tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post5328870080042907627..comments2023-08-19T06:27:39.239-04:00Comments on A View From Garnet's World: Guest Blogger J.A. Konrath on his Cyber TourMary Duncanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09099418115687661920noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-5223160370624204622009-03-07T21:13:00.000-05:002009-03-07T21:13:00.000-05:00Hi Joe! I agree with Beth Ciotta - I want an old ...Hi Joe! I agree with Beth Ciotta - I want an old fashion book in my hand. Yesterday, though, I got an e-mail from Amazon about the new Kindle II - I totally was on board about going to e-book, my boyfriend would love it - I already have 3 full shelves (double filed) and not all my books are shelved - until I went to it online and saw the price. Ouchie mama! And with what you have said about the future of ebooks, I could probably get into it.Kelli Johttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08788350835599949341noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-56216714147436523392009-03-06T20:33:00.000-05:002009-03-06T20:33:00.000-05:00By "backlit" I mean the ability to read in the dar...By "backlit" I mean the ability to read in the dark without the need for any extra lights. "Light without glare" is a better way to put it.JA Konrathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08778324558755151986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-55733586634883257352009-03-06T17:31:00.000-05:002009-03-06T17:31:00.000-05:00I am longing to buy a Kindle, but as you pointed o...I am longing to buy a Kindle, but as you pointed out, they still cost an arm and a leg, and I'm clumsy enough as it is. <BR/><BR/>Amazon (I think it's them) has an interesting feature on the MP3 downloads it sells - you can only transfer it to 3 devices. Then it just WON'T tranfer that song anywhere else. Perhaps e-books could have that kind of software attached to them. <BR/><BR/>I think I'll worry about it when someone downloads my book and ships it around to 100,000 of their close personal friends. Of course, I will be a viral superstah by then, won't I?Gayle Carlinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15783449240138097315noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-20791791884363303122009-03-06T16:30:00.000-05:002009-03-06T16:30:00.000-05:00Fascinating post, Joe. I'm one of those people who...Fascinating post, Joe. I'm one of those people who likes to hold an actual 'book' in my hand. There's comfort in an old-fashioned read. However, I confess, your version of the future e-book reader is certainly intriguing. I'll no doubt covert, but not soon.Beth Ciottahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02251212401535078560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-90942381829709846342009-03-06T15:40:00.000-05:002009-03-06T15:40:00.000-05:00File sharing is here to stay.So is shoplifting. Do...<I>File sharing is here to stay.</I><BR/><BR/>So is shoplifting. Does that mean we should make it easier for the thieves?<BR/><BR/>There will always be honest people willing to pay a fair price for a book, no matter the format it's in. Those are the people we should embrace, IMO. Not the criminals.<BR/><BR/>I don't think novels will ever be that much of a problem, anyway, but things like college textbooks might; and, anything that harms the industry as a whole will eventually trickle down to the authors--fiction and non. <BR/><BR/>It's going to be a challenge, Joe, but I think we need to do whatever it takes to fight copyright infringement. Otherwise, you'll be out of a career, and I won't even have a chance to get started with mine.Jude Hardinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09994813046526310594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-45239434491242943832009-03-06T13:14:00.000-05:002009-03-06T13:14:00.000-05:00If digital book readers become less costly, I migh...If digital book readers become less costly, I might consider getting one. However, there is something so sweet about going in my closet and choosing the next book for my purse or bedside read. I like how a book feels in my hand. <BR/>I still buy CDs even though I have an mp3 player. I like having the option of putting some tunes on the stereo and hitting shuffle and letting it go to fill the house with dancin' music. <BR/>So I think I would still buy books even if I had a Kindle or whatever other iteration comes out. For me it's about convenience and comfort.Vickiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15581178162502696838noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-71253356029023692292009-03-06T12:58:00.000-05:002009-03-06T12:58:00.000-05:00No Joe. Not backlit screens. The whole point of ...No Joe. Not backlit screens. The whole point of e-readers (besides portability), as far as I'm concerned, is the fact that they don't have computer screens. Much easier on the eyes. If I want a back-lit screen, I'll read off my computer.