Capt. Xerox

For me, alternative formats are extremely useful.  I have a long commute every day and get a lot of "reading" done in the car via audiobooks.  I also carry a PDA, so I can read electronic books pretty much any time I'm stuck waiting for someone or what have you.  And you're right, there is a lot of good material available for free on the net.

My all time favorite internet download was Communion of Dreams.  The author, Jim Downey, is unpublished (except on the net), so unfortunately the download is the only available format.  The story is about what happens after somebody finds an alien artifact on Titan.  Communion of Dreams is really much better than a lot of other SF in print.  I'd say it's up there with the last three print SF novels I've read (Fire Upon the Deep by Vinge, Accelerando by Stross, and Blood Music by Bear).  I even think Downey's characterization is the best of the four.  (I don't remember the web site, but if you Google the title you can probably find it.)

My favorite SF audiobook was Philip K. Dick's The Golden Man.  I don't always like everything of his, but his best is wonderful.  (The Man in the High Castle was beautiful.)  This one starts out with the discovery of a mutant human and the authorities' attempts to study and kill him.  The mutation itself is the point of interest in the story.

Cheers,

Advocatus