ebooks

[MissBrattified]

Originally Posted by pelathais

While I'm not advocating "pirating" per se, there is a need to make more information more widely available. One example might be software books and manuals. At one time many people were unable to afford the high priced manuals and teaching guides and thus were barred from learning new technologies. This was when the "pirating" of ebooks was first developed and came into vogue - early 1990s. Not having access to the latest technologies hurt the careers of those attempting to break into the field or trying to advance.

Since that time, lower cost publishers have sprung up so the need isn't always there the way it used to be, but still, the "pirate market" does exert an influence on pricing in the rest of the publishing world - a good thing, imho. There are dozens of other examples in fields where high priced electronic media can make a huge difference for the student or someone entering a new field - nursing and the nursing manuals and charts for the Palm for example are very popular on torrent sites.

Good points. You're very smart, pel.

The iPad is a good alternative. It's flat and much lighter than a notebook. Amazon has a free Kindle reader for Macs here: http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.htm...l_6akxhff7th_e

I'm thinking that the iPad may be what I ask for when my current laptop dies. The only thing that discourages me is the touch-screen keyboard. I suppose I could get used to it, but I type so fast on a regular keyboard that it's bound to slow me down.