The Decline of Real Books

[DanieMarie]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

When tape(cassette) that you could record on came out,a LOT of people began recording their records,to save wear and tear on the vinyl. It also began the whole mix tape thing..and recording off the radio...

My tapes wore out far sooner than my records ever did. Like I said, most people don't really care for their turntables or records properly, which causes a lot of the wear and tear. I understand that, because most people aren't obsessive music collectors. But obsessive music collectors totally make sure that everything is clean, properly stored, and in good shape (needle, etc), so most of that wear and tear doesn't happen. Tapes wear out and sound terrible after a few years, though, no matter what you do! (can you tel I hate tapes? lol)

[anunitu]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

Yes,tapes stretch and the magnetic surface also wears...My first computer(C64) I used tape for saving stuff before I could afford the floppy drive. Shows how far back I go...

I will say I do like the simplicity of digital music,but that has a lot to do with having a computer(Internet Radio)

[DanieMarie]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

Yes, if you look after them. They're also limited to about 40 minutes. CD reissues of old classics usually contain many more extra tracks.

I love that, though! I love that you have to actively listen to records and turn each side over. I'm not really bothered about bonus tracks. I prefer to hear albums the way the band and producer originally conceived them. This actually makes a big difference in CD and mp3 reissues, because there's something weird about the continuity of the album. Most albums on vinyl have highs and lows based on the sides...the whole track listing is based on flipping over the sides of the record. This is especially true of really, really great albums like later Beatles albums and anything by The Who. I have a few of those on CD and mp3 and I find them really, really jarring. Like, I was listening to an mp3 copy of "Let it Be" yesterday that I copied from a friend's CD, and it drove me crazy when "Maggie Mae" just went straight into "I've Got a Feeling" (I grew up listening to my mom's record). It should end after "Maggie Mae"! The White Album is even worse. I'm so glad I got my vinyl copy back from Canada!

Edit:

Maybe this should be it's own thread? I've gone off on a tangent from the original topic and I don't think it's fair to people who want to talk about books. I'll make a "Vinyl" thread in the "Entertainment" section for anyone who wants to keep talking about this.

[Ash Branch]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

I suppose when vinyl replaced those old, Bakelite 78s people complained, just as when the latter replaced wax gramophone cylinders.

- - - Updated - - -

I love that, though! I love that you have to actively listen to records and turn each side over. I'm not really bothered about bonus tracks. I prefer to hear albums the way the band and producer originally conceived them. This actually makes a big difference in CD and mp3 reissues, because there's something weird about the continuity of the album. Most albums on vinyl have highs and lows based on the sides...the whole track listing is based on flipping over the sides of the record. This is especially true of really, really great albums like later Beatles albums and anything by The Who. I have a few of those on CD and mp3 and I find them really, really jarring. Like, I was listening to an mp3 copy of "Let it Be" yesterday that I copied from a friend's CD, and it drove me crazy when "Maggie Mae" just went straight into "I've Got a Feeling" (I grew up listening to my mom's record). It should end after "Maggie Mae"! The White Album is even worse. I'm so glad I got my vinyl copy back from Canada!

Edit:

Maybe this should be it's own thread? I've gone off on a tangent from the original topic and I don't think it's fair to people who want to talk about books. I'll make a "Vinyl" thread in the "Entertainment" section for anyone who wants to keep talking about this.

It's true that ressued CDs are sometimes slightly different from the original records. Sometimes the original master tape cannot be located, and has to be reconstructed.

[DanieMarie]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

http://www.paganforum.com/showthread.php?9314-The-Vinyl-Thread

[anubisa]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

I can't stand Kindle or Nook for that matter. If I ever have a house built, one of the biggest rooms is going to be a library. I'm a book collector. I have a book fetish and I can't stand anything other than a real book.

[DanieMarie]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

You know, one of the things I like best about books is the element of surprise. I pick up books where I find them, so I don't always end up with titles I'd buy for myself. Sometimes I discover great things that way, though. Like, when we were in Scotland, I only brought one book with me (because we were on a hiking trip and every gram you pack is a gram you have to carry!) and I burned through it in a few days. I picked up another book at a hostel (most hostels have bookshelves where you can leave your books and grab a new one). It was a memoir by a guy who sea kayaked around Scotland. I'd never order that of Amazon or buy it in a bookstore, but I LOVED it. He had such a funny storytelling style. It was a conversation starter, too. Once we were staying at a campsite and it had this little shelter where you could go cook if it was raining. I went in to read for a bit and get out of the rain, and some guys were hanging out in there. They saw the book and it turns out they knew the guy! They were in Stornoway on a sea kayaking trip. I guess the Scottish sea kayaking community isn't that big. They told me more about him and what he was up to these days (he wrote his book in 1985).

I finished that book before we went home, but I kept it because it was the last couple of days of our trip and we weren't hiking anymore. I picked up a new book on the ferry. There was a small bookstore on the ferry and I chose it because it was on sale and I was short on money. It was the biography of a Scottish folk singer who came from the Highland Travellers culture. Her daughter wrote the biography. It was an amazing story and probably something I'd buy in other circumstances, but I would have never heard of it if I weren't in Scotland and surrounded by books about Scotland.

[iris]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

there's an antique bookmarket in a church in copenhagen sometimes, where the price drops a bit every day. I usually go when the price is around $1-2 to see if there's anything that looks good... I have found a few poetry books from around 1800 with handwritten messages in them that way

[kazumi]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

I'm another one that prefers a physical copy rather than a digital one though I've been reading more digitally. There are libraries around but I miss the old libraries with that typical sphere and smell. Everything is new, shiny, 'basic'. Good study space I guess. And when I read, I guess I don't notice the rest of the world anyway (: but still!

[minty]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

No lie, i have no real preference. Don't get me wrong, I love the smell of a new or old book and the physical sensations that go along with reading a real book. I will however, choose digital if it's cheaper, or if the author doesn't give you a choice; I don't go out of my way for either. I see digital or physical as different choices to achieve the same goal.

[habbalah]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

I have a closet full of my real books. Sadly I have no room for them. And because of my eyesight, it's easier for me to do audiobooks now. But I collect them on a website that has virtual bookshelves. So it feels nice.

What site is that, Duce?

[Dukali]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

I agree with you, Minty. I love the feel of the pages between my fingertips and the smell of a new book. And with my e-reader it can glitch and cause me problems sometimes. I can hold many books on it, many more than I can read probably, but it is good if you like buying books and setting them aside for later, since on the e-reader it does not take up room as if it were a real book.

[Carlin]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

I can't bear the idea of digital books. Real books all the way for me!

[volcaniclastic]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

I can't bear the idea of digital books. Real books all the way for me!

Yeah, it's less illegal to steal virtual books than it is to go into a bookstore and steal, though. I will fully admit, I went into my local bookstore the other day, browsed around, found a few titles I liked...and went home and downloaded them.

I love real books too, and have been slowly trying to get rid of my 600+ collection (I think I'm down to 200 now). BUT, I've got a lot of free time, and no money at all. This way, I get to keep reading.

[DanieMarie]

Re: The Decline of Real Books

It's definitely easier to read real books on a small budget (or no budget) in a really big city. When I lived on North Vancouver Island, books cost money....lots of money. There was nowhere where books cost under $5. When I lived in Victoria and Nanaimo, there were a few places that had books for $1-2, but never free and the selection wasn't great. Here in Berlin, free books are everywhere. Even if you can't speak English, you can just walk down the street or pop into a cafe and find free books. People say that about Brooklyn, too.