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eBook Vs Paperback

Monday, July 25, 2011 - 17:34

I am not a book worm, but I do enjoy a good book every now and then, before the Kindle or the iPad there wasn't much choices, we all had to read paperback book. When the Kindle and the iPad arrived I went crazy on purchasing eBooks on those devices, for one thing its cheaper than paperback due to its electronic nature and its more portable because you can carry literrally hundreds of books with you in one device.

However, I soon realise that eBooks are not so good when you want a technical book on your desk where you can quickly reference it, I found that I can't flip and flop pages on an iPad as fast as I would be on a paperback book. The iPad however has great features like inline video demostration, for example if an author is finding it hard to explain something, he can have a video embeded in the eBook allowing reader to watch the video for demonstration then move on, this is a great feature the eBooks provides and make learning more fun and interactive, its like being in a class room with the author. The book CSS3 for Web Designer by Dan Cederholm is a great example of how these technology are used.

So to sums it up, if you're after a novel or fiction to read on a device, it's no problem, but if you need a technical referencing book that sits on your desk which you can flip back and forth as quick as you want, eBook might not be a good option, although most book of this kind would offer a free eBook version if you purchase the paperback one anyway.