Quote:
Originally Posted by QuantumIguana
I don't think they will go the way of vinyl records. Most people couldn't tell if they were listening to a CD, an MP3 or a good quality vinyl record. Hardcore audiophiles might be able to tell the difference, but for most people, the experience is essentially the same. It's obvious whether you are reading a paper book or an e-book. They offer different experiences and people's preferences differ. I do think that the percentage of the market taken by paper books will decrease, but not to the level that vinyl has.
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While it's true that most people can't tell the difference betwen a CD, MP3 and LP (including most audio engineers, as it turns out), most people
think they can. If you play an LP in front of someone, then play the same song in an MP3 player, they'll tell you the LP sounds
so much better. If you play the MP3 while appearing to play the LP, then play the LP while appearing to play the MP3, they'll tell you what they think is the LP sounds better. And they'll mean it. [1]
The same applies to reading. Yeah, some people will enjoy paper books more, but only because they expect to. The reading experience is the same either way, aside from the expectations.
[1] (One test involving wine affcionados had the same bottle of wine poured in to two glasses. Test subjects were told one glass was from a $10 bottle of wine, the other from a $90 bottle. Test subjects drank both glasses while in an fMRI machine, which measured blood flow in the part of the brain that experiences pleasure from taste. The test subjects physically enjoyed the same wine more when they thought it was more expensive.[2])
[2] Audiophiles are the same. People spend hundreds, even thousands of dollars on speaker wire, in the belief that it will sounds better. Bose, a major player in the manufacture of speakers, recommends you go to your local hardware store and buy lamp cord. In double blind tests, audio engineers (and reps from the manufacturers of expensive speaker wire) can't tell the difference between the most expensive speaker wire made and wire coat hangers.