| Re: ebooks [message #248234 is a reply to message #247484] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 10:44   |
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Originally posted by: Dag-Erling Smørgrav
Lewis <g.kreme@gmail.com.dontsendmecopies> writes:
> Dag-Erling Smørgrav <des@des.no> writes:
>> Lewis <g.kreme@gmail.com.dontsendmecopies> writes:
>>> Well, Doctorow is not exactly a well-known author. [...] Where
>>> was he an "established" author?
>> Nor a particularly good one [...] But his blogging / journalism /
>> activism earned him a large and devoted fan base [...]
> So, by "established writer" you really meant a niche author with a small
> (in terms of writers) fan base?
Those were Whiskers's words, not mine. I was agreeing that he's not
particularly well-known and adding that (in my opinion) he's not
particularly good either.
DES
--
Dag-Erling Smørgrav - des@des.no
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| Re: ebooks [message #248236 is a reply to message #248148] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 11:52 |
Stephen Sprunk
Messages: 2166
Registered: March 2013
Karma: 0
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On 27-Mar-14 14:25, Osmium wrote:
> In any event, _The Seattle Times_ had this:
>
> "Another contrast between the machine shops of Auburn and other
> Boeing divisions is that many Auburn workers have now idea what
> they're making. The shapes they create often seem almost abstract. "
> And your guess is that a human read that? It is almost surely a
> spell checker induced error.
I've seen people make that mistake (or "know") as a typo; I agree that
an editor should have corrected it, but nobody's perfect. My concern is
with the overall rate of errors, not individual instances.
Based on what I see in my peers' writing, including folks who write
professionally and/or have English degrees, that article was probably
far worse before an editor got ahold of it, and that one just slipped
through.
(Interestingly, my spell-checker doesn't like "ahold", but several
sources agree it's acceptable, at least in informal writing.)
S
--
Stephen Sprunk "God does not play dice." --Albert Einstein
CCIE #3723 "God is an inveterate gambler, and He throws the
K5SSS dice at every possible opportunity." --Stephen Hawking
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| Re: ebooks [message #248237 is a reply to message #248225] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 11:54 |
GreyMaus[1]
Messages: 1140
Registered: February 2013
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On 2014-03-28, Dan.Espen <despen@verizon.net> wrote:
> greymausg <maus@mail.com> writes:
>
>>
>> I have several hundred, enough. Some of the older, early 1950s,
>> fall apart when extracted. My daughter went visiting to relatives,
>> and after putting her stuff in the room, asked where their books
>> were?.. No books, just tabloids and TV, she never went there
>> again. She has an awful habit of bringing stuff here, `until I
>> decide where to put them' when moving house.
>
> We had about 40 trash bags full of old books, encyclopedias, paper backs
> on shelves throughout the house. They weren't stored that way, just
> 40 bags for an approximate count.
>
> Wife would never let me throw any of
> them out. When she passed away and I disposed of them, a number of the
> shelves had mold behind the books. Unless you take them down and clean
> the books and shelves, it's not sanitary.
A friend and neighbour had stacks of old encyclopedias and photos, when
he died we helped to clean out the house. The photos were fascinating,
people whom I only knew as old people were young and going on bicycle
rides, races, etc. The whole lot had to be junked, mould, white
dust rising the whole time.
>
> I can find all that stuff online and I'm back to reading a lot using
> my new Kindle. No love for paper books here. Like computer printing
> it's a thing of the past, better gone.
Yes. However, one thing I have noticed over the years, quality books
are produced to far better style in the US, rather than here or the UK.
--
maus
.
.
....
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| Re: ebooks [message #248244 is a reply to message #248236] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 12:57 |
osmium
Messages: 749
Registered: April 2013
Karma: 0
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"Stephen Sprunk" wrote:
> On 27-Mar-14 14:25, Osmium wrote:
>> In any event, _The Seattle Times_ had this:
>>
>> "Another contrast between the machine shops of Auburn and other
>> Boeing divisions is that many Auburn workers have now idea what
>> they're making. The shapes they create often seem almost abstract. "
>> And your guess is that a human read that? It is almost surely a
>> spell checker induced error.
>
> I've seen people make that mistake [elided] as a typo;
Really? The desired sequence is 'o' space 'i'. Look at a keyboard and
where the 'w' is. no and now are not homophones.
How could anyone possibly make that error? The only conceivable explanation
I can see would be an obscure alternate keyboard arrangement which would
allow a fat finger mistake, a Dvorak keyboard doesn't allow this mistake.
It seems obvious to me, he typed no with a fat finger. The spell checker
refused that word and offered now as an alternate and the author accepted
it. I do it all the time and see other people do it too. Totally unrelated
words - but real words - stuck in text, seemingly at random. That's why, in
an earlier post, I proposed spell checkers provide a list of the changes
they made, kind of like an audit trail.
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| Re: ebooks [message #248254 is a reply to message #248244] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 15:41 |
Stephen Sprunk
Messages: 2166
Registered: March 2013
Karma: 0
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On 28-Mar-14 11:57, Osmium wrote:
> "Stephen Sprunk" wrote:
>> On 27-Mar-14 14:25, Osmium wrote:
>>> In any event, _The Seattle Times_ had this:
>>>
>>> "Another contrast between the machine shops of Auburn and other
>>> Boeing divisions is that many Auburn workers have now idea what
>>> they're making. The shapes they create often seem almost
>>> abstract. " And your guess is that a human read that? It is
>>> almost surely a spell checker induced error.
>>
>> I've seen people make that mistake [elided] as a typo;
>
> Really? The desired sequence is 'o' space 'i'. Look at a keyboard
> and where the 'w' is. no and now are not homophones.
But "know" is a homophone, and "now" is halfway between "no" and "know",
so I can see how that particular example might happen.
> How could anyone possibly make that error? ...
>
> It seems obvious to me, he typed no with a fat finger. The spell
> checker refused that word and offered now as an alternate and the
> author accepted it. I do it all the time and see other people do it
> too.
I can't recall having ever manually selected the wrong suggestion. Much
more common for me is that my word processor (or phone) will
auto-correct to the wrong word without me noticing; my email editor
doesn't do that. Also common is telling my fingers to type one word yet
the word that appears on the screen is a different (but correctly
spelled) word, usually starting with the same few letters.
> Totally unrelated words - but real words - stuck in text,
> seemingly at random.
I do that occasionally; it's typically the result of (re)moving the
wrong word(s) when revising what I wrote. While "in the zone", I will
see what I intended to write/edit rather than what is actually there,
but when I come back to the same text later, such an error is obvious.
> That's why, in an earlier post, I proposed spell checkers provide a
> list of the changes they made, kind of like an audit trail.
The problem with such features is that the only people who will use it
are the ones who don't need to.
S
--
Stephen Sprunk "God does not play dice." --Albert Einstein
CCIE #3723 "God is an inveterate gambler, and He throws the
K5SSS dice at every possible opportunity." --Stephen Hawking
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| Re: ebooks [message #248258 is a reply to message #248187] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 16:17 |
Charles Richmond
Messages: 2754
Registered: December 2011
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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"Michael Black" <et472@ncf.ca> wrote in message
news:alpine.LNX.2.02.1403272312370.16623@darkstar.example.org...
> On Thu, 27 Mar 2014, Charles Richmond wrote:
>
>> "Michael Black" <et472@ncf.ca> wrote in message
>> news:alpine.LNX.2.02.1403270102140.14705@darkstar.example.org...
>>>
>>> [snip...] [snip...] [snip...]
