The updates have been scarce recently because I’ve been busy. But I’ve been reading…and reading in a new way: Kindle for PC.

So, I downloaded it a few months ago but never really used it. I mean, reading from the laptop just isn’t ideal. Then I downloaded the Kindle for iPhone and then downloaded a few free books from the Kindle store.

Then one day I’d forgotten my paperback books and was stuck in a waiting room when I remembered that I had the Kindle on my iPhone, so I pulled it out, loaded a book and started reading. It was surprisingly comfortable.

When I was about halfway through the book, I decided I wanted to continue and fired up the Netbook. When I figured out how to change the background color from white to pale yellow, we were in business.

One thing I noticed, however, was that it took me longer to finish the book than if I’d read it in dead tree form. It wasn’t horrible, but I did put the book “down” more often and forgot about it for longer periods of time.

But at any rate I did enjoy reading the eBook more than I anticipated and while I can’t say I’m an eBook convert, I can say that I’m likely to read more short eBooks. In the future I’ll probably wind up with a dedicated eReader (or an iPad…but the eInk displays sound more comfortable on the eyes).

Right now, I’ve started reading The Man Who Was Thursday by G. K. Chesterton. Since I’m only a few pages in, I haven’t formed a solid opinion of the story, but have formed a solid opinion about Chesterton’s writing: That man has a wonderful way with words. It’s playful and adept.

I’m curious now how many out there have a Kindle or other eReading device and how they like it.

Do you use the Kindle or Kindle for PC or iPhone (or any other iteration of the Kindle software) and what has been your experience with it? What about another eReading device?

Now’s your chance to convince an eReading novice to pull the switch.

Kindle books, according to Mashable, are outselling hardcovers. Over the last three months there was a 30% margin and in the last month there was a 44% margin. Granted, these numbers are skewed since Amazon doesn’t reveal all of its data (i.e. how many books were actually sold) nor does it compare to how many paperback books were sold.

The article, however, did get me thinking about why ebook sales might be on the rise. One thing that comes to mind is the intangible nature of the ebook. With a traditional hardcover, or even paperback, the customer will need to pick it up, hold it in her hands, sniff at it a little bit, figure out where she’s going to put it, and then flip it over to see the heart-stopping amount of money she’ll need to dish out for it.

On the flip side, ebooks are ephemeral. There’s no need to make room for it and it’s (usually) much cheaper than the hardcover equivalent. For the price of one hardcover, you can grab two ebooks (assuming that it’s not a bestseller or renowned author). Plus, it’s easy.

With the click of a couple buttons, sometimes only one, you have a new book waiting to be read. It’s so easy to be caught up in the whirlwind of buying that you don’t realize how many books you’ve just bought…and it all goes back to ebooks having an ephemeral quality. With physical books, you can look at the stacks and say to yourself, I think I’ve picked up too many books, but with ebooks, you don’t have that. Or am I wrong?

I’m curious, if you’re an ebook reader, why? Do you appreciate the books taking up less space? Do you appreciate the blazing speed at which you can have the book and start reading? Is it something else altogether?