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Words Stamped on a Page
- 06/05/10
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Earlier this week I read the book The Shallows by Nicholas Carr—the guy who wrote the infamous article “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” It’s a fantastic book and addresses many of the kinds of questions I’ve been asked and (hopefully) answering in my own book. Seriously, you should consider reading it.
Carr looks primarily to what the internet is doing to our brains, to the way we think and even to the way we perceive ourselves. And inevitably he spends quite a bit of time looking to the history of communication, including the book. And here are a few of his thoughts about what makes the book such an amazing invention, especially when compared to digital readers. In them he captures just a bit of my passion for books.
It’s not hard to see why books have been slow to make the leap into the digital age. There’s not a whole lot of difference between a computer monitor and a television screen, and the sounds coming from speakers hit your ears in pretty much the same way whether they’re being transmitted through a computer or a radio. But as a device for reading, the book retains some compelling advantages over the computer. You can take a book to the beach without worrying about sand getting in its works. You can take it to bed without being nervous about it falling to the floor should you nod off. You can spill coffee on it. You can sit on it. You can put it down on a table, open to the page you’re reading, and when you pick it up a few days later it will still be exactly as you left it. You never have to be concerned about plugging a book into an outlet or having its battery day.
The experience of reading tends to be better with a book too. Words stamped on a page in black ink are easier to read than words formed of pixels on a backlit screen. You can read a dozen or a hundred printed pages without suffering from the eye fatigue that often results from even a brief stretch of online reading. Navigating a book is simpler and, as software programmers say, more intuitive. You can flip through real pages much more quickly and flexibly than you can through virtual pages. And you can write notes in a book’s margins or highlight passages that move or inspire you. You can even get a book’s author to sign its title page. When you’re finished with a book, you can use it to fill an empty space on your bookshelf—or lend it to a friend.
I am a follower of Jesus Christ, a husband to Aileen and a father to three young children. I worship and serve as a pastor at 
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Comments (8)
I’ve used a Kindle and I enjoy it for one purpose: reading fiction. However, for nonfiction books and theological works I prefer a real physical book that I can mark, highlight, and take notes in. I know Kindle has notetaking and highlighting capabilities, but it just isn’t the same. Its also too difficult to find footnotes / endnotes with the Kindle.
I love good, old-style books. As long as the publishers publish them, I’ll continue to buy them.
Excellent book. In his May 24, 1010 “Wired” article, which is adapted from “The Shallows,” Carr writes: “A 2007 scholarly review of hypertext experiments concluded that jumping between digital documents impedes understanding. And if links are bad for concentration and comprehension, it shouldn’t be surprising that more recent research suggests that links surrounded by images, videos, and advertisements could be even worse.”
I wonder if the architects of the soon-to-be-released “BibleMesh” read “The Shallows,” or perhaps the “Wired” article? The BibleMesh website promises “commentary… over 400 articles and videos… biblical and theological truths using advanced techniques.”
I actually sighed as I was reading that excerpt. He captured exactly how I feel about books. It makes me sad to think of losing them to digital counterparts. But storefronts haven’t gone away since the dawn of internet shopping, so I’m not too worried.
Having the words stamped on the page has been my way of reading ‘stuff’ that I want to be able to recall later. Even the spatial arrrangement of words on a page has been important to me. I can remember paragraphs and my mind maps what part of the page, on what side of the book, or beside which grapahic or photo something may have been written. When reading my bible i can relate to and remember text better from a printed page. I hate to get a new bible with the text poistion on a page being ‘altered’. I just seem to remember better with that map of ink before me.
Long live the printed page.
Having said that as a culture the west has become too dependent on the written word. Having spent some time with cultures which have more of an oral tradition, it embarasses me that I need a hymn book in front of me to remember the words to sing whereas as a more oral tradition person has already memorised the words… shame on me.
There is something that tomorrow’s generation will be missing if everything goes the electronic way…the thrill of walking into a library and being deliciously awed by books. They even have a wonderful smell all their own!
I appreciate the chosen quote from the author. I appreciate flipping through pages and making countless marks that speak to my heart. Even though I am searching for my page (as the bookmark always falls out!), I have a time limit with computer screens and I am glad that I do. Reading is a chosen hobby, one I do not intend to let go. I have vivid memories of my Grandmother’s bible, full of marks and comments. That is what makes a book completely different from a screen!Thanks for your blog Tim, your insight inspires…
Carr’s “The Big Switch” was a game-changing book. Enjoyed it. His blog is another thing - tends to be course at times. Still, he’s onto something….as are you, Tim. Will read The Shallows. Perfect name for a book - just “The Shallows” - in today’s mental skim society. Furthermore, it follows that the same application is hitting politics. We give our leaders, idols, wives, and children no time for patience and pace. Things have to be done right “right now”…just like when I click a mouse.
Most of the ‘advantages’ of The Book listed in the quote and in the comments don’t inherently make The Book better than digital technology. Actually, some of the reasons are just variations on ‘the book is cheaper than our computers’ (I’m reminded of the article I recently saw, maybe it was posted here?, that recommended iPad owners also get a Kindle, where most of the argument was basically “other people will not want to steal or borrow your kindle!”). Worried about your digital book reader falling off your nightstand, getting coffee spilled on it, or sand getting in the cracks? Then somebody will just have to make a cost-effective, bouncy, waterproof case for it! Non-intuitive page turning or note taking on digital devices just means programmers must still word hard at making these functions better. Also, taking up space on a bookshelf is hardly a compelling reason to buy tons of books - that’d be a perfect advertisement in favor buying digital books (as a college student, I’d love it if I could drop all the weight of my texts and only carry around my 2 pound laptop, especially for THOSE profs that insist on making us bring 4 books to every class session).
That said, I still go to borders and amazon when I’m shopping for books, even when I know they’re available in digital. Today, in 2010, the experience of reading a printed book is definitely much better than reading a flat computer screen. But that doesn’t mean I’m not looking forward to the rapid advances in technology that will make reading digitally more pleasurable and practical. For example, my love and passion for Scripture has increased a lot since I finally got good Bible software (Accordance) in January - I take pity on those who try to learn and analyze John’s use of vocabulary without a lightning-fast search engine!