I would like to add three other dangers of e-books.<p>First, that a central authority could reach out and change <i>all copies</i> of an extant work. Not delete it, but selectively change it. The Information Ministry never had it so good!<p>Second, and this is true especially for kids, I think e-books are psychologically problematic. A physical book has fewer degrees-of-freedom, and that&#x27;s good because the content has nearly infinite-degrees-of-freedom. The way <i>the device</i> works is no mystery to kids, and once you&#x27;ve read it you put it on the shelf (or give it away). With e-books, you always have your whole library right there, and focus becomes an act of will instead of the default.<p>Third, and this is true especially for thoughtful books, you can&#x27;t read an e-book with a pen. I shudder to think about reading Marcus Aurelius _Meditations_ without pen in hand!<p>As an added bonus, books trap carbon! So the more books we have, the better off our environment!