How many books people read
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ROTFL - I know what you mean. My daughter wanted 'one fish two fish red fish blue fish' so often, I can quote most of it. I find I can't get to sleep easily unless I read for a half hour, that's where most of my reading occurs. Watching TV or a computer is the worst thing you can do just before bed.
Christian Graus - Microsoft MVP - C++ "also I don't think "TranslateOneToTwoBillion OneHundredAndFortySevenMillion FourHundredAndEightyThreeThousand SixHundredAndFortySeven()" is a very good choice for a function name" - SpacixOne ( offering help to someone who really needed it ) ( spaces added for the benefit of people running at < 1280x1024 )
Christian Graus wrote:
I find I can't get to sleep easily unless I read for a half hour
Same here. It is a routine my body and mind knows comes just before sleep. My brain stops buzzing and I relax. Of course sometimes a half hour read ends up being two hours and then waking up the next morning is the problem.
regards, Paul Watson Ireland & South Africa
Fernando A. Gomez F. wrote:
At least he achieved immortality for a few years.
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I was reading a bit about why Stevo thinks the Kindle won't go anywhere: because no one reads (as opposed to the real reason - it sucks and it's a lame device). Which I thought was a typical ridiculous comment from Jobs until I googled for more information. And lo and behold, what I found seems to back him up! Some of the stats claim that, in the U.S. at least, 1 in 4 haven't read a book at ALL in the last year. There was a similar statistic quoted for the UK. Is this in fact true? I find I read 20+ books a year. Granted it's a lot of Sci-Fi, but still, to not read, at all? I can't even comprehend that.
¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! Real Mentats use only 100% pure, unfooled around with Sapho Juice(tm)! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! VCF Blog
My favourite author is Clive Cussler and the like - I like mystery stories, but only four or five a year. I must say, most of my reading is done on the toilet (most of my studies was done in my personal library - the toilet) and on the bus - spend two hours a say travelling, but then only technical stuff, anything from Idoit's Guides to Six Sigma. A comment was made the other day, "I do not read (C# stuff); Pierre do all the reading and I'll ask him if I need to know something". Well I can't believe there are intelligent people out there that does not read.
the confused are confused beyond confusion
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I was reading a bit about why Stevo thinks the Kindle won't go anywhere: because no one reads (as opposed to the real reason - it sucks and it's a lame device). Which I thought was a typical ridiculous comment from Jobs until I googled for more information. And lo and behold, what I found seems to back him up! Some of the stats claim that, in the U.S. at least, 1 in 4 haven't read a book at ALL in the last year. There was a similar statistic quoted for the UK. Is this in fact true? I find I read 20+ books a year. Granted it's a lot of Sci-Fi, but still, to not read, at all? I can't even comprehend that.
¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! Real Mentats use only 100% pure, unfooled around with Sapho Juice(tm)! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! VCF Blog
I don't read as much as I used to but the past few years have been ~30+. Mainly sf but some biographies lately and "modern literature." As for the Kindle I think the form could have been better and it could be more open (PDF etc.) but that the always-on wireless that lets you buy books at all times is a great idea. It is selling well too with a lot of fence-sitters changing to "Love it" when they actually get it in their hands. Hopefully Amazon does v2 and opens it up.
regards, Paul Watson Ireland & South Africa
Fernando A. Gomez F. wrote:
At least he achieved immortality for a few years.
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I read tech books all the time but since I finished all the great science fiction authors I am left wanting for really good literature. Every once in a while I will pick up a Sci-Fi anthology but there selection is usually rather lame.
Need a C# Consultant? I'm available.
Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know. -- Ernest HemingwayEnnis Ray Lynch, Jr. wrote:
I finished all the great science fiction authors I am left wanting for really good literature
Had the same dilemma. All the new sf I bought and read turned out to be space opera tripe. Recently though I picked up Ken Mcleod for the first time and I really like his work. Best in years. I'm also working through the SF Masterworks[^] list even though I've read some of it before.
regards, Paul Watson Ireland & South Africa
Fernando A. Gomez F. wrote:
At least he achieved immortality for a few years.
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Yeah, I knew it was wrong as soon as I said it, and I could remember some of the text of the actual book, but not the name. Rather than google it and correct my post, I left it as testament to my moment of stupidity.
