The Evolution of Reading - From Print to Digital
The written word has gone through a series of evolution—from cave drawings to stone carvings, scrolls, and papyrus, up until the factory-produced paperbound and hardbound books. But, the evolution of text did not stop there. Technology has paved the way for traditional print media to also be consumed digitally.
In the golden days, documenting took time, as records and manuscripts were written by hand one page at a time. Then came the invention of the printing press—books became widely available, and literature blossomed despite how expensive books can be.
Through the years, the demand for resource materials grew and opened bigger doors for publications and bookstore owners. As the journey of text evolved, so did our reading habits.
Author of digitalmediamachine.com, Ian Lamont, shared in his blog article an encounter he read on Hacker News. One user was contemplating about how much his or her reading habits have changed.
The user wrote, "I was a good reader throughout my childhood, youth and academic years. Lately, and after a couple of decades, it's becoming increasingly challenging to focus, consume and finish books. I'm becoming the modern age illiterate. I'm usually squeezed for time - but even if I find some, I don't pick up where I left."
Lamont expressed in his blog how much he understood what the user was experiencing. From juggling work and spending time with the family, Lamont writes that it has become easier to watch TV with the kin than it is to share a book.
When we stumble upon reading materials online, we consume it in nugget sizes by skimming through the content for basic facts, quotes, and relevant paragraphs before moving on to the next piece of article.
How the world reads has changed together with the evolution of text. If someone were to ask you when the last time you finished a book was, you might not remember when. Technology has given us plenty of scapegoats like getting lost browsing on social media or not having enough time.
We pack our lives with virtual activities. Trying out time management applications only to find ourselves still pressed for time. We, then, resort to materials that can be conveniently accessed like eBook or audio books.
If we continue to let technological advancements influence our reading habits, future generations might experience a scarcity of excellent writers because reading and writing go hand-in-hand.
Do not let digital technologies consume you. So, get your reading glasses, pick up a book and sharpen the saw. Your future self will definitely thank you for it. The evolution of how materials are produced should expand our habits of consuming information, not lessen it.