Will Books Ever Go The Way of All Flesh?

[M.D. Holloway]

I love books. I turn my library every several years depending on what project I am on and in any given time have several hundred. I literally get goose bumps and feel like peeing when I enter a book store or library. I guess I am a class A nerd. I will sit at my library table late at night and just read what ever catches my eye. I find it more personal and rewarding than the Internet.

Seems like I am seeing more folks with IPads and Kindles - I hope books do not fade away into obscurity. What do you think? Is the printed page going the way of the type writer, the offset press, the Dodo?

[TechnoViking]

I believe that someday people will think that killing a tree to write something down is about as silly as writing on a cave wall.

It will take generations, though for paper books to become completely obsolete. So not in your lifetime

[gtc]

Very soon they will be no more than a novelty, owned by the Gatsbys and Vronskys.

[Rot 911]

I love actually holding the books in my hand. I go to the library, but amazon.com sells me a lot of used books every year.

[fred cook]

I also have an affinity for books. I have a set of the original Tom Swift books that were published from about 1910 thru 1940. The hundred year old ones are starting to get pretty fragile. However, I also have some 145 - 150 year old newspapers from the time of the American Civil war that are holding up quite well! I guess it depends on the quality of the paper that was used.

[vash]

i have a good friend..larry. every single time he walks into a bookstore or library..he has to take a dump. he said, he thinks it is the smell of the paper;.

true story.

[scottmandue]

I love books too...

No, I don't think they will ever disappear.

As the price comes down on the electronic "books" they will become more popular (I want one but not going to pay +$300)

I think paper will always be around, if nothing else for the novelty.

[M.D. Holloway]

Could be association but I get the same when I go into my garage to make or fix something - I guess it all has to do with primal creation. As infants about the best thing we could build was a healthy dump. If you did that in the pot before you were 1 years old you were met with wild applause. Because I write for a living and it is also a passion the sight of a book is my form of creation I guess...

[futuresoptions]

They're the new vinyl ya know.....

[ckissick]

I love holding a book in my hands. I will never get a Kindle.

As a book lover, you should read, "The Man Who Loved Books Too Much". It's a true story about a guy who stole rare books, and the book sleuth who spent years trying to catch him.

[VINMAN]

Originally Posted by ckissick

I love holding a book in my hands. I will never get a Kindle.
.

Ditto. I tried one of those things. just dont cut it.

[scottmandue]

Originally Posted by futuresoptions

They're the new vinyl ya know.....

That reminds me...

Take note that they are still printing vinyl records, selling record players, and many are listening to them on tube amplifiers!

[Jagshund]

I love books; I barely even use a phone so I don't see an eReader in my future. Besides, how am I going to impress da womens with my intellectual capacity if they can't figure out what book I'm pretending to read in the coffee shop?

[widgeon13]

Originally Posted by TechnoViking

I believe that someday people will think that killing a tree to write something down is about as silly as writing on a cave wall.

It will take generations, though for paper books to become completely obsolete. So not in your lifetime

If you don't cut them down they will die and fall down eventually or burn down or whatever but trees are a renewable resource and within certain managed harvesting parameters, should be cut down. I'm not an advocate of clear-cutting but selective harvesting is a beneficial strategy for managing and maintaining a productive forest.

Paper making is a relatively energy intensive industry but I believe in the future there will be breakthroughs that will make it much more energy efficient.

[jyl]

Books are more functional in some cases. Easier to stuff a paperback in your jacket than an ebook, and it doesn't need batteries.

Books are also more decorative and browsing a shelf of books is a different experience than clicking on a series of files

95% of books ever published are out of print, so there is a huge amount of content not easily available on ebook

But ebook readers are cool too, and I think the ideal would be to have both.

Well, after they improve the experience. Still not where they need to be

[id10t]

Electronic makes it easy to store and access, and take with you.

There was a posting on slashdot a few weeks back about e-books having significantly higher sales rates than paper copies.

[Evans, Marv]

I like my books too. My favorite is an old 4 volume set of "How Things Work." But all things change with time, just as people began to take books for granted after the invention of the printing press, future generations will be accustomed to the electronic media and books will be a curiosity of the old times. Besides look at what we have now and think of the future when they will probably go holographic and maybe other things not even thought of yet.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by vash

i have a good friend..larry. every single time he walks into a bookstore or library..he has to take a dump. he said, he thinks it is the smell of the paper;.

true story.

That's good stuff!

I stare at a computer all day, nothing replaces a printed book or magazine. Amazon just reported that they now sell more ebooks than real ones, so the change is coming......

[Head416]

The transition from paper books to eBooks makes sense... just like newer, more fuel-efficient cars make sense, just like taking public transportation and not having a car makes sense in major cities.

But I like my old car. And I like my books made out of paper. That's why I don't think books will ever go away. Just like old cars and vinyl records. Their maket share will diminish, but they'll still be around. Same with magazines.

[wdfifteen]

Kindle is OK. It has its advantages, but it's not the same experience as a real paper book. Books may become less popular, but I don't think they'll ever disappear.