Don't Burn Your Books—Print Is Here to Stay

[question everything]

From the WSJ

By NICHOLAS CARR

(snip)

Ever since Amazon introduced its popular Kindle e-reader five years ago, pundits have assumed that the future of book publishing is digital. Opinions about the speed of the shift from page to screen have varied. But the consensus has been that digitization, having had its way with music and photographs and maps, would in due course have its way with books as well. By 2015, one media maven predicted a few years back, traditional books would be gone.

Half a decade into the e-book revolution, though, the prognosis for traditional books is suddenly looking brighter. Hardcover books are displaying surprising resiliency. The growth in e-book sales is slowing markedly. And purchases of e-readers are actually shrinking, as consumers opt instead for multipurpose tablets. It may be that e-books, rather than replacing printed books, will ultimately serve a role more like that of audio books—a complement to traditional reading, not a substitute.

(snip)

From the start, e-book purchases have skewed disproportionately toward fiction, with novels representing close to two-thirds of sales. Digital best-seller lists are dominated in particular by genre novels, like thrillers and romances. Screen reading seems particularly well-suited to the kind of light entertainments that have traditionally been sold in supermarkets and airports as mass-market paperbacks.

These are, by design, the most disposable of books. We read them quickly and have no desire to hang onto them after we've turned the last page. We may even be a little embarrassed to be seen reading them, which makes anonymous digital versions all the more appealing. The "Fifty Shades of Grey" phenomenon probably wouldn't have happened if e-books didn't exist. Readers of weightier fare, including literary fiction and narrative nonfiction, have been less inclined to go digital. They seem to prefer the heft and durability, the tactile pleasures, of what we still call "real books"—the kind you can set on a shelf.

More..

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323874204578219563353697002.html

(If you cannot open from the link, copy and paste the title onto google)

[BainsBane]

1. like vinyl, perhaps

I hauled around my records for years, until I finally got tired of moving them and got rid of them. Then vinyl comes back in vogue and they start making record players again.

[Arugula Latte]

28. I recently stayed in a place where there were good records and a record player.

At first I was excited -- "Wow! So great to put the ol' needle in the groove after all these years!" ... Then, I quickly remembered why I'm so happy to have digital technology. Popping, skipping, scratches, flipping the record, fuzz on the needle, etc. Don't look back.

[iSmoothSal]

44. You can remove DRM from any type of eBooks anways

There are Unique Articles for each method of DRM-Removal explaining how to (Step-By-Step) remove DRM from the e-Books that you have legally purchased. So, if you are not the original owner of the content then you are not going to be able to use it.

Apple iBooks DRM-Removal
Adobe Digital Edition DRM-Removal
Amazon Kindle Store DRM-Removal
Nook Barnes & Noble DRM-Removal
Fictionwise Secure eReader DRM-Removal
Kobo eReader DRM-Removal

All methods of DRM-Removal above relies on Open Source Softwares which are powerful and can even be improved in the future. Please try to work to improve the tools and do not forget to share the knowledge.

[Purveyor]

2. When I crawl into bed, with a dog shoring up one side...I enjoy my 'print copy' while Riley

lays his head on my chest until it is 'lights out' when he spreads full out. No extra blankets need here!

[Incitatus]

3. I like being able to lie in bed and use my Nook with all the lights out. nt

[Purveyor]

9. Tried that with my Kindle...and my Husky got right off the bed. Go figure? eom

[Jenoch]

11. I got an original Nook

as a Christmas gift. It turns out I can't get e-books from the library (not compatible) and apparently it only works with purchases from Barnes & Noble. I prefer real books. What do I do with this thing? I think my SIL got it real cheap on black Friday.

I read suspense novels, but I have boxes of yet to be read paperbacks that I got for $1 each at a used book store.

[Incitatus]

16. There are websites with thousands of free books (expired copyrights)

that you can download and put onto your reader. I'm getting more into reading the classics and most of by real books are within copyright

http://www.gutenberg.org/

I'm not sure if the older Nooks have that capability.

If they can't even do that, I can understand users not being very happy with them.

