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?

[Kenny]

I hope that at the end of my life I don't look back and regret all the hours I wasted explaining simple shit to idiots.  Well, here's another 15 minutes of my life:

 

Publishing a book is a huge investment for a publishing company, and therefore a huge risk.  Books by new authors only get published if a publishing company is willing to take a sizable risk.  Because of this, not a whole lot of aspiring authors are picked up, and potentially great books will never be read.

 

Now let's look at E-Readers.  I could write a book right now, convert the file to the proper formate, host it on Amazon, and sell it to people for $9.95 at absolutely no cost.  Please, think about this for a second.  With absolutely no backing by a major company, with no need for any investment or risk, or selling my soul to a publishing company, and with not potential audience, I can write a book and in 15 minutes have it be more widespread and easily accessible than Harry Potter.  Admittedly this can lead to shit of apocalyptic proportions, but I'm confident that the occasional diamond will be found amongst that shit.

 

If you honestly think that this is going to kill the book, then please get your head checked, and then consider reading a book that isn't on the NYT best sellers list.

[Kenny]

Fucking called it:

 

[Manders]

Personally, I wouldn't buy one. 1) For me, part of the experience of reading a book is turning the crisp pages. 2) I read typically before I go to sleep, and staring at the bright screen of a kindle would probably keep me awake. 3) My best friend got a kindle for Christmas and she told me that she never really uses it.

I feel like books are one of the few things that have been constant through years and years of change. I use them to escape our fast paced world, and making them a part of that world takes away from that.

 

[Lee H.]

You definitely have a right to your opinion, but one thing I have to correct you on - The Kindle uses an e-Ink screen, not LCD like an ipad, It is not backlit in any way and you still need an external light to read it in the dark just like a book, the screen looks astonishingly like real paper until you turn the page.

[Zombie Rave Party]

Yes, it's obvious that it is. And it's unfortunate, but we've known for a while that all of our history (wether it be human history, or just the fictional thoughts of our great writers) will be kept via computer, not written down or carved in stone as our ancestors did.

 

I'm contemplating buying a Kindle for myself really... The ability to take all of my books with me, wherever I go, is quite appealing. The only thing keeping me from buying it right now, (aside from no money thanks to the college-life budget) is how much I love to look at the book shelves in my room and run my fingers across the spines of books well read. The feel of the pages is an amazing thing, and I shall miss it if I buy a Kindle.

[Contradiction]

Owning a Kindle =/= giving up paper books.

[Alice Smith]

Sure Kindle is probably better in many ways but personally I'm for books all the way!And I also find reading off screens hurts my eyes more quickly than reading off a page.

[Jess]

The Kindle doesn't have a backlight, so it doesn't hurt your eyes. It looks just like a regular page.

[Kenny]

 

It's actually pretty amazing how similar the kindle looks to a page.

[Olga V.]

I love having books to read. Actual books. Ones that I can hold and turn the pages of. At the same time, I totally understand why the Kindle is popular. It's a lot easier to take with on vacation than 2 books or even a book. It's a lot more practical in an age where it's important to take as much as you can with you, in as little space as possible (hence, we have ipods, ipads, and iphones.) 

I think that I'll eventually get a kindle, cause it makes sense to have one. And I think it's good that they exist. I don't know if they'll kill books though - considering a lot of people still can't afford a kindle and do enjoy having a book to read. But I think it is changing the way those of us that can afford one read. 

[Juliet]

I agree, but i don't think e-books are ever going to take over, i think they are trying to save paper and that's a good thing, but some don't think we do. I just think they are because i have a knidle, and it's not the same just how you descried the book. I love books that are really. The knidle can try to copy it as much as it can but it will never be the same. The one good think about it is that books won't be forgotten, I know they can't be but it gives us a promise that they wont go away. So there is a bigger bad than good side to this.

But you never know what's going to happen. We just have to wait......

[Juliet]

I agree, but i don't think e-books are ever going to take over, i think they are trying to save paper and that's a good thing, but some don't think we do. I just think they are because i have a knidle, and it's not the same just how you descried the book. I love books that are really. The knidle can try to copy it as much as it can but it will never be the same. The one good think about it is that books won't be forgotten, I know they can't be but it gives us a promise that they wont go away. So there is a bigger bad than good side to this.

But you never know what's going to happen. We just have to wait......