Digital vs Traditional Print: This time it's personal.

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Espy

Espy

Piotyr

Piotyr

I'm actually personally and professionally interested in how this will affect another branch of traditional print: the library. Are libraries obsolete? Should we convert libraries to quiet sitting rooms of downloadable electronic media and WiFi?

We actually spent this past summer migrating our IT department and public computer lab space into our library, cutting into the bookshelf space by about 1/3. Next summer this building is up for renovation, and we're wondering just how far we should take this.
 
GasBandit

GasBandit

Staff member
I do prefer digital books, so long as there aren't REMOTE CONTROL SELF DESTRUCT ALGORITHMS in them. But for me, the main reason is ease of portability and storage. They take up less shelves.
 
M

makare

I like holding books and magazines in my hands also I read in the bath and I don't want to drop an electronic in the tub.
 
BananaHands

BananaHands

Staff member
As weird as this sounds, I always feel more fulfilled after reading from an actual book than off a nook.

Traditional big book stores are on their way out. I'd rather order a book from amazon or download something on to my nook than having to track down someone working at Barnes and Noble, only to find that the book isn't there.
 
Azurephoenix

Azurephoenix

I still prefer the feel of a book (something about the tactile nature pleases me) but they do end up taking up a lot of space. I currently have a combination of digital books and real books and I like it just fine.
 
M

makare

I love the way bookshelves look crowded with books. I even like my room with the full shelves and the piles of books lying around because I don't have enough shelves for them. There is always enough space for books if you like having them lying around.
 
Chad Sexington

Chad Sexington

I'm torn, because the efficient me wants to convert entirely. I hate clutter, I try not to own much 'stuff' (though I still have too much 'stuff'), and I suppose it would save me some money (maybe even a lot of money). But the sentimental me just loves holding a book. There's something about the texture, even the 'smell' of a book that can't be replaced.
 
M

makare

Chad Sexington said:
I'm torn, because the efficient me wants to convert entirely. I hate clutter, I try not to own much 'stuff' (though I still have too much 'stuff'), and I suppose it would save me some money (maybe even a lot of money). But the sentimental me just loves holding a book. There's something about the texture, even the 'smell' of a book that can't be replaced.
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I liked that because I love the smell of books not because I hate clutter. I love clutter.
 
Chad Sexington

Chad Sexington

BananaHands said:
As weird as this sounds, I always feel more fulfilled after reading from an actual book than off a nook.
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I didn't think about this. Closing a book is like an achievement, there's this lovely that release that comes with finishing it. Plus you can bear witness to your triumph: look at those hundreds, thousands! of pages you've conquered.
 
BananaHands

BananaHands

Staff member
Also, used book stores are great. I love getting a book and seeing that the previous owner scribbled little notes/thoughts in the margin.
 
Shegokigo

Shegokigo

I love books, I love my bookshelves cluttered with my collection of manga and novels..... that being said, I wish I had been born 50yrs into the future when all media is just read on a piece of tech so that I didn't have any of these attachments. Reading in the bathtub? No problem, have a tech holder that fits on both sides of the tub and holds the tech in the perfect spot over your face. I for one would kill for something like that when I'm trying to read in bed.

First I'm lying on my back, holding my book up. My arms get tired. I switch to lying on my stomach and having the book flat on the bed. My elbows/arms get tired. I switch to my side. Same deal. It's ridiculously annoying to be shifting all over the place just to read. If I could lie on my back, and have some kind of tech holder, hold the tech I'm reading off of at the right height above me? I'd probably read 10x more.
 
Shegokigo

Shegokigo

Because you're used to it. So do I. Hence why I said I wished I had been born in a time that was past that, so that the attachment wouldn't be there.
 
