Will people still be reading books?

[JamalChristophr]

…in the 25th century, I mean* - you know, those books that are made of paper. They have a funny little binding on the side to keep all the pages together, and the words are actually printed out on the paper with ink. You start out on one side of the book and finish on the other end. What do you think? Will people still be reading real live books. Well, almost alive, I mean.

 

[redbetta]

I think there will always be some people who need to read things in print. I prefer to read things in print because screens hurt my eyes and make me sleepy.

 

[ProdglArchitect]

There will always be a place for books. No matter how far technology advances, there will be people who prefer reading from a book to reading from a digital screen.

 

[Stephen_says]

By then, hopefully, the internet will no longer be restricted to computers and wires and satellite signals. All of our brains will be connected to each other and to every database in the world using some technology we have not discovered yet. There will be no need to read anything, because everyone will know everything already.

I said “Hopefully”, because the other option is we all die from global warming and nuclear war.

cheers

 

[adamhovey1988]

People will always read some sort of book.

 

[ProdglArchitect]

By then, hopefully, the internet will no longer be restricted to computers and wires and satellite signals. All of our brains will be connected to each other and to every database in the world using some technology we have not discovered yet. There will be no need to read anything, because everyone will know everything already.

I said “Hopefully”, because the other option is we all die from global warming and nuclear war.

cheers

Given the massive amount of awful and immoral content on the internet, I could honestly not think of a worse future than having it piped directly into our brains.

 

[fredystairs]

I think books will still be around. It is my preferred method of reading. Even if I’m reading something on line that I take a particular interest in, I’ll print it out. In addition, I like to scribble notes in the margins and underline and highlight passages. Can’t do that on a computer screen.

 

[Jared2914]

As long as ebooks are restricted as much as they are, there will still be demand for physical books. In other words, ebooks are not a complete replacement for physical books. Once you buy a physical book, you can read it yourself, let others borrow it, give it to others for free or even sell it. With ebooks you can read it yourself and that’s about it. Some ebook companies let you lend ebooks if you jump through certain hoops, but others don’t. It also depends on the book publisher. Some publishers allow ebook lending while others do not. Furthermore, you can’t give away or sell ebooks. Also, ebooks require internet access at least to download them. Some remote parts of the world will probably never have reliable internet access, so physical books will be preferred in those places.

 

[JamalChristophr]

Dont forget. We are 400 years in the future. Probably, still on Earth.

Currently. I can easily highlight in 4 different colors very quickly, make a note here and there if I want. I read most of the time, at least for now, on my mobile. I probably can hold 50 books or possibly more in the palm of my hand or in my back pocket. And this is only 2017.

I’m sure there will be a time where a screen may be hard to discern from real books we use today. Scribbling is already here for the most part, but needs refining.

I have a tall bookcase full of books at the moment in my living room. They often seem lonely, but they are not entirely neglected, by any means.

 

[exnihilo]

For most of history most men didn’t read books. First off most people weren’t literate. Secondly the wide availability of books is modern. The book in its current form of bound paper is relatively new. The ability to mass produce is also new.

All this said, I do prefer books to the screen. I’m not alone. But preference may not be enough to keep books around. If there is a big enough decline in demand the cost could go up leading to less people being able to afford them. This could even further erode demand at these higher costs.

Also, the government could end up banning them for environmental reasons. If they can ban lightbulbs they can ban paper books.

 

[twf]

True. I love books but it seems silly to assume that we’ll always have them when they’ve only been around for a relatively short period of human history.
Once tablets (or their distant technological descendants) are as thin and flexible as paper, we finally will go paperless. I don’t think it’s that far away.

 

[Zaccheus]

“Book” does not have to equal “paper and binding”. An ebook on a Tablet is still a book.

There will be books but most likely they won’t use paper or any close equivalent.

 

[tomarin]

There seems to be a backlash to e-books (and all things digital versus analog) a-brewin’.

Even though I like the convenience of e-books I find that when I’m reading a real book I remember the title and author better as time goes on.

 

[JamalChristophr]

There seems to be a backlash to e-books (and all things digital versus analog) a-brewin’.

Even though I like the convenience of e-books I find that when I’m reading a real book I remember the title and author better as time goes on.

Interesting point. I do wonder now that you mention it, if memory consolidation is more efficient when reading book books. I read a lot on my phone. It’s always nice to be able to remember what one has read. Perhaps some research studies have been done on this.

 

[tomarin]

Interesting point. I do wonder now that you mention it, if memory consolidation is more efficient when reading book books. I read a lot on my phone. It’s always nice to be able to remember what one has read. Perhaps some research studies have been done on this.

I think there have been studies to that effect, on schoolchildren. As far as my own habits go, I think I must be looking at the author’s name on the cover or spine a lot somewhat sub-consciously.