Are Written Books Irrelevant These Days?
The fact is, it has been happening for a while. People are turning more and more to the internet as a source of information, over books.
Instead of heading to the local library for information, as in days past, many people are now just turning on their computers from the comforts of home. They are usually pleased with the information they can find on the internet, from a given website. Does this shift in the gaining of information mean the end of books?
My guess is no. The internet is not leading us to the end of the book period any time soon. Simply put, there are just too many academics who rely heavily upon books in their studies and careers for books to die out overnight.
Ask any university or college student and they would gladly tell you that their teachers want reliable sources of where they got their information. If the student told them they used a random website as a source that would be unacceptable.
Anyone out there can own a website and claim they are an expert on a topic. With a little bit of luck, a bit of research, and possibly a payment, they can even make their website come up as one of the top links in a Google search on the topic.
The site may look nice, and they may sound like they know what they are talking about, but who is to say that they really do? Websites are largely unregulated and it is not easy to tell what has been fact checked.
On the other hand we have books, which are generally written by accredited experts. The facts are checked and reviewed many times prior to printing. With books it is easier to weed out the good from the bad, and it is also easier to direct other people to the good, informative reads.
For the fact checks, and for the many people who will always love the feel of a good novel between their hands, I do not think that books will be going anywhere. At least not any time soon. As a book person, I hold out hope that the younger generations come to appreciate books the same way many of us already have.
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