>>>
>>> I've gone looking, and dig deep enugh, and you find endless repackagers
>>> of public domain books, they actually charge for them. Or packaging of
>>> things like wikipedia entries, hoping to make some money from that.
>>> It's not always that these things are immediately noticeable as
>>> packaging of otherwise free stuff.
>>>
>>
>> Michael, it is *not* illegal to sell things that can be obtain *free*
>> from other places. There are people in the US who will sell you US
>> government forms to apply for things... when you could get the forms (or
>> download them from the internet) for *free*. "Life is tough. It's
>> tougher if you're stupid." (Perhaps I should have spelled it "your"...
>> to illustrate the "stupid" part!)
>>
> Yes, but if I didnt' know when I spent the money, and then discovered that
> I could have it for free, I'd be feeling cheated.
>
> That sort of thing did use to happen, Dover Books and others reprinting
> out of copyright books. Back then, it was really useful, since otherwise
> one had to find actual copies of the old books.
>
> But in the internet age, it seems terribly profiteering. The packagers
> may add something (or not) but they aren't the only source.
>
I agree that *before* the internet, there was certainly a place for those
who sold re-packaged free stuff. There was a company in Austin, Texas who
sold listings of public domain software and data. And I agree that in the
internet age, such sale of free stuff can be profiteering. But... many
*like* to have bound, paper editions of some books. In that case, Dover is
a good source and typically *not* overpriced. IIRC Dover books are sewn in
signatures, though they are paperbacks... and the paper is non-acid paper.
There is one book I wished that I had ordered from Dover when they had it.
The book was called _Numerical Methods that Work *_ ... and the "*" note at
the bottom of the cover said: Sometimes. :-) It was a numerical analysis
book with a touch of humor.
--
numerist at aquaporin4 dot com
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| Re: ebooks [message #248265 is a reply to message #248244] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 17:27 |
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Originally posted by: Whiskers
On 2014-03-28, Osmium <r124c4u102@comcast.net> wrote:
> "Stephen Sprunk" wrote:
>
>> On 27-Mar-14 14:25, Osmium wrote:
>>> In any event, _The Seattle Times_ had this:
>>>
>>> "Another contrast between the machine shops of Auburn and other
>>> Boeing divisions is that many Auburn workers have now idea what
>>> they're making. The shapes they create often seem almost abstract. "
>>> And your guess is that a human read that? It is almost surely a
>>> spell checker induced error.
>>
>> I've seen people make that mistake [elided] as a typo;
>
> Really? The desired sequence is 'o' space 'i'. Look at a keyboard
> and where the 'w' is. no and now are not homophones. How could
> anyone possibly make that error? The only conceivable explanation I
> can see would be an obscure alternate keyboard arrangement which would
> allow a fat finger mistake, a Dvorak keyboard doesn't allow this
> mistake.
>
> It seems obvious to me, he typed no with a fat finger. The spell
> checker refused that word and offered now as an alternate and the
> author accepted it. I do it all the time and see other people do it
> too. Totally unrelated words - but real words - stuck in text,
> seemingly at random. That's why, in an earlier post, I proposed
> spell checkers provide a list of the changes they made, kind of like
> an audit trail.
Can your text editor or word processor be set so as not to auto-correct
possible spelling mistakes? The decision should always be made by the
writer, not the machine.
--
-- ^^^^^^^^^^
-- Whiskers
-- ~~~~~~~~~~
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| Re: ebooks [message #248271 is a reply to message #248187] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 03:55 |
Shmuel (Seymour J.) M
Messages: 3286
Registered: July 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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In <alpine.LNX.2.02.1403272312370.16623@darkstar.example.org>, on
03/27/2014
at 11:18 PM, Michael Black <et472@ncf.ca> said:
> But in the internet age, it seems terribly profiteering.
Dead trees are still useful. IMHO Dover provides a valuable service,
even if I could download for free.
Let me pose a nominally hypothetical question. If an author
simultaneously releases a new book as a free download and as a dead
tree, does that seem terribly profiteering?
--
Shmuel (Seymour J.) Metz, SysProg and JOAT <http://patriot.net/~shmuel>
Unsolicited bulk E-mail subject to legal action. I reserve the
right to publicly post or ridicule any abusive E-mail. Reply to
domain Patriot dot net user shmuel+news to contact me. Do not
reply to spamtrap@library.lspace.org
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| Re: ebooks [message #248272 is a reply to message #248265] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 18:02 |
osmium
Messages: 749
Registered: April 2013
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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"Whiskers" wrote:
> On 2014-03-28, Osmium <r124c4u102@comcast.net> wrote:
>> "Stephen Sprunk" wrote:
>>
>>> On 27-Mar-14 14:25, Osmium wrote:
>>>> In any event, _The Seattle Times_ had this:
>>>>
>>>> "Another contrast between the machine shops of Auburn and other
>>>> Boeing divisions is that many Auburn workers have now idea what
>>>> they're making. The shapes they create often seem almost abstract. "
>>>> And your guess is that a human read that? It is almost surely a
>>>> spell checker induced error.
>>>
>>> I've seen people make that mistake [elided] as a typo;
>>
>> Really? The desired sequence is 'o' space 'i'. Look at a keyboard
>> and where the 'w' is. no and now are not homophones. How could
>> anyone possibly make that error? The only conceivable explanation I
>> can see would be an obscure alternate keyboard arrangement which would
>> allow a fat finger mistake, a Dvorak keyboard doesn't allow this
>> mistake.
>>
>> It seems obvious to me, he typed no with a fat finger. The spell
>> checker refused that word and offered now as an alternate and the
>> author accepted it. I do it all the time and see other people do it
>> too. Totally unrelated words - but real words - stuck in text,
>> seemingly at random. That's why, in an earlier post, I proposed
>> spell checkers provide a list of the changes they made, kind of like
>> an audit trail.
>
> Can your text editor or word processor be set so as not to auto-correct
> possible spelling mistakes? The decision should always be made by the
> writer, not the machine.
Yes and I use manual correct only. I try to do many things (including
typing) faster than I can. Some people, mostly women, think they are
princess Anastasia. One of my problems is I am not as fast as I think I am.
My default mode is "Let's get this over with". A post mortem list would
allow me to see what damn fool mistakes I have made. This is not a logical
problem, it is a psychological problem.
This link describing a Type A personality describes me pretty darn well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83AwKedowDU&feature=play er_detailpage
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| Re: ebooks [message #248273 is a reply to message #248207] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 18:10 |
Shmuel (Seymour J.) M
Messages: 3286
Registered: July 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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In <slrnlj9a7l.rpi.maus@gmaus.org>, on 03/28/2014
at 09:26 AM, greymausg <maus@mail.com> said:
> I have several hundred, enough.
FSVO enough. It's been a long time since I had that few. I'd cut back
if there were free downloads of suitable quality. In particular, I
could get[1] searchable back issues of Astounding (Analog), Galaxy and
If, I'd ditch the dead trees in a heartbeat.
[1] Even if it were chargeable, as long as the price was reasonable.
--
Shmuel (Seymour J.) Metz, SysProg and JOAT <http://patriot.net/~shmuel>
Unsolicited bulk E-mail subject to legal action. I reserve the
right to publicly post or ridicule any abusive E-mail. Reply to
domain Patriot dot net user shmuel+news to contact me. Do not
reply to spamtrap@library.lspace.org
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| Re: ebooks [message #248275 is a reply to message #248225] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 18:32 |
Stephen Sprunk
Messages: 2166
Registered: March 2013
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On 28-Mar-14 08:37, Dan.Espen wrote:
> I can find all that stuff online and I'm back to reading a lot using
> my new Kindle. No love for paper books here. Like computer
> printing it's a thing of the past, better gone.
