By Michael Smith (Veshengro)
It is often claimed by environmentalists that e-book readers save trees. The same is true for PDF documents which are read on a computer screen, including handhelds. So why another gadget?
For years now the makers of the various devices have been trying to convince everyone now e-books will be taking off and how one would need such a reader. Firstly, when we come to the Amazon Kindle then this device, so I understand, can only read a specified format, namely the kindle format. Rather silly, if you ask me. E-books should be in PDF; that way they can be read on any computer, whether Windows PC, Linux PC or Apple Mac, and all handhelds that run Pocket PC or such programs, including Palm with its own. To make a format so that people will have to buy from one outlet only is a great marketing idea, much like Microsoft dominance for operating system software but it is not good for the consumer.
Amazon brought out the Kindle Reader and others followed, basically, with readers and formats of their own. This, as said, is not of benefit to the consumer and reader but only to the makers and vendors.
PDF is a perfectly good system and all that is required, in all honesty, is a handheld that, say, is powered by some operating systems used to run a PDF reader with annotation facilities and such, such as, for instance, the Foxit Reader. This would be a cheaper and much more beneficial system. Not that anyone is going to do it, I know. Not enough profit in it.
I must also say that the printed book is not going to be supplanted by the e-book readers, of that I am certain; at least not in the next half-century or so. I also do not think that people are going to read entire books on those things that take batteries and could be prone to failure and are not always very responsive. The printed book will remain and will do so for a very long time to come.
PDFs on the other hand as e-books are very useful and here especially as you can cut and paste in case you want to make use of some information, you can, b y use of the right reader annotate and highlight – the Foxit Reader makes bot possible and it saves the changes – and you can print the entire document for reading and working on without the use of electronic devices.
Saving trees, they say, those devices do. Maybe that. Then again do those that make such claims know how forestry for paper works? I doubt. Most paper for the printing presses comes from well managed forests that would not exist were it not for the paper industry, to be honest, and they do not want to destroy their resources and thus the forests are managed to a very high standard.
With the exception of some companies who are allowed to ride roughshod over many things, such as Kimberly-Clark in Canada, most in the paper industry manage their own forests or purchase pulp wood from sustainable managed forests whether private or government ones.
Paper does not, however, have to be made from wood, in the first place. It can be made from many other fibers, nettles amongst them, as well as from clothing waste, as long as that are natural material such as cotton, linen, and such. Forest residue too, that currently is being left “for the benefit of the wildlife” while causing harm to the forests, could be brought into that chain of events, as could wood chippings, etc. In fact there are many things from which paper could be made so the talk about saving trees does not wash at all here.
All I am seeing as far as e-book readers are concerned is electronic gadgets that serve no real purpose, much like the “Eco-Button”, except to bring in money for some makers that ride on the green bandwagon.
© 2009
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E-Book Readers – what gives?
