Who needs books anymore?

With the launch of the Google bookstore, it appears as if we are truly headed towards the end of the traditional book. One of the most popular Christmas items this year is the e-reader. There are several that have become extremely popular including the Sony Nook, Amazon Kindle, and Apple Ipad. While some devices such as the Ipad offer much more than just your simple E-reader experience, the Nook and Kindle are currently aiming to be just another way to read a book, magazine, or newspaper. To begin with I thought all this new technology was very exciting and interesting. I went out and bought an Ipad shortly after their release. I spent the next several weeks coveting the shiny new device and playing with it often. Then it all came to an abrupt end, and less than two months after buying it, I sold the device to someone at church. I was hoping the whole digital publication thing would just be a fad, but the more I see the more I realize, it is the future. Now that Google has entered the competition, it is officially the next big thing. Looking back now I can see one of the original starting places may have been one of the least expected, the education environment. Two years ago I began having classes offer e-versions of the textbooks. Now nearly half my classes offer the option to purchase the e-books instead of the more expensive traditional texts. While for classes that require little use of the text and casual reading of the news may be convenient on a tablet or e-reader, I find it very difficult to really dig into something more serious without the printed version. For instance when configuring our most reason DDN (Data Direct Networks) storage device, I had to print and read the entire 300 page manual. I just couldn't focus when trying to read through the PDF on my PC. While it's obvious e-editions aren't going away, I think there will always be a certain place for printed media.