Reading Books versus Surfing the Net.

The habit of reading books got into me more than four decades ago through my father and elder brother, who are no more now. While in New Delhi in those days, for their reading pleasure, they bought some books, and regularly borrowed many from The British Council Library and The United States Information Service. Supplementing this there were books from Central Secretariat Library of which my father was a member, he being a Government official. They were mostly auto-biographies, biographies of eminent personalities, books on History and literature, and occasionally fiction.

I used to read them late in the nights and on Sundays after my studies. And yes, after them. Elders first were the unwritten rule and code!

In contrast, there is practically no competition to the usage of my personal computer, which I acquired in late 2000 just before my retirement from service. I planned this to spend time on it in my retired life. I learnt to operate it slowly. How I did it I narrated it in my blog- The way I learnt Computers- which I posted in July 2006.

In the euphoria of learning this new medium, and browsing the net for information, my book reading habit was on the wane. I found it difficult to balance my time between the two habits. Most of the time I succumbed to the temptation of viewing the world through the windows, and tried to assimilate as much information and knowledge my brain could take it at a stretch. I realized surfing the net slowly draws the mind away from focus on any one subject/topic. What are retained in the mind are only bits and pieces of information. May be it has undesirable and unwanted information, piles of them. But it is there for retrieval, and caters to the needs of netizens. The most popular attribute, however is the mail transmission, followed by chats and videos. The technological stride it has made over decades is amazing.

Despite this, I find reading a book turning its pages slowly, and float along with the author’s views most invigorating. This sense of belonging with the author is unparallel. One gets a feeling of togetherness. This is absent while reading the contents in link pages of a website, or for that matter of fact reading an e-book. There is an inexplicable strain to the eyes. Though the contents in the e-book and its print edition are the same, reading it online is a pain to the brain. Concentration is lacking and the focus is absent. I find the feeling is similar when comparison is made between a Landline and a Cell phone.

I guess I am a traditionalist. But the trends in the IT field are fast changing. I read the other day that e-Readers are becoming not only popular but attractive. This device displays the text of a book electronically on an LCD screen. It features a dictionary; buttons to flip the pages, slots to increase storage capacity etc., etc., In other words, one could download loads of titles of books. This storage device virtually replaces book shelves.

Added to this is the launching of online library by the European Union which will feature digital objects- films, photographs, paintings, sound files, maps etc., In other words it will be a digital library showcasing Europe’s cultural heritage online. Access to it is at www.europeana.eu/. This would certainly help anyone in the globe to visit libraries of other countries without actually going there.

This is admirable. Sitting at home, one could surf the website for seeking vast knowledge. This may facilitate disabled persons, like me, who cannot commute to the libraries. But others may curtail their visits to libraries, missing its wonderful ambience. With this technology gaining popularity and momentum in the coming decades, there could be reduction in publication of books in print mode. There would be fewer books for sale. If this were to come true, running a Bookstore would not be economical, and may eventually close down.

But that would be a pity! There would be fewer books in the bookshelves at home, and the study room would look bland.

I shudder to read that the e-content would eclipse traditional books by the next decade. Is it good? Not for me.

There is a news report In Austin American-Statesman of 21^st November, 2008 that Bookstop, a bookstore in Central Austin would close by the year end. Is this the beginning of the trend?

Once I buy a book, it becomes my companion for life. Seeing collection of my books on shelves, not only showcase my reading habit, but enable my family members accessible to it. It would tempt others to get into the reading habit. Not the Computer when switched off and not connected to the net. It is definitely not tempting and attractive when in slumber mood.