There's something about having a dead-tree book that an electronic copy
just doesn't measure up to. The convenience of having my entire library
with me when I'm not at home, full-text searches, etc. would make up for
that, but I refuse to buy ebooks until they drop the DRM nonsense, just
as I did with music downloads.
S
--
Stephen Sprunk "God does not play dice." --Albert Einstein
CCIE #3723 "God is an inveterate gambler, and He throws the
K5SSS dice at every possible opportunity." --Stephen Hawking
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| Re: ebooks [message #248288 is a reply to message #248273] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 19:52 |
Charlie Gibbs
Messages: 5354
Registered: January 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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In article <5335f33b$1$fuzhry+tra$mr2ice@news.patriot.net>,
spamtrap@library.lspace.org.invalid (Seymour J.) writes:
> In <slrnlj9a7l.rpi.maus@gmaus.org>, on 03/28/2014
> at 09:26 AM, greymausg <maus@mail.com> said:
>
>> I have several hundred, enough.
>
> FSVO enough. It's been a long time since I had that few. I'd cut back
> if there were free downloads of suitable quality. In particular, I
> could get[1] searchable back issues of Astounding (Analog), Galaxy
> and If, I'd ditch the dead trees in a heartbeat.
>
> [1] Even if it were chargeable, as long as the price was reasonable.
I might be tempted myself (he says, looking over that the shelf full
of Astounding/Analog, Galaxy, and a few If). On the other hand, I've
occasionally tried googling for some text from a story I was looking
for, and come up with the date of the issue which I could then pull
from my shelf.
--
/~\ cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid (Charlie Gibbs)
\ / I'm really at ac.dekanfrus if you read it the right way.
X Top-posted messages will probably be ignored. See RFC1855.
/ \ HTML will DEFINITELY be ignored. Join the ASCII ribbon campaign!
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| Re: ebooks [message #248291 is a reply to message #248265] |
Fri, 28 March 2014 20:54 |
Peter Flass
Messages: 8402
Registered: December 2011
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On 03/28/2014 05:27 PM, Whiskers wrote:
> On 2014-03-28, Osmium <r124c4u102@comcast.net> wrote:
>> "Stephen Sprunk" wrote:
>>
>>> On 27-Mar-14 14:25, Osmium wrote:
>>>> In any event, _The Seattle Times_ had this:
>>>>
>>>> "Another contrast between the machine shops of Auburn and other
>>>> Boeing divisions is that many Auburn workers have now idea what
>>>> they're making. The shapes they create often seem almost abstract. "
>>>> And your guess is that a human read that? It is almost surely a
>>>> spell checker induced error.
>>>
>>> I've seen people make that mistake [elided] as a typo;
>>
>> Really? The desired sequence is 'o' space 'i'. Look at a keyboard
>> and where the 'w' is. no and now are not homophones. How could
>> anyone possibly make that error? The only conceivable explanation I
>> can see would be an obscure alternate keyboard arrangement which would
>> allow a fat finger mistake, a Dvorak keyboard doesn't allow this
>> mistake.
>>
>> It seems obvious to me, he typed no with a fat finger. The spell
>> checker refused that word and offered now as an alternate and the
>> author accepted it. I do it all the time and see other people do it
>> too. Totally unrelated words - but real words - stuck in text,
>> seemingly at random. That's why, in an earlier post, I proposed
>> spell checkers provide a list of the changes they made, kind of like
>> an audit trail.
>
> Can your text editor or word processor be set so as not to auto-correct
> possible spelling mistakes? The decision should always be made by the
> writer, not the machine.
>
I usually do this if I'm typing something longer than a paragraph. When
I'm done I run spellcheck on the whole thing and decide whether to
accept its suggestions or not.
Aside - I now read news on my laptop, actually sitting on my lap.
Besides not being able to see the keys too well at this angle it offers
the convenience of key bounce, so I ocaassionally get some doubled letters.
--
Pete
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| Re: ebooks [message #248307 is a reply to message #248050] |
Sat, 29 March 2014 02:17 |
Gene Wirchenko
Messages: 1166
Registered: January 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On Wed, 26 Mar 2014 22:09:14 -0400, Michael Black <et472@ncf.ca>
wrote:
> On Wed, 26 Mar 2014, Gene Wirchenko wrote:
>
>> On Wed, 26 Mar 2014 12:19:09 -0400, Peter Flass
>> <Peter_Flass@Yahoo.com> wrote:
>>
>> [snip]
>>
>>> Somewhat more telling, a lot of self-published stuff lacks organization.
>>> I'm thinking of one book in particular where the information is all
>>> there, and is interesting and informative, but pieces of it seems to be
>>> scattered. A good editor would probably have reorgnized it in more
>>> sensible order. Often the author is either too close to the book,
>>> writes it in sections, or just gets tired of reworking it,
>>
>> I see it in gaming books, too. A group of us were going to play
>> the Shadowrun RPG, but it was just too hard to find all the details
>> for setting up characters.
>>
> That sort of thing may not even need a "professional editor", just a third
> party to read it from a distant vantage point. Creators of something may
> be their own worst documenter.
I agree. I think that a large part of the trouble is that the
writers are necessarily familiar with the gaming system and may have
been involved with earlier versions of the game so see no need for
covering details that a first-time player requires.
Another one that I ran into in the Pathfinder gaming system is
the term "simple weapon". It is "defined" only by a table. There is
no statement of what constitutes a simple weapon.
[snip]
Sincerely,
Gene Wirchenko
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| Re: ebooks [message #248323 is a reply to message #248271] |
Sat, 29 March 2014 07:55 |
GreyMaus[1]
Messages: 1140
Registered: February 2013
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On 2014-03-28, Shmuel Metz <spamtrap@library.lspace.org.invalid> wrote:
> In <alpine.LNX.2.02.1403272312370.16623@darkstar.example.org>, on
> 03/27/2014
> at 11:18 PM, Michael Black <et472@ncf.ca> said:
>
>> But in the internet age, it seems terribly profiteering.
>
> Dead trees are still useful. IMHO Dover provides a valuable service,
> even if I could download for free.
>
> Let me pose a nominally hypothetical question. If an author
> simultaneously releases a new book as a free download and as a dead
> tree, does that seem terribly profiteering?
>
There are many examples of that, popular texts are turned into dead-trees,
must be puzzling legally
--
maus
.
.
....
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| Re: ebooks [message #248324 is a reply to message #248265] |
Sat, 29 March 2014 07:55 |
GreyMaus[1]
Messages: 1140
Registered: February 2013
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On 2014-03-28, Whiskers <catwheezel@operamail.com> wrote:
> On 2014-03-28, Osmium <r124c4u102@comcast.net> wrote:
>> "Stephen Sprunk" wrote:
>>
>>> On 27-Mar-14 14:25, Osmium wrote:
>>>> In any event, _The Seattle Times_ had this:
>>>>
>>>> "Another contrast between the machine shops of Auburn and other
>>>> Boeing divisions is that many Auburn workers have now idea what
>>>> they're making. The shapes they create often seem almost abstract. "
>>>> And your guess is that a human read that? It is almost surely a
>>>> spell checker induced error.
>>>
>>> I've seen people make that mistake [elided] as a typo;
>>
>> Really? The desired sequence is 'o' space 'i'. Look at a keyboard
>> and where the 'w' is. no and now are not homophones. How could
>> anyone possibly make that error? The only conceivable explanation I
>> can see would be an obscure alternate keyboard arrangement which would
>> allow a fat finger mistake, a Dvorak keyboard doesn't allow this
>> mistake.