Christian Graus - Microsoft MVP - C++ "also I don't think "TranslateOneToTwoBillion OneHundredAndFortySevenMillion FourHundredAndEightyThreeThousand SixHundredAndFortySeven()" is a very good choice for a function name" - SpacixOne ( offering help to someone who really needed it ) ( spaces added for the benefit of people running at < 1280x1024 )
Christian Graus wrote:
testament to my moment of stupidity
More like a monument to the incredible amount of useless trivia accumulated in my 46 year old brain... :-D
Software Zen:
delete this; -
Kacee Giger wrote:
Dr. Seuss and the like count, I read about 500 books a year
Good for you! That's one place where my wife and I decided, in advance, to be as indulgent as possible. If my daughter asked to buy a toy or a piece of candy, the answer was often no. If she asked to buy a book or go to the library, the answer was almost always yes. As a result she's become a voracious reader, an excellent writer, and a pretty good student overall.
Software Zen:
delete this;Yup almost the same story here. My daughter's (19 months) favourite "toys" are her books. She goes to the library with me or her mum once a fortnight. We're very fortunate that the library has a great collection of books for young children (and is quite tolerant to the odd bite mark or two). Personally, I'm another member of the late night reading club. I always read in bed. Helps to slow the day down. I can understand why so many don't read "books" now. Let's face it reading (edit: or should I say writing) is a method of expression and communication and we have so many other methods to choose from now. Take the movie for example. You can watch it on your phone now (why you'd want to is beyond me) but my point is in the not too distant past the only form of portable "distraction material" for the bus, train etc was the book. That just isn't the case any more. To survey how many people have read books in the last year, only answers that question. It doesn't make any reasonable argument for how much information/entertainment people are getting via other mechanisms. Good topic!
The only thing unpredictable about me is just how predictable I'm going to be.
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Yeah, I tend to have several going at once, but only in bed, I have far too much work to do, I can't remember the last time I spent any decent time in my living room, I just walk past on the way to my office....
Christian Graus - Microsoft MVP - C++ "also I don't think "TranslateOneToTwoBillion OneHundredAndFortySevenMillion FourHundredAndEightyThreeThousand SixHundredAndFortySeven()" is a very good choice for a function name" - SpacixOne ( offering help to someone who really needed it ) ( spaces added for the benefit of people running at < 1280x1024 )
Ahhhh .. that's what that hole in wall is on the way to the kitchen :P
The only thing unpredictable about me is just how predictable I'm going to be.
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Yup almost the same story here. My daughter's (19 months) favourite "toys" are her books. She goes to the library with me or her mum once a fortnight. We're very fortunate that the library has a great collection of books for young children (and is quite tolerant to the odd bite mark or two). Personally, I'm another member of the late night reading club. I always read in bed. Helps to slow the day down. I can understand why so many don't read "books" now. Let's face it reading (edit: or should I say writing) is a method of expression and communication and we have so many other methods to choose from now. Take the movie for example. You can watch it on your phone now (why you'd want to is beyond me) but my point is in the not too distant past the only form of portable "distraction material" for the bus, train etc was the book. That just isn't the case any more. To survey how many people have read books in the last year, only answers that question. It doesn't make any reasonable argument for how much information/entertainment people are getting via other mechanisms. Good topic!
The only thing unpredictable about me is just how predictable I'm going to be.
SimonRigby wrote:
I'm another member of the late night reading club
Same here. During the week, the only time I get to read for recreation is before I go to bed. Currently I'm reading Songs of Earth and Power[^] by Greg Bear. Not my usual cup of tea (I prefer hard science fiction), but it's been pretty good thus far.
Software Zen:
delete this; -
You read a lot of short-form writing though, right? Newspapers, articles, op-eds etc.
regards, Paul Watson Ireland & South Africa
Fernando A. Gomez F. wrote:
At least he achieved immortality for a few years.
yeah, magazines and such. i've also read one or two seriously long books in each of the past years: ex. Pynchon's latest took me 8 months because i was reading it as part of a group, and ... well, it's Pynchon. so, those bring my average down.
