With a Kindle at just over £100 and Christmas kinda coming up it's gotta be a decent seller this year.

I think they've their own book format haven't they (though assuming PDFs can be read anywhere).

Is Amazon going to be the iTunes of the book world?

I've no idea what format they'll handle but for me I wouldn't bother, I probably only buy 10% of the books I read, the rest are swapped/borrowed/given to me
I'm sure lots of other people are like that

Unless of course there's a whole shring community out there – I bet there is 🙂

Not sure myself.

I'm trying to use Kindle and iBooks on my iJesus but can't really get into either of them. I like the fact you can download a preview, but even then that can sometimes be a random load of b0ll0cks that doesn't give you any kind of sighter.

I used to buy loads of books but have really only read about 20% of them – hence loads of cash just thrown away. So, like you, I use the local library a lot more and swap/share.

The adverts are everywhere in that London and I'm sure the tech is great but what do they offer you that a paperback doesn't? Good idea I suppose if you do lots of long foreign trips.

I've been using Read It Swap It for the last couple of years great for those like me who've run out of space + cash.

I'm not sure i see the attraction of an ebook device. One of the joys of reading is the tactile nature of books.

I dunno about good or evil, I would be gutted if print went out of favour as I prefer the printed page, if the kindle contributes to that then yes it is evil, but I dunno if it will ever happen..

all the copyright free / classics are free to download for the Kindle

I've got one of the new ones. Had it about a week. Very easy to read on, great battery life, very easy to buy and get books downloaded – happens in seconds.

I've spent years building a collection of 100s of books, and I realised that I very rarely reread them – hence they are mostly being car-booted/given to charity. Going to car boot sales has made me realise there is too much stuff in the world hence I'm planning to buy more for the Kindle. Probably not everything though.

It'll be very handy for holidays – one little device instead of 5 heavy books.

how much does an eBook cost then? Say for a new realese novel?

Extremely lightweight and views well in bright light – very like electronic paper.

Bimbler, I like the idea of RISI, but I could never find a match, i.e. I wanted something but they didn't, or they wanted something but I didn't.

Must worked for other people though.

+1 for the kindle here. It's very slim, doesn't weigh much, has a fantasically readable screen and the eBooks I've bought cost less than 50% of the best price of the print version.

I've been using Read It Swap It for the last couple of years great for those like me who've run out of space + cash.

I used bookmooch.com in the same way.

I've just signed up for read it swap, but I've kno realised I've just given away all my rubbish books I didnt want to oxfam.

Does anyone have looks of spare rubbish books I can swap for some good ones ? Or am I misunderstanding something ?

also how to do you swap the books ? do you arrange to meet up somewhere ?

I cant seem to do a book search via postcode so how do I know if the swapper is nearby ?

surely book swap is illegal anyhow as you've only paid for the book content for your own reading ?

In the same way as swapping second hand CD's is technically illegal ?

In the same way as swapping second hand CD's is technically illegal ?

is it? as long as you're not making a copy of it before you swap it / sell it, I don't think it is.

surely book swap is illegal anyhow as you've only paid for the book content for your own reading ?

You're swapping the book, you're not copying it

've just signed up for read it swap, but I've kno realised I've just given away all my rubbish books I didnt want to oxfam.

Does anyone have looks of spare rubbish books I can swap for some good ones ? Or am I misunderstanding something ?

😀

With RISI you ask for a swap with a book of your choice, the person who has that book then looks through your "rubbish book" list if they like one of yours then you proceed with the swap, get the swappers details and post your book to them. Hopefully they do the same, have over 100 swaps so far never been let down yet.

Bookmooch had a points-based system. Sending someone a book got you a point, which you could then use to mooch a book from someone else. Books were just posted.

I'm tempted by a Kindle. I don't really buy enough books to justify it though, really.

The fact you can browse the web on it (though only in black and white) is also an attraction and might be what gets me to buy it.

Just got mine through yesterday and seems great. BUT i have downloaded my copy of Singletrack in pdf. But its awful small!

You're swapping the book, you're not copying it

is it? as long as you're not making a copy of it before you swap it / sell it, I don't think it is.

The laws have probably changed/ Im just wrong but I didnt think copying the material was a problem/crime. Although record companies may have changed the laws by now.

I though by buying a CD you were purchasing the physical media and the right to read/play the media.

You have the right to sell/exchange the physical media but you have no right or means sell the listening/viewing rights.

