Sunday 29 January 2012

Sunday Salon: Making peace with Kindle

The Kindle... The end of all real books???!!
"You kids with e-readers! Get off my lawn!"

That's basically what my 2009 post about the digital revolution in reading sounded like. I was the crochety old lady who was more than happy with her good old-fashioned paper books, thank you very much. All this gumph about new-fangled devices for reading, I huffed. I had no need for such shenanigans.... Did I?

By early 2011, I had softened considerably. It wasn't that I was against e-readers you see, I just preferred the entire reading experience. I'm one of those people who unashamedly sniffs books. I buy notebooks when I have no need for them. I like the way paper feels between my fingers. The clinical diagnosis, were I to get one, would likely be Severe Paperphilia. A diagnosis I embrace wholeheartedly - but the question that kept nagging in the back of my mind was, did my love affair with paper necessarily have to be so tightly linked to my love of the written word?

This question was answered at the end of last year, when my beloved husband bought me an iPad for Christmas. This gift came at a time in my life where reading for pleasure had become nearly non-existent due to the required reading necessary for the thesis which had taken up nearly all of my time and severely depleted my reading mojo. It was also a matter of timing - when I was thesis-free (that is, out of my house) and had the mental space for reading I was typically on some form of public transport or at a loose end somewhere. I had fallen out of the habit of carrying a book with me in my bag, for some reason but now, the iPad would be with me pretty much all the time.

Casually, I downloaded the Kindle App. I looked up. Checked behind me. No-one was screaming. I didn't hear any bookstores bursting into flames in the near vicinity. Excellent. Now, to find something to read. I downloaded Book of Mercy - an appropriate title, given my feelings about this whole foray into digital reading.

It was brilliant - not just the book but the whole experience. From click-to-buy to ready-to-read took all of 10 seconds. This is no small thing when, living where I do, the acquisition of books is not an easy task. The closest bookstore with a reasonably decent selection of English language books is a 15 minute bus ride away from my home and the one with the best selection is over an hour away by bus in Taipei. Ordering books online is easy but means waiting for two or more weeks for the books to arrive. Given this, I'm sure you can see why the immediacy of this appeals so much!

My swagload of real books (Image credit: Kath Liu)
Aside from that, the thing I worried about the most was the reading experience. Would it feel cold? Would it be uncomfortable holding an electronic device in my hands rather than a book? It certainly wasn't the same, but there were a couple of unexpected benefits, including the dictionary search function which helped me out on a few occasions as I read Game of Thrones. Highlight a word and its definition helpfully appears at the bottom of the screen. Further, I could add notes or highlight without feeling like I was committing the carnal sin of writing on a book. In fact, the only major downside was the constant distractions from email, Facebook and Twitter notifications. When you're deep into a dramatic moment, the last thing you need to know is that Bob Jones "Liked" your photograph. Easy solution: disconnect from the internet.

So there it is. Who knew. The Digital Dissenter has been turned and having access to e-books has shattered my reading slump. I have embraced the positives of this new way of reading and ceased worrying about my beloved physical book - I reckon those babies are going to be around in this world for a lot longer than I will, and I ain't planning on going anywhere for a good while yet.

And just to make sure, I bought myself a swagload of real books - and delightedly sniffed each and every one of them. Bliss.

34 comments:

  1. I still can't get over the fact that when you buy e-books, you don't really own them (Amazon can - and has, as in the "1984" case - take back the file) and can't lend them/give the away/sell them the way you can books you actually own.

    I just *can't* get over that. I don't know why but it doesn't sit right with me to have a book that I paid for but don't actually own.

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    1. I do understand this, completely. Which is why if I want possession of the book, I will still buy the real one so I have the actual thing on my shelf, for life. But if it's more the reading of the book than ownership that I care about, then e-books are a really good convenient option. Interestingly, there are options to lend some of the books now, although I have never tried it so have no idea how it would work in practice. Anyone able to throw any light on this one?

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    2. Hi guys Not to butt in but...

      I have just loaned Kath one of the books in my Amazon Kindle library that I read over the CNY holidays on my ipad.

      I have just read how it works and to summarize you can loan any book that is the publisher has deemed loanable but you can only loan it once and only for 14 days. Unfortunately, the book I wanted to loan you wasn't loanable so I picked something that I thought you might like as a test. Let us know how it works Kath.

      Jenni

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    3. Hey Jenni! I hadn't got an email notification or anything, so I went to my Amazon account. I had one pending delivery, but it was set to download to the Kindle app on my ipod. Less than ideal, so I deregistered my ipod as I don't use it to read books on anyway and presto! The pending download disappeared! Ack.

