In “10 Reading Revolutions Before E-Books”, Tim Carmody points out that “print changed reader’s expectations of text”. This statement is not only true, but reflects the main focus behind Apple’s “transformation of the textbook industry”. Their objective aims to change the perspective on what the relationship between text and reader should be. I myself use an educational e-book for my Spanish classes, and as much as I hate the assignments, I do have to admit that they do have significant value. By adding a level of interaction that I would otherwise fail to get from a textbook, I can relate more to my readings than simply trying to memorize definitions on my own. The only negative comment I have about the future of e-books is that teachers may come to rely on this resource too much in the classroom. Watching interactive videos and adding electronic annotations can only get a student so far; there must be a balance between digital interaction and one-on-one contact.
As far as reading for personal enjoyment, however, I much rather prefer turning the crisp pages of a new novel to scrolling around on any digital device. I find that even when doing the assigned readings for this course on a computer, I become less engaged and more distracted than when reading printed text. As much as digital text aims to supply interaction, I only find myself more distanced from the reading experience.
While I do see the benefits of e-books, I hope that Apple’s “transformation” doesn’t pick up speed anytime soon- my laptop just died last week and I don’t have a tablet.