Bookless Library

[GDS_Starfury]

I didn't realize vinyl records were back in.  That doesn't make any sense at all.   ::)

vinyl records have been back in a major way for almost 20 years man.

[Gusington]

Jeez Toonces and I thought you were Commander Kewl, with giant watch and all :)

[BanzaiCat]

I like going through the vinyl collections at Half Price Books and every time I do, I think I should get a record player.

[Gusington]

Record players hqve also made a comeback, but don't call them that, call them turntables.

[GDS_Starfury]

1200's

[BanzaiCat]

Vinyl actuation device?

[bob48]

Cat you described how I arrange my library to a tee. It's like you're IN MY MIND...

I just looked to the left at one of my bookshelves, and sure enough, same thing.

[GDS_Starfury]

Vinyl actuation device?

Technique 1200's.  the definitive turntable known everywhere.

[BanzaiCat]

Nice. No way I can afford that right now though. :(

[Gusington]

I have a nice Fisher Price I can lend you.

[GDS_Starfury]

well BC there are lots of magnetic drive tables out now.  Techniques patent on the tech expired a while ago and a lot of less expensive turn tables are on the market.  never get a belt driven one.

[airboy]

I am buying most of my books on Kindle these days.  Many reasons for this.
1] It is so easy to shop the Amazon sales.  And picking up a book for $1.99 to $2.99 is hard for me to pass up.
2] Space.  We have thousands of books already.  We have libraries on specific topics.
3] Allergies.  Paperbacks deteriorate due to the acid in the paper.  The wife and I are allergic to older books.  15 years after being
    printed the book will make either of us sick if we read it.  Book club edition hardbacks have the same problem - just not as fast.
    We have replaced a bunch of books available only in paperback with electronic editions. 
4] Travel.  You can take your library with you.

Given the lower cost of electronic books, the ease of storage, the ability to travel with them, and the ease of shopping with electronic books, they are grabbing an increasing share of the market.  I don't see this changing. I'm speaking as a business professor on this and I doubt that I'm wrong.  All of the sales numbers back me up.  Also, the advantage of ebooks in terms of cost of printing, delivery, cost, and storage are so great that you cannot beat it.  Also most famous books which have lost their copyright are available for a free download.  You can't beat a price of "free."

I'm not saying that physical books will disappear - they won't.  But their market share is shrinking.

A lot of you are talking about vinyl.  But music sales are predominately digital, followed by CD, with vinyl far, far behind in sales.

[Gusington]

Vinyl's just a spec on the sales radar but the fact that it still exists at all is amazing.

[Bison]

The music industry would go out of business if it were relying on me buying it in any form.  I turn the local am/fm station and let it roll.

Books I do mostly buy ebooks these days too, but there are certain books that are just better with actual paper. 

I guess it's a large bit of nostalgia on my part.  Some of my favorite childhood memories are biking to the public library and spending hours roaming the shelves.  I love the smell of old books.

[bayonetbrant]

Also most famous books which have lost their copyright are available for a free download.  You can't beat a price of "free."

I wonder if the actual number of people reading things like Tom Sawyer and Ivanhoe has gone up since e-readers started exploding.  When the latest Grisham book costs the same either in digits or dead tree edition, do people go load up on free books and read them b/c they're there rather than shell out $10 for electrons?  Those older ones are books they never would've bought off the shelf at $10, but free electronic ones seem like they'd be a nice grab.

No idea how you'd measure this, but it does spark my curiosity a bit.