(in no particular order)
1. Newspapers -
Don't get me wrong, I think there will always be the reporting of news and newspapers, but I think their current mode of delivery - the "paper" newspaper - is dead. It's not time efficient, as you get your news from cable or the internet right when it happens versus getting it from your newspaper sometimes the next day. Hopefully the Amazon Kindle will help revive newspapers, but just do a Google search on them and you'll see the dismal state of the business. Senator John Kerry summed it up best recently when he said, "Today, newspapers look like an endangered species." I think it's beyond that, in fact, I think the fork is already in 'em.
2. Cash/Currency -
The only thing I use cash for now is to plunk quarters into the machines at my local car wash. Other than that, I use my debit and/or credit cards to pay for stuff. It's safer, easier, and if you think I'm kidding here just take note of the fact that lots of the fast food joints are having card readers installed right into their drive-throughs. And, as our fast food joints go, so will go the rest of the nation. Just watch.
3. Paper or Clothbound Books -
Thank God there will always be books, but they're going to follow the same road the newspapers are currently traveling. The book publishing business model has always been inefficient - a publisher buys the rights to a manuscript, assigns editors and cover artists, and then stacks the books up in a warehouse and hopes to God that lightening will strike and the books will sell. Mostly they don't, but the few "hits" that occur provide them the revenues to keep going. The conversion to digital, in my opinion, will help more writers get their works out and will be easier on the trees as well. I fully support it.
4. John Edwards -
Let's see, you have an affair, birth a kid with your mistress, and then your current wife writes a book about it which she's shilling on all the major networks and cable outlets. Classy. He's more done than a Krystal cheeseburger.
5. U.S. Car Companies -
They were already dinosaurs, and all the king's money and all the king's men won't be able to put them back together again. Take a drive out on any major highway system and watch what passes by you, that should tell you all you need to know.
(Not that it matters, but here's a bonus one for y'all) - Taylor Hicks and Ruben Studdard -
Actually, we said goodbye to them both after their respective American Idol seasons ended, talk about two guys who didn't do squat afterwards! How did Chris Daughtry and Kelli Pickler lose, yet these guys win?
So, whatcha think? Am I right? Are there any I should've mentioned?
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Comments: 102
Blessings and best wishes - S.
Svetlana as a fellow librarian I wholeheartedly agree to you. I hope the traditional paper books will never die out. Its sooooo tiring to read the stuff on the screen and its not as much fun as having a real book.
hi from that old fashioned Bookworm to you.
Your comment was great, and I'm very impressed you're a librarian!
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I just saw Taylor Hicks perform the other day on Idol and a couple of other nationally syndicated morning shows where he spoke of his new album. As for Ruben Studdard? Who knows? Supposedly he released an album early on after Idol too.
Great comments, and Sandra, it is sad!
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I do use plastic rather than cash for many purchases.
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1. Newspapers, we only have one and its such a one sided rag, I wouldn't subscribe if there was another. But when the newspaper is gone, what will I use to wash windows or housebreak my next puppy?
2. Cash, I mostly use a debit card. I went to pay a co-pay at the lab the other day, they didn't take cash or debit card, credit card only. What's wrong with this picture.
3. Books - that's a crying shame. I love my books, I take a book everywhere I go. I go to the library at least every 2 weeks and borrow a large bagful. Also at my work at the museum, we have a very large archive of historical documents and books. How will this era be preserved? Sometimes the actual physical document is required.
4. John Edwards - is a pig.
5. US Car companies - that's just wrong. Look at how this country grew with the Industrial Revolution. Way back when, Henry Ford was the largest employer and took care of his employees. By our greed, now business are outsourced which in the long run is biting us in the backside.
I've heard the names of Ruben and Taylor, but I don't watch Idol. Isn't Ruben a sandwich? ;)
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I personally like the feelof the pagesbetween my fingers. The thought of reading a "screen" and "srolling" through the story just makes my head hurt. Thank God I have the books I have now.
If we ever turn into a Fairenhiet 451 society... shoot me.
Great comments, everyone!
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As for cash, I hope that's not true as I don't have a debit/credit card. Books going out, yes, I think its inevitable if we continue on the current path, but it's still a long ways off and will happen very slowly.
Very good comments, thanks so much to all!
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1. Newspapers have been going down for a long time. I think their decline has paralleled the decline of investigative journalism. We now get a newspaper for the coupons, many times, rather than for the content. When stores start more universally accepting computer-printed coupons, that use will go away. It is sad, because it is sometimes hard to separate the reporting from the persective on the Web.