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modified on Friday, January 18, 2008 7:11:03 AM
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yeah, magazines and such. i've also read one or two seriously long books in each of the past years: ex. Pynchon's latest took me 8 months because i was reading it as part of a group, and ... well, it's Pynchon. so, those bring my average down.
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modified on Friday, January 18, 2008 7:11:03 AM
Quality then, not quantity. You've always come across as a very well read man.
regards, Paul Watson Ireland & South Africa
Fernando A. Gomez F. wrote:
At least he achieved immortality for a few years.
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I was reading a bit about why Stevo thinks the Kindle won't go anywhere: because no one reads (as opposed to the real reason - it sucks and it's a lame device). Which I thought was a typical ridiculous comment from Jobs until I googled for more information. And lo and behold, what I found seems to back him up! Some of the stats claim that, in the U.S. at least, 1 in 4 haven't read a book at ALL in the last year. There was a similar statistic quoted for the UK. Is this in fact true? I find I read 20+ books a year. Granted it's a lot of Sci-Fi, but still, to not read, at all? I can't even comprehend that.
¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! Real Mentats use only 100% pure, unfooled around with Sapho Juice(tm)! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! VCF Blog
I am of the group who could not imagine living a single day with out having some good read along with me. I read on average 1 book per week in addition to the tech mags ect required to attempt to keep up with the software development field. I am 60 years old and still thirst for knowledge. I have a standing order with a friend of mine that says that if I ever phone him up and tell him that I learned nothing new today, he is to come over and shoot me.
When prediction serves as polemic, it nearly always fails. Our prefrontal lobes can probe the future only when they aren’t leashed by dogma. The worst enemy of agile anticipation is our human propensity for comfy self-delusion. David Brin Buddha Dave
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Quality then, not quantity. You've always come across as a very well read man.
regards, Paul Watson Ireland & South Africa
Fernando A. Gomez F. wrote:
At least he achieved immortality for a few years.
i'm the son of an English professor, how could i not be?! :)
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i'm the son of an English professor, how could i not be?! :)
I'll be that has its downsides too.
regards, Paul Watson Ireland & South Africa
Fernando A. Gomez F. wrote:
At least he achieved immortality for a few years.
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Let me help you understand why I don't read for fun. Look at all the other activities I can do. Exercise Make Beer Drink Beer Play Video Games Have Quality Time with the wife Kayak Clean my house Cook Eat Play with the dogs Program Surf internet and or masturbate watch a movie Target shoot with my shotgun ride my bike hike smoke something make beef jerky clean my car garden post in the lounge on codeproject There are so many things to do that are more fun than reading. That is why I don't read for fun.
I didn't get any requirements for the signature
I agree with except I have fun reading programming books, but other non-technical books stand no chance with me.
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I was reading a bit about why Stevo thinks the Kindle won't go anywhere: because no one reads (as opposed to the real reason - it sucks and it's a lame device). Which I thought was a typical ridiculous comment from Jobs until I googled for more information. And lo and behold, what I found seems to back him up! Some of the stats claim that, in the U.S. at least, 1 in 4 haven't read a book at ALL in the last year. There was a similar statistic quoted for the UK. Is this in fact true? I find I read 20+ books a year. Granted it's a lot of Sci-Fi, but still, to not read, at all? I can't even comprehend that.
¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! Real Mentats use only 100% pure, unfooled around with Sapho Juice(tm)! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! VCF Blog
I perpetually read online (on any given day I read at least a couple hundred pages worth of text), but I haven't read a complete book (that is, more than a chapter here and there, or for reference, and excluding manuals/magazines/etc since I seldom read all of them) in at least 8 years (when I was in school and had required reading). I read some short stories 3 or 4 years ago from a couple compilations when I was bored at the house of someone that maintained a small personal library, but that was mainly because I didn't have a computer. I couldn't say with absolute certainty whether or not I've read a book in digital form in that time, because it wouldn't register as a book in my mind. Curiouser-still: I don't own a TV, which seems to amaze people more than the lack of books.
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Mike Gaskey wrote:
Wife reads more but she's a natural speed reader.
