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That's an actual quote from headmaster James Tracy of Cushing Academy. That's why he's transforming his school's library into one without books. Instead, they're going digital. An excerpt from the article, A Library Without Books: This year, after having amassed a collection of more than 20,000 books, officials at the pristine campus about 90 minutes west of Boston have decided the 144-year-old school no longer needs a traditional library. The academy’s administrators have decided to discard all their books and have given away half of what stocked their sprawling stacks - the classics, novels, poetry, biographies, tomes on every subject from the humanities to the sciences. The future, they believe, is digital. “When I look at books, I see an outdated technology, like scrolls before books,’’ said James Tracy, headmaster of Cushing and chief promoter of the bookless campus. “This isn’t ‘Fahrenheit 451’ [the 1953 Ray Bradbury novel in which books are banned]. We’re not discouraging students from reading. We see this as a natural way to shape emerging trends and optimize technology.’’ Instead of a library, the academy is spending nearly $500,000 to create a “learning center,’’ though that is only one of the names in contention for the new space. In place of the stacks, they are spending $42,000 on three large flat-screen TVs that will project data from the Internet and $20,000 on special laptop-friendly study carrels. Where the reference desk was, they are building a $50,000 coffee shop that will include a $12,000 cappuccino machine. And to replace those old pulpy devices that have transmitted information since Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press in the 1400s, they have spent $10,000 to buy 18 electronic readers made by Amazon.com and Sony. Administrators plan to distribute the readers, which they’re stocking with digital material, to students looking to spend more time with literature. Those who don’t have access to the electronic readers will be expected to do their research and peruse many assigned texts on their computers. Click here to read the whole piece.
Frankly, I'm not sure about this move. I don't know if people are ready to go full digital yet, but still, I do hope it works. They've already given away many of the books they used to have, and it's going to take a lot of time and effort to rebuild an old-fashioned library if things don't work out as they hope.  | Hmm. Interesting. But I'd side with the librarian et al. There's just something about the beautiful physicality of the book as an artifact. There's something special about the smell and feel of a familiar book, I guess. I wouldn't toss out the value of ebooks though. They do allow you to pack a massive amount of information in a small, portable package, and I'm loving the PDF format for electronic documents. I think the number of readers that they're getting is going to be a problem. 18 readers? How many students do they have? How will they split those 18 readers and what do you do if you're the poor shmuck who doesn't have access to the reader? You might also want to check out this Penny Arcade webcomic strip satirizing the entire eBook trend: http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2009/3/9/ |
 | Definitely a risky move... still, more power to them if it all works out in the long run.
Frankly though I still believe "full digital" isn't for everybody. Sure, you have these modern Western institutions that can opt to shell out for e-readers and wi-fi connections and all, but what about those remote Third World regions like ours that can barely afford books, let alone a nice-sized functional library or electronics? And that's not even talking about the "learning curve" the newer technologies might require for a not-quite information-savvy audience... |
 | @accidentallambofgod: I agree with you about the technological disparity between the "have" countries and the "have nots". But I do like the idea of free (or very cheap) wifi, ala cellphone subscriptions, and people having legal access to public domain books via their gadgets. I'm smiling as I type this now, because I'm imagining a young kid in some remote province reading on his low-end but cheap large-screen cellphone some book he has downloaded through free access to wifi. :) |
 | kafkaed wrote on Sep 7, '09, edited on Sep 7, '09 No it can't be a damn cel-phone-as-reader device. No matter what the manufacturers say the screen on a cel phone will never be large enough. Making it wider than your comfortable grip will render it useless as a portable communication device. A lot like the first Motorola brick. Let it be a Star Trek era PADD. We're already halfway there anyway.
I can live with online libraries, but no, no, a thousand times never EVER dump our codices. I've an atavistic attachment to the things |
| @kafkaed: I've read articles where people have begun to use their iPhones as e-readers regularly.
But yeah, I'm finding it hard imagining not holding a book. |
| kafkaed wrote on Sep 8, '09, edited on Sep 8, '09 @pgenrestories:
"...where people have begun to use their i-phones as e-readers..."
Have they tried reading anything from Tolstoy on those things? That'll work only if they're on the Siberian transcontinental express and there's nothing else to download from the 'Net.
Books have no glare, need no power, have a wider "screen" surface. A Tolstoy book has the added bonuses of being a doorstop, a seat, a footstool, a pillow, a shield and an offensive bludgeoning weapon. On a cold day in Siberia, as a last resort, it can also be kindling for cook- and signal fires.
In this contest, books win hands down.
Codices rule. :)) |
| @kafkaed and jfnacino: I agree with you about the pleasure of holding a physical product, but I propose this advantage of e-readers: You can carry hundreds, maybe even thousands, of books, in one portable gadget. With enough power, this can be an advantage during long trips. Imagine the bulkiness of carrying even just ten books. |
 | Yup, but as I've experienced, the lack of recharging capability (loss of charger, no power outlet) means that so many books in your gadget-- and all out of reach. ;-) |
| I guess it depends on what you use the books for, and your style of reading.
I love PDFs and eBooks for cross-referencing and portability, especially when I go playing role-playing games. I could haul 4-6 huge hardbound game books along and rip my bags open, or bring along a single laptop with all of those as a handy little game reference.
But most days, single-book deep reading, I still love the tactile joy of the pocketbook. Though that's probably because I've been reading books for so long that my brain has begun to associate the feel of paper on fingers with impending information joy.
One thing that boggles me though...how well would a book that plays around with the form of a book and its pages, like say, Mark Danielewski's The House of Leaves, translate to an eBook reader?
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| @jfnacino and phelanw0lf: I think that both books and ebooks will coexist. Books won't disappear right away, if at all. After all, even with mp3's, CD stores still exist, even if their sales have dropped. It's a matter of readers' preference.
Thanks for the title, phelanw0lf. I'll look up The House of Leaves and see what you mean.
Thanks for the link, jfnacino. Interesting application of ereaders in that post you shared. |
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I think the number of readers that they're getting is going to be a problem. 18 readers? How many students do they have? How will they split those 18 readers and what do you do if you're the poor shmuck who doesn't have access to the reader?