Blog Party Post

The letter “E,” has more meaning today than ever.  Simply placed in front of a word can change the way an action is carried out.  “E-file,” a way to file important text documents electronically over the Internet.  “E-books,” which will be the topic up for discussion, gives us an entirely different way to read and educate ourselves. 

Will the introduction of “E-books” make traditional books obsolete?  Or is there still hope for the good old-fashioned way to read a novel or textbook?

·      Convenience- Being able to access books, whether they are for leisure or required reading for school electronically, offers a convenience to being able to access the material simply by pulling it up on a smart phone or tablet.

·      Cost Effective- Save time and money.  Sites where e-books can be purchased, and in the case of textbooks, rented, can be significantly cheaper than purchasing a traditional book, which can be a huge draw to potential consumers on a budget.

·      Versatility- Downloading e-books to a smart phone or tablet, allows the consumer to load multiple books at a time, without the hassle of having to keep up with multiple copies of different novels.

In a study done in the UK at the University of Leicester in 2005, 85 percent of respondents reported they were aware of e-books.  Among these respondents around 49 percent reported made a trial use of them, while 38 percent of respondents reported having purchased at least one e-book  (Gunter 2005).  Although this study was done seven years ago, it does offer a lot of insight as to how much knowledge there is out there about e-books and their uses.  One can only imagine with the increased technology that has been introduced since this study was conducted how much the use of e-books has increased.

I spent an afternoon at Barnes and Noble and while there asked 25 people their take on e-books, and which type of book they prefer.  Of the 25 people, 15 said they much rather turn to e-books.  Some of the reasons included, saving time and money.  Not having to deal with crowds and were able to browse the selection of new books from the comfort of their own home or office.  7 people reported they have tried an e-book at least once, but enjoyed walking the aisles of the bookstore and buying whatever caught their eye.  The remaining 5 reported they had never used an e-book and weren’t sure they ever would. 

From my own experience, I can say that I much prefer e-books.  I like being able to have more than one textbook on my computer for school, and taking them with me wherever I go without the added weight and hassle.  As far as reading for leisure, it does make it easy to pull out my smart phone whenever I have a free moment to myself and catch up on the latest novel I downloaded. 

So I pose this question to the rest of you.  Which type of book do you prefer and why?  And do you think traditional ways of reading stand a chance to technology? 

Works Cited

Barrie Gunter, (2005) "Electronic books: a survey of users in the UK", Aslib Proceedings, Vol. 57 Iss: 6, pp.513 - 522

Blog Entry 22: Freestyle

This week for my freestyle blog, it will be just that, freestyle.  Other than the assigned reading for school I did not do much reading outside of that.  My family from England came to visit my wife and I here on the island, so once we were done with work, we spent most of our time playing tourist. 

It was a lot of fun and very special to me that I got to see them, I had not seen them in 12 years, and I got to meet my 9 year old cousin for the first time.  They were all just so excited and amazed by the beaches out here and it was a lot of fun to see them all have such a great time.  I don't know if any of you have ever been to London, or watched the Olympics.  But if you did you would have seen just how brown and kind of scary the water is there.  So for them, clear blue warm water and NO cold rainy weather was a definite treat for them. 

It was also really nice for them to meet my wife, other than my immediate family in California, it was the first time she got to meet some of my family from overseas!

I can't believe we are starting week 9! This quarter definitely flew by!  Good luck to everyone in our last couple of weeks and assignments.  I look forward to the Blog Party!

Blog Entry 21: Scene Response

Despite the obvious differences in the times the two movies were filmed, there was in my opinion great delivery of the lines by the actors in the movies.  Being a newer film, I did enjoy the costumes of the Lawrence Fishbourne film, however, Anthony Hopkins is one of my favorite actors and I enjoyed his delivery of the lines. 

My only criticism would be that Anthony Hopkins did not really capture the "Moor" character of Othello as I had pictured it in my head.  He delivered the lines with great conviction, but I would have to say overall, Lawrence Fisbourne made a much more convincing Othello. 

I enjoyed watching the clips of the two scenes from the different movies.  It is interesting to see how things change over the years and how the play is adapted in its most recent movie, O.

Blog Entry 20: Quote Response

Desdemona: Your wife, my lord, your true
                    And loyal wife,
Othello:  Come, swear it, damn thyself, Lest bring like one of heaven, the devil themselves Should fear to seize thee.  Therefore be double damned: Swear thou art honest (36-39).


In these couple of lines here it is clear the amount of feelings these two have for one another.  Desdemona openly says how devoted she is and "loyal" she is to Othello.  It makes the play more sad to me that no one else around them can see the love they obviously have for one another.  Why is it such a big deal that they be together.  If race is the issue or shear jealously, it still does not justify the fact that two people so desperately in love be torn away from one another.  

Blog Post Entry 19: Freestyle

I cannot believe how incredibly fast this quarter has gone by.  I remember the first day of me logging on and creating my blog.  Then I looked up and we will already be starting week 8.  Man, time does fly.  I am a little grateful that the quarter is going by so quickly.  I have a lot on my plate with work and my other classes, and I am really looking forward to taking a quick breather before classes start back up in the fall. 

I hope everyone is doing well in all of their classes and looking forward to the end of the quarter as much as me!  Have a great week 8!

Blog Post 18: Quote Response

Barbantio: O thou foul theif, where hast thou stowed my daughter?
Damned as thou art, thou hast enchanted her!
For I'll refer me to all things of sense,
If she in chains of magic were not bound
Whether a maid so tender, fair, and happy,
So opposite to marriage that she shunned
The wealthy curléd darlings of our nation, (63-70).

First off I would just like to say that I had a very hard time trying to keep up with Othello, so please forgive me if I totally get this wrong or feel free to help me understand what is going on better.  From what I can understand, Othello is married to Barbantio's daughter.  But, Iago, who I thought started off as being friends with Othello, turns on him and plays into the rumors that Othello is a sex-crazed thief.  Because of the color of his skin and the cruel rumors, Barbantio can't help but listen to them and in this scene arrives with his men to take Othello and demand that he tell him where his daughter is. 

I chose this quote because it reminded me in a way of the scene I chose from O.  Except, Barbantio is accusing Othello of foul play with his daughter, rather than O accusing Desi of infidelity.  I must have read the pages of the play at leave 3 times, and I am still struggling I feel.  For the most part I think i have the hang of it, I hope I did not butcher it too much.  Good luck out there to anyone else in my shoes!

Blog Post 17: Qutoe Response

Hale: "'I want to see John.'  And then she-laughed.  I guess you would call it a laugh.  I though of Harry and the team outside, so I said a little sharp: 'Can't I see John?' 'No.' she says kind o' dull like...'Then why can't I see him?'  I asked her, out of patience. 'Cause he's dead,' says she, 'Dead?' says I (Glaspell 839).

I thought this murder mystery play was pretty interesting.  This part stood out to me the most.  Lewis Hale, is recounting his story of when he went over to the Wright's residence to see about John Wright.  Mrs. Wright is so calm and collected, rocking back and forth in her rocking chair and paying attention pleating her apron.  It does not even seem to phase her that her husband is dead.  She even laughs when Lewis asks to see John.  

A main theme of the play is men taking women for granted.  So in a way I guess I can kind of feel for Mrs. Wright (although it is HORRIBLE what she did) just working where I work my eyes have been really opened as to how people can just one day "snap."  It still does not condone the behavior or impulse in anyway, it is just interesting to see the lengths people will go to make themselves feel better or free themselves of a situation.