Over the last couple of decades, cassette tapes and records have largely been replaced by CDs, downloadable music and iPods. With the invention of electronic reading devices, it appears that printed books may be the next victim of the power of technology.
In recent years, a variety of electronic reading devices, including the Kindle launched by Amazon.com in 2007, have entered the market. Hundreds of thousands of books, newspapers, magazines and blogs are now available for download on these devices.
Many texts read in courses at Brown are not only available online, but are also compatible with the Kindle and other similar devices. But few students today are pulling out these gadgets around campus, in class or at the library.
"The electronic book in the textbook industry is lagging," said Steven Souza, director of the Brown Bookstore. "The technology has to move forward before it becomes of serious interest to students."
Souza added that some universities, including Princeton, have tested the use of digital textbooks on campus, but students have generally not found them useful.
A digital reader "isn't student friendly," Souza said, adding that he does not see a huge demand for digital textbooks at Brown.
At this point, Souza said, the next step would be book rentals, rather than digital editions of books.
"I've tried using the Amazon Kindle for schoolwork, but I found it's a little difficult to use," said Robin Davis '10. "When you're writing papers or looking for sections, you usually flip back and forth through the pages, but for reading novels and reading for fun, I think it's pretty great," she said.
Brian Kelly '12, an English concentrator, said he only bought paper copies of books.
"I like having books, and I like to save them on my shelf," he said.
Professor of Italian Studies Massimo Riva, who studies digital humanities and contemporary narrative forms, said he predicts that digital texts will eventually become more popular and widespread among students.
"Over the next few years, we will see a change in landscaping," Riva said. "The way we use the library may change and transform itself."
While he said printed books will likely not become obsolete, Riva said he pictures students "working and studying in a hybrid environment" as professors make more extensive use of digital textbooks and libraries adopt them.
At the same time, though, Riva noted that "this (transition) is something that is slow in happening." He said he thinks no radical change will take place immediately, but he mentioned that the introduction of Apple's new iPad could potentially influence the popularity of portable reading devices.
In addition, Riva said he feels the younger generations would generally be most receptive to digital texts and that this form of reading would be able to become natural for them.
Riva admits that there is a "less intimate engagement with the text" when reading it on an electronic device, but he also recognizes that electronic book readers "facilitate access to texts" and have some additional features when compared to print versions.
As digital texts continue to grow, Riva said, it becomes more important to transfer a variety of works, including literary classics, to digital format. "As we move to digital texts, it is important that we bring with us all the richness and knowledge books give," Riva said.