2. Cash will go away at some point -- but I think checques will go away sooner. Online billpay, auto-deduction, and credit/debit cards will see to that.
3. Books provide something tangible that online media (even with a Kindle or Sony e-book reader) cannot provide. There is something about sticking a finger in a page and closing it slightly to ponder what has been read. Electronic forms will grow, of course, but as long as people love to read, I think the printed book form will have strong representation among those tomes worth reading again.
4. John Edwards can be a "peoples advocate", but he won't be president in the US -- maybe Italy?
5. US Car companies and other US corporations are being hit by US greed. Unless that is stemmed, the US will be a "service" society only ... and that could spark its demise.
To Ruben and Taylor, they may or may not continue ... but Cowell won't be representing them.
Hmmm, things are changing.
[Where are you at? Where youāre at? He wonāt tell me where heās at.]
There are many other examples yet; I have no ability to construct bad English grammar. I fear not rappers but teachers and public figures misusing āAtā.
Books--I love to collect books yet, the Kindle is a great carry around resource and library of selected reads and access to what is new. A Kindle will not suffer from faded pages caused by a variety of mishaps, the toddlers cannot crayon the pages and it travels well--at the doctorās office I was able to choose and download a new book and get through three chapters before being called (my orthopedist is usually several hours behind). I have defended the Kindle several times in varied venues and basically, a Kindle is not for collectables and the leather-bound it is for casual reading and a personal library which occupies no space in the square footage of your home.
Ed, I think you may have opened a long debate in a fun thread. Well done!
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Great comments, and Walker, you definitely touch a lot of buttons with your comment, lots of pro and con about POD out there - thanks!
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I also agree with Debra's earlier comment. There's just something about actually having a book in your hand. A worn cover showing that someone loved this book and read it a lot, the texture of the pages, the smell and the history behind a really old book.
On a personal side, my Great Aunt wrote two books rather late in life. The first was about her experience as a cook in a logging camp in the early 1920s. The second was little stories about her life in general. She was an amazing woman. She lived in log cabin in the middle of nowhere that she and her husband built themselves. They didn't have electricity or running water till the late 70s and she did that rather grudgingly. Knowing who she was at heart, I don't think she would have wanted to see her two little books as e-books.
everything getting digital is the way a the future i guess. i still like to curl up with a good book. thanks for your interesting post.
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Thank you for posting to sparealine.gather.com
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I can tell you why Ruben and Taylor won AI. Talent did it for them, but with what passes for music now that doesn't always translate into sales. But sales aren't as bad as what the perception of them is and I don't understand why those two always get picked out to be picked on. Must mean they have not been forgotten.
But one thing Taylor has going for him, he has a smaller but devoted fan base, that spend a lot on him , traveling to see him. He fills the seats in his Broadway show which is why they were able to go on the road. People have came from Finland, Israel, Italy, Japan and all over the states just to see him. He is one of the busiest and hardest working idols around. Don't think he or Ruben will disappear.
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Many people envision digital media as lugging around a laptop or sitting at your desktop. There are devises, and will be more devises that will be no larger than your typical paperback. Not only the same size, but lighter in most cases.
So pro's of digital: 1. Same size 2. Lighter
Also, with WiFi, you have the pro of being able to get books anywhere that you are. Got a long commute to work on a bus/train? Whip out your device from your purse/briefcase and download a new book and start reading.
Another pro is you can change font size. Not only is this a pro for the readers, but a pro for publishers as they don't need to worry about the extra cost of large text books.
There is also the savings of not needing all the machines to print books, bind books, no covers, no paper, no waste of books not selling and sitting around forever.
How about books never going out of print? Feasibly going all digital would mean that books would never have to be "shelved" (sorry pun really not intended).
Then of course you've got the "Green" aspects of books going digital.
While I personally hate trying to read off my computer screen, and I love, love, love my books, and am sad that my collection isn't what I'd like it to be, the "benefits" of digital may someday outweigh the benefits of paper books.
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As far as American Idol is concerned I could care less with the exception of Jennifer Hudson. Who I would have never known about if it weren't for the movie Dream Girls.
As for books I can foresee them only making the bestsellers in paper form. At least for a while.
Nancy Pelosi is trying for his spot.
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I don't know why, but I have a lot of trouble focusing on text on a computer screen. My mind wanders. I find myself reading the same sentence many times over. This doesn't happen to me with paper books.
Great comments,
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My daily San Antonio newspaper which has cut its size and coverage, is now $249 a year, and I can get the same news on the internet.
