Jeff Stahler for July 23, 2011

I love iBooks on my iPad, but there are times when I also love being able to flip back several pages or chapters when I’m reading something a little complicated or involved. Both still have their place. And I never worry about dropping my book, or if I lose it, I’m not out a lot of money (someone left a brand new Nook at our library several months ago and still haven’t claimed it).

Both good points, and one other item deserves mention. A budding author will find it much easier to get e-published than hope to attract the attention of a ‘dead-tree’ publisher.

yup. same here. last time i was at one, 2 folks got asked to leave the store—they were comparison shopping “online” and scanning the bar codes. ebooks are still with us, and that store is gone now.

“Small independent” bookstores have been going for a long time, and seeing Borders go down is not good. I say this as I have beside me my Kindle (with 67 “books” on it) and a hard cover book I’m reading as well. Finding “paper” publishers is getting tough, but “self-publishing” firms (a variant from “vanity publishers”) and e-publishing are serving writers in a rapidly changing marketplace. While the e-book thing is one thing, I will miss standing in the aisles, thumbing through REAL books, while determining what to buy. It’s not the same on line.

There’s also the cost of books for your Kindle/Nook/etc. I read 5+ books per week, at $0 cost thanks to my local library. My traveling daughter pays $$$ each month for her Kindle books. If I had to buy all the books I read, I’d have to start re-reading all the books I already own or do without groceries.