It seemed like such a good idea in 1999 with the launch of the first e-book reader, the Franklin EBookMan. E-books were predicted to not only revolutionize the publishing industry, but help save a lot of trees. Storage space would also be saved by carting around entire personal libraries in a pocket-sized bright shiny toy. Yet do you know anyone who actually uses an e-book reader?
The mighty Amazon.com is banking on e-book readers becoming the next iPod, despite the over $300 price tag on its incredibly hyped Kindle. Although considered the most advanced of e-books with the ability for users to insert comments on what they read (bringing out both our inner critics and graffiti artists), experts and everyday folk are predicting that the Kindle will dwindle.
Why has the public ignored e-book readers? Because they aren't books.
What Is It With Books, Anyway?
People love books and not just the idea of reading. Books are familiar friends, smell nice and don't need to be plugged in. Also, books have other uses like being paperweights, doorstops and (if large enough) self-defense weapons. If you drop a book, it's okay. If you drop an e-book reader, you're out of luck and things to read.
E-book readers have been plagued with glitches over the years. For example, the Sony Reader was chided by Writer's Digest in a February 2007 review for flashing in between pages. Also, the Sony Reader could only be hooked up to a PC and not a Mac. You have to connect it to Sony's e-book website in order to download your books. This seriously restricts your reading options.
But the most significant feature about e-book readers is that they are far more stressful for the eyes than book pages. If you are like this writer, you get migraines and have to limit your time looking at the computer screen in case you trigger one. With over 36 million migraineurs living in America alone, that's a lot of readers who are highly suspicious of e-book readers.
What Can We Do, Now?
Clearly, even the Kindle, hyped as being the easiest e-book reader on the eyes, still has big design challenges ahead in order to have it put even a small dent into the book market. But until that day comes, we are happily stuck with books. Since we're not shifting to e-books very quickly, we need to make the books as e-fficiently as possible.
- Books can be recycled in several ways - regifting, book swapping or being placed in paper recycling facilities.
- Make new books from recycled paper. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows by JK Rowling made many firsts when it was released last year, one of which was that it was the first major hardback to be made of "30% post-consumer recycled fiber".
- Paper can be made from materials other than wood pulp. It can also be made from old clothing, such as denim. If we could figure out how to make paper from missing left socks, we'd be set.
- The practice of cover stripping for paperbacks needs to be stopped completely.
- You can read e-books on other electronic gadgets other than e-book readers.
- It's not known if the younger generation, raised at staring at tiny electronic screens, will be more immune to computer headaches than us old fogies.
Even if e-book readers become far more comfortable and durable, there will most likely always be those of us who will prefer to keep a non-virtual library, even if we don't add to it. Perhaps in the future, we'll use books as money.
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