There are pros and cons e-books and real books. It just depends on the individual.

[Lordquinton]

18. Paper books are DRM free

which is a big plus and a factor in everyone's decision about them, regardless if you know what DRM is or not.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

22. word. nt

[DisgustipatedinCA]

27. ebooks are also DRM-free

...just as soon as I've finished running them through Calibre.

[Incitatus]

39. I've never heard of Calibre

So I searched and found this.

http://www.the-digital-reader.com/2012/09/27/how-to-add-a-nook-drm-removal-plugin-to-calibre/

Interesting

[DisgustipatedinCA]

41. Calibre does much more than just stripping DRM

Calibre works as a DRM removal tool, but also functions as a library manager (search for books, sort by genre, author, title, or a combination, e.g., show all books in Fiction genre whose author starts with the letter B). It freely converts books from Kindle format (.mobi) to Nook format (.epub)--if you try to put a Nook .epub on your Kindle, Calibre will automatically convert it to a Kindle-friendly .mobi file before sending it to your device. Calibre acts as a nice mass edit tool also. If all your books have the author listed FN LN, e.g., Frank Smith, you can easily convert your entire library to LN FN, e.g., Smith, Frank. It will find and download missing book covers, back flap summary/review material, publishing date, etc. And of course, it will add and remove books from your book reader. It's the most fully featured free software I've ever had the pleasure of using, and I recommend it highly. I have a 12,000 book library, and I'd be lost without some kind of tool like Calibre to help manage it.

[Incitatus]

42. Awesome

Thanks for the information.

[TuxedoKat]

29. If

you go the the button for "Shop" and enter 0.0 it will give you all the free books available on the Nook. If you want to look for a specific category, you can add "0.0 Mysteries", 0.0 Suspense, or 0.0 Twain for a specific author or 0.0 cooking for a subject. Also, every Friday B&N offers a free book. If you google "Nook Free Fridays" you will see the book and then you can go to the B&N website and download if you like. The B&N Facebook page also lists the free book every Friday. Their is also a Facebook page for a group called Cheap E-Reads that list books every day.

I love my Nook, have had it for two years now. I still read hardbacks and paperbacks too though.

[Carla in Sequim]

4. I know the feeling.

I've got a lot of vinyl I won't part with. And I play them. I just listened to some of my dad's jazz albums. They are timeless and full of good memories. I'm dancing on his feet again.

As for books, I am glad to hear books are doing well. But how do we get kids to read again?

[politicat]

12. Re-mixable books

We live in a multimedia universe. (I contend we always lived in a multimedia 'verse, but that's an argument for another day.) There's a story at the NYT ( http://projects.nytimes.com/2012/snow-fall-preview/#/?part=tunnel-creek ) with video, illustration and while the story reads well in the linear (next, next, next) it also reads well in any order as long as 1 and 6 are first and last respectively.

This is where ebooks will shine. I've been re-reading Les Miserables recently, the paper copy open with my ipad right beside. I admit that my knowledge of France in the mid-nineteenth century is sketchy (my interest mostly ends about three years after Waterloo) so having Brittanica and Wikipedia and JSTOR helps me make references. I also find that being able to find recordings of French folk songs from the period and pictures of the fashions helps me build the world. Right now, we're still working on the print model of publishing, but ebooks offer other possibilities.

That's how we get people to read -- interlace the history and the sociology and the literature. Before mass literacy, our literature was interactive (see Homer, Beowulf, medieval romances). Even after mass literacy, the written word was commonly read aloud as a group activity (and I assume that people interrupted the story for commentary or to spin off their own alternate stories -- there's a strong theory that La Morte d'Arthur and much of Shakespeare originated as fan-fiction). Early newspapers deliberately left white space so that people could write marginalia before they passed the paper to the next reader -- an early form of Disqus commentary.

[Speck Tater]

5. The Internet is just a passing fad anyway. nt

[RomneyLies]

6. I wouldn't be without my Kindle

Any book not available for it is not a book I shall read.

