I still just doubt this will happen very quickly. As you are fond of pointing out, Emma, change in the publishing industry moves at a snail's pace, if at all. For it to adapt to a new internet-based world is going to be quite a long process. Vinyl, for instance, took a few decades to displace, because even though additional technology (8-track) was invented, it wasn't better than the record, except in your car. Cassettes had their day, but then there came the CD - better in almost every way than vinyl and indestructible in ways that cassettes weren't. Until a technology that is better than the paperback comes out (better than Kindle!), I don't think they will be displaced.

And yes, format changes have happened very rapidly in the last 20 years, but books have been around for 4 centuries. I think it'll be a slower transition than Betamax to VHS.

Discussed,

Link

Eoin

Funny how the main thrust of this article seems to be the promotion of a good, old fashioned book.

Nor do I agree that the 'work of the novel is done'. Obviously the work of the 19th century novel is done - it was done when James Joyce and Virginia Woolf came along. But there have been novels for over 2000 years (if you accept the view that Apuleius wrote the first one). They change, adapt - I believe they used to call it evolution. There are already collaborative novels on the net - Fay Weldon and Kate Pullenger among others have led the writing of them. Not sure anyone has tackled the 'lowest common denominator' problem yet but they will, Oscar, they will.

There are also - and Em will know whereof I speak here - large numbers of people even in developed societies who are disenfranchised from access to computers but can get printed books. Are we proposing to marginalise those groups even further?
I'm confident the novel has a future - but probably not the future any of us anticipates.

There - have I discussed enough? Self-promoting wolf in techno-seer's sheep's clothing, I reckon.

PS: Did anyone see my query about the World Book Day site or is it still sitting in the toe of Rob's slipper?