AncalagonTheBlack Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 Previous topic is now archived. From the OP: Quote We know that with the rise of technological devices such as tablets, Ereader, smartphones ect that Ebooks have become more popular and accessible, baiscally an alternative to paper. This thread is to get your opinions on this question: Do you prefer the Paper book or ebook medium for reading? Just saw this news: Amazon Plans Hundreds of Brick-and-Mortar Bookstores, Mall CEO Says. More here and here. Oh the irony! Poor Borders and B&N. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darth Richard II Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 Heh, part 2? This has got to be at least part 7. Also, PAPER. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AncalagonTheBlack Posted February 4, 2016 Author Share Posted February 4, 2016 13 minutes ago, Darth Richard II said: Heh, part 2? This has got to be at least part 7. The previous topic was unnumbered and i can't recall any of the older threads ,so,part II Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gertrude Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 I was talking with my cousin who is a teacher and has children in school. The conversation somehow turned to textbooks and I was surprised to learn how much they relied on ipads. One of the girls only had one physical book, the rest were e-books and the students were given ipads for the school year. I wondered what kind of problems they had with cost, maintenance, missing ipads, etc and she said it's really not a problem. I found it very interesting. I don't have kids in school, but I knew there was more reliance on computers and they were more available, but this kind of blew my mind in a good way. She likes it because it gives the teachers the freedom to pick and choose study material and not be tied to a physical book - it's just more flexible and responsive. I have no idea what the payment model looks like for school books, but it's a very interesting thing, I think. It's also going to get kids used to reading digital material over physical books, which they probably were anyway if they like to read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Tiger Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 Paper all day, I can't read an ebook from beginning to end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Scot A Ellison Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 Paper, but I can see the utility of iPads and eReaders for textbooks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briantw Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 Totally on the Kindle bandwagon. I can't even remember the last time I read a physical book that wasn't either a graphic novel (I have a regular Kindle so those don't fly) or an oversized coffee table style book like World of Ice & Fire. It's just so much more convenient to be able to carry around all my books on a tiny, light device (or access them on my phone) and to be able to easily flip pages with one hand or instantly skip to a chapter or location that I want. It's also great to be able to buy a book and start reading it in less than a minute, or to instantly get new releases the night they come out rather than waiting for them to ship or having to go to a store. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrackerNeil Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 I was a reluctant but now enthusiastic Kindle convert. I like getting books immediately, and then being able to read them where the lighting is sub-optimal. (Useful when you get past forty!) Besides, you can always buy the paperback if you're worried about losing the rights or whatever. I think sometimes ebooks are a bit over-priced, but I suppose that's a discussion for another time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briantw Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 2 minutes ago, TrackerNeil said: I think sometimes ebooks are a bit over-priced, but I suppose that's a discussion for another time. Yeah, I think publishers get a bit greedy with those e-book prices sometimes. It's ridiculous to have to pay the same price as a hardcover or paperback book as a digital copy that costs the publisher absolutely nothing to produce. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TrackerNeil Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 2 minutes ago, briantw said: Yeah, I think publishers get a bit greedy with those e-book prices sometimes. It's ridiculous to have to pay the same price as a hardcover or paperback book as a digital copy that costs the publisher absolutely nothing to produce. Well, I think most of the costs of publishing are not printing and shipping, but I also understand that publishers usually receive a much higher cut of the ebook sales; hence, the battle between Amazon.com and Hachette. I have very little sympathy for book publishers, so as far as I am concerned something that tweaks the nose of the industry is usually A-OK with me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spockydog Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 6 minutes ago, briantw said: Yeah, I think publishers get a bit greedy with those e-book prices sometimes. It's ridiculous to have to pay the same price as a hardcover or paperback book as a digital copy that costs the publisher absolutely nothing to produce. I agree that it's wrong to charge the same, or more, as has happened in some cases, for an ebook. But to suggest that a digital copy costs the publisher absolutely nothing to produce implies a complete lack of understanding of the publishing process. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
