Anyone still Read Books?

[frzrbrnd]

yeah, what if it got broken or stolen on the road? and with a kindle, you don't have the option of trading or lending out books to people.

 

[ipoPua]

there're pros and cons to anyhthing. yeah youd have a dickload of books but like frz said it will -not- last the trip. plus i personally just love real books

 

[whaleofashrimp]

everytime i run into a copy of "Ragtime" i am compiled to read it..i must of read it over a dozen times...awsome book that and CONFEDERACY OF DUNCES

 

[Migrant Whisper]

I've yet to run across any recommended reading threads on StP.
I usually travel with a good novel, a local native plants guide if possible, and of course, that good old C.C.
Off the top of my head:

--1984, George Orwell (fucking classic)
--Endgame, Derrick Jensen
--Slaughterhouse Five, Kurt Vonnegut
--Recipes for Disaster, Crimethinc
--Steal This Book, Abbie Hoffman (outdated, but somehow still revolutionary)
--Fight Club, Chuck Palahnuik


(Sidenote) Is there any way to edit the typo in the title?

 

[Milque Toast]

I've been reading and drawing manga lately. None of that tentacle rape shit. More like Lupin III and Inyuasha. Speaking of which check out Yoshihiro Tatsumi's manga memoir A Drifting Life. It's no On The Road, but it's really good. Really thick (about 800 pages). I've been reading it on my excursions. Less than half way through and it's over due... Check it out. Chances are your library has it. I got mine from the Columbus Main Library. I really enjoyed a book called Look Me In The Eye by a fellow autistic cat named John Elder Robison. Hunter S. Thompson's Hells Angels is on par with FAL in my opinion. There are a lot of good graffiti artist memoirs I read when I was younger. I don't remember any, but if you happen upon one that doesn't seem like some yuppy shit then cop it. Those kids that paint the trains you ride on are often just as cool as you, as many of you may know.

 

[Aurelius]

there're pros and cons to anyhthing. yeah youd have a dickload of books but like frz said it will -not- last the trip. plus i personally just love real books

Update: I've had a nook ereader for about a year and a half now on the road. Bought it brand new, and its still kickin. Thanks to piratebay I've procured some interesting titles, and projectgutenburg has tons of free books in the public domain. The battery died on me once, but the guys at the barnes and noble hooked it up with a replacement for free. One button on it is messed up, but its not really a problem. Its been in my pack, which I've thrown off moving trains/sat on/rained on. I bought a cheap waterproof case for it which I keep it in. So from personal experience I can say its pretty sweet. If I can come up on a solar charger I'll be able to read all day long.

 

[Matt Derrick]

Update: I've had a nook ereader for about a year and a half now on the road. Bought it brand new, and its still kickin. Thanks to piratebay I've procured some interesting titles, and projectgutenburg has tons of free books in the public domain. The battery died on me once, but the guys at the barnes and noble hooked it up with a replacement for free. One button on it is messed up, but its not really a problem. Its been in my pack, which I've thrown off moving trains/sat on/rained on. I bought a cheap waterproof case for it which I keep it in. So from personal experience I can say its pretty sweet. If I can come up on a solar charger I'll be able to read all day long.

I have the nook simple touch, got it about a year ago and the battery still lasts about 3 weeks on a single charge. I have about 500 books stored on it, all collected by myself online.

I also rooted it so it's a little more like a tablet. Useful for reading comic books (although in black and white). I've started reading about 10 times more often since I got it, it's really amazing. All for 60 bucks on Craigslist (a year ago, probably cheaper now).

If you really want to get crazy with your ebook collection, i recommend using calibre. It's a great book organizer and ereader syncing tool.

 

[Aurelius]

I've used it a couple times but since I don't have my own computer its kinda hard to use it consistently.

 

[Odin]

I have no idea how to "root" anything... heh...

But I really should get an ereader of some sort.

Which one is the compatible with the most file types?

As far as reccomendations... was reading Dark Tower series... and got to get back to that... drinkings kept me away from readin lol...

But also Kurt Vonnegut is kick ass... "Cats Cradle" Is insane.

ALso for hard high sci fi read some "Blindsight" by peter watts.... will blow your mind... literally....

"The Gods Themselves" by Issac Assamov.

and spyder robinson... he finished an outline by robert heinlien... called "variable star" mucho gusto!

 

[Matt Derrick]

I have no idea how to "root" anything... heh...

But I really should get an ereader of some sort.

Which one is the compatible with the most file types?

As far as reccomendations... was reading Dark Tower series... and got to get back to that... drinkings kept me away from readin lol...

But also Kurt Vonnegut is kick ass... "Cats Cradle" Is insane.

ALso for hard high sci fi read some "Blindsight" by peter watts.... will blow your mind... literally....

"The Gods Themselves" by Issac Assamov.

and spyder robinson... he finished an outline by robert heinlien... called "variable star" mucho gusto!

You don't have to root anything if you only want to read books. Just make sure they are in epub format, and copy it to the device.

