Your Future Library: Physical or Digital?
With the advent of modern technology, there are a variety of ways to read books. In fact, there has been a marked shift from traditional books to digital books. This post will compare the benefits of each to help you decide which way to read is best for you.
The Senses: Have you ever cracked open a new book and smelled the crisp, satisfying scent of fresh paper? To some, this smell is comforting, homey, and is a critical part of the book-reading experience.
Sharing: There is a sense of comradery that comes along with sharing a book. Lending or borrowing a book from a friend can help strengthen a friendship or create a conversation starter.
History: Books can have a long history of past owners. If you buy an older, used book, there could be signs of use on it – for example, coffee or wine stains – adorning a few pages. These signs of use give the book a sense of history and community – you feel that someone has enjoyed the same story as you have.
They’re beautiful: Books can sometimes be leather-bound or have beautiful covers. Additionally, the illustrations that are often included in books have no parallel to viewing them on paper.
Cost-effective: If you carry one book around, you don’t have to worry about what might happen if you lose it. One single book alone is not too hard on the wallet. However, with a kindle or other method of digital reading, you constantly have to worry about losing an expensive device.
Accessibility: Instead of going to a bookstore or library to purchase or rent a book, digital books are easy to get with just a few clicks of the finger. Additionally, you can read whatever, wherever, whenever you want, and are not limited to just one or two books you may have brought with you.
More Space: Digital books are often read on a small device like a Kindle or an iPad, leaving you more space in your bag. Additionally, they’re much lighter than traditional books that can become heavy to lug around.
Cleanliness: It’s pretty easy to ruin a traditional book. Drop it in a puddle, spill your morning coffee on it – it’s done for. If you purchase an old book, the signs of wear and tear might be unappealing to some. However, with digital books, keeping them perfectly clean and readable is easy.
Environmentally Friendly: Traditional books use a lot of paper, which contributes to the hurt and destruction of the environment. Think of how many trees could be saved if everyone transitioned to digital books rather than paperback books.
Dictionary Helpers: A lot of digital books have built-in dictionaries. If you don’t understand a word, you can just click on it and the definition of it will come up. This saves readers time and makes books widely accessible, education-wise.