Absolutely. Today, if I need to know about a specific CSS technique, I can Google it. A few years ago, when I was clueless about CSS, I didn't know where to start. So I read "CSS: The Definitive Guide." It walked me through why CSS exists, all the things it can do, and best practices. I would never have known the questions to ask without such a a well-organized guide.
Any time I want to learn a new topic, I get a book. And, incidentally, I still like paper books, because when I'm reading on the couch with one, there are no distractions. A computer offers too many other things to do besides read.
Books may change forms and distribution models, but there will always be a need for well-organized and thorough books.
I still like paper books, because when I'm reading on the couch with one, there are no distractions. A computer offers too many other things to do besides read.
Another thing that you can't yet do on the computer is highlight. I highlight important sections as I read technical books and it improves my comprehension immensely. As an additional benefit, when I come back to the book, I have to spend much less time hunting around for the information I need - the things that I've found valuable in the past are already made prominent.
Kindles have built-in support for highlighting and annotations, although using the buttons to highlight is surely slower than using a physical highlighter. If you're just highlighting important passages and not every other sentence (as some people are wont to do), it shouldn't be a problem.
Highlighting is very easy, even superior on the iPad. I highlight extensively when I'm reading PDFs in the GoodReader app, but unlike a physical book I can export the marked-up PDF back to my PC and easily index, sort, or modify them en masse.
I agree completely except: I now prefer my Kindle. Pictures and code suck, it's true, so sometimes I look at the book file on Calibre (and there's a Windows app as well for it), but I really, really like having everything I need in a small volume that I can take anywhere. I can annotate and search and.... Well, I'll stop gushing now.
Any time I want to learn a new topic, I get a book. And, incidentally, I still like paper books, because when I'm reading on the couch with one, there are no distractions. A computer offers too many other things to do besides read.
Books may change forms and distribution models, but there will always be a need for well-organized and thorough books.