Gerald and Annie’s ebook blog

Now Cory is a fantastic author who has not only had his books published he has also released them for free on the internet using the Creative Commons license. I am sure he would agree it is not practical to read a full book on a computer screen, well ok you could read one but its not something you would do regularly. So why has he released his books via the internet if he thinks the eBook readers are going to fail?

I personally am a full blown computer geek who also loves a good read. I never even looked at an ebook reader because I like books not reading off computer screens. However I was going for an extended holiday and couldn’t face having to lug around 10+ paper backs and either not reading them all or running out. So I bought a sony ebook reader (sony PRS-505) and am now a full convert. They are so easy on the eyes and being able to carry around 100′s of books makes them a big winner in my view.

Here are some of the reasons to own an eBook reader

• Fantastic Books for Free or requiring donations (see www.feedbooks.com)
• Convenient. The reader is smaller than a normal book
• Practical. Can be read using one hand.
• Cheap. Long term they are cheap. For £150 I spent on the reader I could have bought 18 Books at the average price I pay. That would last me around 12 weeks on average. I am getting free or very cheap books that will give me a payback time of around 9 months.
• Quality, when books are free you don’t feel it is essential to keep wading through a book. You can make a judgement about an author after reading half the book and put it down if it is bad or not to your taste.
• Being able to get the books off the internet instead of having to stand around in WH Smiths with their limited range. This may not apply if you live in a big City with some good bookshops.
• Being able to carry 100′s of books around at a time, including Novels, Biographies and reference material. I have put a lot of my reference notes into PDF format and stored them on my eBook.
• You can get your newspaper in eBook format and don’t have to fight huge sheets of paper to read it. Especially usefull on trains, buses and planes.

These gadgets although not targeted at specific markets will do well in the following.

Commuters
As the recession hits more and more people will be looking for cheaper ways to enjoy themselves. Although the initial cost of the reader is high the long term returns financially make it worth doing. Another side effect of the recession is that people will be prepared to commute further to get to work. Having an ebook reader loaded with books for your travels will make the journeys more bearable.

Motorhome, Caravan and RV owners.
Quite a few Motorhome owners are buying these devices as they not only cut down on space used in the motorhome they also reduce the weight of the vehicle. Carrying 20 books will add 10′s of KiloGrams to your vehicle.

Techies
Add to this the techy types who are always buying gadgets.

Prolific Readers
I would say I fall into this catagory. As I only have a small bookshop and a WHSmiths in my small town I had to rely on Amazon. With the eBook reader I don’t have to ensure I am at home to accept delivery and I can get an immediate delivery.

Finally please note I am not having a Dig at Cory Doctorow, I just disagree with his prediction. I highly recommend you read his book Little Brother. I think this was aimed at a younger generation but is a very readable book. It does explain geek talk quite a bit so if you are up to date this can feel a little tedious in places. For example I didn’t need an explanation of tunneling or paranoid Linux. However if you don’t know what these are his explanations are clear and concise and don’t get in the way of the story. The story itself is extremely good and having just read Big Brother before this I think that it is a much better book. You can read other reviews at Amazon if you want a second third or 73rd opinion on the book.

It is free in eBook format if you don’t want to take the risk of buying it. However he does ask that if you want to reward him for his work you donate a copy of the paper version to a local library or school.

Anyway I am off to download a few more of his books and yes I will be donating a copy to my local school.

• The screen is very easy to read in most lights.
• The Battery life is nothing short of impressive.
• The user interface is pretty good but could do with some additional features.
• The software is confusing and not versatile enough
• Once loaded with books it is a very easy to use device.

Any way onto the review

The Software

The software which I have only had to use once luckily is not clear and is difficult to operate in my opinion. However at the end of the day after some persiverence it is possible to get your books loaded onto the device. Don’t expect much utility from the collections facility as it is very basic.

The Hardware

This is an impressive bit of kit. After reading two books on the device while away I decided to only buy ebooks in future. The device is light and easy to hold. When reading in bed you don’t have to use both hands to keep the pages open. It is not backlit so you don’t suffer from eye strain and I find I can read it longer than an ordinary book. It also removes that other niggle with real books, when I put a book down I either have to find a book mark or I leave it lying face down. The number of times I have lost a bookmark or knocked a face down book off the shelf and lost my page…. This is no longer an issue with the ereader. I just put it down and can immediately start reading at the same page when I pick it up again.

I am now of the opinion after holding out against ebooks that their time has come. Book availability is improving all the time and the quality of the screen is brilliant. Unlike my experimental run in with the Apple iPhone this one has got me converted to a new way of working.

There are quite a few good reviews our there so have decided not to rehash my own version but to provide links to the best I have found so far.

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-9793478-1.html

Thoughts By Ted, Good Review compares the Sony and the Amazon Kindle and comments on DRM

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