What is the future of the book?

If you key the words ‘The future of the book’ into the Internet, you get loads of mentions, indicating that there is a very real debate going on out there. We thought it would be a good idea to ask the question of yourselves via our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/inscribemedia

Here’s some questions for starters:

* My Dad (a retired librarian) always said that the hardcopy book will survive. Is he right? And if so, will folks read them or put them on shelves and point to them as museum pieces?

* What about the e-book? Do you want to read books on hand-held e-readers? And if you don’t, what about the generations to follow? Where and how will they read?

* The traditionalists might argue that all this e-book malarkey is an awful thing but if the kids read books on e-readers isn’t it actually offering hope for the future?

* Will the e-book last or will folks read blogs like this in twenty years and give a knowing smile while saying: ‘How strange were these people!’

* What will happen to our libraries? Already under pressure from budget cuts (in the UK for sure) can they move quickly enough to accommodate the advent of the e-reader?

* Whizz time forward to 2050 - you fancy reading the book from your favourite author. What will it look like? Will it be hardcopy book, will it be on a hand-held reader, will it, a la the paintings in Hogwarts in the Harry Potter books, have moving pages in which the scenes are enacted in front of your eyes?

In short, what is the future of the book?

John Dean