Kalayna Price

Things are changing quickly these days. Some of these changes inspire wonder as new technology entertains us or makes our lives easier. Some inspire dread and fear as many of these same changing technologies seem to be the harbinger of destruction for traditions and institutions we've come to know and love. And yet, things have always changed. Perhaps not so quickly as they do now where most high-end tech is outdated within six months of hitting the shelves, but they've always changed. In visual entertainment, reels gave way to Beta to VHS to DVD to Blueray/HD and digital. In music, records gave way to cassette tapes, to CDs, and now to digital. Movies/television and music are two popular de-stressing pastimes most people partake in. Reading is another. Should we be surprised that traditional printed books are also moving toward digital in the form of e-books? The transition between technologies seems to grow ever shorter. I'll admit that though I still have some favori

Yesterday I blogged about my growing tolerance for reading electronically. I've only read a handful of eBooks, and all of those on my iPad. I'd like to play with one of the readers with eInk, just to see the difference, but I'm not sure I could justify a dedicated reading device at this point. After all, my iPad also plays movies, games, and can use a number of somewhat productive apps. Also, as I'm not ready to give up my dead tree books yet, a dedicated device might be wasted on me. Currently, at least. That said, I have been fiddling around with the four main reading apps (iBooks, Kindle, Stanza, and B&N reader) on the iPad. Most of the eBooks I've downloaded have been free or 'specially priced' but they've given me a chance to become accustomed to eBooks and the apps which the iPad uses to display them. I have come to the following conclusions iBooks Aesthetics of ebook: 5/5 Ease of use: 4.5/5 Shopping/browsing: 2/5 When you first open

Recently there has been a ton of chatter about eBooks. With Amazon going to war with publishers over pricing, the release of the Nook--the first major competitor of the Kindle (not that there haven't been other eReaders, but just like Harry becoming the chosen one because Voldemort decided the prophecy referred to him, Amazon singled the Nook out as THE competitor) and then, of course, there was the stir over the introduction of iBooks. My observation has been that over the last year or two eBooks have gone from primarily a distribution tool used by small specialty markets (like small press erotica publishers) to a mainstream alternative to paper. A few years ago, eBook sales were not significant enough to track. While I can't put my hands on the report right this moment, if I remember correctly, last year eBooks made up a little less than 4% of all book sales. While 4% of the market is not much, if you look at the trend, it's obvious eBook popularity is growing, and fas