Is internet making books and book reading redundant? - Page 2

Originally posted by: Armu4eva

O i remember my Sidney Sheldon and Jeffrey Archer obsession days. Dad would be like, where did you blow all your pocket money🤣

I remember this, too. I also spent all my pocket money for new historic novels 🤣

I am a book lover, my parents had introduced me to the world of fiction early in my childhood. There was definitely a charm in reading books the old school way, turning the pages, the fresh smell from the pages wafting towards you. My father had taught me as a kid to use a dictionary whenever I got stuck with a difficult word. With change in technology, I still find myself enjoying reading, but the way I consume books has changed. I find myself using ebook apps like Kindle and Ebook reader more often for reading my favorite books. I no longer have to look up a dictionary for looking up words, a mere click on the word does the trick. The plenty of features on these apps make it easier to keep track of one's reading esp if one is reading multiple books simultaneously. I also love listening to audiobooks especially when I am travelling or when I am doing a mundane chore at home. Audiobooks are also helpful to a distracted reader. So in my experience, technology never really took me away from books, it only brought me closer. However, internet changed the way books are consumed, from pages to digital. There are also plenty of online libraries (like Project Gutenberg) that offer books.

However it still takes patience to complete a book. If technology is robbing one of the skill of patience by increasing impulsiveness, then it will not only take away the joy of sticking to a book and finishing it, it will also take away the joy out of many other tasks that need patience and continued attention to see results. Since everything nowdays is one click away, somewhere the young people are becoming more and more impulsive than before. This may affect the way they view book reading as a hobby, for example, it may feel more arduous. But I feel, for book lovers, technology has managed to make books more available beyond just pages, and once a young person develops a taste for books, it will be difficult to quit.

I grew up loving books, they are still my only permanent solace. I have my mother and maternal uncle's entire physical book collection to my disposal, since I am living at my Nanu's place. I am extremely thankful in that regard. However, yes, internet and e-books have now taken over the market for accessibility to many new authors, and it has affected the consumption of reading. I know many people who prefer and opt for audiobooks to reading the books, and while honestly, each to their own, the charm is slowly diminishing with every generation.

Originally posted by: Armu4eva

Is internet making books and book reading redundant?

Lets debate...

Globally, as of 2023, print books are generating over $64 billion dollars in revenue whereas ebooks are generating over $13 billion dollars in revenue. By 2027, print books are projected to generate over $67 billion dollars while ebooks are projected to generate over $15 billion dollars.

https://wordsrated.com/global-book-sales-statistics/

I am not sure there is much to debate here. Print books aren’t going anywhere. It’s straightforward stats.

On the other hand, if you just want to poll which format people are inclined towards, that simply is a preference; a subjective experience that is not very debatable either.

“Should we ditch hard copies altogether and digitize all books” is probably a good debate/discussion. After all, isn’t going paperless beneficial for the, ahem, environment? 😊 Shouldn’t saving trees, preventing deforestation, conserving water, reducing CO2 emissions (oh, no! Not that again!!) by not printing so much stuff, be promoted by all means?

Internet, especially Book-tok and Bookstagram are making books more popular, sometimes overrated but still. Teens and older folks do marathon readings, like 10-20 books a month and read and review together. A new trend of hoarding books has also emerged.

As much as I love reading from hard copies, having a Kindle or tablet to read from is better if the books are too bulky and you wanna read at night. And there's infinite opportunities to read as opposed to limits in carrying books while traveling.

Good topic OP! 😳

Ritz, add your thoughts too! Your favourite topic is here 😆

Originally posted by: Swetha_Krish

Books has always been a form of escape for me since childhood. I started reading when I was around the 7th grade when my dad bought me a couple of comic books at the train station. Twinkle, will always have a special place in my heart.

That being said, I started reading ferociously a couple of years after that when my brother left for college, I had main exams coming up and honestly I was sad and lonely. Reading was a wonderful constant from the harsh and ever changing variable of teenage hood. I always wonder who I would be today if I haven't explored the world through various author's lenses. Dan Brown needs a special mention here. His books transported me to various cities of the world without even leaving my house.

Don't get me wrong I wasn't that well off to get paperbacks and hardcovers all the time. Most of the time I just read random romance novels and fan fictions on the internet in the early years. Since then I have dabbled in many genres.

I will have to admit I don't see many kids these days reading when they look at their phones but instead scroll through various social media or play mind numbing games all day. I do that myself sometimes, but nothing beats the satisfaction I feel after reading a good book.

I also have to say since I didn't have anyone in my family who reads alot or gets me books whenever I asked, it was the internet that quenched my thirst for stories and kept it alive till I was able to find other ways to read. It was also the people I met online who recommended all the wonderful books that shaped my perspectives today.

So to me personally, I can't completely blame the internet for taking away the interest to read as we all are making do with the changing world and emerging technologies. I find myself reaching for audio books more these days due to minimal time and the strain at the end of the day.

About today's romance in books, honestly I found many of the stories I read in my teenage years glorify unhealthy relationships, be it portraying abusive partners as normal which if we think about, sets a bad example for the readers who might encounter the same instance in their lives and think of them as "normal". But I do see some developments in that area as more people are calling out such writings and their problems. Some books are even swoon worthy even without the dried roses and the jealous, macho men. But yes internet has taken away the joy that comes with doing something unique for that special someone as so many gifts and ideas are ready made and available already. It has curbed our ability to think on our own which reflects in today's romance novels too I think.

