So a few months back, I got my hands on a Sony Reader, compliments Gather's exceptional marketing team. I wrote a little review of the technology, concluding that it was a great concept, and a good first-gen e-book reader. Then, in response to O.G. chick-litter Margaret Atwood's claim that "ebooks cannot be read in the bathtub," I wrote this litte defense, which concluded that Ms. Atwood was painfully loaded with baloney. But since then -- even after I scientifically* proved that the Sony Reader was far superior to my trade paperback copy of The Crying of Lot 49 -- still more claims about the superiority of old-school paper books have flooded the comment chains herein. Here's a taste of actual Gatherer remarks:
- "Nothing can take the place of my books"
- "I don't think technology will ever replace the way I feel about my good old fashioned hard copy books."
- "There is something so nice about pages though and making notes in the margins..."
- "Nothing beats a (paper) book, a candle...and a long, soaking, bubble bath."
Now, I don't blame you if you're skeptical of technology -- some so-called "advances" just make life harder. The Blackberry? Please leave me alone. Musical shower knob? No, thanks, I'll take it to the bridge myself. Remote control lawn-mower? Um, I kinda like my toes the way they are. Doggy sex toys? But my calves will get so lonely!
Um, where was I? Right: digital books are on the rise, like it or not. Sales showed a month-to-month increase of 21% from May to June, and a staggering 65% CAGR from 2002-06 (while the industry itself lay almost flat). Also, it's a statistical fact that robots will some day take over the earth.*** Do you want to be the one who publicly trounced e-books when they come back -- self-aware -- with huge metal robot teeth, hungering for human flesh? Yeah, well, me neither.
So before you go making outlandish claims about how e-books will never replace your good-old-fashoined paper books, consider the following ridiculous, outlandish, and completely true** statements made throughout history about technology:
- Ipod? Right, like i'll ever want all my music on one device.
- Plumbing? Nay, I shall never desire to make number-two inside my cottage!
- Video games will never catch on, man. Kids LOVE exercise!
- Antiseptic? Please, it's nothing a little homemade vodka can't take care of.
- Sewing machine? But what of thine thimbles? Wilt thou wasteth them all?
- Shower? But if we don't bathe in the river, what will the leeches live off of? Think of the leeches!
- I dont't know what the big fuss is about this "refrigerator" -- won't you all miss the distinct flavour of dried, salted oxen testicles?
- Screw CDs -- all I need is my favorite Skynyrd eight-track and a bottle of Mad Dog 20/20. Pull!
- Anesthesia? Bit down on this, ya candy-ass.
- Laserdisc? Top Gun will never look better than this!
- Advil? What, you're too good for trepanning?
So, again, stop and think next time before hating on e-books. And, most importantly, think of the leeches.
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A few things to know about this article:
*no actual science was used to determine the Reader's durability in a tub. It was just me acting like a jackass.
**truth is subject to availability. See local listings for details.
***yeah, that's a lie, too. But it's not unlikely.****
****yes, it is. (maybe)
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Comments: 32
That's the best line. They can tear my sony reader from my dead bathtub wrinkled hands!
As a first gen I think it's fabulous, little kinks here and there, perhaps able to scribble in self thoughts or so, but as is it's great. Instead of carrying tons of books, you can have it all in the palm of your hands.
Not only that because of the cost efficiency of e-books so many stories that would not see the light of day at Borders or Barnes and Nobles will be able to get publish and read. And isn't that the whole put of writing? To be read?
Your follow up point of "the point of writing is to be read" is a tricky one. There has to be an economic basis for writing, otherwise you can't make a living at it and it will not happen.
I mean, it will not happen other than Gather- which has sort of an economic basis but not much of one. We do this because we love to have our say and because we love to waste time.
I would argue that eReaders will never "totally replace" books but they certainly will be a great technology that will in large part replace much of the functionality of books.
There is the wonderful tactile sensation of taking a great book deep into the wilds of Alaska, far from a recharger. There is also the pain-in-the-ass of having to lug 20 lbs of techno-babble on a long work trip. Each has its place.
Television never "replaced" radio but it did drive drama out of the radio studio.
As an aside, I also believe ebooks are shaping the print industry. How so? Well, in romance especially. Ellora's Cave was the first "big ebook publisher" to put their ebooks into print. It was when their hot hot books began selling like hotcakes that New York took notice. Now, you can't turn around without seeing some kind of "hot" or "erotic" romance nowadays, and let's start talking about paranormal romance, shall we?
Do you love your vamps and weres and shifters in your romance section? You have ebooks to thank for that, too. And big names in romance nowadays, Michelle Pillow, Mandy Roth, Sylvia Day, Lora Leigh, even Sherrilyn Kenyon got her start in ebooks.
Watch out, folks. We're gonna take over the world. :)
~~Becka
It's so much more comfortable to hold - particularly if you have a hard time waiting for the paperback - and especially when you're lying on a hammock, a comfy sofa or in bed.
I loved your article, Chris.
Readers want more of the exotic, which is why New York is taking notice and publishing more paranormal stuff these days, like angels, demons, vamps, werewolves, aliens... Guys who aren't the heroes of your mother's romance. :P
~~Becka
http://www.futureofthebook.org/blog/archives/2007/06/the_paper_ebook.html
I really hope my publisher never reads this post, since they have one and in a couple of months two books of mine on the market this way... as well as in hardcopy...
At this point in my life with probably over a 1000 books waiting to be read at home, I'll not be dealing with the first generation of this product. Ask me in 10 years or so...
One of the biggest book niches that I suspect e-books will literally take over is the Academic book markets. For students of every stripe, being able to carry ALL their 'books' in one tablet will be a huge selling point; and all they will have to do is download authenticated new ones at the begining of every quarter/semester from college servers.
I hope McGraw/Hill is on top of this.
I'm having a hard time seeing myself ever owning one. I have an expectation that e-books and laptops will crossover or merge into the 'tablet' PC; which would basically be a larger version of an IPhone.
Agreed...
And that is just the tip of the iceberg, as to where the egalitarian information age is heading...
Now there's a topic with some deep discussion potential. History has shown that broader disemination of informative materials betters the plight of every individual, as well as for the society as a whole. With high data storage capability and an AI assistant/teacher, an e-book could be a K-12 classroom in one box.
(:
The point is, free information exchange and storage for future use is what theoretically turned us from silly sweet/angry monkeys into where we now are. Well, the ape in us is still allowing folks to go to war real easy, but as information about that is exchanged readily, we might just see the foolishness of a lot of human behavior. And then we can head to the stars, where since the dawn of man, there has been a dream...
Biochip directly in the brain; Yup, someday Neuromancers will walk the earth. Now that I'm older, I'd probably wrestle with getting one, whereas when I was young I'd have jumped at the procedure.
.. a dream of a pastoral utopia where people live in the harmony of intelligent and humanitarian peace.
I call my version 'The Garden of Knowledge' (yeah, it's cheesey; I know).
www.outskirtspress.com/confessionsofacatholicschoolgirl
I have long been interested in the ereader, and am waiting for the next gen. While it is true that I adore the sensory appeals of real paper (I love the way old paper smells), a fully loaded ereader doesn't pose the same danger at the dozens of incredibly heavy boxes stacked in my garage.