Which order do you prefer?

[Firefoot]

who read the books after the movie seem to have the attitude that "the movie was good and the books were awesome", while some book fans seem to have the attitude, "The books were so much better than the movie!" Maybe that's just my experiance...

I agree that many times, this is how people will respond (book or movie first), at least at first. I would say though, that book fans can (and do) get to the point where "the movie was good and the books were awesome". It just takes a lot more time. I was incredibly disappointed after seeing FotR the first time - I felt that they got some things right but it just lacked the touch the books had. Now, however, about a year and a half since I first saw FotR, I can say that "the movie was good and the books were awesome".

[Nirvana II]

its always better to read the books then see the movies

[Legolas]

Books first - nothing like creating your own images.

[ninlaith]

I love reading the books before the movies sometimes for the fact that when you create your own images of people and places you start to get engulfed and infatuated with these images. Also when you see it on screen it is one of the most fulfilling feelings ever. But if you read the books before the movie you go in with some expectations which can be a bummer. So I like to wait until after I've seen the movies to read the books, however, LOTR was too good to put down.

[elfwishes999]

i watched the movies first and was glad i did because if it wasn't for them i wouldn't have started reading the books in the first place,

[Morsul the Dark]

I myself saw fotr first then read the trilogy then saw the other two movies this was perfect for me because it's hard for me picture charactors and the movie gave me a basis which i could manipulate if i wanted I also read the books because of the movie

[Lady Gamgee]

I saw the movies first, then bought the book ... and I'd rather have it that way. Too many people say that some movies are disappointing because of leaving out so much stuff from the books. (I bought & read The Hobbit before LOTR ... I highly recommend doing that...). Personally, I wanted to watch all 3 movies first to see if I'd like them. I LOVED them, so I had to go buy the books. And although there are some differences between the movies & the books, I still find the movies better. With the books, your imagination kicks into overdrive, trying to see in your mind what's happening, what the characters look like, etc.... which is great, gotta have a good imagination. But with the movies, you physically see what your imagination thought of all along. The pictures in your mind become reality.