Creston wrote on Jun 21, 2012, 14:26:

Tanto Edge wrote on Jun 21, 2012, 00:42:
An e-reader is not the same as a book. I can lend a book out, and I can't be denied access to a book by a remote server.

You actually CAN lend out some e-books. Like actually transfer the copy to someone else, and while they have it, you can't access it. It's still in the infant stages, but it's possible. And, of course, you could potentially lend out your e-reader, though that seems unlikely.

The shutdown by a remote server thing was irritating when it happened, but in retrospect, I can see why they did it. The people who were selling the book did not actually own the license to sell it, and thus were actively using Amazon to promote piracy. The people who had the book removed were refunded the purchase price.

While it's not an ideal situation, and I initially lambasted Amazon for it, once I knew all the facts I realized that Amazon didn't have a lot of choice in the matter but to act as they did.


Don't get me wrong, I love books. I love B&M book stores, and I hate to see them go away. I love just spending a few hours in a book store. But on the flipside, there is no denying the absolute ease of my kindle. A few weeks ago, on a Saturday evening, I saw a mention of a book I really wanted to read. About two minutes later, I was reading it on my Kindle. Had I gone the normal book route, I'd have had to wait until the next day, had to drive into town to the one book store left, etc. Or, if I ordered it off Amazon, I'd have had to wait until Tuesday to get it.

When I went on vacation last week, I took about 20 books with me to read at the beach. Total weight: about 20 ounces.

Add in the awesome success stories of self-published authors who are finding major success in the e-book circuit when normal publishers wouldn't give them the time of day, and I think the e-book is one of the best inventions we've made in a long time.

Creston