Future of the Book - Part 1

             The Library Research Service (LRS) recently conducted a national survey.  The 60-Second Survey: The Future of the Book asked people what they thought of paper books vs eBooks, the comparative costs, advantages, etc.  The survey was advertised on several listserves, the LRS website and blog, and in ALA’s weekly e-newsletter.  More than 1,300 people participated, with 71% commenting on the blog.

          LRS has published a 2-part article of the findings on their website http://www.lrs.org/ Part 1 is titled The Future of the Book: Perception of Cost and Technological Advantages of Paper and Electronic Formats. Part 2 is titled Beyond the Bathtub: Personal Preferences Among Many Factors Influencing Format Choice. Just a sampling of the survey results show that:


• 2-in-3 respondents (63%) believe that paper books will never disappear

• Much smaller percentages (11%) believe paper books will disappear in 100 years; 11% say 50-100 years, 15% say within the next 50 years.

• Regarding what respondents say libraries will circulate 10 years from now, 48% predict an equal amount of paper vs electronic materials; 53% predict that library circulation of electronic materials will surpass physical materials in 10 years; 16% predicted libraries will circulate more physical materials.

         From Part 1 of the LRS survey, here are some great quotes on both sides of the issue: “Books are a cheap, simple, durable, transferable, and persistent technology. Most eBooks I have seen so far meet none of these criteria…”
And
“Books will always have a place, but I find the eBook format has made me a convert…I foresee vast educational uses for this format—easy access to references and background information, plus it would be helpful for an array of special education reading problems…”

Next week...a summary of Part2. In the meantime, read The Future of the Book study on the LRS website.