I can definitely see their ease of use for business and other logistical uses and wouldn't mind having one myself for those reasons. For simply getting access to information. For reading that book you simply have to read, right now. But when it comes to reading for pleasure I'll be reluctant to give up the book and its tactile pleasures and will definitely miss it should it go the way of the buggy whip in my lifetime. And does it have to be an either/or proposition? No earlier document genre has been entirely replaced by its successors.
In addition to the obvious reasons for reading a book -- its contents -- I also like collecting books for the beauty of their covers, fonts, typefaces, illustrations, etc. etc. No matter how sophisticated e-readers become, and I saw some pretty amazing "things to come" at last year's NFAIS -- National Federation of Advanced Information Services -- conf., they don't seem to be able to duplicate these sensory qualities.
Jokes about illuminated manuscripts aside, books of hours and other devotional texts were meant to be contemplated, meditated upon. Can an e-reader lend itself to these activities?
Perhaps current e-book readers who are "very heavy book buyers" are substituting the e-reader for what other voracious readers currently use the public library for? That is, a place to get access to reading materials that one doesn't want to own permanently and are low cost (taxpayer-supported)?
Kari
> Yes, all of those. Very heavy book buyers predominantly. And of course a
> huge percentage of people in the publishing industry cause it beats printing
> out stacks of paper and carting manuscripts around with you everywhere.
>
> Of course, being male, I have two.
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "K. Elisabeth Johnson" <prosperena@...>
> > Anybody know a woman who has one, wants one, likes using it? Even a young
> > woman or teenager?
>
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