ebooks vs DTBs

I love books. Everything about them. And not just the worlds they open up to me. I love the tactile things too - the smell of ink, the paper texture, the font style, the book size, the heft, the way they feel in my hands. I could go on and on.

And yet, I am now an avid ebook fan. Yes, I miss all the tactile goodies, and yes, ereaders are far from perfect, but ebooks are the future. Will they ever completely replace DTBs (dead tree books)? I think not. But look at what has happened to the music industry. It is only a matter of time.

I am a bi-reader (I might have just coined a new term!): I read both ebooks and DTBs. My device of choice is a nook. I am a believer in open/standard formats, and proprietary formats make me itch. But that is a story for a different time.

In the meanwhile, I am saddened by the extinction of a very special species - the indie bookstore. They are on the endangered list. When will there be postal stamps with images of our fave ones? It is interesting that Barnes and Noble - the brick and mortar Goliath that has been responsible for much of this extinction also looks to be in trouble now. OK, OK. I do think that Amazon is guiltier. But still.

Check out this interesting NYT article.