What will happen to traditional books and why - Essay Example

Your full May 12, What will happen to traditional books, and why? With the advent of technology, many traditional things have been replaced by more sophisticated ones that go just in accordance with today’s life. Since people have become much more ease-loving than before, they like to enjoy the comfort that comes with technological advancements. One such advancement is the replacement of traditional books by their digital forms, that is, e-books. This paper claims that technology will replace traditional books with e-books, since the digital form is easy to carry around, is cheaper, and saves material resources.

Traditional books are hard to carry around since many of them are heavy and thick. Contrarily, e-books can be saved in CDs and DVDs, and can be read on the internet. One does not have to carry them around all the time, if they are on the internet, and this makes them much more convenient than traditional books. “E-books are infinitely more portable than paper books when carried with you on a PDA” (Singh 247). I remember myself carrying loads of books in college, and I hated it. Catone (para.3) counter-argues that holding a book in hand can never be matched with viewing it through pixels on a screen.

But, I believe that it is just a matter of habit, which can be changed. Traditional books also prove to be much more expensive than e-books, and so, not everyone is able to purchase them. Contrarily, digital forms are very cheap, since people can read them on the internet and their PCs. This makes e-books affordable. Publishers of e-books state that “they offer e-books to students and bookstores at prices lower than those of traditional textbooks” (Howle 44). I used to spend all my pocket money in buying fairy tales when I was young, the ones which young kids can read online today, in free.

Breslin (2) counter-claims that since writers put a lot of effort in writing books, they must be paid fairly. But, I believe that the affordability of books by common people is more serious an issue than writer’s payments. Traditional books use a lot of paper resource, and thus, they do not play role in making the environment green. A lot of paper is used in compiling and publishing books. In contrast, e-books are much resourceful as they do not consume paper. “The useful functions of an e-book are the replacement of traditional paper, reducing tree cutting, and increasing environmental protection” (Hesselbach and Herrmann 67).

I remember my favorite trees were cut down by a company, for paper manufacture. Mims (para.7) counter-argues that “after just 10 minutes of online reading, youre using more carbon to keep your computer on than is embodied in a print newspaper.” However, I still believe that cutting trees and making paper uses more resources than online reading. To conclude, there are more pros than cons associated with digitalizing traditional books. Paper books are hard to carry around, are expensive, and consume lots of resources.

Therefore, they will be converted to their digital forms keeping in view how handy e-books are. Works CitedBreslin, Susannah. “Why You Shouldnt Be A Writer.” Forbes. Forbes.com LLC, 2012. Web. 12 May, 2013. < http://www.forbes.com/sites/susannahbreslin/2012/06/12/why-you-shouldnt-be-a-writer/2/ >.Catone, Josh. “Why Printed Books Will Never Die.” Mashable. N.p., 2013. Web. 12 May 2013. .Hesselbach, Jeurgen, and Christoph S. Herrmann. Functional Thinking for Value Creation. USA: Springer, 2011.

Howle, Elaine. Affordability of College Textbooks: Textbook Prices Have Risen Significantly in the Last Four Years, but Some Strategies May Help to Control These Costs for Students. USA: DIANE Publishing, 2008. Mims, Christopher. “Are E-books An Environmental Choice?” Greenliving. Green Living Enterprises Inc., 2013. Web. 12 May 2013. .Singh, Gurdev. Information Sources, Services and Systems. USA: PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd., 2013.