inignoct wrote:
] ] Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHI), Sony
] ] Corporation(NYSE: SNE) and E Ink Corporation announced
] ] today the world's first consumer application of an
] ] electronic paper display module in Sony's new e-Book
] ] reader, LIBRIé, scheduled to go on sale in Japan in late
] ] April. This "first ever" Philips' display utilizes E
] ] Ink's revolutionary electronic ink technology which
] ] offers a truly paper-like reading experience with
] ] contrast that is the same as newsprint.
]
] [ This is an area I follow with some enthusiasm, since I love
] to read. I'm still not sure how i feel about ebooks...
] there's something missing in the sensual experience -- the
] texture of the page, the smell of ink and paper, the heft and
] solidity of a bound novel. I can't help but think that this
] line of thinking will expire, like most traditional modes, as
] current youth grow up with the new modalities. I see myself
] already becoming the oldster, lamenting the lost experience
] offerd by paper books, while the kids snicker about silly old
] men not being hip to the present. And I'm only 25. Anyway,
] I'm curious to see what the MS community thinks about all
] this.
]
] Leaving behind the philosophy, i think this device, as a
] product, needs to lose the keyboard, add a slick pen
] interface, and be wireless. Then it's existence as *the*
] newspaper is solidified... constant realtime updates to news
] content from the source(s) you choose, an easy means for
] annotation and bookmarking, clipping and forwarding news
] objects.
]
] The evolution towards Star Trek style tablets continues. -k]

Kerry, I feel the same way. I love to read, and half of the passion of reading comes from the book itself. I love to be surrounded by books, and nothing is better than cracking open a new book, feeling it in your hands, the smell of the paper... You are right, the sensations would be missed. I can't say I am a proponent of ebooks, but at the same time, I can see how they would be useful. Take textbooks for example. With an e-textbook, instead of being years behind due to the slowness of publishing, e-textbooks could be updated in a moment, which could really be useful. By the time textbooks hit the shelves in the college bookstore, they are way behind. Anyway, I am oldskool and I always will be:) - Nano

RE: Latest Ebook venture...