Bangkok Bookstores

[bkkjames]

There are Asia Books everywhere and another good one is Kinkobuyuba or something to that effect.

it sounds like African bookstore, doesn't it?

If you think that is funny Thithi dear, you should see me spell Lake Ogichobee near Disneyworld in Florida , a right mess I make of that too.

[toybits]

Sounds like Ginko biloba - a Chinese medicinal plant...

There are Asia Books everywhere and another good one is Kinkobuyuba or something to that effect.

it sounds like African bookstore, doesn't it?

If you think that is funny Thithi dear, you should see me spell Lake Ogichobee near Disneyworld in Florida , a right mess I make of that too.

[Gaccha]

Sounds like Ginko biloba - a Chinese medicinal plant...

There are Asia Books everywhere and another good one is Kinkobuyuba or something to that effect.

it sounds like African bookstore, doesn't it?

If you think that is funny Thithi dear, you should see me spell Lake Ogichobee near Disneyworld in Florida , a right mess I make of that too.

It should be Kinokuniya. It just means "Yesterday country shop".

[somtampala]

... and the libraries have a much better collection than the bookshops.

I suggested that in the library you can have the book photocopied at 0.5 bahts a page and then bound for 20 bahts. This is a very cheap way of creating a book collection and also completely legal.

And the university libraries in Bangkok will scan to USB any book you want. This effectively brings an end to all bookshops.

Are you serious? You are opening the gates of heaven here for me.

Please forgive me if I'm asking stupid questions here (my aim is to finally be smart ;-) ):

• Where can I find a directory of libraries in Bangkok (or which libraries do you recommend most)?
  
• I can actually go to university libraries and ask them to scan a complete book onto my USB stick? How much is that? (Gees, I'm doing this myself with some books so I don't have to schlepp 10 kg of books around but can read them on my laptop)
  
• They copy for 0.5 THB per page (so 300 page book would be 150 baht)?
  

Guru Gaccha (I have to call you that way now), the thing I am missing the most in Bangkok is the libraries. And now you're telling me they actually have good libraries there?

In case Asia Books is a publicly traded company, I suggest now is the time to sell your Asia Book stocks, cause they're losing their biggest customer ;-)

Oh though enlightened Guru Gaccha, I can't hide my excitement.

Thanks,

Ben

Passionate Bookworm & Information Junkie

The university libraries are much better than some quips in this topic suggest.

It's easy to find libraries, by doing this: go to one of the biggies (e.g. the Chula library or the huge underground Thammasat library), then access their library database. Besides checking to see what books they have, they will invariably list all other university libraries. And will also virtually always say if the other libraries have the books in stock.

Also, ignore the posts saying the librarians won't help. At no point in this process is a librarian needed, except to walk past the turnstile. The people doing the copying are specialist businesses, they have 6-10 youngsters lined up in a box shop wihtin the library (typically) to do any copying you want (whether it is scanning or copying). The price is as you have stated (around 150 bahts for a book).

So how many books do they have. Well, I checked to see if they have the Robert E Lane book that I recommended above, and it is sitting quietly in the economic department's library of Thammasat.

Of course, the university libraries are factual book biased, but then since I read no fiction (what's the point when there is so much facts to learn in life) I don't care.

Seriously... enjoy.

Ah, really great stuff! Thanks, I printed this one out! And I'm not looking for fiction neither, so that sounds perfect.

[sabaijai]

This effectively brings an end to all bookshops.

I've been hearng this on and off for the last 20 years, but most people still much prefer books and I and many experts expect that they will for quite some time.

Same here, been hearing it for at least that long. It's an aesthetic choice. For the forseeable future, market research says a majority of readers the world over will choose paper over plastic film, LCDs, etc.

[Gaccha]

This effectively brings an end to all bookshops.

I've been hearng this on and off for the last 20 years, but most people still much prefer books and I and many experts expect that they will for quite some time.

Same here, been hearing it for at least that long. It's an aesthetic choice. For the forseeable future, market research says a majority of readers the world over will choose paper over plastic film, LCDs, etc.

British Telecom in the early 1980s asked the public in a nationwide questionnaire in the UK, if mobile phones were cheaply available would you want one: the public's response was clear and resounding, well over 95% said no. In 2008, there are more mobile phones than people in the UK.

[Ulysses G.]

People have said no to fake books numerous times already because they prefer real ones.

There is no better option for mobile phones.

[Meridian007]

It should be Kinokuniya. It just means "Yesterday country shop".

Easiest way to remember it is that there are usually some of the backpacker farang type there, so I change it to "Kee-nok Kuniya"!

(sorry, bad joke)

[desi]

It should be Kinokuniya. It just means "Yesterday country shop".

Easiest way to remember it is that there are usually some of the backpacker farang type there, so I change it to "Kee-nok Kuniya"!