[Lone_Star_Dem]

7. Print books are collectible, ebooks are for our trash we read.

I buy both of some, but I only buy ebooks of the junk I'd buy in paperback and later give away, or considering how cheap they are made now, recycle.

I know I'm not the only one who does this. I know dozens of people like myself. Many newer paperbacks couldn't stand up to being read multiple times without the spines giving out, and the pages becoming loose. Ebooks were made to replace those cheap reads.

I still buy hardbacks of my favorite authors and keep those as mementos of of a good read, though. Even the ones I buy in ebook form to be able to carry around with ease.

[burrowowl]

8. I like taking a nice long hot bath

and read a paperback sometimes they gey a bit wet but no damage is done.

[aroach]

33. I put my Kindle in a gallon freezer bag to read in the bath. n/t

[SilveryMoon]

10. Print and physical media will likely be with us for some time

But I'm highly skeptical digital distribution is a "passing fad".

Personally I love the idea of going digital (I do for music) but DRM gives me pause. If I buy e-books on Itunes but decided I wanted a Kindle, but how do I enjoy that which I purchased? Amazon is better since they have a Kindle app for iOS, Android and PC, but what happens if a 3rd party comes along and Amazon does not support it?

[Viva_La_Revolution]

24. I use Calibre and it's awesome for converting to another format

If I buy a kindle book, I use Calibre to change it to .mobi or epub, then put it on the Nook. It's a great program for organizing and viewing ebooks too. and it's free.

[PoliticAverse]

35. See...

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2011/01/how-to-strip-drm-from-kindle-e-books-and-others/

[SilveryMoon]

37. Thanks for this! n/t

[historylovr]

13. I love my print books. But

I also love my Kindle, and being able to have so many books on it and not crowding our already overcrowded bookcases.

[question everything]

26. And this is the point made

that the print books are with us to stay. They will not be replaced by e-book.

My spouse loves the kindle for being able to read long and heavy books like the Peloponnesian War, or the newer Caro's biography of LBJ.

Also, for being able to increase the fonts.

I like curling on an easy chair and have the feel of a book. Also, especially with mysteries, to be able to flip back for the significance of what the butler saw..

Welcome to DU.

[historylovr]

30. Thanks.

I do love curling up with a good book too. My ideal day would be spent in a library or bookstore.

[PoliticAverse]

36. A compromise...

http://blogkindle.com/2008/03/hand-made-kindle-case-mod-made-to-look-like-a-book/

[elehhhhna]

38. i prefer paper, and

many of the books i want are less expensive if bought used rather than via kindle (yes - including shipping!)

[jsr]

14. E-books are great for Ctrl-F.

[mykpart]

15. I love my Kindle, but

I also love my print books and bookshelves. And you can give someone an ebook bound in leather. There is room for both types of book in my life. And feeling the pages as you turn them and smelling the book can be very sensuous.

[Skittles]

17. I tried the Kindle - HATE IT

I monitor dozens of computer screens 12 hours all night long; the last thing I want to curl up with is electronic print. I do like the E book for travel though.

[pansypoo53219]

19. i have lots of old paperbacks. but since i started doing estate sales

my book collection has grown astronomically. i mostly get old books. i read many, but i am slow. nothing better than a pre 1900 encyclopedia in the bathroom. sometimes at the end, books are free. oy, i have so much to read. i MUST get to cassanova's autobiography. EIGHT LARGE VOLUMES!

[datasuspect]

20. part of the process of critical reading

is having the ability to mark up your text with a pencil or a pen.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

21. I got a Nook for Christmas, and I LOVE it, BUT

in the grand scheme of things, I prefer paper books. It's nice to pull up a recipe on the nook and have it handy in the kitchen, and for reading free books for reviews (I refuse to actually pay for e-books when I can get a used paper copy for the same price). Textbooks and non-fiction don't work well for me on the nook, but like the article says, it's great for 'light' reading.

[tabbycat31]

23. I just got a Kindle Fire a few months ago

And most of my ebooks have been free as I'm very cheap.