I was thinking after responding to this thread that how many books you read and even whether you enjoy reading is due, in large part, to how fast you read. I've been clocked at 620 wpm which means that, for me, an action novel is filled with as much excitement as a good FX-filled movie - and has the advantage of being available on my schedule. I've known and worked with folks who have a clocked speed of less than 100 wpm. Apparently they actually subvocalise while they read which slows them down to talking speed.
Jon Smith & Wesson: The original point and click interface
Oakman wrote:
I was thinking ....
Good point. I think my reading speed may be a function of what I'm reading. A thriller as you've described goes quickly. I don't sit a read for long periods of time, what I do is squeeze in some reading when I can. I typically read myself to sleep and something like say a Vince Flynn book is done far faster than a Creighton novel. I just finished, "Next". I enjoyed it but it wasn't a page turner for me so it took around 4 days. Flynn or maybe a Jack Reacher goes in 2. On vacation I'll go through a novel a day but I'm selective and sort of save up favorite authors for the trip.
Mike The NYT - my leftist brochure. Calling an illegal alien an “undocumented immigrant” is like calling a drug dealer an “unlicensed pharmacist”. God doesn't believe in atheists, therefore they don't exist.
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I was reading a bit about why Stevo thinks the Kindle won't go anywhere: because no one reads (as opposed to the real reason - it sucks and it's a lame device). Which I thought was a typical ridiculous comment from Jobs until I googled for more information. And lo and behold, what I found seems to back him up! Some of the stats claim that, in the U.S. at least, 1 in 4 haven't read a book at ALL in the last year. There was a similar statistic quoted for the UK. Is this in fact true? I find I read 20+ books a year. Granted it's a lot of Sci-Fi, but still, to not read, at all? I can't even comprehend that.
¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! Real Mentats use only 100% pure, unfooled around with Sapho Juice(tm)! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! VCF Blog
Most people I know just don't read, or if they do, they read mind numbing best sellers. I generally read a book a week. That's actually way down from when I was a teenager, when I read 3 a week (when I had no life). I also read a bunch of magazines and online articles. It helps that I read very fast with full comprehension. Most of what I read is fiction, but not all of it. I read technical manuals, of course, and history. Every once in awhile I'll pick up something unusual, like a biography or a graphic novel. I tend not to discuss books with most of my friends, since barely 50% of them actually even read the news on a daily basis.
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I was reading a bit about why Stevo thinks the Kindle won't go anywhere: because no one reads (as opposed to the real reason - it sucks and it's a lame device). Which I thought was a typical ridiculous comment from Jobs until I googled for more information. And lo and behold, what I found seems to back him up! Some of the stats claim that, in the U.S. at least, 1 in 4 haven't read a book at ALL in the last year. There was a similar statistic quoted for the UK. Is this in fact true? I find I read 20+ books a year. Granted it's a lot of Sci-Fi, but still, to not read, at all? I can't even comprehend that.
¡El diablo está en mis pantalones! ¡Mire, mire! Real Mentats use only 100% pure, unfooled around with Sapho Juice(tm)! SELECT * FROM User WHERE Clue > 0 0 rows returned Save an Orange - Use the VCF! VCF Blog
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Let me help you understand why I don't read for fun. Look at all the other activities I can do. Exercise Make Beer Drink Beer Play Video Games Have Quality Time with the wife Kayak Clean my house Cook Eat Play with the dogs Program Surf internet and or masturbate watch a movie Target shoot with my shotgun ride my bike hike smoke something make beef jerky clean my car garden post in the lounge on codeproject There are so many things to do that are more fun than reading. That is why I don't read for fun.
I didn't get any requirements for the signature
:laugh: You were the only one to admit that you are not a Reader.
Do we weigh less at high tide?
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I agree - I read a lot of history, and stuff to do with brain science. I don't read any fiction at all, the closest I get is rock star bios from time to time ( read the Slash and Nikki Sixx books recently ). I would easily read 50-60 books in a year. I find it really frustrating when I have no new books to read.
Christian Graus - Microsoft MVP - C++ "also I don't think "TranslateOneToTwoBillion OneHundredAndFortySevenMillion FourHundredAndEightyThreeThousand SixHundredAndFortySeven()" is a very good choice for a function name" - SpacixOne ( offering help to someone who really needed it ) ( spaces added for the benefit of people running at < 1280x1024 )