What are you reading ... on?

[Hawkmoon]

I still prefer books -- those anachronistic things made of wood pulp and dark liquid deposited on sheets by medieval devices. However, rumor has reached these shores that people now read "books" in electronical devices. Not my thing, but it raises a question. Many (most?) e-books are set up so that the reader can customize the font size, which means the text has to be formatted as what the folks who do this call "reflowable." The exception is books with lots of images, which are formatted as fixed format and don't adapt to the size of the screen, nor do they allow the reader to change the size of the type.

It would seem that a fixed-format e-book could be difficult to read on a small screen. To those of you who read e-books: What size device do you use? Do you use a dedicated Nook or Kindle device, do you use a tablet (if so, what screen size?)? Do any of you use a cell phone as an e-book reader?

Thanks. Making the mental leap from the 19th century to the 21st ain't easy.

[230RN]

19th?  Are we into that one already?

[MillCreek]

About 90% of my recreational reading now is on a Kindle Fire HD 8 +. 

[Fjolnirsson]

I've done most of my reading over the last 8 years on various generations of the Fire Tablets.

[TommyGunn]

Books.  Paper - - - it doesn't need batteries or recharging. 

[cordex]

Some paper book, some kindle (not sure which version, but a paperwhite of some description) and some on my phone only because I have that with me when I don’t have books or kindle with me.

I would not choose to do a lot of reading on a conventional tablet (like an iPad or Kindle Fire) or phone given another option.

[HeroHog]

My laptop/notebook. Manga (Japanese Graphic Novels) mostly, like: https://mangadex.org/title/16617/komi-san-wa-komyushou-desu

[grampster]

I had a NOOK for several years.  I keep the NOOK fully charged and in my bookcase.  I can go back and read stuff I've had on there.  I have several hundred books on NOOK.  I now use a Kindle paperwhite.  They really sort of spoil you.  Many books you like are able to be purchased for little money, or even free.   Screens are lit, you can slouch down in a chair and prop it up on a pillow.  You can change the fonts and size of the letters.  It's easy to keep reading when having lunch or enjoying a drink, as you don't have to hold the page open.

[Hawkmoon]

I know that most () e-books are "reflowable," meaning the reader can change the font and font size, and the text will automatically adjust the line lengths to fit on the screen. But some e-books (I guess those with a lot of graphics?) are fixed format and don't automatically adjust. If anyone has had any experience with such books, I would appreciate hearing how easy or how difficult they were to read and navigate. Amd I'm especially interested in anyone has encountered fixed format e-books when using a smart phone with a small-ish screen -- can you even read a fixed format e-book on a small screen device?

[HeroHog]

I have a Kindle Fire HD 8.9" (2nd Generation), 16GB, right next to me that we don't use any more. It was easier to use our phones/notebooks and had more flexibility.

[cordex]

Non-reflowable e-books are a bad idea.  Do not do it.

If you have content that needs very precise formatting or layout such as charts or diagrams or something, you can embed images.

[K Frame]

I recently purchased a Kindle Paperwhite touchscreen, a refurb 2016 model, 6", from Woot to replace my original Kindle that Mtnbkr and his family gave me for Christmas quite a few years ago.

I'm still not 100% used to it, but I've grown to really like it. I especially like the backlit screen which makes it a LOT easier to read in bed. The old unlit unit didn't really work and play that well with the nightstand lights I have in my bedroom.

[Ben]

At least 80% of my reading (90% of leisure reading) is on my Kindle paperwhite. The pleasant viewscreen, font adjustability, and small, light size (while still having a larger than your average paperback screen) make it a pleasure. That's only the Kindles that are made to be book replacements. I don't at all like reading on a color tablet or computer screen.

That said, there are times I want to read a real book. Sometimes it's "cultural" I guess you could say. When I read something classic like von Clausewitz's "On War", it just seems appropriate to read it as a real book. Though I do get a lot of classics from Gutenberg in Kindle format, just because of the ease and convenience.

I will not read any kind of technical manual or image heavy material on the Kindle. Also not on the Kindle fire or any color tablets. Also rarely on the computer. I just don't like reading those things electronically. It may be just me, but I always find it a hassle to find certain areas of a manual, and often the imagery, even on a larger computer screen, just sucks. You either have to make it to small to read easily to fit on the scree, or else scroll around. Most of the time I read a manual to figure out some new thing I just bought, I will find the area of the E-manual I want, then print that out. I do that a lot these days since almost nothing comes with a paper manual anymore - just a URL to an E-manual.

Also newspapers. Newspapers suck on any Kindle. Ever since I started getting the weekly hardcopy of the Epoch Times, I have enjoyed reading a real paper on Sunday mornings. No E-newspaper I have ever read on Kindle has ever been a good experience. The formatting and navigation are just terrible. Newspapers on a computer screen, where you can read the "E-version of the print paper" are not too bad.

[lee n. field]

I still prefer books -- those anachronistic things made of wood pulp and dark liquid deposited on sheets by medieval devices. However, rumor has reached these shores that people now read "books" in electronical devices. Not my thing, but it raises a question. Many (most?) e-books are set up so that the reader can customize the font size, which means the text has to be formatted as what the folks who do this call "reflowable." The exception is books with lots of images, which are formatted as fixed format and don't adapt to the size of the screen, nor do they allow the reader to change the size of the type.

It would seem that a fixed-format e-book could be difficult to read on a small screen. To those of you who read e-books: What size device do you use? Do you use a dedicated Nook or Kindle device, do you use a tablet (if so, what screen size?)? Do any of you use a cell phone as an e-book reader?

Thanks. Making the mental leap from the 19th century to the 21st ain't easy.

On?  paper, preferably, tablet or phone sometimes.  Kindle reader for windows, once in a blue moon.

[Brad Johnson]

Books. I've used SWMBO's Kindle a couple times but still prefer and old-fashioned page turner to be just that.

Brad