 

[Odin]

is caliber the best for converting then... I like to read a lot of stuff in pdf or html on my laptop... but then my laptop has shitty battery life. so if I ever ever in a million years hit the road... gonna need an ereader with that 3 week charge your talking about.

i think i tried caliber 64 bit before for converting and something was not right... mehh... then again I'm tarted with the computers... so.

and rooting sounds interesting if you can read comic books... I've always been a fan of marvel and dc... watched all the old school xmen and batman cartoons... but never got in to the Comic books... never had the money or approval to buy them as a kid. hehe...

though I did once have cuz of my older brother the death of superman comic in one volume... it was his and we lost it...and shite... tragic loss...

 

[Ekstasis]

The Art of Shen Ku "The Ultimate Traveler's Guide Of This Planet" by Zeek

It is a great traveler's book it talks about herbs and their uses, acupressure, survival tips, self-defense (hand holds) philosophy stuff, busking tips-magic tricks, numerology, and jokes. It also has exercise tips, and traveling tips. It's all in an asian comic book style, not anime. Just a fun book. It's one of my favorite books ever. Great artwork.

 

[Aurelius]

is caliber the best for converting then... I like to read a lot of stuff in pdf or html on my laptop... but then my laptop has shitty battery life. so if I ever ever in a million years hit the road... gonna need an ereader with that 3 week charge your talking about.

i think i tried caliber 64 bit before for converting and something was not right... mehh... then again I'm tarted with the computers... so.

and rooting sounds interesting if you can read comic books... I've always been a fan of marvel and dc... watched all the old school xmen and batman cartoons... but never got in to the Comic books... never had the money or approval to buy them as a kid. hehe...

though I did once have cuz of my older brother the death of superman comic in one volume... it was his and we lost it...and shite... tragic loss...

American comic books are kind of tricky, but mangas and the like are pretty easy to convert onto an ereader, since the dimensions kind of small to begin with. Look for .cbz files then convert them to epub. You can do it online here I think http://www.zamzar.com/convert/cbz-to-epub/. Its been awhile since I did it though and I'm not sure how successful this site is.

 

[Matt Derrick]

American comic books are kind of tricky, but mangas and the like are pretty easy to convert onto an ereader, since the dimensions kind of small to begin with. Look for .cbz files then convert them to epub. You can do it online here I think http://www.zamzar.com/convert/cbz-to-epub/. Its been awhile since I did it though and I'm not sure how successful this site is.

Hmm i didn't know you could convert them to epub. If you can't find a cbr/cbz reader for your device, you can always just unzip them to just a folder of images (cbr/cbz is just a zip file renamed) and view them with an image viewer.

 

[vdem1]

I get through about two books a week-use to be more.
I will ALWAYS love my sci fi and supernatural thriller AND if they can shove a good sex scene in that fucker I am SOLD:

Stranger in a Strange Land, Farnhams Freehold- Robert Heinlein
Anything from the Anita Blake Vampire Series (brilliant fucking sex scenes btw WOOHA) AND the Merry Gentry series- Laurell K. Hamilton (I have a soft spot for heroines ^.^ )
It, Desperation, Bag of Bones, you know what..just..ALL of them LOL - Stephen King (classic <3)
Foundation Trilogy, The End of Eternity, and I, Robot- Isaac Asimov
Fahrenheit 451- Ray Bradbury
The Night Circus- Erin Morganstern (this is my current read)
Sunglasses Afer Dark- Nancy Collins (a decent quick read)
Picture of Dorian Gray- Oscar Wilde
The ENTIRE "odd thomas" series- Dean Koontz (seriously great fucking serious)



Graphic Novels:
Preacher
Death and the high cost of living
Sandman

I also read non fiction but mostly about psychology and such.

If you want to know a specific book about something in particular ie. aliens, werewolves, vampires, ghosts, etc-ask and i can give you a list of my personal top 5's ^.^

 

[AlyKat]

I heard about The Alchemist by Paulo Coelhoon another book thread here. it remains my favorite book. it is a pretty short read too. read it in a day because i couldn't stop.
I've got some new amazing material to soak up, thanks all.

Legacy of Ashes - the history of the cia

state of fear - michael chichton

Zbigniew Brzezinski - The Grand Chessboard - American Primacy and Its Geostrategic Imperatives

The law of one

 

[West]

JOHN STEINBECK.
Jack Kerouac
JOHN STEINBECK AGAIN.

Steinbeck talks about the poor, the travel-worn, the tired. Those who have been abused by authority, those who have abused themselves. His writing touches cords in you, there's a ring of TRUTH in everything he says, and he's a great writer.

Here are his books that I've read, I'm a literary kinda guy.

Of Mice and Men
Grapes of Wrath
The Pearl
East of Eden
Tortilla Flat
Travels With Charley: In Search of America
The Red Pony
Cannery Row
The Winter of Our Discontent
In Dubious Battle
Sweet Thursday
To a God Unknown
Burning Bright

I've underlined/bolded those that I enjoyed the most, and those most relevant to hoboes.

 

[West]

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ltyplesuKh1qhf9pjo1_500.jpg

(I won't lie, one of my favorite graffiti/train artists is what I thought of when you mentioned "Read Books" :c