I do hope more parents encourage their kids to reach out for children's books rather than the pre-recorded rhymes and stories that keep even the babies glued to the screen. I also hope more people have someone to share their love for books and reading, which would help keep that part of them alive.

Yes i find some of the romances toxic too but besides the fiction, some of the autobiography and magic/mystery books were unforgettable.

I agree that technology has helped a lot to get access and information but i feel it can't give the comfort a hardcover does.

Originally posted by: K.Universe.

Globally, as of 2023, print books are generating over $64 billion dollars in revenue whereas ebooks are generating over $13 billion dollars in revenue. By 2027, print books are projected to generate over $67 billion dollars while ebooks are projected to generate over $15 billion dollars.

https://wordsrated.com/global-book-sales-statistics/

I am not sure there is much to debate here. Print books aren’t going anywhere. It’s straightforward stats.

On the other hand, if you just want to poll which format people are inclined towards, that simply is a preference; a subjective experience that is not very debatable either.

“Should we ditch hard copies altogether and digitize all books” is probably a good debate/discussion. After all, isn’t going paperless beneficial for the, ahem, environment? 😊 Shouldn’t saving trees, preventing deforestation, conserving water, reducing CO2 emissions (oh, no! Not that again!!) by not printing so much stuff, be promoted by all means?

Yes yes environment again, is always a valid topic.😆 Internet has definitely affected reading habits. Which is what we are debating.

Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time is a good example. Despite selling millions of copies, it’s earned the distinction of being “the most unread book of all time”.

https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/trends/features/the-internet-isnt-the-only-reason-we-arent-reading-enough-books-8505121.html

Circulation of copies- books, newspaper, magazines have definitely declined vis a vis year on year increase in population but ultimately we are debating a habit of reading vis a vis surfing.

Once you get into books there is no getting out!!! Mostly for me soft copies have replaced hard copies.... But l love getting occasional signed copies too, i was overjoyed when someone gifted me pride and prejudice first edition and might have done something inappropriate like celebrating in an extrovert fashion where i was not supposed to I spent a handsome amount and went through lot of trouble to get English translation of kalila and dimna too But that is only coz it's my hobby.... If I'm reading anything erotic I prefer ebooks a lot more as to avoid shock waves in my family

I agree though none of my cousins or even mates are into books:( i have made some friends from Art and culture but none from science who are interested in hobby-reading. To each it's own... It's okay if reading bores you.

But my issue is my cousins back home rely on things like Techmax and digests or even random internet source at a master's/graduate level program👎🏼. I don't understand how even medicine students can do without dorland, mark or Harrison's but apparently they do! My cousins who dream about 7/8 digit per month salary as a fresher don't know note making, their sources is ppts on SlideShare! 🤪I checked their model answers and nobody wrote references, no trace backs in it😲 so i just makeup a definition and I'd get marks? Or simply write a 45 minute lecture in my answer? okay I get supervisors are experts but It doesn't work like that!... Ultimate aim cannot be writing Delhi or Mumbai University papers

Originally posted by: SEA05

If books interest you, are part of life, the Internet will only help them. I have paper books, an e-reader, books that I downloaded from the Internet, an application on my smartphone. I also found my mother a book from one series that was missing there, using an online store.

Why am I again? If you put enough mind and heart into something, one does not interfere with the other at all. Never or almost never.

Very true 😊

Originally posted by: tournesol

I am a book lover, my parents had introduced me to the world of fiction early in my childhood. There was definitely a charm in reading books the old school way, turning the pages, the fresh smell from the pages wafting towards you. My father had taught me as a kid to use a dictionary whenever I got stuck with a difficult word. With change in technology, I still find myself enjoying reading, but the way I consume books has changed. I find myself using ebook apps like Kindle and Ebook reader more often for reading my favorite books. I no longer have to look up a dictionary for looking up words, a mere click on the word does the trick. The plenty of features on these apps make it easier to keep track of one's reading esp if one is reading multiple books simultaneously. I also love listening to audiobooks especially when I am travelling or when I am doing a mundane chore at home. Audiobooks are also helpful to a distracted reader. So in my experience, technology never really took me away from books, it only brought me closer. However, internet changed the way books are consumed, from pages to digital. There are also plenty of online libraries (like Project Gutenberg) that offer books.

However it still takes patience to complete a book. If technology is robbing one of the skill of patience by increasing impulsiveness, then it will not only take away the joy of sticking to a book and finishing it, it will also take away the joy out of many other tasks that need patience and continued attention to see results. Since everything nowdays is one click away, somewhere the young people are becoming more and more impulsive than before. This may affect the way they view book reading as a hobby, for example, it may feel more arduous. But I feel, for book lovers, technology has managed to make books more available beyond just pages, and once a young person develops a taste for books, it will be difficult to quit.

Happy to see you here Tia.

Those of our times definitely remain avid book lovers tho the speed with which we read these days has declined too. I do have my worries for today's generation, as i find them quite distant from the book reading habits. In fact people prefer YouTube videos to understand concepts of textbook too.