replacing writing??!

[Maledicte]

there's horrible news that the 2 biggest video rental chains where i live are selling all their vhs tapes off, so they'll only have dvd. this is bad. there's so much stuff that'll get lost. noooo.
but can you imagine if they did that with books? libraries selling all their stuff, saying, no you can just watch it/ read little summries/ etc, its much more efficient high tech whatever. wouldn't that be horrible? end of the world...
i think i'd pilfer every book i could lay my hands on and shut myself up in a tiny shelf packed hut in the midddle of a really distant mountain chain forever.

[Quixotic Virtuoso]

You're overreacting, honey. Books will always be availible.

[Maledicte]

please don't condescend. especially if i mispelled that.
try going for the "what if"; that's where science fiction comes from. and there might not always be books. there's a lot of future, and actually, quite a lot that needs looking out for in the enivronment. books need a lot of paper. never assume

[Quixotic Virtuoso]

What if, eh?

I'd be the crazy old hermit who memorized the works of Shakespeare and others, and lived atop a mountain, shouting to all those who could hear.

[finalrain]

cathnaze

there's horrible news that the 2 biggest video rental chains where i live are selling all their vhs tapes off, so they'll only have dvd. this is bad. there's so much stuff that'll get lost. noooo.

Let me get this straight. You're upset because the video rental chains are replacing a worn out, and inferior medium with the new defacto standard? o_O Anything that <i>isn't</i> out on DVD yet, will likely be soon, and I mean <i>anything</i>. They even have Santa Clause 2 on DVD, and that's like the most worthless thing since Santa Clause 1.

It is extremely inexpensive to master and produce DVDs, and the amount of profit derived can be phenomenal. There are a few things that the companies hold off on in order to build publicity, and increase demand, but those are few and far between.

cathnaze

but can you imagine if they did that with books?

Or replaced spellcheckers with ham sandwiches? Oh the horror! gonk

cathnaze

libraries selling all their stuff, saying, no you can just watch it/ read little summries/ etc, its much more efficient high tech whatever. wouldn't that be horrible? end of the world...
i think i'd pilfer every book i could lay my hands on and shut myself up in a tiny shelf packed hut in the midddle of a really distant mountain chain forever.

Some day, it's entirely likely that an improved version of ebooks will take over the market. But it won't be in our lifetime, because 90% of booklovers won't read books on screen. I do it pretty frequently. I don't see the big deal.

The complete elimination of books is unlikely, an upgrade in book technology (like VHS>DVD) is incredibly likely.

[Rainne_Pendragon]

If that happens anytime soon can I join you? crying

[Missie DuCaine]

Actually...wasn't there a bunch of books that *dealt* with that very thing?

"Farenheight 451" comes to mind first....and in "The Handmaid's Tale" all books except the Bible were outlawed. ((and even then, that was limited)) It's not a new idea.

But it won't happen.

Online books - yes. I think it's going to become incredibly popular - I acutally read online novels occassionaly. But completely replacing old medias? No.

And the thing is, DVDs phasing out VHS isn't necessarily a good thing. I don't even have a DVD player.

[Fahroac]

Missie DuCaine

Actually...wasn't there a bunch of books that *dealt* with that very thing?

"Farenheight 451" comes to mind first....and in "The Handmaid's Tale" all books except the Bible were outlawed. ((and even then, that was limited)) It's not a new idea.

But it won't happen.

Online books - yes. I think it's going to become incredibly popular - I acutally read online novels occassionaly. But completely replacing old medias? No.

And the thing is, DVDs phasing out VHS isn't necessarily a good thing. I don't even have a DVD player.

Hey, I've read those two!

Online books: stupid idea. What's the point? There are already real ones, are you too lazy to turn a page? I don't think its a bad thing to put writing online, because I enjoy reading what isn't already in book form (ie amateur -sorry but I'm being technical- unpublished works of aspiring authors), but if it's published, why bother? Unless I am missing the point entirely and the unpublished stuff is exactly what you are talking about, in which case feel free to smack my avatar as I probably won't stick around to find out whether I should do that myself.

DVDs 'phasing out' VHS: I agree it's not so good, but you have to admit DVDs have far better quality. I suppose I'm just whining about it because my family won't buy any more VHS now that we have a DVD player, even though they're dirt cheap in comparison (three bucks can get me two VHS movies, whereas I have to multiply that amount by ten to get a single DVD, unless someone is having a sale, in which case I should like to know about it). Oh well, out with the old and in with the new, as it's going to be.

[finalrain]

Missie DuCaine

But completely replacing old medias? No.

I honestly think you're wrong about this. There may be a few nostalgia printings, but those will likely end up being extremely expensive, and rare such that no one in their sane mind would actually <i>read</i> them.

Even now, ebooks are superior to printed text in several ways (text searches, and the ability to carry several in less space than it would take to carry one dead trees edition for example), and as display technology improves, more people who couldn't stand reading on monitors, or lcd screens will be able to read ebooks with ease.

As the machines become more efficient, battery life will likely also, meaning that you could conceivably sit through several books without recharging.

Missie DuCaine

And the thing is, DVDs phasing out VHS isn't necessarily a good thing. I don't even have a DVD player.

DVD players are getting pretty inexpensive ... sweatdrop

Fahroac: Check out your local GameStop/Babbages, Blockbuster, Hollywood Video. Used DVDs are cheap as dirt, and nearly as cheap as your beloved VHS. whee

[Adee Yael]

That won't happen. If you have the DVD of a movie, you'd still have the same movie, only with more features. It's like instead of having a normal copy of a book, you'd have an online version of the book, which still contains the original story, but with more features, like the author's notes and drawings of scenes and stuff.