>>
>> It seems obvious to me, he typed no with a fat finger. The spell
>> checker refused that word and offered now as an alternate and the
>> author accepted it. I do it all the time and see other people do it
>> too. Totally unrelated words - but real words - stuck in text,
>> seemingly at random. That's why, in an earlier post, I proposed
>> spell checkers provide a list of the changes they made, kind of like
>> an audit trail.
>
> Can your text editor or word processor be set so as not to auto-correct
> possible spelling mistakes? The decision should always be made by the
> writer, not the machine.
>
vim set spell
--
maus
.
.
....
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| Re: ebooks [message #248336 is a reply to message #248323] |
Sat, 29 March 2014 11:54 |
GreyMaus[1]
Messages: 1140
Registered: February 2013
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On 2014-03-29, greymausg <maus@mail.com> wrote:
> On 2014-03-28, Shmuel Metz <spamtrap@library.lspace.org.invalid> wrote:
>> In <alpine.LNX.2.02.1403272312370.16623@darkstar.example.org>, on
>> 03/27/2014
>> at 11:18 PM, Michael Black <et472@ncf.ca> said:
>>
>>> But in the internet age, it seems terribly profiteering.
>>
>> Dead trees are still useful. IMHO Dover provides a valuable service,
>> even if I could download for free.
>>
>> Let me pose a nominally hypothetical question. If an author
>> simultaneously releases a new book as a free download and as a dead
>> tree, does that seem terribly profiteering?
>>
> There are many examples of that, popular texts are turned into dead-trees,
> must be puzzling legally
>
>
An example in front of me, "The Whole Internet ....", was available
as a free text before being published as a paperback, I bought
it in the early internet days.
--
maus
.
.
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| Re: ebooks [message #248340 is a reply to message #248323] |
Sat, 29 March 2014 14:26 |
Stephen Sprunk
Messages: 2166
Registered: March 2013
Karma: 0
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On 29-Mar-14 06:55, greymausg wrote:
> On 2014-03-28, Shmuel Metz <spamtrap@library.lspace.org.invalid> wrote:
>> Let me pose a nominally hypothetical question. If an author
>> simultaneously releases a new book as a free download and as a dead
>> tree, does that seem terribly profiteering?
>
> There are many examples of that, popular texts are turned into dead-trees,
> must be puzzling legally
A free download may make it difficult to establish a loss when suing for
copyright violation; I suspect a court would conclude that the price of
the dead-tree version is actually for the _container_ of the work rather
than for the work itself.
S
--
Stephen Sprunk "God does not play dice." --Albert Einstein
CCIE #3723 "God is an inveterate gambler, and He throws the
K5SSS dice at every possible opportunity." --Stephen Hawking
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| Re: ebooks [message #248351 is a reply to message #248288] |
Sat, 29 March 2014 19:33 |
Shmuel (Seymour J.) M
Messages: 3286
Registered: July 2012
Karma: 0
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In <1130.235T2311T9525548@kltpzyxm.invalid>, on 03/28/2014
at 03:52 PM, "Charlie Gibbs" <cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid> said:
> On the other hand, I've occasionally tried googling for some text
> from a story I was looking for, and come up with the date of the
> issue which I could then pull from my shelf.
I violated my army training[1] and offered to teach a class on Time
Travel in Science Fiction. As part of the class I'd like for the
students to read some stories. Making copies form bound pulp is
awkward; I'd really prefer something machine readable. Besides, I
never had much luck with google[2] searches; lots of false hits, often
no hits[3] for what I wanted.
[1] Never volunteer
[2] These days I often try wiki before bothering with gargle.
[3] E.g., a quote that turned out to be from "Destiny Times Three"
--
Shmuel (Seymour J.) Metz, SysProg and JOAT <http://patriot.net/~shmuel>
Unsolicited bulk E-mail subject to legal action. I reserve the
right to publicly post or ridicule any abusive E-mail. Reply to
domain Patriot dot net user shmuel+news to contact me. Do not
reply to spamtrap@library.lspace.org
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| Re: ebooks [message #248371 is a reply to message #248351] |
Sun, 30 March 2014 02:36 |
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Originally posted by: Elmer
On 3/29/2014 6:33 PM, Shmuel (Seymour J.) Metz wrote:
> In <1130.235T2311T9525548@kltpzyxm.invalid>, on 03/28/2014
> at 03:52 PM, "Charlie Gibbs" <cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid> said:
>
>> On the other hand, I've occasionally tried googling for some text
>> from a story I was looking for, and come up with the date of the
>> issue which I could then pull from my shelf.
>
> I violated my army training[1] and offered to teach a class on Time
> Travel in Science Fiction. As part of the class I'd like for the
> students to read some stories. Making copies form bound pulp is
> awkward; I'd really prefer something machine readable. Besides, I
> never had much luck with google[2] searches; lots of false hits, often
> no hits[3] for what I wanted.
Depending on what exactly it is that you want, I'd look for torrent
collections myself. Not all literature is easy to find, but tech types
tend to like SF. Certainly anything that's ever been nominated for a
Hugo is there, probably in a single massive torrent. ("Certainly"
because that's how I found
OTOH, one might or might not want to set an example of sourcing
material that way.
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| Re: ebooks [message #248375 is a reply to message #248323] |
Sat, 29 March 2014 19:46 |
Shmuel (Seymour J.) M
Messages: 3286
Registered: July 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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In <slrnljdcjn.3b6.maus@gmaus.org>, on 03/29/2014
at 11:55 AM, greymausg <maus@mail.com> said:
> On 2014-03-28, Shmuel Metz <spamtrap@library.lspace.org.invalid>
> wrote: > In
> <alpine.LNX.2.02.1403272312370.16623@darkstar.example.org>, on >
> 03/27/2014
>> at 11:18 PM, Michael Black <et472@ncf.ca> said:
>>
>>> But in the internet age, it seems terribly profiteering.
>>
>> Dead trees are still useful. IMHO Dover provides a valuable service,
>> even if I could download for free.
>>
>> Let me pose a nominally hypothetical question. If an author
>> simultaneously releases a new book as a free download and as a dead
>> tree, does that seem terribly profiteering?
>>
> There are many examples of that, popular texts are turned into
> dead-trees, must be puzzling legally
Why? The author retains the copyright, and is free to issues whatever
licenses he wishes. Absent license, only he is allowed to distribute
it, but there is no legal requirement that he charges the same for all
formats, or that at all. Giving away free copies in no way dimishes
his legal rights.
--
Shmuel (Seymour J.) Metz, SysProg and JOAT <http://patriot.net/~shmuel>
Unsolicited bulk E-mail subject to legal action. I reserve the
right to publicly post or ridicule any abusive E-mail. Reply to
domain Patriot dot net user shmuel+news to contact me. Do not
reply to spamtrap@library.lspace.org
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| Re: ebooks [message #248378 is a reply to message #248213] |
Sun, 30 March 2014 09:27 |
Jorgen Grahn
Messages: 606
Registered: March 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On Fri, 2014-03-28, greymausg wrote:
> One reads stories of old people (for some reason in New York, mostly)
> who after filling the bookshelves, pile the books along the hallways,
> pile of books collapses, old person (old lady in the case I knew of)
> cant get across the pile and dies.
I'm reminded of the protagonist in Fritz Leiber's 'Our Lady of
Darkness', and the "scholar's mistress" he keeps in his bed ...
