Friday, July 16, 2010

Traditional books 'may not survive electronic age'
BBC News


Mother and daughter reading a book Dr Bell said the popularity of books appeared to be booming just now, but predicted a change in future
Books may not survive in their current form as reading habits change during the electronic age, an expert has said.
Dr Bill Bell, from the University of Edinburgh, said the book format was going through a "seismic shift".
Books may need to be adapted to include technology, he said, as new devices now encouraged different reading styles.

Dr Bell will join historians and IT experts at a conference in the city which will look at how new forms like iPads are changing the way people read.
The academic from the university's School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures said books appeared to be enjoying a boom at the moment.
But he believes traditional texts may eventually be superseded by electronic books.

Dr Bell suggested they may need to become easier to navigate, with more information links to satisfy people who are used to flicking between different programmes on computer screens
More at BBC.

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