In recent years, technological advancement had brought about abrupt changes and transforms the world of publishing to a state that has never been imagined before. Perhaps the greatest concern about this issue is the emergence of tablet PC and e-book such as Apple iPad, Amazon Kindle , Samsung Galaxy Tab and NOOK e-reader. In my point of view, both conventional paper-printed books and e-book have its own advantages and setback.
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| Amazon Kindle DX,Kindle 2, NOOK and iPad |
To begin with, there are several good sides of e-book. Undeniably, it is more portable since a whole bundle of literature is compiled together as digital data rather than a collection of paperbacks. Thanks to a great capacity of e-book memory, students do not have to carry heavy textbook around anymore. Besides, through the wireless function available on most e-book, we can gain access to digital media, such as websites, blogs, and social network sites. On top of that, this feature also enable instant search about a particular topic to be accomplished instantly. However, not all people can afford for an e-book reader. For example, an iPad will cost you about $500, whereas the price for Amazon Kindle is around $260. Not only that, e-book seems to challenge the conventional process in the publishing and printing sector. This would pose economical threat to a lot of party, for instance author, publisher, and retailer that earn a living on the current publishing system.
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| Book vs e-book. Note how thick books are compared to the Amazon Kindle |
On the other hand, paperback book and paper-based publishing would not be affected by the automatic deletion of illegal publications by the content owner. This situation had been experienced by Amazon Kindle’s owner in July 2009 which left them shocked and speechless (Daughton 2009). Furthermore, we have more authority towards our hard copy book as it can be lent to anybody or sell it when it is not needed anymore. In contrast, an electronic form of book is constrained by regulations that prohibit any form of distribution, lease or trade (Daughton 2009). In spite of this, as has been mentioned before, it is not really practical to carry a whole chunk of book around which concerns the issue of lacks of portability for paperback books.
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| The Australian's digital version on Samsung Galaxy Tab |
In conclusion, the process of publishing has entered a new era with the invention of e-book. It has also affects the other sector related to publishing such as business, education, and newscast. Hopefully, e-book will bring about positive outcome in those areas in the foreseeable future.
Reference:
Naughton, J 2009 , The Observer, The original Big Brother is watching you on Amazon Kindle , weblog, accessed 10 March 2011 , < http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/jul/26/amazon-kindle-book-deletions >
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