Comments on: Is the future of reading really in danger? http://twocentsworth.com/2007/11/25/is-the-future-of-reading-really-in-danger/ The homepage and weblog of Aaron M. Wagner Sat, 06 Sep 2008 01:58:09 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.3 By: Leah http://twocentsworth.com/2007/11/25/is-the-future-of-reading-really-in-danger/#comment-27 Leah Thu, 06 Dec 2007 00:16:25 +0000 http://twocentsworth.com/2007/11/25/is-the-future-of-reading-really-in-danger/#comment-27 I'm totally in agreement with Geoff, with the physical and environmental issues of a physical book. However, I'm now faced at work with the concept of imaging, and going toward a "paperless" mortgage file. Heck, we're still facing issues with all the Guidelines and Manuals on-line! These do not, in fact, save time! I look back fondly at the time when rifling through the dog-eared, many post-it notes stuck on pages went much, much quicker! Another issue that is being totally ignored is our eyesight. Like many people, I'm nearsighted, with an astigmatism, and because of my age, also have Presbyopia. http://www.allaboutvision.com/conditions/presbyopia.htm Years ago, my eye doctor told me that as I aged, my vision would in fact get better, and I could schedule my eye exams further apart. However, the reverse has been true, and at my last exam, I asked him to explain. He asked me one question. How many hours a day are you at a computer?? It turns out that the old rules have flown out the window, driven by our technological advances, to the detriment of our eyesight. I have 13 years to go before retirement age. At what point, can I claim Workman's Comp for my worsening vision??? Just wondering!? I’m totally in agreement with Geoff, with the physical and environmental issues of a physical book. However, I’m now faced at work with the concept of imaging, and going toward a “paperless” mortgage file. Heck, we’re still facing issues with all the Guidelines and Manuals on-line! These do not, in fact, save time! I look back fondly at the time when rifling through the dog-eared, many post-it notes stuck on pages went much, much quicker! Another issue that is being totally ignored is our eyesight. Like many people, I’m nearsighted, with an astigmatism, and because of my age, also have Presbyopia. http://www.allaboutvision.com/conditions/presbyopia.htm
Years ago, my eye doctor told me that as I aged, my vision would in fact get better, and I could schedule my eye exams further apart. However, the reverse has been true, and at my last exam, I asked him to explain. He asked me one question. How many hours a day are you at a computer??

It turns out that the old rules have flown out the window, driven by our technological advances, to the detriment of our eyesight. I have 13 years to go before retirement age. At what point, can I claim Workman’s Comp for my worsening vision???
Just wondering!?

]]> By: Scott http://twocentsworth.com/2007/11/25/is-the-future-of-reading-really-in-danger/#comment-25 Scott Wed, 28 Nov 2007 01:03:42 +0000 http://twocentsworth.com/2007/11/25/is-the-future-of-reading-really-in-danger/#comment-25 I'm still in the dark ages (pre-iPod), but I'd love to see a contrast on Amazon's Kindle with the iPod's TOS... I’m still in the dark ages (pre-iPod), but I’d love to see a contrast on Amazon’s Kindle with the iPod’s TOS…

]]> By: Geoff http://twocentsworth.com/2007/11/25/is-the-future-of-reading-really-in-danger/#comment-23 Geoff Sun, 25 Nov 2007 18:23:56 +0000 http://twocentsworth.com/2007/11/25/is-the-future-of-reading-really-in-danger/#comment-23 I've tried reading ebooks and PDF books before, but it's not the same as holding a real piece of paper or an actual book in my hands. With a real book, you can dog-ear the pages, write in the margins, underline or highlight key words. You can smell the pages, feel the texture of the paper, add a bookmark that physically sticks out to mark your page. The best part of owning a physical book; not needing to make sure that you have enough battery juice to keep reading for hours! I'm curious about the "greenness" of ebooks and their hardware readers. You have to constantly charge it like any other electronic device, so it requires power from the grid that is, in the US, majority coal-produced. When it breaks, it'll end up in a dump and the battery will leech into the soil and cause contamination. Are they produced without lead (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RoHS" rel="nofollow">RoHS</a>) or other materials that will leech as well? Is there a plan to recycle the electrical components after the reader stops working in a few years (because we all know that hand-held electronics all break eventually)? What happens when the reader breaks, do you have a way to get back the old copies of the ebook? Are you allowed to backup the files and still have them work for you? I like the fact that I could, if done with a physical book, go to a used book store (like <a href="http://www.bookmans.com/" rel="nofollow">Bookmans</a>) and sell/trade it so that someone else can get enjoyment out of it. With DRM, I'm betting you can't just do that. I like the fact that just about 100% of a book can be separated and recycled into a new book or magazine or something else useful and reused again and again. That is certainly not true with electronics. Call me old-fashioned, but I like physically owning the book and not virtually owning it. I'll still opt for paperback and hardcover over ebook any day. I’ve tried reading ebooks and PDF books before, but it’s not the same as holding a real piece of paper or an actual book in my hands. With a real book, you can dog-ear the pages, write in the margins, underline or highlight key words. You can smell the pages, feel the texture of the paper, add a bookmark that physically sticks out to mark your page. The best part of owning a physical book; not needing to make sure that you have enough battery juice to keep reading for hours!

I’m curious about the “greenness” of ebooks and their hardware readers. You have to constantly charge it like any other electronic device, so it requires power from the grid that is, in the US, majority coal-produced. When it breaks, it’ll end up in a dump and the battery will leech into the soil and cause contamination. Are they produced without lead (RoHS) or other materials that will leech as well? Is there a plan to recycle the electrical components after the reader stops working in a few years (because we all know that hand-held electronics all break eventually)? What happens when the reader breaks, do you have a way to get back the old copies of the ebook? Are you allowed to backup the files and still have them work for you?

I like the fact that I could, if done with a physical book, go to a used book store (like Bookmans) and sell/trade it so that someone else can get enjoyment out of it. With DRM, I’m betting you can’t just do that. I like the fact that just about 100% of a book can be separated and recycled into a new book or magazine or something else useful and reused again and again. That is certainly not true with electronics.

Call me old-fashioned, but I like physically owning the book and not virtually owning it. I’ll still opt for paperback and hardcover over ebook any day.

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