<BR/><BR/>But most of your points are spot on.Janethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04600030574995481267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-84546769349966105912009-03-06T12:15:00.000-05:002009-03-06T12:15:00.000-05:00File sharing is here to stay. I blogged a year ago...File sharing is here to stay. I blogged a year ago about how ebooks will be pirated, and the way for writers to make money was to put ads in them.<BR/><BR/>But alas, no one listens to me. :)JA Konrathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08778324558755151986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-60266464347306464532009-03-06T11:18:00.000-05:002009-03-06T11:18:00.000-05:00Love the post! Digital bookage is inevitable (and ...Love the post! Digital bookage is inevitable (and will they lose the term 'book' in the process?)<BR/><BR/>So it'll be interesting to see how a publisher can monetise something that will be freely available. Cos I like the idea of free - but also believe that an author should be paid for his/her works.<BR/><BR/>Would people accept adverts in e-books? Perhaps a hyperlink to a product mentioned within the book. Or even a subscription service to access many books, the monies going to the pot of authors that contribute . . .Ady Hallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00442216940873450621noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-72677888149373065352009-03-06T10:47:00.000-05:002009-03-06T10:47:00.000-05:00That's the reason why I'm holding off putting the ...That's the reason why I'm holding off putting the Eyes of Garnet series on ebooks or Kindle. It's already hard enough out there without being pirated.<BR/><BR/>But I do feel that publishing definitely needs to restructure, and in a big way. I also truly believe that the touchy-feely tangible item known as the book, will someday be obsolete.<BR/><BR/>Thanks for having me be a stop on your tour!<BR/><BR/>MaryMary Duncanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09099418115687661920noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-88068580723885994172009-03-06T10:42:00.000-05:002009-03-06T10:42:00.000-05:00good thoughts. I agree I should be able to loan a...good thoughts. I agree I should be able to loan a book to a friend, but the whole digital thing, well, I jsut don't know.Aimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05518721180175017215noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-24574803185344474122009-03-06T10:37:00.001-05:002009-03-06T10:37:00.001-05:00This comment has been removed by the author.Jude Hardinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09994813046526310594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-27747995031629502882009-03-06T10:37:00.000-05:002009-03-06T10:37:00.000-05:00I should be able to lend a book that I bought to m...<I>I should be able to lend a book that I bought to my mother, whether I bought it at Borders, or downloaded it from Amazon. I paid for it. I should be able to do what I want with it.</I><BR/><BR/>Hmm. To me, there's a huge difference between loaning a book to your mother and distributing that book to 100,000 "friends." If copyright laws can't somehow be inforced, then the career we know today as "author" will cease to exist.Jude Hardinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09994813046526310594noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-19252718835948095712009-03-06T10:35:00.000-05:002009-03-06T10:35:00.000-05:00"Off (er) the audio version as well, (and not a mo..."Off (er) the audio version as well, (and not a monotone robot reading the text)" <BR/><BR/> ...you always say "point out my typos" <BR/><BR/>Joe,<BR/>Will you do the audio for your books? Your acting skills have improved quite a bit over the years judging from the videos you kindly posted at your website. Or, you could get Arnold...that would be fun, just make sure the book had the word California in it a lot. But only if it was a comedy.<BR/><BR/>I am impressed (again) with all the new things you taught your listening audience today. And the passion with which you presented the information. Thanks for the look into the future of publishing.<BR/><BR/>Captain Kirk has paper books in the future.(The tense for this sentence was a pain! (lol)<BR/><BR/> So, following his example,I'm sure that there will be a few of us dinosaurs that will also still have printed paper books along with our ebooks laying around in the year 2030. We'll just be considered eccentric.<BR/><BR/>Really enjoying the tour!<BR/><BR/>Thanks!