Steta Publishers
  • Home
  • About
  • Work
  • Twitbits
  • Blog
Steta Publishers was a writing and brand language consultancy that ran from 2012 to 2016. We are no longer available for projects. Our founders now work here and here. 

Recently Kindled 

3/9/2012

0 Comments

 
Most hard-core book lovers (me included) claim their undying devotion to the book in its printed form. And this is but natural, because the book has been with us since more than 500 years. And through most of its glorious history, it has looked the same way, up until the very recent past. Almost all of us in the literate world have early memories of looking at books, turning their pages, and occasionally tearing their pages. We use books to scribble in, make lists in, and write in. A lot of school education happens through books. We use them for both absorbing someone else's thoughts and knowledge, as well as jotting down our own. Every book lover has a secret desire to have his or her own small library, or at least a wall full of books. There is something wonderful and heart-warming about a room full of books, especially when they are old leather-bound ones, with their titles in embossed gold, as in my grandmother's house. Their very presence seems to radiate wisdom.

I too, am one of those who love a room full of books. I used to be one of those people who leaned strongly in favour of printed books, over any digital device. Recently, I got a Kindle, or, I should say, I got Kindled with a new kind of enthusiasm. Overnight I went from being a skeptic of such devices, to a convert. Though I still love printed books, the convenience and wonder of the Kindle make it hard not to love it.

For starters, it is delightfully light to hold. It is the size of your typical paperback, and weighs around the same. Unlike most digital objects that scream 'glossiness', the Kindle is sober. It patiently wears its black leather cover (optional), and assumes a very bookish appearance, almost like a 17th century diary. The best part of it is its screen surface, unlike any other. It is not hard on the eyes; in fact, it looks exactly like ink on paper. Unlike computer screens or tablets, the screen is not lit from within, which creates a strain on your eyes after many hours of viewing. In every respect, it looks and acts exactly like a real book. It also allows you to change the font size and line spacing to suit your vision. It has an audio option that reads to you if you like. When traveling you don't have to carry heavy books, but can just load thousands of them on it and voila, you are ready to go. Reading on the computer can be full of distractions, with other links and tabs all waiting to be clicked, but reading on the Kindle is a very different process. It is as soothing and absorbing as sitting down with a real book. Downloading books onto it is also easy as pie. It has a surprisingly long battery life. It is the only device out there, that is purely dedicated to act of reading, and that's why I love it, even though I never thought I would.

If you are a voracious reader, it's a thing worth investing in. Many of us are so attached to books, that we assume these devices are threatening their long legacy. But they may even encourage reading. And book lovers will always buy printed matter. Certain kinds of books, such as illustrated material, or high-quality printed books, will always be preferred in print. A lot of everyday reading can be easily and smoothly transferred to the Kindle.

Ever since Gutenberg invented printing, the book has stood for centuries as a revered, almost sacred object of our culture. It is the symbol of intellectual pursuit. It is one of the few mediums that are capable of conveying long, complex concepts and thoughts. Until the last few decades it was the main way to transfer knowledge. Now its physical form is changing faster than some of us would like, but it is still, inherently, the same thing. Even though I read a lot on the Kindle, I still regularly read printed books. There is a charm in holding and handling a tangible object; that you know can't be deleted at the press of a button. And of course, even with a thousand Kindles, a wall full of books remains the ultimate delight.

Armeen Kapadia
The author is co-founder and Director, Content Design at Steta
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Authors

    Steta's founders, Urmilla Chandran and Armeen Kapadia author this blog. 

    We love letting our thoughts (crazy, stupid or smart) out for some fresh air.


    Archives

    October 2016
    May 2016
    March 2016
    January 2016
    October 2015
    September 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    July 2014
    March 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012


    Categories

    All
    Awards
    Blogging
    Books
    Bookstore
    Business Writing
    Classical
    Content
    Corporate
    Culture
    Design
    Dictionary
    Editing
    Grammar
    Help Authoring Tools
    Image
    Language
    Life
    Literature
    Media
    News
    Newspaper
    Personal
    Press
    Printing
    Problem
    Professional
    Punctuation
    Reading
    Retrospective
    Review
    Solution
    Story
    Technical Writing
    Technology
    Thesaurus
    Tools
    Typewriter
    Vocabulary
    Writers
    Writing


Home

Work
Blog
About


Copyright © Steta Publishers 2012–16. All rights reserved.