Even what printed books one checks out of the library are tracked, I know they are required to hand it over to the government upon request without notifying the patron.Originally Posted by Touchofevil
Progress: Going from being able to "hear a pin drop" to "can you hear me now?"
When I was a kid if you checked out a library book considered "inappropriate" for your age group you had to wait at the desk until the librarian called your mother to make sure she was OK with it. My ma's usual reply was "I don't care what the hell she wants to read as long as it keeps her quiet."
The humblest citizen in all the land, when clad in the armor of a righteous cause, is stronger than all the hosts of error. -- William Jennings Bryan
I just received a Kindle Fire as a gift (otherwise I wouldn't have bought one, being dedicated to books on paper) and I have to admit I like it for travel. Usually, I'm want to pack two or three paperbacks for long trips, but the Kindle makes lightweight traveling much easier. Also, probably the best attribute is being able to access almost any book one could want quickly. As someone who reads often, but doesn't own every book that is a favorite, this is wonderful indeed. Especially when traveling I get the urge to re-read a book I've read, but unless I had the foresight beforehand (rarely possible, since it's usually a spontaneous wish) it usually has to be put off.
I do love how much reading material it is possible to access on the Kindle.
I've seen in a few films (notably Seven), and so far as I know it's absolutely true, that there is a list of book titled 'tagged' by the system in US libraries. Anyone taking out I think three of the twelve or so is automatically p for surveillance of what they read. It's all stuff like Mein Kampf, The Communist Manifesto, and (if memory serves.... it's banned over here, but I think available in the US?) The Anarchist's Cook Book. Naturally one of the spin-offs of computerisation has been that these things are much easier to record.
This is it. The whole notion that it's some sort of a replacement for books (at least for the foreseeable future) is a bit of a red herring. What the eBook reader really does is make books more portable, which has to be a good thing.
If in doubt - overdress.
Vivienne Westwood
Gee whiz. I've read two of those titles already -- I guess I'd better be more careful.
The humblest citizen in all the land, when clad in the armor of a righteous cause, is stronger than all the hosts of error. -- William Jennings Bryan
I was reading Moby Dick on the ipad but drifted away from it. The border width doesn't lend itself to any comfortable reading position.
I'll stick to the printed word.
Workwear is the new Black.
The kindlefire has made this trip to the coast much friendlier. Of course, I have also purchased two paperbacks while on vacation!
I think I actually own at least three of the whole list, from what I recall.... Not the Anarchist's Cookbook (though I have seen xeroxes of a few page from it in the file of a criminal law case some years ago).
If in doubt - overdress.
Vivienne Westwood
As a book dealer I would always have people asking me for copies of The Anarchist's Cookbook. Sadly, I was rarely able to meet the demand because copies didn't turn up very often, at least back in the days before eBay and Amazon. Though I myself do have a personal copy that I must have paid a buck for.
Last edited by V.C. Brunswick; 05-14-2012 at 09:24 AM.
"I'm playing all the right notes but not necessarily in the right order." ...Eric Morecambe, OBE
http://www.facebook.com/victor.brunswick
It is a classic. Last I looked I could probably get away with it on academic grounds, but it's not possible to get hold of it here.
If in doubt - overdress.
Vivienne Westwood
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