Book People Archive

MP3's vs eBooks

Before you object "incompetent, irrelevant and immaterial" (like the DA
always did on the old Perry Mason show) let me describe a recent
epiphany I had about MP3 files and music CD's. "Your honor, I think I
can show relevance..."

With the availability of two new MP3 devices (one for car, Aiwa; one for
home, Dell Digital Receiver) I abruptly decided to convert my whole
music CD collection to MP3's and share the files over my home network
(or burn to CD-ROMs for the car). The price of the Dell gadget is ony
$219, cheap enough to stick in the dust-ridden basement where I've
always been too chicken to put a PC. It's about 9"x6"x4", with a small
LCD screen (4 or 5 lines), one knob and some buttons. It can drive
speakers or plug into your stereo.

I began "RIP"ing my CD collection, expecting to find a few old gems I'd
forgotten. You know it's easier to reach those new CD's that are laying
on the desk or the ones stored at eye-level on the shelf (just like
books). What I found was more than what I expected:

   - My playing habits centered on the top 3% (approx.) of my
collection.
   - I had forgotten MANY titles on the shelf.
   - I had duplicates.
   - I had many marginal disks, that I can sell to free up shelf space.
             
Once these where on the computer, all were available literally at the
spin of a knob on the Dell receiver. Hundreds of CD's where now
instantly and equally accessible. It's still a bit too soon to tell, but
it seems clear this will broaden my listening habits enormously.

Now, will this apply to books some day? What if all your books were
instantly available via wireless web pad? Imagine yourself on the front
porch reading "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls" when your son playing in
the yard asks about the bird resting on his head. Instantly you flip to
an Audobon book on your reader-device and show junior a picture of a
raven. Then you realize this is a golden opportunity to introduce him to
poetry and pull up Poe's "The Raven" for him to read. Inside your home,
the now empty bookshelves are covered with treasured nicknacks and
decorative ash trays, just as you'd always dreamed...

Enough already! But you get the idea. Will instant, total access to your
book collection change the amount you read and what you read. To me the
answer seems clear, YES, you'll read much more and much more broadly.
(Publisher's take note... you will sell more stuff to more people.)

But is this a false analogy? Are my non-fiction reference-book type
reading habits a peculiarity? Am I just plain wrong? I'd love to hear
comments from this diverse and thoughtful audience. But first imagine
all your books accessible with the turn of a dial...

Thanks for bearing with me.

Charles Hall
Raleigh, NC