Although that turned out to be dangerous for different reasons.
/Jorgen
--
// Jorgen Grahn <grahn@ Oo o. . .
\X/ snipabacken.se> O o .
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| Re: ebooks [message #248488 is a reply to message #248244] |
Tue, 01 April 2014 21:32 |
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Originally posted by: Philip Shaw
On 2014-03-28, Osmium <r124c4u102@comcast.net> wrote:
> Really? The desired sequence is 'o' space 'i'. Look at a keyboard and
> where the 'w' is. no and now are not homophones.
> How could anyone possibly make that error? The only conceivable explanation
> I can see would be an obscure alternate keyboard arrangement which would
> allow a fat finger mistake, a Dvorak keyboard doesn't allow this mistake.
>
> It seems obvious to me, he typed no with a fat finger. The spell checker
> refused that word and offered now as an alternate and the author accepted
> it. I do it all the time and see other people do it too. Totally unrelated
> words - but real words - stuck in text, seemingly at random. That's why, in
> an earlier post, I proposed spell checkers provide a list of the changes
> they made, kind of like an audit trail.
Another useful feature would be context-aware spell-checking. Using
the surrounding words, the computer can guess the most likely words
there, based on the same databases used for translation, speech
recognition, and spam generation, reducing the chance that it will
reccomend the wrong one. Looking at neighbouring misspelt words would
also help: it is quite irritating when a transposed space gets
"corrected" into two wrong words, especially when those words are much
further from the erroneous text.
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| Re: ebooks [message #248514 is a reply to message #248488] |
Wed, 02 April 2014 11:31 |
Charlie Gibbs
Messages: 5354
Registered: January 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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In article <slrnljmq6i.2oe.philip@aphrodite-3.local>,
jnufcvyvuc@tznvy.pbz (Philip Shaw) writes:
> Another useful feature would be context-aware spell-checking. Using
> the surrounding words, the computer can guess the most likely words
> there, based on the same databases used for translation, speech
> recognition, and spam generation, reducing the chance that it will
> reccomend the wrong one. Looking at neighbouring misspelt words would
> also help: it is quite irritating when a transposed space gets
> "corrected" into two wrong words, especially when those words are
> much further from the erroneous text.
My cow orkers would appreciate this.
--
/~\ cgibbs@kltpzyxm.invalid (Charlie Gibbs)
\ / I'm really at ac.dekanfrus if you read it the right way.
X Top-posted messages will probably be ignored. See RFC1855.
/ \ HTML will DEFINITELY be ignored. Join the ASCII ribbon campaign!
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| Re: ebooks [message #248839 is a reply to message #247484] |
Mon, 07 April 2014 01:32 |
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Originally posted by: Philip Shaw
On 2014-04-02, Lewis <g.kreme@gmail.com.dontsendmecopies> wrote:
> In message <slrnljmq6i.2oe.philip@aphrodite-3.local>
> Philip Shaw <jnufcvyvuc@tznvy.pbz> wrote:
>> On 2014-03-28, Osmium <r124c4u102@comcast.net> wrote:
>>> Really? The desired sequence is 'o' space 'i'. Look at a keyboard and
>>> where the 'w' is. no and now are not homophones.
>>> How could anyone possibly make that error? The only conceivable explanation
>>> I can see would be an obscure alternate keyboard arrangement which would
>>> allow a fat finger mistake, a Dvorak keyboard doesn't allow this mistake.
>>>
>>> It seems obvious to me, he typed no with a fat finger. The spell checker
>>> refused that word and offered now as an alternate and the author accepted
>>> it. I do it all the time and see other people do it too. Totally unrelated
>>> words - but real words - stuck in text, seemingly at random. That's why, in
>>> an earlier post, I proposed spell checkers provide a list of the changes
>>> they made, kind of like an audit trail.
>
>> Another useful feature would be context-aware spell-checking. Using
>> the surrounding words, the computer can guess the most likely words
>> there, based on the same databases used for translation, speech
>> recognition, and spam generation, reducing the chance that it will
>> reccomend the wrong one. Looking at neighbouring misspelt words would
>> also help: it is quite irritating when a transposed space gets
>> "corrected" into two wrong words, especially when those words are much
>> further from the erroneous text.
>
> The iPhone already does this, and will often 'go back' and correct and
> its to it's or a were to we're several words later. Kind of cool, but
> also annoying when it gets it wrong.
On OS X, the auto-correct will sometimes delay correcting words for a
little while, but it doesn't seem to apply any more intelligence to
how it corrects them when it does so. (More annoyingly, it also moves
the cursor momentarily whenever it auto-corrects a word, so if you're
dead unlucky, it introduces an extra spelling mistake for you,
although it takes a real fluke to do it unless you're short of
memory.)
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| Re: ebooks [message #249814 is a reply to message #248839] |
Thu, 17 April 2014 19:36 |
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Originally posted by: John
"Philip Shaw" <jnufcvyvuc@tznvy.pbz> wrote in message
news:slrnlk4e3r.mp4.philip@aphrodite-3.local...
> On 2014-04-02, Lewis <g.kreme@gmail.com.dontsendmecopies> wrote:
>> In message <slrnljmq6i.2oe.philip@aphrodite-3.local>
>> Philip Shaw <jnufcvyvuc@tznvy.pbz> wrote:
>>> On 2014-03-28, Osmium <r124c4u102@comcast.net> wrote:
>>>> Really? The desired sequence is 'o' space 'i'. Look at a keyboard and
>>>> where the 'w' is. no and now are not homophones.
>>>> How could anyone possibly make that error? The only conceivable
>>>> explanation
>>>> I can see would be an obscure alternate keyboard arrangement which
>>>> would
>>>> allow a fat finger mistake, a Dvorak keyboard doesn't allow this
>>>> mistake.
>>>>
>>>> It seems obvious to me, he typed no with a fat finger. The spell
>>>> checker
>>>> refused that word and offered now as an alternate and the author
>>>> accepted
>>>> it. I do it all the time and see other people do it too. Totally
>>>> unrelated
>>>> words - but real words - stuck in text, seemingly at random. That's
>>>> why, in
>>>> an earlier post, I proposed spell checkers provide a list of the
>>>> changes
>>>> they made, kind of like an audit trail.
>>
>>> Another useful feature would be context-aware spell-checking. Using
>>> the surrounding words, the computer can guess the most likely words
>>> there, based on the same databases used for translation, speech
>>> recognition, and spam generation, reducing the chance that it will
>>> reccomend the wrong one. Looking at neighbouring misspelt words would
>>> also help: it is quite irritating when a transposed space gets
>>> "corrected" into two wrong words, especially when those words are much
>>> further from the erroneous text.
>>
>> The iPhone already does this, and will often 'go back' and correct and
>> its to it's or a were to we're several words later. Kind of cool, but
>> also annoying when it gets it wrong.
>
> On OS X, the auto-correct will sometimes delay correcting words for a
> little while, but it doesn't seem to apply any more intelligence to
> how it corrects them when it does so. (More annoyingly, it also moves
> the cursor momentarily whenever it auto-corrects a word, so if you're
> dead unlucky, it introduces an extra spelling mistake for you,
> although it takes a real fluke to do it unless you're short of
> memory.)
I prefer not to use a spell checker - I like to try to spell the words
correctly the first time. although there are times when I write an
important document, I'll use one in those cases. (just to be sure the
spellchecker doesn't make mistakes!! ;)
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| Re: ebooks [message #255257 is a reply to message #247673] |
Fri, 13 June 2014 14:14 |
Alan Bowler
Messages: 185
Registered: July 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On 2014-03-23 4:34 PM, Whiskers wrote:
> Perhaps makers will start fitting both types of display to the same
> gadget; I believe at least one smartphone model is going to have both
> soon.
