Are Books Becoming Obsolete?
- Thread starter ReflectiveAcuity
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I think for the most part people have turned to online shopping for most anything these days. On the topic of books vs Ebooks, I feel it would be a sad day if/when we see that physical books would no longer be in circulation, but I find that hard to picture. From what I gather Ebooks are the cilantro of the literary world. I think it's pretty much 50/50, or close to it, in terms of people pro or against. I for one can not stand them. I have tried with a kindle that I received for christmas a couple years ago. My eyes couldn't fasten to the screen. I can't picture why, but it took something away from the experience for me. I wasn't able to envision the story for what it was worth. The magic was gone for me. There is something about a physical book that sucks me in while reading. That's just my own take on the subject.
That's a good point. I do favor paper reading as opposed to on screen. Putting tradition aside, a book is a truly organic object that you hold in your hands--touch, feel, sight even sound add to the senses. There seems to be a comfort, or reassuring quality about it, not found in electronic visuals which can seem superficial. I even wonder if there isn't something spiritual about a plain book that attracts me to it.
Books will never be obsolete but I wouldn't be surprised if print ends one day with the rise of ebooks and audio. We're in the generation of gadgets, phones, apps, and tablets where everyone has gravitated to not wanting to do anything if they can't access it through some device and I don't think that will change. I think it will get worse so I wouldn't be surprised if print died at least for fiction if not for all. Even the bible is in ebook form now.
Yeah...I don't want to be a crepe hanger or doom peddler, but print might take and even more significant dive. Books won't disappear--but the reading devices will continue to change rapidly, with more features and ease of operation--the consumer-reader is "technified" and industrialized.
What's happening in schools? I'm not privvy to the tech changes in schools--have they gone full-on to screens, or have they yet to make that full transition? I guess that depends upon individual budgets and such...
This started a 'Thought Dive' in my head. Specifically, about the Model T Ford.
Short version:
I'm of the opinion that books aren't going anywhere. Not really. I do believe that they'll soon be novelties sold over ebay, once we reach a point where it's no longer sustainable/reasonable/cost effective to produce them. By then, we'll have the text best thing in circulation.
Down The Hole version:
A Throw Back to Transportation highlights that Humanity, and our 'tech' comes about in phases. As one thing becomes useful, then so does another, and there comes a point where we've learned that you can put wheels on a horse by harnessing it to tow a buggy.
Sweet Mother of Ducks! WOW!
I ruminate over what history doesn't show us, or isn't-so-able to show us.
110 years ago, 1908, during the time where horses and buggies were still a common thing, there were people concerned about this thing called an 'automobile'. Surely, you can't keep those things running, and what if the world runs out of gasoline? What if I end up in a situation where I can't get gasoline? Doesn't matter. I can't afford one.
Pfh! I can feed my horse(s), and at least they'll keep me warm and be good company! ... Or food, in a pinch.
But, it's 1908, and Ford says that yes, you too can own this thing.
How do you think people who were accustomed to horse and buggy transportation reacted? Did they ever scoff and say 'Automobiles aren't going to replace buggies!'? If they did, they were right:
My Honda didn't replace their Clydesdale. Simply, the Buggy became a novelty, a luxury; it turned into a sorta-pricey means of having a good, romantic date. Meanwhile, the Automobile took the Buggy's commodity crown.
The same is happening with books. No, they will not go away, but they will retire in the wake of the Ebook's absurdly insignificant production cost, impact, and that they're easier to make compared to the modern Codex. Or Book. But the cool thing that I took from going down this hole, is that:
Come the time of an unknown generation, while they struggle to cope with the idea of the mattress-bed transitioning into obsolescence, anything in print, I'm guessing novels in particular, will be an antique of amazement.
Except what's happening is that trade published print books are increasing in sales and trade published ebooks are declining.
Audio book sales are increasing in trade, and self-published.
Ebooks dominate the self-publishing market; hugely so.
Audio book sales are increasing in trade, and self-published.
Ebooks dominate the self-publishing market; hugely so.
May I ask where you got the information on trade published ebooks on the decline? I'd like to read more on it. Thank you.
I haven't read all of the posts here, but I think books will make a resurgence. There seems to be more and more research and info on how screens affect our brains and how screen time should be limited for children (I've been seeing more digital detox camps popping up in my city as well). Books are better for the eyes than screens, so with time, people may turn back to books.
I want to add here that, for YA at least, a big draw for buying print books is the artwork on the covers. Plus, the whole zeitgeist of the experience... "unhauling" or unboxing the books... displaying them on shelves, carrying them in public, just sitting and holding them as you read. The whole experience seems to be sensual, or sensorial rather. It's quite a backlash from a few years ago when ebooks were the thing.
Since many of us are visually disabled, this is at best a specious argument.
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Click the link in the post. That's what it's there for.
I wear blueblockers (to reduce eyestrain). The active link is blue in my browser. No wonder I missed it. Thanks!
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this.
Actually, as I get older and have more trouble with small print, I like the fact that I can increase the font size with e-books.
You can change that in your Browser's settings, or by using a local CSS stylesheet.
I have a silly question as a follow-up. I do not want to detract from the OP (i.e. hijack the thread).
If I may ask....
If a book sells and the author planned a series. Would it be a bad idea to ask that the ebook not be released until two books after current, physical-book release (or two years after the physical book)? If this is not a bad thing, and publisher/agent agrees, it may help thwart ebook piracy and help the publisher/agent/author maximize revenues a little more.
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Okay, thank you. I just tried to change it in FireFox. Tools, Options, Fonts & Colors (Colors button). I changed to red; no dice. Still the blue text after a refresh. Regardless, not a big deal. I'll just pay attention better next time.
