Wandering around the Taipei International Book Fair venue not long go I noticed that  e-books, the subject of high expectations but yet to make a real big impact, had made an appearance at last and various e-book content platforms were provided. There was also a joint stall promoting this new information product.As a reader of traditional paper books I have recently been thinking about what is important to me about e-book and traditional book reading. And what is troublesome?

Before the appearance of digital information a book gave the reader information and was also a vehicle for information, the traditional meaning of “book” being its contents and its pages, printed words and binding. Each page of information has its own page, allowing a book to display different contents. If you had a big enough table you can read several books at the same time, turning over the pages not being a problem for most people.

It is inevitable that e-book contents will be increased. No matter if people are pessimistic or optimistic about the future of e-books, they cannot deny the potential of digital information. However, no mater how much contents e-books have and no matter how closely e-book readers can simulate the traditional reading experience, the vehicle is still different. The main advantages of an e-book is that it is easy to arrange and large number of books can be carried around in a small device weighing just a few hundred grams. Also, the contents and the vehicle can be separated, allowing book contents to be quickly and cheaply disseminated.

These are advantages that traditional books can’t match. However, while holding a large number of books in the hard drive the content can only be displayed on a small screen. Many books are large and heavy but the reader can enjoy flicking through several books at the same time should he/she desire. The author of this article is a graduate student who has to do a lot of reading. For me this way of reading is very important. Recreating this kind of reading experience with an e-book requires the purchase of several e-book readers or having a super large screen but this will change the original light and mobile characteristics of an e-book.

Also, sharing is one of the main advantages of digital information, however, copyright protection can make e-books a big headache for people. If I buy a book at Eslite bookstore I can lend it to a friend if I want, for as long as I want without causing any problem. However, e-book content is different. To prevent the theft of information that has value the contents of these books must lock-on to a certain fixed vehicle possessed by the buyer for it to be read. If I buy an e-book today, can’t share this information with my friend unless I also lend him/her my reader (unless they sit next to and read at the same time which is often impractical). Readers cost at least NT$10,000 and, even if the price comes down, they are still “luxury” items compared to paper books that you wouldn’t feel completely at ease lending one out to a friend. Even if I am generous and trusting and lend a friend my e-book reader it might contain books I still haven’t finished reading which will be inconvenient for me.

Humans have been using books made of bound paper pages for a thousand years and many of the ways we use books have changed quite significantly. In comparison, e-books are just infants and the ways we use them, including reading and sharing methods, are still evolving. The author thinks that before e-books evolve further (the development of multiple color virtual screens and a mechanism for distribution that protects business interests while also allowing sharing, for example), traditional books will not be superseded. It also remains to be seen whether this globalized and diverse world will see the appearance of other reading methods.