May not need both. A few years back someone demonstrated
a colour e-ink display fast enough for video.
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| Re: ebooks [message #255280 is a reply to message #255257] |
Fri, 13 June 2014 16:44 |
Harry Vaderchi
Messages: 729
Registered: July 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On Fri, 13 Jun 2014 19:14:36 +0100, Alan Bowler <atbowler@thinkage.ca>
wrote:
> On 2014-03-23 4:34 PM, Whiskers wrote:
>> Perhaps makers will start fitting both types of display to the same
>> gadget; I believe at least one smartphone model is going to have both
>> soon.
>
> May not need both. A few years back someone demonstrated
> a colour e-ink display fast enough for video.
>
Want! Or maybe not; all those screen re-writes will still cost battery.
--
It's a money /life balance.
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| Re: ebooks [message #255285 is a reply to message #255257] |
Fri, 13 June 2014 16:53 |
Michael Black
Messages: 2799
Registered: February 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On Fri, 13 Jun 2014, Alan Bowler wrote:
> On 2014-03-23 4:34 PM, Whiskers wrote:
>> Perhaps makers will start fitting both types of display to the same
>> gadget; I believe at least one smartphone model is going to have both
>> soon.
>
> May not need both. A few years back someone demonstrated
> a colour e-ink display fast enough for video.
>
>
I got my ebook reader last year, about this time, for about fifty dollars
with tax. That was on sale, but it wsa a Kobo Mini.
There are advantages to a dedicated reader. I'd already bought a
Blackberry Plabyook, but it's a bit heavy. I'd doze off and drop the
Playbook, while if I doze off holding the Kobo Mini, it's usually still in
my hand when i wake up. The e-ink readers don't draw as much current.
And since they don't do rapid pages so well, one is less likely to get
distracted by the Web. The Kobo Mini does have a browser, but it's too
slow and limited.
I bought the tablet since if I was spending money I figured spend a bit
more and get full function. And I'm happy with the tablet as a tablet.
But I realized soon that I would be buying a dedicated ebook reader at
some point, the experience of the tablet made me realize a dedicated one
was the way to go.
Apart from weight and size, the ebook reader really is a low drain on
power, it lasts weeks between charging (at least when I've got the wifi
turned off), while the Playbook needs charging every few hours (or left
plugged into the charger).
I have a Microsoft Surface 2, won last month from a contest. That's the
best of the lot, but it's too big still to relax with a book. And sadly,
the Kobo app doesn't do magazines, and I admit magazines with their glossy
color photos really need a fancier tablet to read them.
So now I have three options. The Playbook is large enough that I can live
with it, but still small enough to pack into something like a large
pocket. I cant' do that with the Surface 2. But the Kobo Mini is lighter
and smaller, so I can take it to read books, and the browser is there in
case I come across free wifi and a need to use it.
It's hard to judge. I would like to see cheaper ebook readers but the
trend seems to be towards unified devices. Mp3 players are disappearing,
low end cameras are fewer in number, the only cheap GPS units I've seen
have been at garage and rummage sales. The assumption being that you get
all the functions with a tablet.
Michael
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| Re: ebooks [message #255347 is a reply to message #255285] |
Sat, 14 June 2014 03:37 |
Ahem A Rivet's Shot
Messages: 4946
Registered: January 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On Fri, 13 Jun 2014 16:53:36 -0400
Michael Black <et472@ncf.ca> wrote:
> It's hard to judge. I would like to see cheaper ebook readers but the
> trend seems to be towards unified devices. Mp3 players are disappearing,
> low end cameras are fewer in number, the only cheap GPS units I've seen
> have been at garage and rummage sales. The assumption being that you get
> all the functions with a tablet.
Mp3 player, GPS and camera come in phones these days, no nead for a
tablet.
--
Steve O'Hara-Smith | Directable Mirror Arrays
C:>WIN | A better way to focus the sun
The computer obeys and wins. | licences available see
You lose and Bill collects. | http://www.sohara.org/
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| Re: ebooks [message #255352 is a reply to message #255285] |
Sat, 14 June 2014 04:55 |
GreyMaus
Messages: 422
Registered: December 2011
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On 2014-06-13, Michael Black <et472@ncf.ca> wrote:
> On Fri, 13 Jun 2014, Alan Bowler wrote:
>
>> On 2014-03-23 4:34 PM, Whiskers wrote:
>>> Perhaps makers will start fitting both types of display to the same
>>> gadget; I believe at least one smartphone model is going to have both
>>> soon.
>>
>> May not need both. A few years back someone demonstrated
>> a colour e-ink display fast enough for video.
>>
>>
> I got my ebook reader last year, about this time, for about fifty dollars
> with tax. That was on sale, but it wsa a Kobo Mini.
>
> There are advantages to a dedicated reader. I'd already bought a
> Blackberry Plabyook, but it's a bit heavy. I'd doze off and drop the
> Playbook, while if I doze off holding the Kobo Mini, it's usually still in
> my hand when i wake up. The e-ink readers don't draw as much current.
> And since they don't do rapid pages so well, one is less likely to get
> distracted by the Web. The Kobo Mini does have a browser, but it's too
> slow and limited.
>
> I bought the tablet since if I was spending money I figured spend a bit
> more and get full function. And I'm happy with the tablet as a tablet.
> But I realized soon that I would be buying a dedicated ebook reader at
> some point, the experience of the tablet made me realize a dedicated one
> was the way to go.
>
> Apart from weight and size, the ebook reader really is a low drain on
> power, it lasts weeks between charging (at least when I've got the wifi
> turned off), while the Playbook needs charging every few hours (or left
> plugged into the charger).
>
> I have a Microsoft Surface 2, won last month from a contest. That's the
> best of the lot, but it's too big still to relax with a book. And sadly,
> the Kobo app doesn't do magazines, and I admit magazines with their glossy
> color photos really need a fancier tablet to read them.
>
> So now I have three options. The Playbook is large enough that I can live
> with it, but still small enough to pack into something like a large
> pocket. I cant' do that with the Surface 2. But the Kobo Mini is lighter
> and smaller, so I can take it to read books, and the browser is there in
> case I come across free wifi and a need to use it.
>
> It's hard to judge. I would like to see cheaper ebook readers but the
> trend seems to be towards unified devices. Mp3 players are disappearing,
> low end cameras are fewer in number, the only cheap GPS units I've seen
> have been at garage and rummage sales. The assumption being that you get
> all the functions with a tablet.
>
> Michael
Thanks for all that info. I graduated to an Ipad from the Kindle,
nicer screen, but stil inclined to fall asleep and let it fall.
I will save yr message and look up those things.
--
maus
.
.
....
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| Re: ebooks [message #255408 is a reply to message #255352] |
Sat, 14 June 2014 13:14 |
despen
Messages: 162
Registered: March 2005
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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greymausg@mail.com writes:
> Thanks for all that info. I graduated to an Ipad from the Kindle,
> nicer screen, but stil inclined to fall asleep and let it fall.
> I will save yr message and look up those things.
Which Ipad are you comparing the Kindle to.
I have a Kindle Fire HDX 8.9.
It's hard to imagine anything better.
The screen resolution is incredible.
--
Dan Espen
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| Re: ebooks [message #255427 is a reply to message #255285] |
Sat, 14 June 2014 16:27 |
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Originally posted by: Oeter Johns
"Michael Black" <et472@ncf.ca> wrote in message
news:alpine.LNX.2.02.1406131644360.3888@darkstar.example.org...
