Chiming in on the ebooks format. I won't ever stop buying print books, but I loves me some ebooks, for the portability, the price (I got the new Stephen King for 9.99 on ebook, opposed to $35.) and the 3 a.m. factor.
However, it's very annoying to me, now that I have an iTouch, that all the ebooks I bought to read on me PC are not compatible with the itouch. I bought them; I should be able to read them! And they're still stored on the various websites list as downloadable -- but not in the format I need. It's very frustrating. Reading on the iTouch is not as satisfying as reading a print book, but so far I've read the latest King and the latest Gabaldon on it without my eyes falling out my head, and without any major "being taken out of the story"-ness due to the small screen either. I'd like to have access to the other books as well.
My sister got a reader -- I think a Sony eReader -- for Xmas. I'll have to check it out.
Erin: You can probably find a way to read most any book out there on an iPod touch. E-mail me with details about what formats you have (and from what stores) and I can probably help you convert them.
It may require some technically-illegal DRM stripping, but I feel no ethical dilemma removing DRM so that you can read it on your current device. I strip all my Kindle books for future devices, and I am completely willing to announce it.
Gris, I'll do that! That would be great. I wouldn't feel bad about it; I mean, I bought the books and it's not like I'm gonna be giving 'em away. I just want to be able to read them away from my desktop.
My library finally has iPod compatible audiobooks. But they list that as a separate category from their main list, which is kind of annoying.
But they have a different format.
A lot of thsoe separtae lsst are because no one wants to play nice.
How ever, searching by authour or title in the catalog should give you al the formats a book is avalible in
But they have a different format.
I know--that's the annoying part. It's a small slice of what they have available.
Well, I'm glad they resolved that. They had one format for the longest time. Now they can go to PC, Mac, iPod, MP3, WMA, and burn to CD (yeah, I know some of those overlap).
It is a good thing . Now, we get to see who wins.
I'll consider an eReader when I can get any book I want--old or new--on it and there's no way for the seller to take the book back. That whole 1984 think with the Kindle freaked me out.
Whenever my MiL asks my advice on formats I've said "get the most open one you're allowed - people who want to steal library ebooks will do it regardless of format, and people who don't just want to be able to read on their own device."