(sorry, bad joke)

It might be a bad joke (two ways, as backpackers are usually about saving money)... but it's still an excellent way to remember the name. Thanks.

[bkkjames]

It should be Kinokuniya. It just means "Yesterday country shop".

Easiest way to remember it is that there are usually some of the backpacker farang type there, so I change it to "Kee-nok Kuniya"!

(sorry, bad joke)

It might be a bad joke (two ways, as backpackers are usually about saving money)... but it's still an excellent way to remember the name. Thanks.

let's see,

Kinokuniya

kee nok uni ya? .... the place where students won't go to photocopy books.

[MKAsok]

This effectively brings an end to all bookshops.

I've been hearng this on and off for the last 20 years, but most people still much prefer books and I and many experts expect that they will for quite some time.

Same here, been hearing it for at least that long. It's an aesthetic choice. For the forseeable future, market research says a majority of readers the world over will choose paper over plastic film, LCDs, etc.

British Telecom in the early 1980s asked the public in a nationwide questionnaire in the UK, if mobile phones were cheaply available would you want one: the public's response was clear and resounding, well over 95% said no. In 2008, there are more mobile phones than people in the UK.

This is probably more to do with the long-cherished belief in the UK that there was a direct correlation between owning a mobile and being a <deleted>. People were openly ridiculed and occasionally even threatened for using mobiles in public, until around 1995 when some kind of massive paradigm shift seemed to take place. After this mobile phone ownership/use snowballed. I believe Sabaijai is correct: in this instance it's more about an aesthetic choice than the availability of technology (or being perceived as a tosser).

[p_brownstone]

I just found this on another Forum - not had a chance to visit yet:

Quote:

D's Books would like to invite you to our huge education sale happening now. We will have thousands and thousands of childrens books for all reading levels available at extremely low prices(prices start at 10 baht/book!). The books are all 100% imported from America and will include many famous titles such as Disney, Thomas the Train, Clifford, Newberry, Scholastic, etc. The books will be second hand but will be in 'like new' condition.

We are located on Sukhumvit 50 just 2 minutes from the On Nut sky train station.

Appointments to see the books can be scheduled any time with very little notice. To make schedule an appointment please contact:

Pang

Office Manager

D's Books

Bangkok, Thailand

Office: +66 (0)814590522

Fax: +66 (0)27427601

Cell: +66 (0)819235743

[email protected]

www.Ds-Books.com

OR

Sam Bechtold

Managing Director

D's Books

Bangkok, Thailand

Office: +66 (0)814590522

Fax: +66 (0)27427601

Cell: +66 (0)846677730

[email protected]

www.Ds-Books.com

Unquote

From the (rather basic) Website it is clear they sell much more than just childrens' books.

Patrick

[Bangyai]

People have said no to fake books numerous times already because they prefer real ones.

There is no better option for mobile phones.

Agreed, its hard to improve on something that already works well. I'm not putting down ' ebooks ' which might suit some people but a lot of people like the feel of a paper book and how generaly durable they are for something low tech.

[Ulysses G.]

I don't carry a computer when I'm traveling because I don't want to have worry about it all the time and stay in more expensive places for security, etc. I would also much rather worry about losing a 200 baht used book instead of a $300 U.S. dollar reading machine that isn't even all that enjoyable to read.

[Gaccha]

This effectively brings an end to all bookshops.

I've been hearng this on and off for the last 20 years, but most people still much prefer books and I and many experts expect that they will for quite some time.

Same here, been hearing it for at least that long. It's an aesthetic choice. For the forseeable future, market research says a majority of readers the world over will choose paper over plastic film, LCDs, etc.

British Telecom in the early 1980s asked the public in a nationwide questionnaire in the UK, if mobile phones were cheaply available would you want one: the public's response was clear and resounding, well over 95% said no. In 2008, there are more mobile phones than people in the UK.

This is probably more to do with the long-cherished belief in the UK that there was a direct correlation between owning a mobile and being a <deleted>. People were openly ridiculed and occasionally even threatened for using mobiles in public, until around 1995 when some kind of massive paradigm shift seemed to take place. After this mobile phone ownership/use snowballed. I believe Sabaijai is correct: in this instance it's more about an aesthetic choice than the availability of technology (or being perceived as a tosser).

My point was the empirical evidence used in the post above to explain that e-books will never take off cannot be used to predict the future. The second poster's nuancing of the findings by a claim of a paradigm shift in the mobile phone empirical evidence error simply reinforces my point: we simply need a paradigm shift in the ideational relations and then we'll all be using e-books. It is that simple. Asking people if they want e-books or will use e-books is pointless: people don't know what they want. As a better man than me once said: don't give the public what they want, they deserve better.