> On Fri, 13 Jun 2014, Alan Bowler wrote:
>
>> On 2014-03-23 4:34 PM, Whiskers wrote:
>>> Perhaps makers will start fitting both types of display to the same
>>> gadget; I believe at least one smartphone model is going to have both
>>> soon.
>>
>> May not need both. A few years back someone demonstrated
>> a colour e-ink display fast enough for video.
>>
>>
> I got my ebook reader last year, about this time, for about fifty dollars
> with tax. That was on sale, but it wsa a Kobo Mini.
>
> There are advantages to a dedicated reader.
There are even bigger advantages to reading
your ebooks on a smartphone or small tablet.
I'd already bought a
> Blackberry Plabyook, but it's a bit heavy. I'd doze off and drop the
> Playbook, while if I doze off holding the Kobo Mini, it's usually still in
> my hand when i wake up.
It would be with a smartphone too. And its easier to organise a
decent holder for it so that you don't drop it when you doze off too.
> The e-ink readers don't draw as much current.
Yes, but there are so many other advantages with using
a smartphone and its no big deal to charge it every night.
> And since they don't do rapid pages so well, one is less likely to get
> distracted by the Web.
That's a remarkably silly reason for having one.
The Kobo Mini does have a browser, but it's too
> slow and limited.
So its useless if you want to check something you have just read on the web
etc.
> I bought the tablet since if I was spending money I figured spend a bit
> more and get full function. And I'm happy with the tablet as a tablet.
> But I realized soon that I would be buying a dedicated ebook reader at
> some point, the experience of the tablet made me realize a dedicated one
> was the way to go.
I got tablets and smartphones and see no point in dedicated
ebook readers that can't do what I do when reading ebooks,
check stuff on the web, do all sort of other stuff like set
reminders because of something I have just read, etc etc etc.
> Apart from weight and size, the ebook reader really is a low drain on
> power, it lasts weeks between charging (at least when I've got the wifi
> turned off), while the Playbook needs charging every few hours (or left
> plugged into the charger).
Any decent smartphone or small tablet will do fine on a single
charge a day while you are sleeping. You have to put it down
to go to sleep and so you might as well put it on the charger.
The only time the longer time between charges really matters
much is when travelling and its easy to handle that situation now.
> I have a Microsoft Surface 2, won last month from a contest. That's the
> best of the lot, but it's too big still to relax with a book.
Yeah, the smaller tablets make more sense for that.
I prefer to read on the big 27" widescreen monitor
with a mouse on a ripped off book cover on my lap
in a deep armchair. I compute like that too.
I do use the smartphone for other situations like the doctor's waiting room
etc and it's more convenient than the paperback I used to take with me
there,
particularly being able to carry a variety of books trivially and have the
system
keep track of where I got up to in each of them automatically and auto synch
with the other systems I read ebooks on too.
> And sadly, the Kobo app doesn't do magazines, and I admit magazines with
> their glossy color photos really need a fancier tablet to read them.
I haven't bothered with magazines in decades now.
> So now I have three options. The Playbook is large enough that I can live
> with it, but still small enough to pack into something like a large
> pocket.
I prefer a smartphone for that situation.
> I cant' do that with the Surface 2. But the Kobo Mini is lighter and
> smaller, so I can take it to read books, and the browser is there in case
> I come across free wifi and a need to use it.
> It's hard to judge. I would like to see cheaper ebook readers but the
> trend seems to be towards unified devices.
Because that's what most want.
> Mp3 players are disappearing,
Not really, particularly for kids who sometimes have them instead of phones.
> low end cameras are fewer in number, the only cheap GPS units I've seen
> have been at garage and rummage sales.
You can still buy them new, but it makes no sense to do that,
any decent smartphone can do that now.
The assumption being that you get
> all the functions with a tablet.
Or a smartphone. The ones with the best screens are very readable.
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| Re: ebooks [message #255456 is a reply to message #255347] |
Sat, 14 June 2014 18:34 |
Michael Black
Messages: 2799
Registered: February 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On Sat, 14 Jun 2014, Ahem A Rivet's Shot wrote:
> On Fri, 13 Jun 2014 16:53:36 -0400
> Michael Black <et472@ncf.ca> wrote:
>
>> It's hard to judge. I would like to see cheaper ebook readers but the
>> trend seems to be towards unified devices. Mp3 players are disappearing,
>> low end cameras are fewer in number, the only cheap GPS units I've seen
>> have been at garage and rummage sales. The assumption being that you get
>> all the functions with a tablet.
>
> Mp3 player, GPS and camera come in phones these days, no nead for a
> tablet.
>
Some of us aren't so technically advanced, and have no cellphones.
So we have to make do with digital cameras, standalone GPS receivers, MP3
players and tablets.
I believe I've had all of those along on some outings.
If the small tablet had a card slot, then it could be the MP3 player too,
but it lacks storage for that. And I'd rather have a proper digital
camera, though I could make do with the camera in the tablet.
Michael
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| Re: ebooks [message #255492 is a reply to message #255347] |
Sun, 15 June 2014 06:40 |
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Originally posted by: RS Wood
On 2014-06-14, Ahem A Rivet's Shot <steveo@eircom.net> wrote:
> On Fri, 13 Jun 2014 16:53:36 -0400
> Michael Black <et472@ncf.ca> wrote:
>
>> It's hard to judge. I would like to see cheaper ebook readers but
>> the trend seems to be towards unified devices. Mp3 players are
>> disappearing, low end cameras are fewer in number, the only cheap GPS
>> units I've seen have been at garage and rummage sales. The
>> assumption being that you get all the functions with a tablet.
>
> Mp3 player, GPS and camera come in phones these days, no nead
> for a tablet.
Different strokes for different folks; there is no optimum solution for
everybody. When I travel and can choose only one gadget, I choose the
tablet with ereader apps and the rest. At home I far prefer the e-ink
screen for reading. In fact, I love it. Maybe that puts me in the
minority, but whatever. When I walk the dogs I want my ipod nano in my
pocket for music: it's lightweight and holds a ton of music. I leave
the smartphone (which is bigger and heavier) at home.
Some people still like dedicated devices. I'm one of them. Sometimes
that means more devices, but I've got lots of pockets and none of those
gadgets is too big.
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| Re: ebooks [message #255494 is a reply to message #255492] |
Sun, 15 June 2014 07:05 |
Harry Vaderchi
Messages: 729
Registered: July 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On Sun, 15 Jun 2014 11:40:05 +0100, RS Wood <rsw@therandymon.com> wrote:
> On 2014-06-14, Ahem A Rivet's Shot <steveo@eircom.net> wrote:
>> On Fri, 13 Jun 2014 16:53:36 -0400
>> Michael Black <et472@ncf.ca> wrote:
>>
>>> It's hard to judge. I would like to see cheaper ebook readers but
>>> the trend seems to be towards unified devices. Mp3 players are
>>> disappearing, low end cameras are fewer in number, the only cheap GPS
>>> units I've seen have been at garage and rummage sales. The
>>> assumption being that you get all the functions with a tablet.
>>
>> Mp3 player, GPS and camera come in phones these days, no nead
>> for a tablet.
>
>
> Different strokes for different folks; there is no optimum solution for
> everybody. When I travel and can choose only one gadget, I choose the
> tablet with ereader apps and the rest. At home I far prefer the e-ink
> screen for reading. In fact, I love it. Maybe that puts me in the
> minority, but whatever. When I walk the dogs I want my ipod nano in my
> pocket for music: it's lightweight and holds a ton of music. I leave
> the smartphone (which is bigger and heavier) at home.
