2. Chapter 5 = The Electronic Book
Observe: I like the style, how it was structured and organized.
I know understand the papyrus roll and a codex. Where they come from. What they entail. There overall purpose back in the day.
I like the comparison, on how we are now going back to the scroll with computers, how we scroll down the screen rather than turn the page as in a book.
I like the video about opposing eBooks. Taking away the new book smell, the feeling of the plastic, rather than paper and leather.
I like the information given about Encyclopedias. (Britannica)
I think that the idea of digital libraries are convenient for some people that don’t have time to step foot in the door of an actual library, but yet it takes away the point in history where the public can go into an actual historical building enclosed with hand drawn books.
Infer:
We are now going back to the idea of the scroll. As in computers, scrolling down the screen to see more information rather than the standard turning of a page as if in a book, or codex of some sort.
eBooks- can be somewhat authentic, going back to the original.
The eBook is more complete, immediate and authentic. Bolter opposes the idea of the eBook.
YouTube video- Doesn’t like eBooks.
Encyclopedia- Bench mark, summary, public can gain all the information in one book. It is Alphabetized.
Digital libraries, you can find the same book on different shelves or under different subjects.
Questions:
How do you feel about eBooks?
Do you find Encyclopedia’s useful and convenient?
Is an online encyclopedia easier than the formal book version?
Do you think the idea of “digital libraries” take away from the physical aspect of libraries?
Do you think that Bolter needs to get it out of his head, that technology is taking over the aspect of written, handheld books.
In the encyclopedia world, the Internet is a true adversary. While it may take awhile for eBook readers to dominate books, the Internet is already dominating the encyclopedia. Before the Internet, encyclopedias had to fit a reasonable amount of knowledge on a multitude of topics in a number of volumes that didn't break your bookshelf. This led to encyclopedias being delightfully terse, uselessly alphabetized, and just darn numerous. The Internet search engine is everything the encyclopedia is not—in a good way. Faster, easier, more detailed, and more inclusive. The only bad part about the Internet is that it's electronic; no electricity, no Internet. (Archaic people may claim that this disadvantage is what will keep encyclopedias alive. I scoff.)
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