I had a thought earlier...with the spread of technologies, using paper to anything we do is becoming less and less. Here's some examples:
1. Banking uses automated machines to get your deposit/withdrawal information now so the use of deposit slips are not needed anymore. Before, I noticed that we wasted so much paper for that alone coz people tend to reach for another piece if they wrote some mistakes and instead of erasing/correcting them they just throw them carelessly.
2. We now have our blogs and tablet PC as our diary. You can seldom see people buying notebooks to serve as their personal diary anymore. This is also what organizers are becoming of...more and more people uses their phones to track their schedules.
3. And last example I will give are books.. Ebooks emerged these past few years with the emergence of Ipads, Kindle and the like.
And this lead me to ask my fellow bookworms...DO YOU PREFER E-BOOKS OR REAL BOOKS?
Here's my comparison of the two:
REAL BOOKS
Advantages:
| Can be read anytime you want to re-read it | |
| Can be purchased online | |
| Can be carried around in your bag |
| Wider variety of title options |
| You can find copies of older titles |
| Can easily be bought on any bookstores |
| Can be displayed and arranged on your room |
| Perfect for collectors like me coz you can see them in hard form |
| The fun of flipping the pages and smelling them (I think this is a +) ^_^ |
| Don't need electricity to read |
Disadvantages:
| Pages can be torn, wet, crumpled, etc…needs extra care |
| Can be expensive especially for hard bounds |
| Need a good light for reading |
| Needs space for storing |
E-BOOK
Advantages:
| Can be read anytime you want to re-read it | |
| Can be purchased online | |
| Can be carried around in your bag |
| Lots of title options for latest releases |
| Way cheaper than hard copies…sometimes FREE online |
| Saves on paper |
| You won't need a separate lamp to read hehe ^_^ |
| Very light…your hands won't get tired easily (depends on what gadget you use) |
| Can be read on different gadgets (i.e. mobile phones, IPAD, computer) |
| Can be stored in your computer = saves physical space in room |
| Can be erased due to different reasons (i.e. computer virus, computer crashes, etc) |
| You need an electronic device to read |
| Some ebooks have very small font size = eye strain |
| Using gadgets frequently to read for long time = eye strain |
MY OWN TWO CENTS:
Personally, I prefer having a hard copy when it comes to reading. Both have its own advantages and disadvantages and I do have both but I appreciate the book more if it's something I can hold and read while lounging around. I love the smell of the papers and I feel relaxed whenever I flip the pages with my fingers.
The story is a lot deeper too whenever I read it from a real book compared to reading it on my ipod touch or laptop. I tend to pass by books when I read the ebook form and I don't appreciate it that much. I said this because I can't remember the exact story of a lot of the books I've read on ebook I can't even remember the names of the characters and I tend to jumble them together too. SO yeah, I guess I'm a pretty visual person.
I also experienced having my eye sight get poorer after reading a lot of books from my laptop and ipod touch. I guess reading from a screen is a lot straining than reading it on paper with a good light. That's one of the reason why I stopped reading ebooks for a while until I can buy myself an Ipad or a Kindle for reading them. Using my ipod touch or cellphone is not advisable because the font are too small for reading and it strains the eyes more.
Although, I love the fact that ebooks are so cheap! I can download a lot of new releases online for free. I can read books that are not yet released here in the Philippines (I don't know why it takes so long for books to reach our shores). I don't need to spend 1k for a single book and then I won't like it in the end. It's better to have an option of knowing if you liked the story first before getting the real book in bookstores. It saves space too. I have already filled up a lot of containers and I needed additional ones so getting ebooks is practical.
But again, I love arranging my books on my shelves. I love seeing my collection grow. I love the fact that I can just reach out and flip to my favorite part easily. It also creates a lot of emotional memories for me. I tend to remember the history of each book I got, how many times I've read them, how worn out they are to show how much I love them.
I like them both but I love real books more. What about you? What do you prefer? :)
No comments:
Post a Comment