The right question to ask is "can we see this shift?". I think we can. The poorly designed Amazon reader has hugely outperformed expectations. The new technology has no deficiences and it will simply be a question of price reductions to cause a huge wave of interest. Give it 3 years.

[desi]

My point was the empirical evidence used in the post above to explain that e-books will never take off cannot be used to predict the future. The second poster's nuancing of the findings by a claim of a paradigm shift in the mobile phone empirical evidence error simply reinforces my point: we simply need a paradigm shift in the ideational relations and then we'll all be using e-books. It is that simple. Asking people if they want e-books or will use e-books is pointless: people don't know what they want. As a better man than me once said: don't give the public what they want, they deserve better.

The right question to ask is "can we see this shift?". I think we can. The poorly designed Amazon reader has hugely outperformed expectations. The new technology has no deficiences and it will simply be a question of price reductions to cause a huge wave of interest. Give it 3 years.

Point well made. I love my books but, they are not always easy to acquire (not as quick as a book formatted for Amazon reader anyway). And ease does drive a product.

The Amazon reader is too expensive, but tempting. Often, I run across books on Amazon.com for the reader and I have a flicker of a wish as it'd be just a matter of a download and I'd be enjoying it asap. Right now, I have to order, then wait for arrival. Oh, and pay outrageous shipping. And while those in the west are not saddled with high shipping bills, the ease of purchase and download does echo mobile phone use. Not quite... but... getting what we want the very minute we want it does have an appeal.

On the flip side, I have hundreds of ebooks on my computer that I rarely touch. Also, when I do open one, I don't always get to the end for whatever reason. Mainly, I suspect, because I do love reading from real books.

Put that book on a reader... and who knows... not me... right now I don't know as I've never used one.

Give me a shot at an affordable, slimline reader that takes beautiful photos, records highres sound, takes notes, keeps my appointment schedule, transfers to my computer and back, calls home, has the ability to pay my bills, and to top it off, includes a talking Thai / English dictionary... well, well... now we're getting somewhere and I agree, three years should just about do it (mainly to improve on what's already out there, while getting the price down).

[MKAsok]

The right question to ask is "can we see this shift?". I think we can. The poorly designed Amazon reader has hugely outperformed expectations. The new technology has no deficiences and it will simply be a question of price reductions to cause a huge wave of interest. Give it 3 years.

I'm kind of with you. Perhaps a better analogy would be that of vinyl vs. CDs. Everyone I knew (myself included) swore blind they would never ever touch CDs (because of aesthetic reasons - vinyl more 'organic,' sounds 'warmer' blah blah blah) Twenty years later and no-one (myself included) gives a shit about vinyl. In fact, just last night I was cursing my storage bill in London where I still have a few thousand pretty rare and not so rare records sitting and rotting. When I look back on the number of times I broke my ass hauling record boxes from venue to venue when DJing in clubs (sometimes 3 or 4 different places in one night), when I could have just bitten my 'purist' pride and used CDs, I just think what a <deleted> I can be about some things. I think the paradigm shift came more for me with MP3 and 'non-physical' formats. I kind of completely skipped the CD thing. So I guess it's likely a similar pattern might well develop here...

mk

[Ulysses G.]

Everyone I knew (myself included) swore blind they would never ever touch CDs (because of aesthetic reasons - vinyl more 'organic,' sounds 'warmer' blah blah blah) Twenty years later and no-one (myself included) gives a shit about vinyl.

Interesting, everyone I knew switched to CDs because they were supposed to have "superior" sound and last forever and would eventually be cheap as well. Of course, it all turned out to be total bull sh*t.

The only thing better about them was that the record companies robbed us blind buying the same music, that did not sound as good, for much higher prices which never went down by the way.

Book companies might very well con us into switching to electronic readers somewhere down the line, but it certainly won't be

because they have developed a better product or are looking out for our interests. It will have a lot more to do with greed.

[tw25rw]

more to do with the long-cherished belief in the UK that there was a direct correlation between owning a mobile and being a <deleted>. People were openly ridiculed and occasionally even threatened for using mobiles in public, until around 1995 when some kind of massive paradigm shift seemed to take place. After this mobile phone ownership/use snowballed. I believe Sabaijai is correct: in this instance it's more about an aesthetic choice than the availability of technology (or being perceived as a tosser).

Hard to imagine now, but I do remember when it seemed the only people with mobile phones were complete dickheads, either because they were or because we perceived them to be. I remember being on a train where the only person at one end of an otherwise busy train carriage was some tit going on about test driving a Jaguar in a very loud voice.

I also can't imagine ever being with internet access despite being 28 when I first used it.

I can see definite niche's for these e-book readers. Some technical manuals are huge, as are encyclopaedias etc. It will take a long while, but they will eventually become mainstream. Maybe one day we will be downloading newspapers onto them to read on the train.