August 2025
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    I am of the understanding that buying books online is hardly worth anything because you don’t actually own anything. Maybe you own the digital file? I’m not sure. I don’t trust the longevity of it, though.

    I’m told a lot (mainly by my Dad) that its a good idea to print those out to keep them. However, I’m talking about books that are easily 200+ pages.

    I don’t know if its worth the ink or money to print them out. At that point would it be better to just buy a book?

    by natural_bug23

    7 Comments

    1. Definitely buy the book at that point. Also, some of those books have software that prevents printing.

      Edit: Certain sellers such as Amazon are only selling you access to the file, not ownership itself.

    2. Perhaps get a digital edition, and if you really liked it, seek out a physical copy to keep.

      There are copyright concerns reproducing or printing a book out. I don’t think “fair use” applies

    3. PossibilityAgile2956 on

      IMO the value of a book is not (only) the physical possession of a copy. Most of the time I am much more interested in consuming the content and supporting the work. For those purposes a digital copy also works. If I wanted to physically own something I would strongly prefer to buy an actual book over printing it out.

    4. I wouldn’t waste the paper and ink. Make sure your digital files are accessible (ie, DRM-free and in a common format) and backed up in several locations, and that’s about as much of a guarantee you can get for them.

    5. LaunchTransient on

      It really depends on what you mean by “worth it”.
      When you start getting into the large page number range, the cost of printing starts to approach that of just buying the book outright.
      On top of this you have bindings – they aren’t just pretty things for show, they preserve the book and increase its longevity in use.

      There’s a reason why paperbacks are often referred to as “battered”. Loose leaves of text will have an even shorter lifespan and are prone to getting lost or torn.
      You can get your printed pages bound, but then that adds extra cost, and by that point you may as well buy the book outright.

      Digital libraries are great for compactness and accessibility, but if you want durable, physical hardcopies, you may as well just buy them. Secondhand if you can, if cost is a real concern.

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