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Buried deep in the articles appearing in The Author's Earning Report was a whisper that paperbacks are making a comeback. It seems to be a small, but steady rise. I'd welcome this, totally.
I don't see how you would maximise revenues by losing a couple of years' worth of sales on your digital editions. Why not put them out as soon as possible and get as many sales as you can?
The Authors Earning Reports are horribly flawed. There have been several threads about them here, in which their analyses have been shown to be deeply flawed. I wouldn't rely on them for anything, tri. Note also that paperbacks don't have to make a comeback: their sales have always outranked other formats by a significant factor.
The Authors Earning Reports are horribly flawed. There have been several threads about them here, in which their analyses have been shown to be deeply flawed. I wouldn't rely on them for anything, tri. Note also that paperbacks don't have to make a comeback: their sales have always outranked other formats by a significant factor.[/QUOTE]
Thanks for letting me know. They were new to me when I ran across them. And I did miss any threads on them here. They sure did toot their own horn as the go-to end-all source for comparative analysis. I'll take your word over theirs any day. I'll agree that I haven't really seen proof of paper dive-bombing, and there are a lot of unreliable sources out there with the claim that pixels will overtake paper. Paper has been consistent and holding it's own as the lead format. You're never going to get an e-book on the shelf of a brick & mortar store.
Thanks for letting me know. They were new to me when I ran across them. And I did miss any threads on them here. They sure did toot their own horn as the go-to end-all source for comparative analysis. I'll take your word over theirs any day. I'll agree that I haven't really seen proof of paper dive-bombing, and there are a lot of unreliable sources out there with the claim that pixels will overtake paper. Paper has been consistent and holding it's own as the lead format. You're never going to get an e-book on the shelf of a brick & mortar store.
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I have not read this post entirely, so apologies if I'm just repeating things.
At the start of this post, it looked as if books were on the way out. Five years later, in the UK, that is definitely not true. The digital book has its place but paper books are still the preferred option. Overall the total number of books published are not high as years ago but sales of paper books are greater than digital and increasing. So the answer is no.
At the start of this post, it looked as if books were on the way out. Five years later, in the UK, that is definitely not true. The digital book has its place but paper books are still the preferred option. Overall the total number of books published are not high as years ago but sales of paper books are greater than digital and increasing. So the answer is no.
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I've recently gone back to paperbacks. It started with a kind of new year's resolution to stop buying books from Amazon (I don't like that they are, in my opinion, trying to create a monopoly over publishing). I couldn't find another site that had anywhere near the same convenience for buying eBooks, especially Kindle-compatible.. hello monopoly.
So I started buying paperbacks from Waterstones.com - the UK equivalent of B&N or Powells in US/CA. Shipping is free and the books arrive within three days. There's a loyalty card which essentially gives me 10% back from my purchases.
And there's just something about a paperback that I'd forgotten when I switched over to an ereader. I'm reading far more than I was, and I don't miss the backlight or any of the other features of my Kindle.
I had my first story published last year and it came out in digital only (a 20k novella). I was pleased, but I didn't feel much when I opened my Kindle and saw it there. I know I'm going to feel very differently next year when my first paperback hits the shelves.
I never thought I would go back to paper, but I'm so glad I have.
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I've recently gone back to paperbacks. It started with a kind of new year's resolution to stop buying books from Amazon (I don't like that they are, in my opinion, trying to create a monopoly over publishing). I couldn't find another site that had anywhere near the same convenience for buying eBooks, especially Kindle-compatible.. hello monopoly.
I'm glad somebody else has the courage to say this.
I've bought every one of my books in paper and, or hardback, just to make sure I have a copies in reserve. I get too reckless in giving away my free contributor copies. I call my collection my legacy library. I've also started to buy more paperbacks from my fave local authors. I'm switching over to some other retailers, keeping my Amazon purchases to a minimum.
I'm glad somebody else has the courage to say this.
I've bought every one of my books in paper and, or hardback, just to make sure I have a copies in reserve. I get too reckless in giving away my free contributor copies. I call my collection my legacy library. I've also started to buy more paperbacks from my fave local authors. I'm switching over to some other retailers, keeping my Amazon purchases to a minimum.
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I don't think so, though I do always worry that physical book stores will soon be a thing of the past, especially with Amazon.
I know so many people who just buy their books on Amazon instead of say, Waterstones, because of rising prices. So while I don't think they'll ever be obsolete, I think they could be less in demand in comparison to e-books in the future.
I know so many people who just buy their books on Amazon instead of say, Waterstones, because of rising prices. So while I don't think they'll ever be obsolete, I think they could be less in demand in comparison to e-books in the future.
I think that physical, local book stores will hold up in cities as time goes on. Whenever I go to the local book nooks, there tend to be a good number of people inside, even on weekdays.
The death of print periodicals worries me more. Print periodicals have a consistent format that hasn't carried over well into websites.
The death of print periodicals worries me more. Print periodicals have a consistent format that hasn't carried over well into websites.
One big reason I like paper books is that it gives me a break from looking at a screen. Between the computers/TV/phone I look at screens what feels like all day. I'm sure many others feel the same. Looking at something in paper is a nice change. There are other benefits to paper books such as they are easy to flip through, you can mark it up with a pen/highlighter, and what not (though I assume technology will change this eventually). The biggest perk of ebooks to me is the room. I can get hundreds of ebooks in one little tablet and carry them all around without trouble. I donated eight print books to the library the other day and nearly needed a bag to carry them.
Audio books are great and probably my favorite because I can multitask. Listen while driving, doing things around the house, ect. The downside is that you can't mark specific spots you want to go back over sometime and you can't really skim them very well.
Every book form has it's pros and cons. In the end the marketplace will decide.