Carly and I experienced an e-book evening last night when power failed, making it impossible for me to update the TeleBlog earlier this morning. Luckily all machines were charged up and glowed dependably.
Power is still out. I’m writing this from a computer at the library in Alexandria, VA, where the library gods have imposed a one-hour time limit. This must be the LGs’ revenge for my suggesting that libraries should spend more on content and less on bricks and fuel oil in the future.
Now playing on the screen of my Dell Axim is Hollywood, the Gore Vidal political novel set in the World War I era, when many film-makers were criminals in the eyes of the law–the equivalent of the wilder of the Dark Netters. Although just one detail in the book, here’s the passage that stands out:
Since all the moving-picture makers in California were using equipment developed by that protein genius Edison, and since none acknowledged his patents, the village was filled with hard-eyed detectives waiting to catch a glimpse of something called the Latham Loop, which, it found in use, could lead to gunfire and endless lawsuits.
Nope, I’m not in favor of piracy, but the above is something to think about next time the MPAA does the morality act.
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Meanwhile, within the area of book publishing, in terms of piracy-reduction, I would highly recommend the e-library model as one way to reduce incentives for pirates. The higher a percentage of library budgets can go into content, the less of a piracy problem we’ll have.
At the same time it’s important that the library community tell publishers and distributors, “We need meaningful e-book standards to drive down both our costs and yours and make the technology easier to use.” Standards and library budgets are connected issues. Libaries should consider boycotting or at least reducing spending on vendors who are not sensitive to standards issues.
I’d also like to see more emphasis on driving down the cost of good e-book reading hardware, so that we don’t have the present farce–where the poorest of the poor, those without computers, must limit their computing to one hour a day.
OK, I’ve nearly exhausted my Internet quota at the Alexandria, VA, library for the day. Is this going to be the future? Or a “Bring the e-books home” approach–with a much richer variety of content, and with extra-low-price devices, whose production the library market can help seed?
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Clarification, 5:45 p.m.: I should have said that the library does have non-Net-connected computers that perhaps don’t have the one hour limit; I’ve changed the article. Regardless, given the importance of the Net, that’s a pretty thin distinction. Do we really want polticians and libraries putting quotas on Internet usage that could help improve one’s lot in life. The true answer is a mix of Net and e-book access at home along with WiFi in libraries.