[Yuzure]

finalrain

As the machines become more efficient, battery life will likely also, meaning that you could conceivably sit through several books without recharging.

The problem is that all that is what might happen. Maybe there will be some new problems looming in the horizon. You may not have to recharge after every book, but you do have to recharge sometime.

And to read an ebook, one needs a reader of some sort. And unless these readers become affordable (as opposed to ebooks becoming affordable, since you need the reader in the first place), dead-tree books are not going to go out of style.

In other words, will ebooks edge out paper books? Maybe, maybe not. Will it happen in our lifetime? Probably not.

finalrain

DVD players are getting pretty inexpensive ... sweatdrop

Fahroac: Check out your local GameStop/Babbages, Blockbuster, Hollywood Video. Used DVDs are cheap as dirt, and nearly as cheap as your beloved VHS. whee

VHS tapes don't have region codes. And before you ask, yes, I do need multi-region players.

I can't comment on the pros and cons otherwise, as DVDs last only slightly longer than VHS tapes. (Say, maybe a few months longer.)

[Missie DuCaine]

Fahroac

Online books: stupid idea. What's the point? There are already real ones, are you too lazy to turn a page? I don't think its a bad thing to put writing online, because I enjoy reading what isn't already in book form (ie amateur -sorry but I'm being technical- unpublished works of aspiring authors), but if it's published, why bother? Unless I am missing the point entirely and the unpublished stuff is exactly what you are talking about, in which case feel free to smack my avatar as I probably won't stick around to find out whether I should do that myself.

I mostly read unpublished ones, actually.... sweatdrop

Soo...*smack*!

And regarding all that DVD/VHS stuff....

CDs and Tapes.

I have dozens of tapes that are now hard to play anywhere.

For that matter.....I have records. You can't even buy replacement needles very easily anymore.

And a new ribbon for my type-writer? ((I like typewriters for writing. There's no way I can be tempted by the internet, and it's still neater than my handwriting))

Forget about it.

Beloved technology is disappearing - yes...but there are still oddballs who use it.

Therefore, books will never completely disappear!

[finalrain]

Yuzure

In other words, will ebooks edge out paper books? Maybe, maybe not. Will it happen in our lifetime? Probably not.

Aye, I said myself that ebooks wouldn't replace dead tree editions in our life time. wink

Yuzure

VHS tapes don't have region codes. And before you ask, yes, I do need multi-region players.

Region codes aren't a problem that DVDs <i>must</i> have, though. I've seen region free DVDs (admittedly, this is rare), and as you've already mentioned, there are region free DVD players. They're a bit more expensive than regioned players, but the average American is unlikely to need the feature any time soon (and if they have a DVD player on their computer, and some technical expertise, they don't really need to purchase a region free set top player).

Yuzure

I can't comment on the pros and cons otherwise, as DVDs last only slightly longer than VHS tapes. (Say, maybe a few months longer.)

I've never had a problem with a DVD wearing out. There's no reason why a well treated DVD can't last for fifty or more years, assuming something doesn't go wrong with the formula of the plastic.

I've watched my Pulp Fiction DVD about as many times this <i>year</i> as I've watched my original VHS copies of the Star Wars trilogy total, and my Pulp Fiction DVD is perfectly unharmed. The Star Wars trilogy looks like crap now, and the magnetic tape is wearing out.

[Yuzure]

finalrain

Region codes aren't a problem that DVDs <i>must</i> have, though. I've seen region free DVDs (admittedly, this is rare), and as you've already mentioned, there are region free DVD players. They're a bit more expensive than regioned players, but the average American is unlikely to need the feature any time soon (and if they have a DVD player on their computer, and some technical expertise, they don't really need to purchase a region free set top player).

All the region-free DVDs I have are bootlegs. ^^; Well, except for one, which is kind of an oddball.

In any case, you mentioned that The Average American is not likely to need a region-free player, which I suppose is where I admit ignorance. From an international standpoint, we need those region-free players.

finalrain

I've never had a problem with a DVD wearing out. There's no reason why a well treated DVD can't last for fifty or more years, assuming something doesn't go wrong with the formula of the plastic.

I've watched my Pulp Fiction DVD about as many times this <i>year</i> as I've watched my original VHS copies of the Star Wars trilogy total, and my Pulp Fiction DVD is perfectly unharmed. The Star Wars trilogy looks like crap now, and the magnetic tape is wearing out.

Constant use aside (I have no issues with DVDs lasting a heckuva lot longer than VHS that way), DVDs have turned out to have a shelf life of maybe ten years or so, just a bit over that of VHS tapes. 'Twas a story on Slashdot one day, and the reason was exactly because of the formula of the plastic or some such. Basically, an inherent problem with DVD manufacture in general. DVD manufacturers alternately admit this or deny this strenuously, so Your Mileage May Vary.

But I digress.

In any case, I have nothing against ebooks per se, especially if some new utopian means of energy production allows us to have nice clean energy to power the readers, and save trees in the process. But discussing it now is a bit premature, and probably due to the heat, hunger, and gold.

[finalrain]

Yuzure

From an international standpoint, we need those region-free players.

Americans on average don't notice how much those restrictions are limiting them, so they don't complain. If they did, the companies could afford to keep up this terribly unfair practise. Regions suck.

Why should I have to pay for two copies of a DVD if I want to play it both at home, and on a trip to Japan?</Anti-MPAA rant>

Yuzure

But discussing it now is a bit premature, and probably due to the heat, hunger, and gold.

xd