E-Reading
I've written before about my iPhone and my iPad and how much I love both. I know some people will think that makes me a geek, but to me it's about how much both things give me. Not just for themselves, but for the part they play, not only in my entertainment but also in making my life better overall.
One way in which they do both is with the book reading apps iBooks and Kindle. Of course they allow me to read, which is the point, but they also give me a nudge on increasing my vocabulary. I don't know about you, but I could easily count (actually on zero hands!) the number of times I've stopped reading a paperback book to pick up a dictionary. Now this hasn't been all bad because I've become quite good at figuring out the meanings of words from context. However there are definitely times I can't pick up the meaning by just reading the word in a sentence. Both iBooks and Kindle have a built-in dictionary that makes it so easy to look up words (just by touching the word on the page) without even losing my place. So why wouldn't I?! I now find myself looking up many words (sometimes just to see if I'm right!) all the time. Plus, in addition to the definitions of words, I can easily get the pronunciation as well, which I clearly can't pick up from context. And when iBooks/Kindle don't know the word, they give me the option to search Google or Wikipedia for the term instead. I also love the PDF function in iBooks. When I get a PDF document in email, or if I save one from the Internet, I have the option to open it in iBooks. Not only does this let me view my PDFs on the go, it saves a copy to my personal iBooks Library so I always have it with me. I've used this for everything from a manual for my printer to my daughter's school lunch menu. It's really handy! Years ago, I was such a die-hard paperback fan and a staunch believer that an e-reader would never be something I'd want (much less come to love) that I now hardly recognise myself in this area. It's easy to talk about the feel of paper and the sound a book makes, but my reality is that everything I gain -- total mobility, a complete library that I can go back and read again whenever I want, ease of purchasing books, a record of all the books I've purchased, a place to store and access all of my PDFs -- so far outweighs any touch or sound I might have once been excited about. I know there are people who will always want paper, and I'm fine with that. But I think there are also a great number of people who want paper now but, like the me of years ago, just haven't yet tried an e-reader. They’re definitely not going to bring about world peace or solve the economic crisis, but IBooks/Kindle have made reading an easy joy for me. Maybe, if you haven't yet tried it, they could do so, for you too.
About Me
Leanne BennettI'm an American living in England, married to a Brit and the mother of three children. I work for the local council, building and maintaining servers and networks for primary schools.
I think my background, my citizenship, my experiences and my location give me a unique take on life. Herein are my musings on such...