MindDetective

MindDetective

I want to make my classroom paperless and my bookshelf paperless. It won't be overnight but it is my long term hope. I seem to move every few years and am expecting to move again in 2 or 3 years. Books are damn heavy, they can take up a lot of space, and after I have read them once, they are basically decoration (99.99% of them, anyway). To me, books are information, and that can be stored digitally. I just checked out from my library my first digital book. Next I will be trying an audio book. The selection for digital checkouts is not fantastic and it rather difficult to just browse like I can with physical books, but I can definitely see the potential. To be honest, there is only one thing that bothers me about going all digital: What will we leave behind for people to discover if everything is digital?
 
GasBandit

GasBandit

Staff member
My father's house has two rooms in the basement that the previous owner had made into bedrooms for his teenaged sons, so that their loud music would not disturb him in the master bedroom on the second floor. These two rooms are now referred to as the "fiction dungeon" and "nonfiction dungeon." two bedrooms entirely lined/aisled with bookshelves, filled with books. Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of books. I'll have to ask him how he'd feel about having all that in electronic format instead of hard copy... it might be an interesting answer.

The main room is full of shelves and shelves of VHS tapes that required a half-inch-thick database printout, but that's another story.
 
B

Biannoshufu

Digital, mostly, with the treasured hardbacks still taking up space on my shelves. When I no longer need to read them, I gift them to a friend. I think there is still a strong place for the smaller independent bookstores, that are also coffee clatch havens and not just bookshelf warehouses.
 
figmentPez

figmentPez

Staff member
eBooks? Call me back when electronic paper has a color version that looks as good as as a modern comic book, and costs as much as B&W readers do now.
 
fade

fade

Staff member
MindDetective said:
I want to make my classroom paperless and my bookshelf paperless. It won't be overnight but it is my long term hope. I seem to move every few years and am expecting to move again in 2 or 3 years. Books are damn heavy, they can take up a lot of space, and after I have read them once, they are basically decoration (99.99% of them, anyway). To me, books are information, and that can be stored digitally. I just checked out from my library my first digital book. Next I will be trying an audio book. The selection for digital checkouts is not fantastic and it rather difficult to just browse like I can with physical books, but I can definitely see the potential. To be honest, there is only one thing that bothers me about going all digital: What will we leave behind for people to discover if everything is digital?
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I like digital for scientific articles. They were a pain to store and index before pdfs became so commonplace. But I prefer my books as books. Books in my office tend to serve as references, and I can access them more easily in paper form.

As far as discovery goes, I ask this question every time someone tells me they've dropped cable. The primary thing keeping me from dropping cable and going full broadband is the randomness and potential for discovery in traditional programming. Deciding on shows and then directly accessing them feels isolated or closed to me. I agree with you. I would feel the same for books.
 
Shegokigo

Shegokigo

Oh no doubt that I still prefer graphic novels on paper, but straight black and white print? I'd take digital on a big tablet any day.
 
MindDetective

MindDetective

figmentPez said:
eBooks? Call me back when electronic paper has a color version that looks as good as as a modern comic book, and costs as much as B&W readers do now.
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It'll get here, probably in about 10 years. The faded color ones are just a start. More important than the color is the speed. The refresh rate on e-ink is awful. They are working on that too, though.
 
MindDetective

MindDetective

fade said:
I like digital for scientific articles. They were a pain to store and index before pdfs became so commonplace. But I prefer my books as books. Books in my office tend to serve as references, and I can access them more easily in paper form.

As far as discovery goes, I ask this question every time someone tells me they've dropped cable. The primary thing keeping me from dropping cable and going full broadband is the randomness and potential for discovery in traditional programming. Deciding on shows and then directly accessing them feels isolated or closed to me. I agree with you. I would feel the same for books.
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Actually, we did this with our recent move. With Netflix and Hulu (among other things) we find there are lots of new things to watch. It is more directed, I'll give you that. We do browse, though, and try out new things. But we tend to latch on to a new TV show and watch it obsessively rather than tune in every week. The current obsession: Mad Men.
 
B

Biannoshufu

MindDetective said:
Actually, we did this with our recent move. With Netflix and Hulu (among other things) we find there are lots of new things to watch. It is more directed, I'll give you that. We do browse, though, and try out new things. But we tend to latch on to a new TV show and watch it obsessively rather than tune in every week. The current obsession: Mad Men.
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having cut cable years ago I just discovered breaking bad on Netflix. oh my gods yes.

sorry to derail.
 
