Is the Kindle killing the book as we know it?

[Hannah "Goatherder" Ermi]

People, let's be honest. All of us are addicted to electronics. Well, maybe not addicted, but at least commited. And since all of you reading this are nerdfighters, or at least on this website, no doubt you like to read books or have read a book or at least know what a book is. Yes, a book. With pages and ink writing and a spine ripe for cracking. I love books. I love the weight of a book in your hands and the smell of new paper in a brand new books. I know every single one of you people out there who have read books again and again and again and fall in love with characters and the plot each time you read it know what I'm talking about.

 

Which is exactly why the Kindle worries me. Ever since stories have been written, they have been written on paper. And even if they are written on a computer, books are published in book form first and foremost. The Kindle comes along and completely interupts the process. We live in a world where everyone wants everything now and faster. We have fast food, microwaves, OnDemand television, and now, the Kindle, which allows, at the push of a few buttons, to download any books you want for a nominal fee a month.

 

With the Kindle, the effects can potentially wipe out many markets and jobs. If everyone had and used a Kindle instead of books, we would no longer have jobs for people who actually print and put together the books. We would no longer have libraries or stores like Borders and Barnes & Noble because people wouldn't have to buy or check out books anymore.

 

It's like how iPods have made CD players and tape players die out. Video cassettes were killed off by DVDs, which are on their way to being outed by Blu-Ray discs. Sit-Down dinners have been erased by TV Dinners.

 

I'm not saying I'm against change. I feel that change, in certain places, is a good thing. But some things don't need to be improved and books are one of those things. This is my opinion. C'mon Nerdfighters! What do you think of the Kindle?

[Lauren Carey]

Yes, that said I will miss books, but I love my kindle. It's one of the few things I travel with almost always. Never know when you'll hit a traffic jam and have time to read! While the kindle may kill jobs in one form, it will also create jobs. Tech jobs need workers too. I also like that it will cut down on the number of trees we'll cut down for paper. As long as kindles turn out to be pretty recyclable I'll be happy.

The thing is, life changes. I'm excited about kindle because it shows books are finally going to be brought into the technology age and not be left behind. Once story was only oral, then it became written for only the rich, then written such that educated middle and lower class could read it too. I guess I just think of this as one more evolution. But man, I will miss the good old form of paper once it's lost. Hopefully it'll be a long time before we completely lose books. I'll miss 50 cent paperbacks at used book stores!

[ashley]

Yes, I agree.  At first I wasn't crazy about the idea of virtual books, but I was practically crying when I unwrapped a Kindle at Christmas.  It's just incredible.  I love all of the free books and games you can get on it, plus, the two dictionaries are really helpful. :)

[Rachel Joy Bernatowicz]

Agreed. I love my Kindle, but it'll never replace actual books.

[Captain Jacqui Sparrow]

I don't think so. I know so many people who hate the idea of Kindles and Nooks because they like to turn the pages, smell the book, hold it in their hand, etc. Also, you have to pay to get the book for your Kindle. You can get it for free at the library. You'll always have the people who are too poor/too cheap to buy the actual device and then buy each book they want for it.

[Elizabeth]

I quite agree. I think that books will always be around because A) People like them (i.e. you can smell them, hold them in your hand) B) They are much more permanent and reliable than electronics (books won't crash or lose power) and C) People are cheap and libraries are instituions which have have traditionally stood the test of time.

Also, my room (and car) would then be way, waayyyy too clean. (If there were no books) What would people trip over???

[x3LittleMrsGonzalez]

Agree. Also I like when I come into the room of a person for the first time and see what books they read, because I think it tells you quite a lot about a person. If there will be no more actual books anymore you have to look into peoples Kindles and I would feel weird about looking so obviously at peoples stuff.

[JimmyKeepCool]

I could see the kindle as being a great thing for college students. I'd rather have an ebook than carry around a textbook. However, the kindle is a little too pricey for students like myself. I think it will be a long while before we see the book die out.

[Lori S.]

Exactly! My husband and I have talked about this many times (we're boring and like to talk about things like more efficient ways to produce textbooks). What I think should happen is that universities should provide an e-reader to students as part of their student fees.

You don't get much money back for textbooks anyway, so it's not like you'd be losing money, especially since an e-book would probably cost far less than a textbook. I'm constantly shocked at how much textbooks cost (the book I have to use for the class I teach is $80, and it's a paperback textbook that isn't even very good--my students tell me it costs nothing in comparison to their science and math books), and e-books seems like a perfect way to bring the costs down and make things more convenient for students.

[Tom Wilson]

I'm a student, and I recently got a kindle. It is the most useful thing for carrying textbooks on, especially as I'm expected to hog 2 monster books around for each of my 4 modules. It also saves me having to print off hand outs that only get used for a week and then get thrown away or lost. Seeing as my degree is in environmental science I feel this works well.

I promised myself I would not purchase books on it, and so far this is going well.

[VictorTheWondrousFiendOfHumanity]

for me, a kindle could never replace the cozy texture of book pages, the thickness that reminds me how good it might be, the satisfaction of turning a page,and seeing that someone else has made notes on the book. or even finding money inside the book... i would never, ever, make the change to a kindle if it ever came to casual, enjoyable, reading... nothing could change my mind, i've just grown to love books so much, to get in a cozy, stylish nook to read in, and just sit there in comfortable sunlight, filling my mind with fantastic thoughts, knowing my impunity to the rest of the world... if anyone even begins to challenge my point of view, i shall retaliate with a very long sonnet about books... be forewarned, and don't betray the awesomeness of reading a book by getting a kindle, please. it's just not right, there should be laws against such an atrocity. point stated, i am going off to read the war of 1812, in book form, not cold, soulless, heartless, electronic kindle form...

[Vertigo_One [Ops Mod]]

Ok, if you're done with your sentimental tyrade, lets look at the practical applications.

 

Being able to carry several bookshops worth of books in something the size of a small paperback. This is an advantage, no two ways about it.

It's not "souless". If you think the soul of a book is in the paper, you are very much mistaken. Your carrying the importance of what a book in the text, the content, not the medium.

You can make notes on the kindle, it has the ability to do so.

[VictorTheWondrousFiendOfHumanity]

yes, but the kindle i was issued at school shattered and broke the first day i got it. what if you drop your kindle, and it breaks? you're not going to get your money back for all your books that you bought on there either. and ooooh those important notes, you're going to be fresh out of luck if you break your kindle... did you ever try one? they suck. they're slow, they freeze up often, they don't support anything but one format of book, they have a limited memory, they use batteries, they can get broken very easily... and yes i kind of agree with you. but i'm never going to not get used to a book. but were you looking for a sonnet about books? :P