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Following the Reader

08.09.08

Following last week's launch of the Sony Reader at Waterstone's, the media is once more discussing whether this could finally herald the age of the e-book and the death of its print predecessor. 

In the Financial Times, Jan Dalley revised her steadfast position that "screens are great for work and for communication but never, ever will I be able to lie in the shade on a lazy summer’s weekend and read, for pleasure, from a screen." She reveals that she tried out the Amazon Kindle and the Sony Reader, and "I almost hate to write it – have passed the lounging-in-the-shade test disturbingly well".

Asking whether this was, finally, the death of the book, she states: "If so, it may be a death that heralds a rebirth of reading. Most people will be tempted at least to dip into those 100 free classics. It’s more likely, though, that these devices will mean a substantial shift in the way books are published. Conventional publishers of treeware will be under pressure to create every title in e-book format at the same time as on paper; they’d be crazy not to. Soon the e-book market may overtake the other. And in that case, who really needs the publisher?"

The Guardian, meanwhile, remarks that an hour after the Sony Reader went on sale in Waterstone's last week, "the country's biggest bookshop had shifted precisely two".

"To be fair to Waterstone's, which has joined forces with Sony to market the £199 device, several thousand had already been preordered. The chain also stresses that the Reader is not intended to replace the printed page but complement it, particularly for commuters or travellers who like a selection of reading material but prefer not to be weighed down."

The Sunday Times discusses the problems that all e-readers use different DRM systems, preventing users from reading books on each other's devices. "Why the insistence on locking readers into a single retailer?," asks the ST. "Part of the reason could be that ebooks are still relatively new, with standards that have yet to be finalised. It’s also likely that each company hopes to dominate the e-book market the way Apple does online music sales. Apple’s iTunes store enforces its own DRM system and still accounts for about 80% of digital downloads."

The lessons to learn is, "don’t plump for a reader before you’re ready", it concludes.

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By Sylvia Murphy

The message from the Sunday Times, "don't plump for a reader before you're ready" really should say "don't plump for a reader until you are forced to." I am sure the time will come when most of us have no alternative but to adopt this technology but I think it is a pity that we will be manoeuvred into that position by the insistence of the media that this is the way to go. I have yet to be convinced by anyone that they honestly prefer the e-book. What nobody mentions is the fact that these gadgets have to be recharged if they are to continue working, and in a world where we cannot guarantee that supplies will always be on line, this raises the spectre of millions of books locked into machines that nobody can access any more. And has anyone yet done a proper study of how much less eco friendly is the plastic technological bundle that we have to charge from electricity points, compared to printing words on 100 percent recycled paper? Sorry, but a lot more thinking needs to go into the equation before an e-book reader goes on my Xmas list.

08 Sep 08 09:36

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By COMMENTATOR

So Sylvia luddite is saying that this wont catch on because we can not be sure of having access to electricity ? Do you think that the telephone has a future ?

08 Sep 08 09:54

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By RobC

It would be wonderful if a discussion on new technology didn't descend into name-calling between the 'luddites' and the 'techno-evangelists'. Nothing is more guaranteed to turn away the casual reader. There are genuine issues regarding e-readers; to pretend otherwise is just as bad as making blanket statements about them being white elephants. While I'm quite tempted by something that can display manuscripts and allow me to mark them up (saving on paper and the sheer weight of several hundred A4 pages), I'm still not too sold on the idea of paying full price for a locked piece of software that I can't lend out or give away once I'm done with it. We're not quite at the iPod moment.

08 Sep 08 10:10

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By Suzan Abrams

I think there will always be room for both the traditional and the digital element of things. I enjoy both. Each commands a different power of seduction and interest. The digital will probably increase in favour with those who like a highly-modern approach or prefer the idea of speed with their accomplishments.

08 Sep 08 14:27

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By inwaiting

Thank you RobC. Any e-reader as it is at this moment is a somewhat pointless piece of kit, with no conceivable advantage over the technology it seeks to replace other than storage, but a lot of disadvantages. Needing power to work is one, comparative delicacy compared to, say, a paperback book is another (drop both from a first floor window and check which one is still fit for purpose - get wet in bath, cover in sand/sun lotion/store with sandy beach gear) It's the next generation of readers that will be interesting: less clunky, lighter, large processing power, internet linked, fully compatible with desktop software. They'll still not be any good on a beach or in a tub, but they will transform the world of anyone who does more than curl up with a book. They will be books and portals to the world linked to the book - entire libraries!. They will allow to annotate, tag, file, edit, comment, compare and contrast to others' comments, edits, tags, etc. That will be the real joy of the e-book, when it transcends the mere text. I can't wait for that. - That'll be worth the extortionate price as well.

08 Sep 08 16:01

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By June Austin

Totally agree Inwaiting. While I am still yet to be convinced that there is at yet a genuine market for anything other than educational text books and academic texts in this format, having seen one of these readers in my local Waterstones, I was pleasantly surprised at how lightweight and easy they were to use. As one who is not prone to dropping things from buildings or reading in the bath, I can't really comment on that ...

08 Sep 08 18:04

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By jez

I know 2 people who have ordered one - they are both not particularly what I'd call techno fans - they are alike in 2 ways (well 3 as they are both my friends but that isnt really relevant) 1 - they dont really see themselves as bibliophiles and arent really into filling their shelving space with books. 2 - and I think this is the crux - they both travel a lot and not for hols (so the beach point I'm sure would bemuse them if they were at all interested in the debate) My guess is that most people who read the bookseller do so because they have a larger than average interest (vested or not) in the printed word. Maybe as a result the sony reader is more aimed at my two friends than the bookseller's readers. Also can we please ban the lazy journalism of "this is not the ipod moment" - i cant actually remember anyone saying that it was. Apols Rob C not aimed at you but at the broadsheet article writers who feel the need to insert thai as if they were profound words of wisdom! I dont think the sony reader is the book's laserdisc moment

08 Sep 08 20:16

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By Rollo

"hey will be books and portals to the world linked to the book - entire libraries!. They will allow to annotate, tag, file, edit, comment, compare and contrast to others' comments, edits, tags, etc. That will be the real joy of the e-book, when it transcends the mere text. I can't wait for that. - That'll be worth the extortionate price as well." Christ, it's hypertextuality you're talking about - meaning goes beyond those words on the paper, or screen, and takes on a life of its own. Maybe it's worth the price. Like everyone, I cringe at the thought of having my battered paperbacks taken from me (and I'm the severely dog-eared sort) but perhaps it's time to move beyond the limitations of the individual reader and into a network of readers. Like almost everything else, the interwebz is going to revolutionise the way we read once it gets its insidious techno-claws hooked into our market. I'm torn between that battered (and slowly dying) ideal and my excitment at how e-books will affect the act of reading.

09 Sep 08 05:13

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