Books: Digital or physical?

[The_Xenologer]

I am a Kindle nut, I read so much and adding another heavy book to my backpack doesn't make sense! Once I even went to an office supply store with a physical book so that they could convert it to PDF which I then uploaded to my Kindle.

Yeah that's why I like digital books for school. Those books are so heavy! I mostly read paperback novels though, so the weight isn't an issue for them usually.

[Petrucio28]

I admit that I have a Kindle program for my computer, and several books saved on disk and to my computer, but I prefer actual physical books. I actually have so many that my bookcase collapsed. Lol

[The_Xenologer]

I admit that I have a Kindle program for my computer, and several books saved on disk and to my computer, but I prefer actual physical books. I actually have so many that my bookcase collapsed. Lol

Haha. You are a bibliophile indeed!

[Anasui]

I honestly like to have the actual thing in my hand. But sometimes, I will rather deal with the digital version of a book. Mainly because my vision is very bad to begin with... And the digital version allows me to make the font bigger.

Will admit that I do have some books on my computer... Mainly because I'm too cheap to actually buy the real thing... And well... Trying to save up money for The Great Gatsby because I want to watch the movie.

[Cabding]

We all like to have the physical thing in our hands. You can connect more when you have the paper and ink to make a book, and the raised grooves on a record to make sound. There is a disconnect with all that science in the way but you must agree that it is a huge benefit to be able to get so much more content with you at any time.

[Daft]

Each time I'm buying more and more digital comic books. The sales on Comixology are very good and the "guided view" system that focus one panel at a time is very helpful (specially on smaller devies, like an iPhone).

And now companies like DC are publishing "digital-first" comics books, focusing mainly on digital platforms (even the art is formatted to fit a wide screen).

Of course I still buy physical editions, but the digital scheme seems more and more interesting to me.

[gj83]

I am generally reading my books more on my iPhone, just because it's cheaper to do it that way.  But if I have my preference, I'll take the physical book over the digital copies any day.

[The_Xenologer]

I am generally reading my books more on my iPhone, just because it's cheaper to do it that way.  But if I have my preference, I'll take the physical book over the digital copies any day.

Isn't it pretty difficult to see the words though on such a small screen? I feel like my eyes would get sore after awhile...

[Karla]

My boss gave me a kindle the first week I started. I needed a book as a reference manual for C# (a programming language I hadn't used before) and he gave me a kindle instead with two books about C# on it. It was his old kindle. I've been using the kindle on the daily commute and it's been really handy for that, but I haven't bothered using it for the programming books. I found that I really needed something in my hand when programming and that I couldn't easily find what I needed using the books as a reference manual. Google was quicker and easier.

For my science books, I was faced with the decision as to whether to buy them on kindle or a hardcopy. With kindle I'd be more likely to read them than lugging around a large hardback in my handbag. But then I use my science books more like a library of knowledge than something I read from front to back. Ideally for those books I'd prefer both. Something I can put on the bookshelf and something I can put on the kindle to bring with me.

With fiction though I wouldn't hesitate to have it on a kindle.

[Dan]

I needed a book as a reference manual for C# (a programming language I hadn't used before) and he gave me a kindle instead with two books about C# on it.

It's a bit of tangent but how did you like C#?

[Karla]

I needed a book as a reference manual for C# (a programming language I hadn't used before) and he gave me a kindle instead with two books about C# on it.

It's a bit of tangent but how did you like C#?

It's better than I thought it would be. Quite simple and fast to do stuff with it although there are a few features that I find a bit odd. At least I don't have to use Spring anymore and I can't stand Eclipse so C# has that advantage. Although I haven't figured out how to stop it trying to second guess what variable name I am typing out and to 'helpfully' autcomplete it for me.

It's also the first time I've used a GUI designer and found it to be useful. I didn't like the ones that came with Qt or Borland C++. I prefer to use screen, vi and the command line. I really don't like IDEs and having to use a German keyboard makes development a lot slower.

[Dan]

It's also the first time I've used a GUI designer and found it to be useful. I didn't like the ones that came with Qt or Borland C++. I prefer to use screen, vi and the command line. I really don't like IDEs and having to use a German keyboard makes development a lot slower.

I like Qt Designer quite a lot. It's the only GUI designer I actually like. It doesn't absolutely position things (like the one of Borland) and doesn't generate ad-hoc code that will break if modified by hand like the one of Microsoft. It doesn't even force colleagues to use IDEs, they just have to modify the UI files written in schema validated XML if they wish.

As for the keyboard, that's an issue for pretty much all of the non-English world. Most of us switch to the US layout to code.

[Stuart]

Kindle is certainly a huge boost to writers. Now we can publish what we want without worrying about getting an agent or a publisher. Its levelled the playing fields in the same way digital recording has for music, and its a fantastic development.

[Dan]

Kindle is certainly a huge boost to writers. Now we can publish what we want without worrying about getting an agent or a publisher. Its levelled the playing fields in the same way digital recording has for music, and its a fantastic development.

And with all the money saved by not printing, we can afford to buy more books / make more impulse purchases which in the end, is better for authors too.

[Stuart]

Kindle is certainly a huge boost to writers. Now we can publish what we want without worrying about getting an agent or a publisher. Its levelled the playing fields in the same way digital recording has for music, and its a fantastic development.

And with all the money saved by not printing, we can afford to buy more books / make more impulse purchases which in the end, is better for authors too.

And the books are cheaper. Mine is less than £1, and I get a steady stream of sales.