to have ishoos with e-readers because they are not proper books.

[itsmeitsmeolord]

Yes I know the content is there.

But there are no pages to turn, there are no notes in the margin and it's another chuffing screen to stare at....

I get the eco argument etc, but I love the smell of a bookshop in a non-fetishistic way obviously.

[Kaloki]

Me too. I love the feel of books, especially a nice hardback book (don't read anything into that you perves )

[ActuallyMyNamesMarina]

YANBU - I've got one and it's just not aesthically pleasing or comfortable to hold whilst reading. I can't be bothered loading books - it's not as user friendly as an ipod. I have to enthuse as DP bought it for Xmas for me, but secretly I hate it.

Not even sure about how eco it is - whilst we're not chopping down trees and ferrying books round the country to various stockists, there is the fact that it has been manufactured, ferried to various stockists, uses electricity to charge etc.

[Morloth]

I don't have issues with them but I don't want one either.

Main attraction for me is the same as ScreaminEagle on a flight between London and Sydney I can easily get through 3 novels (I can't sleep on planes) and that makes my hand luggage too heavy.

[ant3nna]

I wouldn't want to take one in the bath either which is where I do a lot of my reading. Doesn't really matter if I drop a book in the bath (and it has happened), usually they are still readable after they've dried even if they have crinkly pages but I'd be pretty pissed if I dropped my £££ ereader in the bath.

I wouldn't want to take one on holiday either, I like to read a bit, go fetch a drink perhaps swim for a bit and then come back to my book. I'd have to be constantly taking the damn thing back to my room to stop it getting stolen or wet.

[itsmeitsmeolord]

What happens if you get sand in it though? OR get it covered in sunscreen?

See, I am an avid reader, I will read a novel in a day and I don't really buy clothes often, I get books as a treat. You ncan't go into the bookshop and browse an e-reader...

[senua]

We used to have cylinder records.
Then vinyl.
Then cassettes.
Then CD.
Then, erm, I've lost track: mp3, i-tune, blueray?

Can't you see e-readers going the same way? A proper book will last for centuries, not unril the next upgrade.

YANBU!

[bran]

I got one as a present the Christmas before last and I really love it. The screen isn't backlit so it doesn't hurt my eyes. I can hold it and turn the pages with one hand, leaving the other free to hold a beer cup of tea.

I went to the in-laws for Christmas and downloaded 10 books before I went, which would have been much too heavy if they had been proper books. Plus I didn't have to self-censor in case my MIL saw the books, nobody can tell what you're reading on an ereader.

I still read proper books too but I get annoyed if I have to put them down in a hurry and come back to find a DC has knocked it and lost my place. The ereader remembers where I was even if it's turned off.

I stopped liking bookshops once I had kids, it's not relaxing when they're with you. Most of my books are bought online anyway so ebooks are instant gratification compared to real books. Real books are usually cheaper though as there is very little competition in the ebook market, but I think that will improve as they become more popular.

[bran]

senua - the thought of all those Dan Browns lasting for centuries is horrible. Some things are better being easily erased IMO.

I still do have hundreds of books, and some types of book will probably always better in print form, especially reference books.

[Bathsheba]

its one of the few gadget-ty things that I'd like, but in the same way I really don't want one. I get a lot of my books from Amazon, used, at 1p (+P&P) because I really don't care about the condition of them - I often go into Amazon and buy things like that (always books that I want).

I'm positive there is no way I'll be able to load up an ebook reader for that type of price with some of the obscure books that I read, and until I can get ebooks at comparable prices then I don;t want one.

[BrahmsThirdRacket]

I love mine. DP bought it for me after I took 6 books on a weekend to Edinburgh and made him carry them. I have often given up reading massive classics because they are too physically heavy

But I will never give up real books.

[Squitten]

I don't like the look of 'em and I won't get one myself but DH is a total gadget freak and will probably eventually have one...

I love books, libraries and book shops - the fact that buying a book can be an experience of sorts, rather then simply pressing a button. Also, I like the fact that each book is personal and unique, with it's own notes, scribbles, splashes of coffee, etc.

I'm studying history at the moment and the most fascinating bit is looking at an individual book that someone owned and wrote in hundreds of years ago - I would hate to see that lost.

