Amazon Vs. Apple Be Damned: Publishers Pine For A Universal E-Book Format - Wired.com

http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2010/05/universal-e-books-format/all/1

I understand to some extent why e-books are gaining more and more attention as the months go by, but come on – what's better than actually having a book?

A physical book or magazine actually gets the attention of your guests as they take a seat on your couch.  People learn more about you just by looking at the covers of the periodicals and novels on your ottoman, in your shelves, and on the coffee table where they might set down their hot drink. 

"You read Wired magazine? Hey, you must've read that new article about Zuckerburg and Gates..." and boom!  A conversation starter, and some great coffee to top it off.  But you can't do that with a Kindle! 

No one in the world would be daring enough to turn on someone's e-reader and go through their collection of books.  Doing this would be equivalent to searching someone's Web-browsing history – it's invasive, and our morals would stop us from doing it. 

But a magazine (depending on what you're willing to put out in public) is a beautiful piece of work; it's beautiful.  I love flipping through the pages of a new issue each month to see what the editors and writers have come up with. 

Knowing what your friends are into leads to great ideas. If you find out they're into movies, find out which ones; traveling magazines?  Ask them where they've been.  Subscribers to photography magazines?  Ask to see some of their shots. 

Whether they're into cooking, interior design, gardening, fine wines, pet grooming, sports, video games, or fashion, you've learned something about the person next to you, holding the other mug, without even saying a word to them.  Without that magazine laying there to broadcast their interests, you'd still be sitting there, sipping that latte, probably concerned about other trifles, like how your hair looks.

Books are just as powerful as icebreakers, and for goodness' sake, why do we need another device if all we're going to do is read on it?

The only excuses I have considered are that devices such as the iPad, Kindle, and Nook are lightweight and portable, which is less true of books.  Well I have a solution: stick with one book at a time.  Spending $350-$550 for minimal reading convenience doesn't sound like the best use of your money, unless you plan to use an iPad for much more than just reading.

The other reason I consider an advantage of e-readers over books is that you don't have to flip the pages when you're laying down; holding it above your face while in a bed has to be an easier task because of the one-page style. 

Okay, and it saves paper... and the iPad is back-lit for night-time reading.

But...

With a book, you own the property, not just the rights to read it.

With a book, you can hand over that story you've been raving about for someone else to read.

With a book, you can have some security – I'm willing to bet that getting your Dan Brown stolen while you take a respite in the boy's room at Caribou Coffee will be less painful than, say, if your new expensive electronic device were snatched.  Sophisticated people read, don't you know that?

So I'm still into books.  They've been around for some 2000 years, and you guys are going around trying to change it?  Let me know your thoughts!