A Bookless Future seems unlikely

[primsong]

I noticed a news article about a 'library' in New York that was entirely bookless - they just had displays of e-books and allowed checkout of readers loaded with five books apiece.  They were touting it as The Future, naturally.  Like The Future is always supposed to be a *good* thing, and we should all accept it will inevitably come.  Implication being that if we don't accept The Future we are backwards, knuckle-dragging 8-track listeners who still think digital watches are a pretty cool thing.

As for me, I see a phrase like "bookless library" and my entire inner being goes "Nope nope nope nope nope nope. Nuh-uh. Not gonna happen."

Too many strikes against the e-readers - like not being able to read with half of one eye open and the rest of your face buried in a pillow.  And your brain processes the information on a lit screen differently than when it is on a printed page.  Buying them for .25 at a garage sale. Reading an obscure story from the early 1900s that can't be found any other way. And then there's batteries (or lack thereof).  And the scent and feel of books.  And. And. And.

*hugs (paper) book*  Nope nope nope.

Comments

[kerravonsen]

If the death of printed books is The Future, then I will fight tooth and nail against it. Not because I would miss the scent and feel of printed books, but because the alternative is e-books locked with DRM (officially "Digital Rights Management", but really "Digital Restriction Management") and DRM is EVIL. I will NEVER EVER give money to someone for a DRMed book. Never. Oh, I have bought ebooks as well as collected free ones, but the ones I bought were all sold without DRM. It's a pity Fictionwise is gone; now the only ebook sellers I know of who are DRM-free are Baen and Smashwords.

That being said, the bright side of e-readers is that in some ways, they are a book-lover's dream. Because, hey, a real book-lover wants more books, yes? And what is more fabulous than being able to carry an entire library in your pocket?

not being able to read with half of one eye open and the rest of your face buried in a pillow.

This I do not understand. I have been doing just that with my e-reader over the past week. Much more easily than I would with a trade paperback or hardback, because they are so heavy, my arms get tired holding them up.

And your brain processes the information on a lit screen differently than when it is on a printed page.

True, but E-ink is really very impressive; it isn't a lit screen, really. I love how sharp E-ink is; so much sharper than a colour screen.

And the newer "glow" e-readers give you the best of both worlds, IMHO. Reading clearly in daylight like a book, and being able to read in the dark (by turning on the glow-light) without having to hold up a torch or turn on a bright light. I used this feature in my new e-reader only yesterday, when I and my nieces were visiting Scienceworks, and my feet had grown weary, so I sat down on a seat and read in the dark. Because we were in a section of the museum where everything was dimly lit, too dark to read a physical book without an external light source. I also find it useful for reading at the bus stop in winter when it's dark and I'm waiting for a bus. Or even reading on the bus itself, if it so happens that I get a bus driver who dislikes turning on all the lights.

Buying them for .25 at a garage sale.

True.

Reading an obscure story from the early 1900s that can't be found any other way.

Well... I've actually read more out-of-print books from Project Gutenberg than I have found physical copies of, so I feel it's more the opposite.

And then there's batteries (or lack thereof).

True. This is another reason why I would fight tooth and nail to prevent The Future; it makes me feel insecure for our access to knowledge to be completely dependent on electricity.

And the scent and feel of books.

This, I would not miss. But I would miss fabulous colourful book-covers.