly watch a recorded play over the Internet? Yes, of course you could. But would this really be theatre for you? Probably not. I reckon you also like the excitement of gathering your friends and loved ones, buy your tickets in advance, wait for some days, go to the theater (a place very different from your living room), see the actors create an uncommon new world in front of your very eyes, have a drink at the theater, discus the play and enjoy the company... It is all part of the experience of a play, wouldn't you think? Why is a book less valuable?
Fernando Toledo wrote:
A book is a book. We are comparing the "format" and the experience of reading.
An electronic text is not a book. The book is the whole experience, not just the text.
Fernando Toledo wrote:
The only valid argument in favor of paper are collecting valuables objects and maintaining habitudes.
Not at all. Using books is not a romantic thing. It's just that you want to enjoy more things than just the text.
Fernando Toledo wrote:
Also to have a opinion about the 2 formats or ways to read, you have to try/use both! To speak about wines does not make you a good taster/tester
I don't have to own a motorbike to know whether I would like to own one. It is enough to see others using it. The same with so many other things in life!
Fernando Toledo wrote:
My best argument is simple:
when I start to read a book in any my "readers" in ten seconds I am completely immersed in reading.... thats all
Same as with a book!
About solid arguments... you do not comment on the environmental and cost issues related to electronic text readers. What is your opinion about it all? How many electronic text readers do you own and how do you plan to dispose of them? Are you aware of the environmental, social, political, and health problems created by superfluous electronic devices in general?
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Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:35
Member (2008)
Italian to English
My cat used to sharpen its claws on the books at the bottom of my bookcase. The cat is long gone but I still have books that bear her clawmarks. What use is a Kindle to a cat?
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Tomás Cano Binder, CT wrote:
About solid arguments... you do not comment on the environmental and cost issues related to electronic text readers. What is your opinion about it all? How many electronic text readers do you own and how do you plan to dispose of them? Are you aware of the environmental, social, political, and health problems created by superfluous electronic devices in general?
is the one letting fall a cellular each year? 
And how many "trees" have you read in your life?
I have just a E-Ink reader, but now with my "internet" device I realized that is better to read with the iPad 2... But I muss confess mostly I read with the iPhone, in bed and with one hand (more than 30 books 2010)
And yes I care also (a little) for enviroment, this is a reason why a buy now good devices that can be used many years and care about this:
http://www.apple.com/environment/
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Tom in London wrote:
My cat used to sharpen its claws on the books at the bottom of my bookcase. The cat is long gone but I still have books that bear her clawmarks. What use is a Kindle to a cat?
If your cat knew...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9NP-AeKX40
| | | | | Why either/or? | May 8, 2011 |
Yes, I own a Kindle and am extremely happy with it, for many of the reasons stated above.
But I still buy paper books, I still borrow books from my local library, I still pick up books from my shelves now and again and I still use paper dictionaries.
I fail to see the point of this 'battle'. Why not enjoy the boons of both?
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Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:35
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Fernando - that's hilarious.
| | | | telefpro
Local time: 15:05
Portuguese to English
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I am thinking of buying an E- book reader. I wonder if I can load my technical and legal dictionaries which are in PDF format? Apparently , it looks plausible, but can anyone confirm?
Telefpro
| | | | Alice Crisan
United Kingdom
Local time: 10:35
English to Romanian
+ ...
| all you need is a cat ! | May 8, 2011 |
Tom in London wrote: Fernando - that's hilarious.
I couldn`t stop laughing !!!!!!!
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