*shrug* I don't have space for a bookshelf either. Most of my book collection -- except for what I'm reading -- is packed tightly into boxes in the same closet as my clothing and a variety of other personal items. It means I have to dig more when I want to find something, but on the bright side, when I move -- which has been happening way too often since the recession caught up with me -- my library is already packed and ready to go. Besides, tight-packed boxes full of books are sturdy enough to sit on, which is nice when you didn't bother to pack any chairs.

I've whittled it down some. I mean, there are books I really adore and want to keep as part of my permanent collection -- stuff by Jim Butcher, Charles Sheffield, Tolkien, David Gemmel, Brian Jacques, and other favorites -- and then there's the ones that, while hopefully they amused me enough to be worth reading, aren't really worth reading a second time. The latter can be sold, simultaneously reducing the number of boxes needed and providing more money to spend on groceries.

E-book DRM horror story:
http://www.teleread.com/drm/how-ereaders-drm-punished-me-for-buying-my-books-legally/

More e-book DRM madness:
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2007/04/killed_by_drm_e/

The latter mentions that e-book DRM is often tied to a particular device. Now, given that, about half a year ago, some violently insane meth addicts, who broke into my home when I was too ill to stop them (in part because, unbeknownst to me, a nearby meth lab had been poisoning the neighborhood for some time), stole my former laptop, other electronics, and other valuables, I'm not okay with that idea. They left my book collection alone. If I'd had e-books, rather than paperbacks and hardcovers, my loss would've been greater.

Baen's response to the issue:
http://www.baen.com/library/

The problem with the e-books is that whether or not they are actually yours is a matter of debate. On the one hand, if you fulfilled the legal conditions of buying rather than renting, then yes, it is yours, legally. On the other hand, there's often a click-wrap license forcing you to agree that you are leasing, rather than owning, before you read the book. If you took it to court with a good lawyer, there's a fairly good chance you could prove that the click-wrap license was, in fact, illegal, but most of us can't afford good lawyers. (Note: Not professional legal advice, but again, see "right of first sale".)

It's an important distinction. An owner has a right to re-sell a book, loan it to friends, etc. A leasee does not.

Even if you don't like to re-sell books, there are a lot of stories about how DRM protected e-books caused the customer all kinds of trouble when their devices failed or were lost or stolen, or their credit card numbers changed, or they were asked to update software, etc. Paper books, on the other hand, are pretty solid, and won't be affect by credit card number changes or software updates, and while they can technically be lost or stolen, most thieves don't consider them high-value items. I've even had books that survived getting submerged in water. Admittedly, the pages were all wavy afterward, but that's more than a lot of electronics could say.

If I can't get my hands and a physical copy of the book to look at, and the author doesn't manage to hook me in whatever sample chapters they put online, then yes, I suppose I could ask around to see if the book gets better, but realistically, I'll probably just forget about him or her. I could read online reviews, but given that a lot of reviewers don't have the same taste as me, I'd rather read for myself. I could ask friends, but most of my friends aren't exactly voracious readers, and those that are often have different tastes. It's not really my responsibility to make up for bad marketing decisions on the part of the publisher by jumping through all those hoops.

Libraries are great things. I very much doubt if many authors feel they are being robbed when people go there to read books for free. How many people have, when they were young and poor, obtained most or all of their reading material from libraries, charities, loans from friends, etc., only to go back and buy their favorites -- including ones they had already read for free -- after making their way up the economic ladder? And how many people who now have money to spend on books still go to the library to discover new authors before committing dollars to them?

I flatly refuse to buy e-books. Well, I might make exceptions for Baen and other publishers who forgo DRM, but other than that, I'm boycotting the d*** e-books! Boycotting, do y'hear? I like to buy and own my books, not buy them and then be told that, for legal benefits to the publisher, I am actually even renting them, even when the price of the e-book is no less than that of the paperback I could own outright. Which I'm pretty sure is illegal, or would be if a good enough lawyer pressed the issue. (See "right of first sale". It's what makes buying used books legal.)

If I have to order the physical books online because of a lack of physical bookstores, that's alright. In my state of health, I've had to order a lot of things online anyway. On the other hand, physical bookstores play a significant part in promoting books. Just like libraries. I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm not the sort to take a chance buying a book from a completely unfamiliar author. No, before I buy a book by any particular author, I first read one of his or her books from the library. Or, I borrow one of the author's books from a friend. Or pick one up at one of those places where they give used books away for free. Or perhaps someone gives me one of the author's books. Sometimes, I only need a few chapters sample to make the decision. At a store like Borders, you can read the first few chapters, or as much is necessary for the author to either hook you or bore you. Perhaps the e-books sellers will try to simulate that experience by offering free chapters of books, but it's not quite the same. What if they only offer two chapters free, but the book doesn't start making much of an impression on a particular reader until chapter five? In a book store, failing to find the first chapter interesting, I might flip ahead to see if it gets better further on. Online, I might not have the opportunity to give the author that chance. If I'm not in the mood for tragedy, and I'm not sure whether or not I can trust the author to give me a good ending, as is often the case with unfamiliar authors, I may even go and read the last chapter before deciding whether or not to buy the book. (Yes, blasphemy, I know, but the object of the whole exercise is for me to see enough of the author's work to see whether or not I want to buy it. A bricks-and-mortar store gives me the freedom to investigate the book as I choose. E-book sellers often have other ideas.)

I would never bought any of the Dresden Files had I not had the opportunity to sample Storm Front for free. There was, in fact, one author, who when his fans sent him unsolicted mail containing a book and a request for an autograph, would instead donate the book to the library, knowing that the library donation would bring him future sales.

Besides, I find paper easier on the eyes. If the physical book and the e-book are the same price anyway, I definitely, definitely want the physical book. No sense in straining my eyes if the price is the same -- greater, in fact, if you take into account that most e-books cannot be bought used or resold to recover part of what you spent on them. (Admittedly, even to read a physical book, I may soon need a magnifying lens, if my eyesight keeps getting worse.)

Not to mention, an e-reader is a more attractive target for thieves than a physical book. Most thieves will leave you book collection alone, including your precious signed copies of books from your favorite authors, antiques, etc. An e-reader is an electronic, and thieves see electronics as things that can be sold for profit.