Tom Foster on the Kindle

Tom, a loyal MR reader, writes to me:

I've been following your Kindle posts for a while now and something that struck me is the signalling effects of reading a book versus a reading using a Kindle – yes I read Robin Hanson's blog too!

Reading with a Kindle, the signal is relatively constant and, at the moment, is something like "I'm an early technology adopter and I like to read". As the Kindle gets more commonplace the efficacy of this signal will, I think, diminish. Compare this with the signalling effects of reading a traditional book, where you signal to people not only that you like to read, but crucially what you are reading. 

 
I wonder if Kindle advocates are underestimating how important it is for people to show those around them not just that they like to read, but also what they like to read? 

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