<BR/>KarenKaren from Mentorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03685540761526680384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-78156254030087396322009-03-06T10:34:00.000-05:002009-03-06T10:34:00.000-05:00As a former book merchandiser I can attest to the ...As a former book merchandiser I can attest to the fact that the publishing business is flawed. It used to KILL ME to tear the covers off books and throw an entire crate of them into a dumpster. I can imagine it would be difficult to lug a huge load of books back to my office every week but to throw them out just tore at my guts. It used to be up to me which books got removed from the shelves and which ones stayed. That's a pretty sad way of selling books since anyone can have this job and use their own tastes as a guideline as to what author's hard work gets another week to try and sell. The company I worked for had a giant warehouse full of books that nobody wanted; they used to donate to hospitals and nursing homes, train staions and such places but these places would no longer accept books because they had too many. There was one supermarket manager who used to tell his employees to come in the back when I was done stripping books and he would let them chose books to take home. He knew this was totally against the law but it killed him too to see the books in the dumpster. A few years later I ran into this manager again...his wife was a classmate of mine in library school.Cathttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02118510108527404700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2298154125823127605.post-19798617715240797752009-03-06T10:14:00.000-05:002009-03-06T10:14:00.000-05:00Thanks for having me here, Mary!Rereading my post,...Thanks for having me here, Mary!<BR/><BR/>Rereading my post, I have some additional thoughts about ebooks...<BR/><BR/>There are two reasons new technologies take over.<BR/><BR/>The first is added content. CDs held more tracks than LPs, and often featured bonus tracks. Yes, they sounded better. But they offered more than that. They gave you extra.<BR/><BR/>An iPod holds many more songs than a CD. It's much easier to carry around than a trunk full of albums. It also offers games, movies, an address book, a reader, and other apps.<BR/><BR/>iPod wins.<BR/><BR/>DVDs had better video resolution than VHS. But BluRay has better resolution than DVD, yet it hasn't taken off in the same way. Why not?<BR/><BR/>BluRay offers the same extras as DVDs do. Commentary, deleted scenes, interviews, making of docs, alternate endings. That's why people flocked to DVD. But BluRay isn't giving more content, so it isn't becoming a required purchase like a DVD player is.<BR/><BR/>Polaroid recently stopped making instant cameras. No duh. With a 2gb SD card, you can fit 5000 pictures on your digital camera--or phone--then print them at home. You can also edit them, crop, adjust for red eye and contract.<BR/><BR/>Digital wins.<BR/><BR/>But there's a darker side that no one talks about, yet is also the reason these new formats catch on.<BR/><BR/>They can be copied.<BR/><BR/>CDs were audiophile fringe until the first CD burners hit the market. The same with DVDs.<BR/><BR/>Digital cameras were fringe until memory cards became huge and cheap and easily transferable to your computer.<BR/><BR/>A BluRay blank disc costs $20 each. That's why they aren't catching on yet.<BR/><BR/>Yet iPods caught on in a big way. iPods are made to steal music. It would cost over $55,000 to legally fill a 160gb iPod using iTunes. Yet everyone seems to have full iPods.<BR/><BR/>DVDs can be burned, and they can record TV, but VCRs didn't take a huge hit until TIVO, which not only recorded TV on the fly and with an easy preprogrammed interface, but it could also cut the commercials. Now every cable provider includes a DRV and on demand.<BR/><BR/>Extras are important. I'm going to love it when ebooks are introduced with alternate endings, early drafts with deleted scenes, optional author-notated commentary, extra short stories and interviews. It will happen.<BR/><BR/>But it won't truly take off until Amazon removes the DRM copy protection and allows the format to be copied.<BR/><BR/>People want to share their digital media. File sharing networks are 21 of the top 100 visited websites on the internet. Think about that. We all know huge sites like eBay and Google and Microsoft. But Pirate Bay and Rapidshare and Mininova are getting just as much traffic. And this doesn't even include Usenet, where there are billions (yeah, billions) of filesharing downloads every day.<BR/><BR/>Legal or not, moral or not, people are file sharing.<BR/><BR/>But shouldn't they be allowed to do it with things they've purchased?<BR/><BR/>I should be able to lend a book that I bought to my mother, whether I bought it at Borders, or downloaded it from Amazon. I paid for it. I should be able to do what I want with it.<BR/><BR/>Once the Kindle price comes down---or once Kindle gets a cheap competitor that allows for copies and includes book extras, the ebook revolution will really begin.JA Konrathhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08778324558755151986noreply@blogger.com