[theyoungvisiter]

I wouldn't mind one for work reading but I'd never have one for "proper" books. The main problem for me is that I want books I can keep, pass down to children, return to in 20 years etc etc.

Judging by the speed of technology, the current e-reader formats will be defunct in a few years and where does that leave your lovely library? Stuck in beta-video territory, that's where!

Also on the subject of being green, I have read quite a few claims that books are greener, as long as the paper is sourced from sustainable forests (which most now are). This is because so much carbon is stored in the growing trees and in the books themselves, whereas e-books have no such benefit.

I've read claims, for example, that if you surf an online newspaper for just 20 minutes then it would be greener to buy a paper version. The IT industry is a massive polluter, sadly.

[lucky1979]

I absolutely adore mine (I'm on my second as I ran over the screen of the first one with my pram). I'm an absolutely avid reader, and it just makes things so much easier. I thought I would miss the feel of paper books, but now they just annoy me. I was given Wolf Hall as a hardback book and could barely lift the thing, I certainly would have only taken it out in my handbag to use as an anti-mugging device but it was perfect and portable when I bought it for my ebook.

My only gripe with the ebook is the UK interface via waterstones is dreadful - I use the US ebook store which is 100 times more user friendly...no idea why they haven't released it over here.

[CMOTdibbler]

I love my Kindle - I bought it as I travel a lot for work, and having enough books for a week with two 10 hour flights, a couple of 4 hour flights and a lot of waiting around gets a bit heavy.

Still doesn't stop me buying books at the charity shop, but being able to connect to Amazon and get a new book straightaway when delayed in Finland is fabulous

[Litchick]

As a writer, I'm hugely interested in how the Ereader will change the publishing industry, Views range from, not a jot, people will always want 'proper' books, to books will be obsolete in ten years time.

I just don't know is the truth.

[bran]

What sort of stuff do you write Litchick? (Nosy question, not at all relevant to this thread.)

I suspect that in the future most people will be reading 'disposable' books in electronic format. The sort of books that you read once and then give to a friend or charity shop. The price of those books will probably drop considerably once there is a bit of competition in the market.

The type of book that you re-read will probably still be very popular in book form as will any sort of reference book like cook books or gardening books.

[ChairmumMiaowGoingItAlone]

YANBU because they're not the same as lovely books. I buy my favourite authors that I know I will want to keep (and often in hardback because I am too impatient to wait!).

However, for the trash I like to read when braindead/on holiday/breastfeeding for hours on end, the e-reader app on my iphone is perfect. Easy to use one handed, can have a drink or manage the feeding baby/toddler with the other. Also, I don't have piles of paper to take to the charity shop every few months.

[Rockbird]

I'm waiting for my favourite books to be released as ebooks and then I'm in. I will always prefer an actual book but as others have said, for sheer convenience of not having to pay excess baggage on your suitcases, it's worth it.

[theyoungvisiter]

"The type of book that you re-read will probably still be very popular in book form as will any sort of reference book like cook books or gardening books."

I think that's true at the moment but may change as the technology improves - once e-readers can support pictures and things like clickable indexes and links then arguably reference books will become more suited to an e-reader - they are heavy and often get out-dated fast so an e-pub version may be attractive.

Sadly I think the main effect it will have on the industry is to hurt independent bookstores even more.

But then the type of people who shop at indies are probably the type most attached to hardbacks, signed copies and hand-me-down editions, which are exactly what's missing with an e-reader.

[Molesworth]

I hate the thought of real books becoming obsolete. But I have an ebook reader and I love love love it. I've got hundreds of books and journal articles on my computer which I was unable to read on screen (hurts my eyes). Now I can read them in perfect comfort on my gadget.

Having said all that, I wouldn't choose an ebook over a real book if I were buying it new. I use Amazon Marketplace to buy books. All the stuff on my ebook reader is stuff I've downloaded from the internet for nowt.

[TimTamSlam]

YANBU

We're in rented accommodation at the mo and didn't have anywhere to put books - they were stuffed in all sorts of odd places.

A £30 bookshelf from Ikea last week so I can put all the books I've read in the past year (all the other squillions of them are in storage) in one place, where I can see them, made me so insanely happy.