Why do I want an e-book reader at all?
Dec. 7th, 2007 04:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
catsittingstillI've been thinking and reading quite a bit about e-books in general and e-books and the Kindle in particular.
One reaction I've been seeing on the net is "why would you want an e-book reader in the first place? Books are cheap—why spend 300-400$ on a machine to read them?
One reaction I've been seeing on the net is "why would you want an e-book reader in the first place? Books are cheap—why spend 300-400$ on a machine to read them?
I like to play D&D. One of the challenges that you face sometimes is your character's ability to carry all the stuff that might be useful in an adventure. This was a particular problem for my Bard character, who had a lot of books. She had reference works on various situations she might come across while adventuring—books on wildlife in various areas, books on stonework, on architecture and engineering, on the exotic customs of faraway lands. But she only had so much room in her backpack, and she wasn't particularly strong.
The magic item she dreamed of was not a sword, or a musical instrument, but a magic book that would display the pages of any book she owned, on command. The regular books (pounds and pounds of them) could be left safely at home, and the magic book used to refer to them at any time.
She never got that magic book. But I could.
I don't travel a lot, but twice in the last two years I have been stuck away from home for 24 hours with nothing to do and nothing to read, except what I brought with me, because my flight was canceled. A magic book that could become any book I owned (or even just any e-book I owned) would be a wonderful thing to have in that situation. And a magic book that was also a shining gate into a bookstore where I could buy new books would be even better.
The magic book isn't for everyone. It doesn't show color, it doesn't play movies, it doesn't send e-mail, it doesn't wash the windows, make dinner, or brush the cat. But my Bard never wanted those things from a book, even a magic book. And I think I can live without them too.
The magic item she dreamed of was not a sword, or a musical instrument, but a magic book that would display the pages of any book she owned, on command. The regular books (pounds and pounds of them) could be left safely at home, and the magic book used to refer to them at any time.
She never got that magic book. But I could.
I don't travel a lot, but twice in the last two years I have been stuck away from home for 24 hours with nothing to do and nothing to read, except what I brought with me, because my flight was canceled. A magic book that could become any book I owned (or even just any e-book I owned) would be a wonderful thing to have in that situation. And a magic book that was also a shining gate into a bookstore where I could buy new books would be even better.
The magic book isn't for everyone. It doesn't show color, it doesn't play movies, it doesn't send e-mail, it doesn't wash the windows, make dinner, or brush the cat. But my Bard never wanted those things from a book, even a magic book. And I think I can live without them too.
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Date: 2007-12-08 10:48 pm (UTC)Ultrawideband is cheap, fast, low power, and highly experimental. Won't be available for a couple of years.
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Date: 2007-12-09 01:08 am (UTC)