Funny article about the future of paper books

[DawnFalcon]

Originally Posted by charleski

Sub-pixel rendering only works for fonts in specific situations. It's not some magic fairy-dust. It does nothing for image resolution.

And you haven't given the full story there either. Both Microsoft (and virtually everyone else uses their methodology) and Apple use sub-pixel rendering.

The "Microsoft" method is to display fonts on the screen for maximum readability, and does indeed help display readability. This can be boosted by using specific fonts, but does not by any means require them.

The "Apple" method (which I'd not describe as "lower tech", and is indeed more complex in some ways) is to keep the font's look at all costs, which is better suited to printing than screen viewing, especially on smaller screens.

But no, dismiss a decade's progress with "it's a hack".

[Avarwen]

Very funny and true print will still be a round for a while but e-books are the future for reading enjoyment. I doubt they will replace text books and other reference materials soon though.

[Steven Lyle Jordan]

Originally Posted by Avarwen

Very funny and true print will still be a round for a while but e-books are the future for reading enjoyment. I doubt they will replace text books and other reference materials soon though.

Text and reference books are already being replaced by PDFs being consumed on laptops and tablets. All that is needed in their case is more efficient means of annotating and cross-referencing. The digital future is at hand for them, too.

[SensualPoet]

I am still trying to decide which is funnier: the original article, this entire thread, or someone's comment that "Publishers may know what they're doing". Now, THAT'S funny!

Thanks for the link to the article -- it really is a hoot!

For anyone who actually reads for the words, e-books and e-ink readers, even in today's one dot oh versions, deliver the goods with killer benefits over paper. While "The Big Sleep" can be enjoyed for its atmospheric cover, its attractiveness as a garnish on a coffee table, as a signal at the coffee shop that it's you there for the blind date -- the dialogue is as rich, crafty and just as plain entertaining when consumed off the e-ink instead of the trade paperback you are carrying around that's heavier than the e-reader. Home movies haven't disappeared just because 8mm has; books (in some e-book form or another) will continue to thrive even as paperbacks -- and the entire economic ecosystem that supports them -- wither to niche proportions.

SP
Who no longer has a buggy
But kept the whip
In Toronto

[Jaime_Astorga]

Originally Posted by tompe

I have actually asked people if they visualize a book when they read and less than half of the people did that. Most people said that they visualised at least some scenes but it was very rare to find people having an "internal movie" of the book.

I personally visually every scene of any story I "get into" (any time I can read continuously without being very aware of the outside world; happens pretty often with good stories).