Tech

What is a vacation without reading time? And what a treat it is to sit down with an exceptionally well written, interesting, and informative book with an electronic tablet by your side. Of course one could combine the whole experience into one by getting an electronic version of the book onto the tablet itself but in my humble opinion nothing can, or will, ever surpass the comfort and pleasure of a paper and ink book.

Where the tablet shines is in the role of reading support. Meet a word one doesn't know and the tablet provides a dictionary. Read of events in an unfamiliar part of the globe? Google Maps instantly reveals it to you. Read a brief account of someone you wish you knew more about? Find out right away on the Web. A machine, an animal, a plant, a landmark may be mentioned, spurring curiosity about what it looks like. Google images swiftly show you. It goes on ... and it takes book reading, or history reading anyway, to completely new horizons.

My current book I bought some time ago and have been reluctant to start because of the heavy subject: "A Short History of World War II" by James L. Stokesbury. Some years ago I read a volume that strung together the events of World War I and I semi-promised myself to do the same someday for number II, although I already know sizeable chunks of its history.

Finally, I decided to let paragraph one determine whether I'd read it on this trip. As you may guess, paragraph one hooked me. I am now two thirds through it. The history is described in a lively manner that seems to strive for objectivity.

Certain aspects provide much food for thought. Possibly more on this another time.

Our walk on the beach today coincided with sunset and while trying to figure out how Carol and I could take a selfie and include the sun, a young man approached and offered to take the photo for us. This is his shot (slightly manipulated on a tablet app to bring us out of the shadows) ...

And one more by myself taken after we returned ....

and so it goes.