briantw Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 1 minute ago, Spockydog said: I agree that it's wrong to charge the same, or more, as has happened in some cases, for an ebook. But to suggest that a digital copy costs the publisher absolutely nothing implies a complete lack of understanding of the publishing process. I meant nothing in terms of an actual physical production of the book (printing, shipping, etc). Obviously they had to pay the author and the editor and all of that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wolverine Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 3 hours ago, Gertrude said: I was talking with my cousin who is a teacher and has children in school. The conversation somehow turned to textbooks and I was surprised to learn how much they relied on ipads. One of the girls only had one physical book, the rest were e-books and the students were given ipads for the school year. I wondered what kind of problems they had with cost, maintenance, missing ipads, etc and she said it's really not a problem. I found it very interesting. I don't have kids in school, but I knew there was more reliance on computers and they were more available, but this kind of blew my mind in a good way. She likes it because it gives the teachers the freedom to pick and choose study material and not be tied to a physical book - it's just more flexible and responsive. I have no idea what the payment model looks like for school books, but it's a very interesting thing, I think. It's also going to get kids used to reading digital material over physical books, which they probably were anyway if they like to read. I am a teacher and have no idea how having a textbook would not allow a teacher the freedom to pick and choose their curriculum. I guess if the school had 0 ways of accessing technology? Or if the once every 7 years cost of a textbook meant they couldn't afford the necessary technology? Teachers can still be creative using personal devices and what not. It is just lazy teachers that are tied to their textbook. They would similarly probably not be very creative with their ipad/chromebooks/whatever technology. I teach in a very poor area, have textbooks, plus one-to-one access to a device at any point during the day. Ipads fro high schoolers does not seem very well received though. Seems much more time is spent playing games rather than on educational activities. I did my masters thesis on the impact of ipads on student learning. I never thought I would read anything other than paper, but with two little boys at home I have tried to find more times to read and that includes downloading free books on my phone. I actually read/listened to The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes as a paper book, free ebook, and free audio book. Now halfway into A Tale of Two Cities the same way. My ignorance probably gives me an inexhaustible supply of free classics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HexMachina Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 2 hours ago, Ser Scot A Ellison said: Paper, but I can see the utility of iPads and eReaders for textbooks. Very handy for university textbooks too, not least because they are usually back-breaking lay large books to carry around all day (and on the tube in rush hour, nobody will thank you for being THAT person!). Footnotes are a bit of a pain though, at least on my device. Mostly they get listed at the end of the chapter, although some at least provide a hyperlink to take you to the relevant footnote when you click it.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red snow Posted February 4, 2016 Share Posted February 4, 2016 It's pretty rare I read outside of kindle these days. I haven't really tried on tablets (because the kindle is compact and has better battery life) - although I can just as happily read a comic on screen as on paper (the quality often looks sharper on screen). Weirdly I still tend to buy textbooks in paper format. I don't know if it's a behavioural thing from school but I prefer Flipping through pages with my hands. It could also just be that textbooks tend to have larger pages than an ereader or tablet can actually manage too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maarsen Posted February 5, 2016 Share Posted February 5, 2016 I was given a tablet for Xmas. I did not ask for one and I did not want one but there it is. The first thing I did was find out how to download e-books fro free. Did I mention I was cheap? Then I found Project Gutenberg. Thousands of books in the public domain and free to download. I must admit that not all of the titles are the epitome of excitement but I did find lots of interesting stuff. Presently I am reading The Three Musketeers. I still prefer paper but the tablet is so damn convenient sometimes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darth Richard II Posted February 5, 2016 Share Posted February 5, 2016 I can't read books on a tablet. The e-ink thing has gotten good but 1. I can't afford it 2. I have 400+ physical books on my TBR pile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maarsen Posted February 5, 2016 Share Posted February 5, 2016 45 minutes ago, Darth Richard II said: I can't read books on a tablet. The e-ink thing has gotten good but 1. I can't afford it 2. I have 400+ physical books on my TBR pile. My TBR pile needs a separate building to house it all. It's my local library. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mgambino Posted February 5, 2016 Share Posted February 5, 2016 I read almost exclusively on my iPhone 6+. I have a kindle paperwhite, but I like my phone's screen better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gertrude Posted February 5, 2016 Share Posted February 5, 2016 13 hours ago, wolverine said: Teachers can still be creative using personal devices and what not. I'm not sure I understand this comment. I'm reading it as 'Even if teachers are using physical text books, they can still use their own personal devices to be creative.' Isn't that a problem if teachers are forced to use their own resources for teaching on a regular basis? Yes, I know it happens all the time everywhere, but it doesn't mean it's right. I guess I don't know if you actually think e-readers/tablets are good for teaching or not. Is it just the environment? She teaches elementary music at two schools, one of which is a poor school. Her girls are in elementary and middle school. Now that I think about it, I'm not sure the elementary has the ipads, but the middle schools do. I asked her about distractions on the ipad like games, etc, and she said it's no worse than phones are. (and just to defend my cousin, she is not a lazy teacher nor does she lack creativity.) eta: I know this is kind of getting away from the topic, but I think it's an interesting aspect of how accessible e-readers now are and why schools might be choosing this path. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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