How ebooks lost their shine

Post by robomartin » Fri, Apr 28, 2017, 5:29 AM UTC

Koshkin wrote: post #37

robomartin wrote: post #26

I prefer PDF files rather than ebook formats. I don't like the idea of being locked into a particular technology, be it Apple's or Amazon's. I consider PDF viewers to be superior to the experience offered by ebook viewers. For example, Having to tap the left and right side of the screen to move between pages is a pain compared to swiping up or down in a fluid motion. Another issue is the waste of space by trying to s…

> no matter where I might be Well, with a few exceptions, such as an airplane and some other places (on a trail, deep in the woods) where you may not have an internet connection.

Post by Shorel » Fri, Apr 28, 2017, 1:11 PM UTC

Koshkin wrote: post #36

protting99 wrote: post #31

It is the multitude of form factors on the internet that keeps absorbing and reducing the total value of books. For what subject is a 300-page collection of "pages" still the best form factor? How can it compete, for example, with a StackOverflow page, when answering technical questions? Maybe a book is still useful for fiction, but how long will it take before people design better form factors even for novels?

Indeed. Being stuck with the fixed page format is like being stuck in the "horseless-carriage" mentality. A4 or whatever paper sheet format should be completely abandoned in favor of dynamic text formatting - not unlike what browsers can do when displaying HTML.

Post by dragonwriter » Fri, Apr 28, 2017, 1:47 PM UTC

protting99 wrote: post #31

It is the multitude of form factors on the internet that keeps absorbing and reducing the total value of books. For what subject is a 300-page collection of "pages" still the best form factor? How can it compete, for example, with a StackOverflow page, when answering technical questions? Maybe a book is still useful for fiction, but how long will it take before people design better form factors even for novels?

Post by r_smart » Fri, Apr 28, 2017, 1:58 PM UTC

wmeredith wrote: post #50

r_smart wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have no idea what you're asking me. Is this wit? Are you implying everyone dog-ears books? Were you ruffled by my hyperbole?

I think you're getting ribbed a bit.

Post by dTal » Fri, Apr 28, 2017, 9:36 PM UTC

garethsprice wrote: post #20

"While ebooks, which are not things of beauty, have become more expensive; a new digital fiction release is often only a pound or two cheaper than a hardback." I'm betting has more to do with it than romantic notions of people preferring physical books. Given the choice of a fiction book for $10 in hardcopy or $9 as an ebook, I'll take the hardcopy. If ebooks (and movie downloads come to that) were priced the same as…