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    4. Oh hold up - now it's telling me that it has been delivered to my ipad. Since that is upstairs, I can't confirm if its on there or not but I assume it is :) Hey that wasn't so bad! Thanks Jenni!

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  2. Excellent, excellent post. :) I've been open to the e-reading experience since it started, pretty much. I got my first Nook two years ago and my mom upgraded me for Christmas this year. For me, the real kicker is the portability. I commute an hour each way to work, I used to travel a good deal, and I'm also at least 30 to 45 minutes away from a really superb selection of printed books. It's solved many of those problems for me. While I still like to alternate my method of reading from paper to e-, I am at peace with e-readers.

    I hope you don't mind if I share your post in an upcoming Linkapalooza post over at my own blog. Really loved this. :)

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    1. Hey Andi - Thanks! Yeah I really can't beat it for reading on the bus to and from Taipei and for all those moments when I'm at a loose end. I actually think I get less motion sickness from reading an iPad rather than a real book - not sure if it's just in my mind or if it's true yet. More trials to confirm are needed I think ;)

      I don't mind you sharing this post at all - thanks! Glad you enjoyed reading it!

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  3. Kath, I got my Kindle reader and then my Kindle Fire all since the beginning of the year. This is what got me out of my 6 month long reading slump. What's the ultimate kicker? I get Netgalley books and don't have to wait for them to be mailed to me.

    I have to admit, I've been feeling a little guilty about buying from Amazon when the brick and mortar stores are in such a state. So, the next ebook I buy is going to be from one of the stores on Indiebound. You can buy ebooks from them too through the computer. Amazing!

    Convenience and no heavy conscience sounds damn good to me.

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    1. Hey Jennifer! Yeah I do have a bit of a thing about Amazon, so very interested in this IndieBound thing. I just checked it out briefly - will have to do some more investigations to see if it works for folks outside of the USA like me. Thanks for the tip though - I couldn't agree more that convenience without feeling guilty sounds fantastic.

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  4. Like you, I wasn't enamored with the idea of e-books either. However, I got a Nook anyway and my wife now has a Kindle (secondhand from a brother-in-law). Although this year so far, I haven't read a single book on e-reader, I have several waiting there for me. So eventually I'll get back to it...it might just take until later in February.

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    1. Hello! Thanks for stopping by :) How do you find the experience of reading on a Nook? Is it much different from a Kindle or iPad type of thing? What's waiting for you on the Nook - anything good?

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  5. It took me a long time to get a Kindle but I still read paper books, lol. I also downloaded Kindle for PC and loved reading my first book on my NEW computer with the BIG screen. Bliss! Now I have all my Kindle books on the PC and I know you can do the same on your iPad. Happy reading!

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    1. Ooh big screen for reading, definitely bliss! Enjoy!

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  6. Ah, another one bites the dust! Third person I follow this week who has succumbed to the magic of an ereader. I've been in the same place as you were for a while (except that it's only a 15 minute drive to my nearest bookstore) but I've lately been drawn to ereaders like a moth to the flame. I'm thinking that I'll have to have one in the next couple of months. But like you, I have no intention of giving up real books!

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    1. I will never ever give up real books!! The way I am choosing which medium I read the books in is currently being dictated by (a) whether I want to own the physical copy of the book and/or (b) whether its more convenient to own it in e-book version, like Game of Thrones which is massive.

      Give it a go - I'll be keen to know what you think!

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  7. I was late to the Kindle game, and like you, received mine as a gift. I was reluctant, even then; and hooking up, connecting, etc., took me awhile. But I loved the ease of downloading new books. And my shelves (in every room in my house) were overflowing with print books. I still love the print book experience, but now I'm realizing that I can enjoy both.

    Here's
    MY SUNDAY SALON POST - and here’s
    MY WEBSITE

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    1. Overflowing shelves are also a concern here!! You're right though - it never was an either/or decision. It's just another version of a book, another way to read.

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  8. I confess: It's now one year since I bought my Kindle. :)
    My brother (who's much more techy that me) got one from the very early days and had been praising it to me for years, but I always thought I've never "convert". However, I babysat a Kindle for a friend for a few days and decided to take a look at it on my own... and became in love! This is ideal for me to read while commuting and also when travelling - at home I try to read paper books. After one year I think I read about 50% ebooks and 50% paper books. And most often I can't tell which was the media I read the book on.

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    1. 50/50 of paper and ebooks? That's a very fair and even split :) I am interested to see what my split will be, although I think paper will win. I just have more of them right now. The Kindle is fabulous for travelling though, isn't it?

