Does Alan Hatcher's Topology book Work on 'Experimental' PDF Readers?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the capabilities of 'experimental' PDF readers, specifically regarding their ability to display Alan Hatcher's Topology book. Participants explore the technology's reliability, usability, and potential market impact, particularly for students.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Debate/contested
  • Technical explanation

Main Points Raised

  • One participant inquires about the effectiveness of experimental PDF support on specific book readers for displaying Hatcher's Topology book.
  • Another participant mentions mixed reviews about the technology, suggesting a wait for improvements or a newer version before purchasing.
  • A third participant shares a link to Amazon reviews, indicating a desire to wait for bugs to be resolved before buying the reader.
  • Concerns are raised about the technology's long-term viability and support, particularly regarding sun glare and usability in various reading environments.
  • Some participants discuss the potential benefits for students, such as portability and convenience, while also expressing a preference for a bundled paper and electronic version of textbooks.
  • There is a suggestion for a dual-screen product that could enhance the reading and writing experience for students.
  • One participant notes the potential market for students, highlighting issues with textbook pricing and the implications of DRM on ebook sales.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express a mix of skepticism and optimism regarding the technology, with no clear consensus on its effectiveness or future success. Concerns about usability and market dynamics remain unresolved.

Contextual Notes

Participants express various assumptions about the technology's reliability, potential market impact, and user experience, which are not fully substantiated. The discussion reflects uncertainty about the long-term support and practicality of the readers.

Who May Find This Useful

This discussion may be of interest to students considering electronic readers for textbooks, educators evaluating technology for academic use, and consumers looking for insights on new reading technologies.

Jimmy Snyder
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Does anyone here have one of these book readers? I want to know how good the 'experimental' PDF support is. For instance, will it display Alan Hatcher's Topology book?
 
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Ehh, I heard some pretty bad reviews about the system, but also some good ones. I would wait till the price drops or to see if they come out with a 2.0 version. I would wait till they work out the bugs.
 
Here are some reviews from amazon customers. I'd like to get one, but I'm going to wait until the bugs are worked out, too.

https://www.amazon.com/review/product/B000FI73MA/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?%5Fencoding=UTF8&showViewpoints=1&tag=pfamazon01-20
 
Like all new technology like that, I'm waiting to see if it "sticks" as well as all the bugs getting worked out. I wouldn't want to jump in early and find that too few people use it for them to continue supporting it, and some other reader appears on the market that's more popular and better supported and uses some other format for reading content incompatible with anything downloaded to the kindle.

With any such reader, my biggest concern is sun glare. I like to sit outside to read on nice days, and nothing I've seen compares to a good, old-fashioned printed on paper book for readability under those conditions. The other time I often read is while flying, and if I can't have the reader on until they permit other electronic devices to be turned on, it's not really going to be available during the time I really want to be reading a book.

I could see it being nice for students though, who can carry around one small electronic reader rather than lugging around a bunch of books for classes. Not sure about studying from a reader like that, but it would be useful for some quick reading between classes, or to be able to look at a problem assigned in class without lugging the book everywhere (ideally, for textbooks, I'd want a paper and electronic version bundled...keep the paper copy home to study and as a permanent reference, and the electronic version for portability during the day). Certainly would be good for traveling when you don't want to carry a lot of books in your luggage.
 
Moonbear said:
I could see it being nice for students though, who can carry around one small electronic reader rather than lugging around a bunch of books for classes.
For students, I would suggest a product with two screens, a normal one for reading, and a tablet pc type screen for writing. Loaded up with all the books for the current semester, that would be a Cadillac product (probably at a Rolls Royce price.)
 
Students are likely to be the big market for this - once Amazon and the textbook publishers get the deals tied up.
US textbooks are already ridiculously overpriced, if you manage to lock them into an ebook with DRM then you don't have to bring out a new edition each year to stop people buying them second hand and you don't have to worry about people borrowing them from the library instead of paying for them.
 

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