Although I do carry some cash..not much, I do use my debit card more than anything. I still like writing my checks to pay my bills since I just don't trust to do it online just yet, but I'm getting there too. Maybe I will be modernized yet...
I'm very nostalgic about books. Ever since I read The Northwest Passage as a little boy, I have loved books. I continue to decide whether or not I want to have a conversation with a person based on a response to the "What book are you reading lately?" question. I haven't stopped buying books. But, the college I teach at is encouraging us to teach with e-books. We were all enrolled in an e-textbook survey site to evaluate the effectiveness of them. I like them and can see that it will (or should) save students money and provide effective reading activities for our students. I've been asked to teach Introduction to Sociology in the fall with an e-book. So, around January, I'll let you know what I think. (The first plus that comes to mind is that students can attach the e-book to an e-mail and will never have to worry about losing the book.)
I will hate to see the printed book go, as I always carry the current read around with me and reading digitally or from the Internet is not always practical (for me, anyway)
I love my books and my son is a newspaper junkie...........hopefully between the two of us we can keep those two alive and well. ;-)
Go back and add Thomas's list to yours, they are also true; more's the pity.
I respectfully disagree with you about books. There's nothing like holding that book in one's hand. I think libraries may be the thing that will keep books alive. I know many people who are going to the library when they used to buy the books.
Great post and conversation starter.
And the ultra-right dolts of talk radio cheer them on. "Kill th' Unions!" "More for th' rich!" "They'll give you all jobs, if you'll just cut their taxes!" They want to talk about Banana Republics in reference to the new administration's policies? By the time they're done, we'll be lucky if we can afford to by the products of banana republics.
Thanks again!
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A shame about the auto industry, but for different reasons.
I only use cash or my debit for purchases. (don't do the credit rating game)
I have my coffee in front of the computer screen every morning. I narrowly read books anymore. I went from daily to about twice a year.
Magazines? I buy none, and those I get ahold of, I scan quickly for what is interesting, and read that more indepth. If it was interesting I go to the internet to look up more on the topic.
Pay all bills online, or at the place of business.
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I think Kellie P. is adorable. She's done well for herself since AI. That said, all you have to do is go and watch her last 2 performances on AI to see why she lost. It was past time for her to go. I'm glad she's found her niche in country music. I really like some of her songs.
Chris Daughtry, to me, was terribly boring. I don't like the dreary music that he sings. He also seemed to think he already had the contest won toward the end. That's why he lost. Elliott, Kat and Taylor were a lot more fun to watch, and they can all sing every bit as well, if not better than Daughtry. Go count his 4.5 million albums and be satisfied.
Taylor may end up being the biggest surprise of all. He may not sell 11 million albums, like Vanilla Ice did, but he is very successful. I think he'll end up not only as a performer, but he seems to have an acute business sense. I think he'll have lots of success in that part of show business, too.
So why diss Ruben. He is also very talented. Two of my friends went to see him in Ain't Misbehavin'. They said he was great. I wish I could have gone, too. Don't count this man out so quickly. I think there's a lot more to all of them than most people want to give them credit for. Don't be so mean.
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I disagree with you about VHS and cassette tapes. DVDs and CDs are much more convenient and more reliable. Having said that, I continue to play my old LPs on a turntable. It is getting more difficult to replace the needles, but they are what I have. I know that I should at least burn these recordings into CDs or even in a harddrive, but I never get around to it. I still have a few 8-tracks and a player, as well. The current technology is much easier to use, however. I often wonder what we will be doing in ten years. My ten year old nephew has everything on his iPod. He is a music enthusiast even at his tender age. I haven't quite bought into the iPod craze at this point. Now, if I could take step to replace my Motorola cell phone. It is becoming a bit of an embarrassment when I get a call and people stare at it as if they have never seen one before. I should upgrade, I suppose. About five years ago, I had to show one of my students how to use a dial phone. The entire class was so impressed with my knowledge about it. I just laughed. It was a class of fourteen year old students. One of them remarked on the first day that I might be too old to teach them (I'm 55. Does anyone have a problem with that? Would you like to step outside and say that?
Also want to thank everyone who read this - it looks like it's going to end up being my most read Gather article to date, and I really appreciate that. It's so good to write something and get so many varied and interesting responses. It humbles me every time I see it.
Thanks again!
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I see what you're saying though =( But I love the feel of my paperbound books, love the thrill of opening them and scrunching into the sofa for a good, tactile read.