I have fond memories of reading -- way back to my early years, when I remember reading just about anything written by Jules Verne and checking-out every one of The Hardy Boys Mysteries from the library ...
Paperbacks, hardcover books, I remember their varied shapes, their cover art (or lack thereof), their lightness or heft, their flexibility or stiffness, even their smell.
Now I find myself considering an e-reader like the Kindle from Amazon.
I am even considering an I-Pad, though if I get one, it will likely be used for more than just reading books.
The point is that electronic books are becoming more and more common and as I ponder which books I might take with me on a trip, I also wonder if in the not too distant future I might be carrying an e-reader instead.
Along with myself, many others are also likely considering the move to e-books and this can only mean the gradual decline of printing books on paper. Someday, books made of paper may only be a distant memory and I can imagine a future where "books" are simply electronic files, stored in microscopic drives, or even in "the cloud".
I think back to the golden age of Archaeology and all we have learned through the deciphering of hieroglyphics, etchings on stones and clay tablets, or markings on papyri and parchments.
Can you imagine archaeologists in the future digging through piles of electronic data instead of manuscripts and various tomes? It may be progress, but I don't have to like it.
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