Scoop du jour: Simplicity may be coming, but it’s no substitute

George Le Masurier

of the Gateway

THE ODDS are, it’s Wednesday and you’re reading this column in print. Although a few of you are reading this online, the majority of people reading newspapers still want to hold the paper in their hands.

Are we just an older generation, holding onto a thing of the past? I don’t think so. I think people will always want to read a printed newspaper or a book they can hold in their hands.

You might dismiss my prediction because I work in the newspaper industry and have a self-interested point of view.

Possibly so, but I rarely talk to anyone who actually enjoys reading a computer screen whose eyes don’t tire quickly from staring at a flickering monitor.

The people I talk to value the ritual of stumbling out to the paper box in the morning or the mailbox later in the day. They appreciate the flexibility of carrying their newspaper from room to room, rolling it up or folding it up, cutting it up and, yes, even wrapping it up.

Most of this current discussion about the apparently, inevitable transformation to a digital reading world revolves around newspapers.

But it’s really about all printed forms of communication. We’re talking professional journals, magazines and even memos in your office.

We were told the paperless office was just around the corner. Well, I don’t know about your office, but we seem to have just as much paper as ever, if not more.

It’s wasteful, I suppose, but most people still print out many of the documents they receive electronically.

Now we’re being encouraged to give up the printed book.

Electronic books distributed through Amazon’s Kindle or Sony’s Reader hold only about 2 percent of the book market. But, like online readership of newspapers, the sales of electronic books are increasing dramatically.

Publishers of books, magazines and newspapers have a love-hate relationship with electronic readers. Some publishers say the readers get people to buy more books and magazines than they would off the newsstand.

But they don’t like splitting their profits with Amazon or Sony, or the fact that they no longer control the price of their product.

Consumers like me don’t like the size and weight of the electronic readers and their hard-to-read screens.

Perhaps the future lies in the kind of reader that’s being developed by a German company called Plastic Logic. They hope to market an electronic reader that rolls up like a newspaper and doesn’t have a flickering screen, making it convenient to carry with you and easier to read.

Maybe I’ll be tempted to give up my printed newspaper or novel when such a flexible reader hits the market.

Somehow I doubt I’ll do it, at least not completely.

I love my shelves full of our favorite books. Just looking at the spines reminds me of the stories they hold and the memories I have of reading them.

They have a certain smell. Their covers are often amazing pieces of art.

We might be moving toward a totally virtual world, but they’ll probably have to take me kicking and screaming.

Reach Publisher George Le Masurier at 253-853-9248 or by e-mail at george.lemasurier@gateline.com.