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    2. 50/50 is also reflecting the time I read at home and outside. I travel home every 1,5 months and I never carry books now (even if there are just a few pages missing I can carry the book with me anywhere :)) - all the time spent at airports and on the plane is now Kindle time :)

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  9. Well, I went to IndieBound, looked up the platforms they use for ebooks, and it turns out that the Google Cloud is not compatible with Kindle devices. I feel a little sick to my stomach.

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    1. Yeah that's not awesome. That's one massive thing I strongly dislike about this whole digital reader thing is the competition for format and ensuing incompatibility between types. I'm kind of lucky that with something like an iPad you can usually download the required App, but my issue here is that I don't think this IndieBound thng works for non-US residents. Gah!

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  10. I have a Nook, which I use for ebooks occasionally, but haven't really made a big switch to ebooks. I also just recently got a tablet, but I haven't tried reading on it yet. I'm worried the screen will tired out my eyes, after looking at screens all day. Have you noticed that at all?

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    1. I don't think it tires my eyes any more than reading a normal book would, although I haven't been doing it for long enough to really notice. My eyes take a beating every day, bless them, looking at the computer, the iPad and books.

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  11. I'm also a late comer to the e-reader revolution. I didn't think I'd ever get one and would always be a physical book reader. Enter summer 2011, and my wife speaks to me about not having enough space for a vast library, especially if we're wanting to have a family. So we went out and got me a Kindle 3. While it took some getting used to, I've come to enjoy reading books on it! Sure, it doesn't have the feel of paper to it, but I don't think it's diminished the experience too terribly much for me. Great post, and I hope you have a great week!

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    1. Ah the "Darling, we really can't have an actual library in the house" talk. Yeah I had that one from Hubby already ;)

      I didn't find any problematic differences in reading experience once I was into the story. It was different but not in a bad way. I do like the ability to lay the iPad flat and not have to hold it open whilst I'm eating. I think this is my fave bonus of e-reading.

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  12. From a fellow book sniffer and paper fondler, I understand where you're coming from. I've tried all the digital reading devices, but the only one I can stomach is my Sony reader, which is something of a dinosaur because it doesn't have internet connectivity. But it's those distractions you spoke of that do me in with the iPad and the Nook.

    I'll always be a physical book girl at heart, but I can see the attraction of eReaders for traveling.

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    1. Book sniffers and paper fondlers unite!! Yeah that whole internet connection thing is a bit annoying. The good news is that while I'm on the bus wheer I do most of my e-reading there's no wifi (cos there's no way I was going to get a 3G iPad be accessible 24/7) so it doesn't come up too often.

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  13. I definitely think that both formats have their place, and I generally use the two in different situations. I'm glad you were able to enjoy reading on the ipad so much! The biggest things I miss when I'm reading a real book are the dictionary and the search functions. I was surprised to find that I would like anything of the digital reading experience enough to miss it, but there you go.

    I still do find myself trying to turn the page manually sometimes when I'm reading on my kindle though, and it does make me chuckle. It's usually when I'm so completely lost in a story that I forget I'm not reading a bound book.

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    1. I was surprised that I would miss something too! I also (like I said above) like the ability of the iPad to lie flat on a table and not shut on itself so I can read it whilst eating/drinking. This works really nicely when I'm at a cafe so then I don't have to make a decision between reading and caffeine - cos you know I can't choose between those two ;)

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  14. I am a switch hitter, going back and forth between Kindle and paper. I want a world where all options are available. I used to love leaving a book somewhere when I finished. I liked the romance of someone picking up my old book in the airport or in a hotel, taking it home, and making a new fried. Alas, my convenient Kindle has stolen that from me. But it has given me other gifts: like when I'm reading and start to fall asleep, it hurts a lot less than a book when it smacks me in the nose. I hope bookstores find a way to make eBooks profitable for them so they can stay open along with Amazon, and we can all play together nicely.

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    1. I'm with you - I'm all for all options being freely available. Sorry that your Kindle got stolen :( For me, I think the iPad smacking me on the nose hurts more than a paperback but that's the difference in specifications of e-reader, I guess! hehe

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  15. I received a Kindle for Christmas and I too was one of the ones who thought that they would never own a reader. I love my reader though although I still prefer actual books. Great post!

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  16. I totally understand the reluctance (and I still buy the paperback if I like the book and can find it in a secondhand bookstore), but I love being able to take fifty books in my bag without all the extra weight. And now that I've figured out how to put manga on my Nook, I couldn't be happier! And not having to wait for family to mail it over here is so great for us expats!

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