I think a couple of years ago the record companies also tried to make copying the media a crime as well. This would mean you would nt have been able to make a backup copy of the CD or more importantly put it on your ipod this would mean you'd have to buy both CD and digital media if you wanted to listen to a song on both a CD player and and iPod but I thought this failed.

Its the same with computer software you buy the software and a license to use it on so many computers (normally 1) for personal or whatever use. Ie you can only install it on 1 computer at a time that you own.

I kinda assumed books are similar but their probably not.

So as far as Im aware you have the rights to copy media but you have no means to sell the right or even give away to use that media, as it is personal to the purchaser.

Obviously you can also buy the right to play media in a public place ie pub sky license.

obviously what the law literally is and practically are, is different.

What about second hand cd and book shops?

I thought second hand CD shops were literally against the law but no one cares.

Amazon sell [or facilitate] second hand books & CDs

I can't imagine them doing it if it were illegal

Is Amazon going to be the iTunes of the book world?

In terms of getting the publishing industry to get their heads out of the sand, get their pricing realistic, and give customers a one-stop-shop to get their content? Hopefully, yes. And fingers crossed, in time will use their leverage with the industry to remove their insistence on DRM, just as Apple did with the iTunes store.

I'm very happy with the device and the store so far. Big appeal of these ereaders is getting access to out-of-copyright books for free – there's loads that I should have read, but never got round to reading (because I didn't do an arts degree!) that I'm enjoying getting through. Brave New World at the moment.

Personally I tended to just buy books from Amazon (or possibly supermarket/HMV if discounted enough – but usually someone would mention a book, I'd be on Amazon, click buy, would forget I'd ordered it till it arrived), read them and either pass on to friends or off to the charity shop. As long as kindle pricing stays below the current cheapest paper price, I'm happy. I try not to be a hoarder and don't fetishise paper books in the way some people do.

rather crap that they're subject to vat, unlike regular books. But I guess that keeps things in line with other electronic media.

Once bought do I need to register/pay a connection fee to download books? How does that bit work?
Wife enjoys her book reading but has arthritis which can make holding a book for long periods difficult so this should be good for her, Xmas pressie 😆

@Trekster – once bought there is no fee to pay for download. You can use your own wifi connection (or something like Openzone that you've paid for). If you get the £149 version you can, apparently, use the download over the phone network option free all over the world. Haven't tested this outside the UK yet though.

I'm slowly getting used to mine. The lightness is amazing, you can hold it for hours in one hand and just read on. Even with a small paper back it starts to get a bit achy after a while.

First book I bought for it was Lopes "Mastering Mountain Bike Skills". In my digital hands in less than a minute. Kindle edition £8.28. Paperback £11.04.

Easy to read, but photos / charts in B&W 🙁 But then I can look at them on a larger screen using Kindle Reader on my Mac. It works really well.

I have ordered one and due next week. For me it is the size as I plan to travel a lot in the next few years. Should be able to download some reading material, a few travel guides and bike repair manuals;-)

Also an opportunity to downsize my bookshelves.

Cheers ABF – amazon site does`nt make it clear enough imo, or maybe I missed something.

I wouldn't buy a Kindle, too much a one-trick pony. I do have Kindle, Stanza, Ereader, 3dBookshelf and iBooks on my iPhone, which means I've got an entire library in my pocket. The big issue with the Kindle, like other ereaders, is that you're pretty much tied to the one bookstore, and I've found that to be horribly restrictive, as there are plenty of authors out there who's work is geographically restricted as ebooks. Neil Stephenson's Snow Crash I got through Stanza, but not Diamond Age because I needed a US addressed credit card. There are books I can get on Kindle easily, but others I can only get from Stanza and now iBooks. iBooks is a damn good PDF reader as well.
I know that the Kindle is supposed to be better for reading in bright sunlight, but I don't like reading books in bright sunlight, and the Kindle is compromised in the dark. I also still buy lots of dead tree books, four or five in the last two or three weeks, but I hate carrying books around with me, they take up space, get damaged, and can be damned heavy, if its a hardcover. I love ebooks. I love dead tree books. I love books, in whatever form they come in; I've got four on the go at the moment, one on the phone, and I don't think people who love reading will give up on real books, they'll just embrace the sheer joy of being able to carry dozens, hundreds of books around in their pocket, the same way they now carry music.