I agree, we should just keep using the name “books” and avoid the need to label everything for the next generation.

Good observations!

iBook is an older Apple product, that preceded the MacBook. I think you are right, the term eBook suffers an image problem right now. There are a lot of cheap “eBooks” out there, mostly featuring secret formulas on getting rich in a week and all of that nonsense—I don’t think this helps the eBooks image. In-fact I don’t think there should be a term eBook at all. Well.. what are we going to call digital books then? Why not simply “book”? After all, we don’t listen to emusic on our iPods, we listen to music. In the future, we’re gonna be reading books on our iPages, not ebooks

If I was to take shots like these: http://blogs.msdn.com/mswanson/articles/wallpaper.aspx (Mike Swanson’s macro nature wallpaper images) and want really crisp 1920 x 1200 pixel shots - do I definately need a professional lens or are high end consumer cameras these days capable of these shots?

Also.. please take example macro shots for your review I’d like to see how it performs. Looking forward to it!

I am actually preparing a proper review of the digital camera that I use (FujiFilm F30) and it can indeed get good Macro shots.
Without going into too much detail fo r the comments section, I can tell you that the important features you should be looking for today in a digital camera are image stabilization and low light sensitivity (ISO, but be careful as some brands favor large ISO settings that produce a lot of noise in an image and then they apply excessive noise reduction processing in-camera which results in a “smeary” image that lacks detail).

Also another buzz word and “must have” function these days is ‘Face Detection”, a clever system whereby the camera can track a certain number of faces within sight of the cameras viewfinder and then ensure that they are always in focus which can be highly useful in those smaller ‘point & shooter’ cameras that don’t offer much control over lens focusing.

Lastly, “pro-style” SLR cameras and lenses (where the camera body and lens are seperate and interchangable) have come down to a price that is within reach of the average consumer, so if you are particularly interested in capturing unique shots such as in macro-photography, you can get set-up with a decent camera body and proper macro-lens that will be especially suited to the job whilst not spending too much extra of your hard earned cash.

I will be writing a more comprehensive overview alongside my review aimed at those interested in getting into modern digital photography without breaking the bank.

Check back later this week for more!

I’m thinking of getting a new camera but don’t really wish to spend that much on the pro camera + lens since I don’t really know much about it, so am steering towards lighter, sleeker, but high end consumer grade camera - do you think those would suffice for doing high rez macro shots, or is it a no go?

Sorry for turning this comment area into a QnA session Hope you can help