Shegokigo

Shegokigo

I honestly haven't had access to television stations in years. If there's a show that interests me, I'll check it out online then purchase the season on DVD/BluRay if I enjoyed it that much. I don't like not having the option to stop and continue at my leisure and while I know there's options like that these days for TV, I really don't see the need.
 
Ravenpoe

Ravenpoe

I'm an avid reader. I can't remember the last time I bought a physical book that wasn't a graphic novel, but I've got a shitload of ebooks.
 
ThatNickGuy

ThatNickGuy

Like everyone else, I still prefer the feel of a book in my hands. I love seeing it on the shelf. I love the smell of both brand new books and used books (God, I love the smell of a used bookstore!). Plus, paper doesn't run out of batteries. :D

That said, I like the idea of things like the Kindle. I've played with them a bit in stores and think they have potential. If I were going on a long trip, where I'd go through a couple of books, I think bringing a Kindle instead might be more doable. I love my books and couldn't dare part with most, but I've done a lot of moving in the last few years. And they are a total pain to pack, unpack and move around.

Comics, I've yet to make the digital jump. I can't even download comics due to conscience and just not having the same focus or enjoyment. My biggest beef, honestly (which goes the same for novels), is that they keep charging the same price for digital as they do print. For example, I was all set and ready to buy the new Action Comics #1...until I saw it was $3.99. Screw that noise.

Literature aside, I think a lot of other mediums are moving to pure digital. Music is almost primarily digital, now. Movies are gradually moving to digital. Games are, as well. PC games, for example, are pretty much dealt digitally, now, thnaks to Steam, PSN and XBox Live. And I think in all those examples, it's fine because those mediums have always been viewed through a screen (or stereo/headphones for music). It's not hard to see that jump.

Books, though? Books still have that classic feel. I could see print production drop in favour of digital, but I don't see it going the way of the dodo.

Whew. I ranted a bit much on that. Sorry.
 
Ravenpoe

Ravenpoe

[quote="ThatNickGuy] paper doesn't run out of batteries. :D

[/quote]

True, but with the wifi off, my kindle lasts about three weeks on a single charge.
 
Shakey

Shakey

I only use my Kindle for books I can get for free through Project Gutenberg. I have a hard time buying an e-book for $12 when I can get a used hardcover for $4.
 
Shannow

Shannow

Staff member
Digital. I used to like having all my books, and kept them throguh the years...then I realized...the pain in the ass of having all that space taken. Moving them, finding places for them, etc.

Same with comics. So much easier having them all digitally in a small space. Also, I have no problem reading them on a laptop/pc screen. been doign that for almost a decade now. Conscience/legality aside, I find it so much better and convient. And shit, the best thing for that has been my smart phone. I can easily read the weeks releases, old archives, anything right there, and I have gigs of em on there, for easy read when I am in a line, on the shitter, on a trip, etc.

edit:

I've found that bottom-line, a book's importance to me is what's written within it. I find that I'm less concerned with how that information makes its way into my brain.
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This. This right fucking here.
 
Denbrought

Denbrought

I'm mostly digital, because it's hard to get a book collection when all your belongings have to fit in a college-room-sized space. Overall ebooks have made my life much easier, but I don't actively campaign for turning printed books into a niche market.
 
C

Chibibar

We have OVER 3 Billy bookshelves (with extended shelves to make it 6 rows) of manga/books PLUS another 5 bookshelves (Walmart type) of paperback books.

we have over 200 digital books (mostly free) and around 20 or so digital purchase (which I have the actual book also)

I think there are times where a good ol solid book is NICE to use and read when you are at home, but I do love to read ebook when I'm on the road.
 
Shegokigo

Shegokigo

I'm seriously considering liquidating my manga collection but no idea what it'd even be worth at this point.

That said, I still bought the two newest Warcraft novels on Hardback. Mostly because I don't have a good tablet yet.
 
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