However, I do hate Amazon's classifying system because they separate fiction and nonfiction, and do a very crappy job at it. I don't need a Christian romance classified as nonfiction because it is not period.

I am also on the road for about 6 months of the year and I've been putting a lot of professional books on there. I'd rather not pack up a box of books if I do not have to.

If anyone has any suggestions for free Kindle books (or titles they like), please let me know. I'm always looking for more.

Also I will say it's easier to read in bed with my Kindle than it is with a paper book.

[LWolf]

25. There's room for both.

I would love to put most of my library in a digital format; fewer shelves to make room for, fewer books to box and move when I do.

When I moved 8 years ago, the bulk of what I moved 1200 miles away was books.

If I can ever afford to go on vacation again, I can take enough books to last on the kindle; less bulk, less weight.

At the same time, when the battery goes dead or the power goes out, I want print books at hand.

Also, I am irritated by all the different formats. ONE universal format, that any e-reader can read...that's what I want.

I don't want to have to depend on Amazon because my son gave me a kindle.

I've found getting library books to be easier with the kindle, when the library has a digital/kindle version. I can get the book and turn it in without making a trip.

As far as skewing towards fiction? That might be true, but it's a mistake, imo.

The best use for digital books would be for required text books for students.

[TheBlackAdder]

31. Publishers should frame the topic better.

Advertise the following:


Do you want to own and keep this product for more than a year or two?

Do you want to be able to hand this work to your family or children?

Would you want to donated this work to your local library?

Do you want something that is portable, you can drop or not overly worry about spilling coffee on?

Do you want something that can even be used to heat your house?


If you want to own your purchase until you decide to remove it, then a hardcopy book is for you.

---

If you want to discard this work, not pass it to future devices or hardware/software platforms, own products that might have time expirations to them, own products which DRM or Cloud TOS rules might change on... then an e-delivery is for you.

[aroach]

32. Great for poor eyesight

I have to wear reading glasses to read traditional print books and after a short time they give me a headache. With my Kindle I simply enlarge the font and read without glasses or headaches.

All of my college textbooks are print books and I can't tell you how miserable I have been having to study that way or how many bottles of Excedrin Migraine I went through last semester.

And, no, the eye doctor can't help me. He has done the best he can to correct my vision with contact lenses. It's not going to get any better unless I have laser surgery.

I used to say I would never own an ereader but when I found out I could adjust the font I saved up for one and have been enjoying reading again.

Edited to add that I wish the university bookstore rented textbooks in ebooks. I can rent my books for 30 bucks for the semester in traditional print but if I want them for Kindle I have to buy them from Amazon for usually well over a hundred dollars so it's still print for me sadly.

[X_Digger]

34. We've had kindles since they first came out.

Two first gen kindles, then two of the third gen versions.

It's dropped our 'book bill' by 80%, and allowed us to sell off thousands of books. Pre-Kindle, we had about nine feet of eight foot tall bookcases completely stuffed with books, sometimes three deep for paperbacks. Books stacked on the back of the toilet, on and in both nightstands, under the coffee table, and every corner of our desks.

Now, our shelves aren't bare, but you can actually see the spine of every book, hehe.

[daleo]

40. For fiction, I like a Kobo or Kindle

They are light, easy to hold in one hand, you don't have to hold them with both hands to keep the pages apart, no chance for a paper cut, you can change font and print size, the screen is e-ink (not back-lit) so its easy on the eyes, you can slip them into your pocket, they are easy to travel with, battery life is fairly long, e-books are almost always the least expensive format, there is a far wider selection of ebook authors than print authors available, they don't take up tons of wall space...

Plus, all my wife's novels are in ebook form, so I better have nice things to say about them.

On the downside you do have to recharge batteries every now and again. Also, paper books can look nice on a shelf and they advertise your erudition to the world.

[Starry Messenger]

43. I actually find it faster to read dead tree books for some reason.

I do read ebooks for things I don't necessarily want to store in meatspace. With used books do cheap though, I can get dozens of out of print titles on alibris when I need to find them. There's still kind of a gap in price and availability in ebooks. A lot of stuff I want isn't digitized.