>
> Some people still like dedicated devices. I'm one of them. Sometimes
> that means more devices, but I've got lots of pockets and none of those
> gadgets is too big.
I have an e-ink reader, just the job for erm reading, and just about
usable for simple web browsing, if nothing else to hand.
for text entry (e.g. usenet!) a keyboard is a must for me, so a netbook.
for taking pictures I want a small pointable device, not a large slab; and
again for phoning, so that could be combined, but I'm happy with my old
phone (which I could play mp3s on if I wanted).
A tablet just doesn't fit in to my requirements.
--
It's a money /life balance.
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| Re: ebooks [message #255495 is a reply to message #255494] |
Sun, 15 June 2014 07:20 |
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Originally posted by: Bob Eager
On Sun, 15 Jun 2014 12:05:41 +0100, Stanley Daniel de Liver wrote:
> I have an e-ink reader, just the job for erm reading, and just about
> usable for simple web browsing, if nothing else to hand.
What do you use? I currently have an old Kindle which is nearly 4 years
old and on its last legs.
I am aware that some e-ink readers are limited in the formats they can
handle; that's not a problem as I can convert. I'm more concerned about
those (I *think* the Nook is one) where only part of the storage can be
used for non-supplier books.
I want a plain e-ink reader as I find them more restful; also, they have
long battery life and are lighter than a tablet. Should I need other
stuff, I'll just switch to the tablet anyway.
--
Using UNIX since v6 (1975)...
Use the BIG mirror service in the UK:
http://www.mirrorservice.org
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| Re: ebooks [message #255496 is a reply to message #255495] |
Sun, 15 June 2014 07:37 |
Harry Vaderchi
Messages: 729
Registered: July 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On Sun, 15 Jun 2014 12:20:18 +0100, Bob Eager <news0002@eager.cx> wrote:
> On Sun, 15 Jun 2014 12:05:41 +0100, Stanley Daniel de Liver wrote:
>
>> I have an e-ink reader, just the job for erm reading, and just about
>> usable for simple web browsing, if nothing else to hand.
>
> What do you use? I currently have an old Kindle which is nearly 4 years
> old and on its last legs.
>
> I am aware that some e-ink readers are limited in the formats they can
> handle; that's not a problem as I can convert. I'm more concerned about
> those (I *think* the Nook is one) where only part of the storage can be
> used for non-supplier books.
>
It's a Nook Simple Touch, so erm proven technology (or "old"), jail-broken
(is that the right word?), and I have stacks of space, and, if I fill up,
an external 2Gb card (higher are available). You miss out a bit on the
colour for illustrations and book covers, but I'm more of a content over
appearance type anyway.
FBReader is my reader of choice.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FBReader
I try to obtain books in epub format, but as you say conversion is an
option.
Battery life is something I value, though I don't suppose I *need* a
reader to go a week without recharge, I think it's nice to have that
option.
> I want a plain e-ink reader as I find them more restful; also, they have
> long battery life and are lighter than a tablet. Should I need other
> stuff, I'll just switch to the tablet anyway.
Yup. Mine doesn't have the backlight, ("glow") but a clip-on LED is
acceptable.
--
It's a money /life balance.
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| Re: ebooks [message #255521 is a reply to message #255496] |
Sun, 15 June 2014 13:48 |
root
Messages: 85
Registered: June 1984
Karma: 0
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Member |
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Stanley Daniel de Liver <admin@127.0.0.1> wrote:
> On Sun, 15 Jun 2014 12:20:18 +0100, Bob Eager <news0002@eager.cx> wrote:
>
>> On Sun, 15 Jun 2014 12:05:41 +0100, Stanley Daniel de Liver wrote:
>>
>>> I have an e-ink reader, just the job for erm reading, and just about
>>> usable for simple web browsing, if nothing else to hand.
>>
>> What do you use? I currently have an old Kindle which is nearly 4 years
>> old and on its last legs.
>>
>> I am aware that some e-ink readers are limited in the formats they can
>> handle; that's not a problem as I can convert. I'm more concerned about
>> those (I *think* the Nook is one) where only part of the storage can be
>> used for non-supplier books.
>>
> It's a Nook Simple Touch, so erm proven technology (or "old"), jail-broken
> (is that the right word?), and I have stacks of space, and, if I fill up,
> an external 2Gb card (higher are available). You miss out a bit on the
> colour for illustrations and book covers, but I'm more of a content over
> appearance type anyway.
>
> FBReader is my reader of choice.
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FBReader
> I try to obtain books in epub format, but as you say conversion is an
> option.
>
> Battery life is something I value, though I don't suppose I *need* a
> reader to go a week without recharge, I think it's nice to have that
> option.
>
>> I want a plain e-ink reader as I find them more restful; also, they have
>> long battery life and are lighter than a tablet. Should I need other
>> stuff, I'll just switch to the tablet anyway.
>
> Yup. Mine doesn't have the backlight, ("glow") but a clip-on LED is
> acceptable.
>
>
I have bought over a dozen e-readers since the Literati first came out.
For e-ink I use the Nook Glowlight when I want to read an epub in
daylight. None of the lcd displays are suitable for reading, say,
in a car. However, the e-ink readers are simply not suitable for
reading PDF files, of which I have many many. For PDF files, such
as mathematical papers and textbooks I have to use a larger display
so, for outside I use a PocketBook-Pro or a Kindle-DX.
A little while ago I got a Nexus 7 and was so blown away by
the display I got the latest Samsung 12.2 and 10.1 tablets for
reading PDF files. The 12.2 is so good that I can read PDF versions
of international newspapers and magazines. The displays of the
Nexus 7, new Samsung tablets as well as the newest Kindle are
something to behold. I would never buy another Kindle because
they have limited storage and cannot read epub formats as
of my last Kindle (the DX).
I used to prefer FB reader, but now I prefer EBook-Droid as
the reader app for my tablets. Among other things, EBookDroid
can handle djvu formatted content.
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| Re: ebooks [message #255547 is a reply to message #255521] |
Sun, 15 June 2014 15:59 |
Michael Black
Messages: 2799
Registered: February 2012
Karma: 0
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Senior Member |
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On Sun, 15 Jun 2014, root wrote:
> I used to prefer FB reader, but now I prefer EBook-Droid as
> the reader app for my tablets. Among other things, EBookDroid
> can handle djvu formatted content.
>
And that seems to be where things are going, it seems like the recent
ebook readers are tablets.
There was an article some years back about how standalone devices were
loosing way, I hadn't noticed, but did afterwards. Most of the MP3
players are gone, unless you buy a really cheap one (I did, it didn't do
folders). Cheap cameras are harder to find. And I can see the value of
integration but I can also see the value of separate devices and I'm sorry
that the separate devices are disappearing. I should have bought a second
Sansa Fuze before they mostly disappeared.
I remember when ebooks first started happening, in the mid-nineties? One
small local bookstore had a glass case for them, the books sold in a
package, and the store selling PDAs to read them on.
Then circa 2009 I wanted something portable, and the PDAs were mostly
gone. I thought of buying an iPod, but didn't like being locked in with
Apple. Many of the options had disappeared right at that point, netbooks
coming in (with advantages and disadvantages).
Then a couple of years later, tablets coming in, not that different from
PDAs except larger, and more capable. ANd things getting integrated into
tablets, except for many tablets, they lack a memory card slot, and you
can't do much via the USB port.
Michael
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