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E-books: Are they really changing people’s reading habits?

Advanced technology is changing the way we read and purchase books. About 21% of all American adults have stated that they read an e-book in the last year, and believe it or not, the number will most likely increase to 40% in 5 to 10 years. E-book readers and tablet computers are everywhere these days; people use them to access the web, play games, read newspapers, and ultimately, read e-books. Nooks, Kindles, and iPads have invaded the market, and currently very few people are still fond of traditional reading.

E-books vs. printed books– a statistical analysis
In the American culture, the rise of e-books is part of a more complex story about moving from printed to digital material. A survey performed in December 2011 on Americans aged 16 and older highlighted that 43% of all respondents have read some sort of content like news articles, magazines, or journals in digital format (tablet PC, e-book readers, smartphone, of iPad). Surprisingly, people who are fond of e-books are also keen readers of books in all kinds of formats. Studies have shown that 88% of individuals, who read books on Kindles in the last year, have also read ordinary books.

woman reading on an electronic tabletThey’re frequent readers because of myriad reasons: for research, current events, for pleasure, and work purposes. The increasing popularity of e-books and the purchase of electronic devices are definitely changing people’s reading habits. Downloading PDFs and purchasing books in electronic format is extremely simple nowadays; a lot of us turn to e-books because they’re more comfortable. Why head over to the bookstore and spend hours looking for something you like, when you can browse through an online history of books in a couple of minutes?

Society changes the way we read
We often don’t realize that we read all the time. Whether we read website content, text messages, ebooks, PDF files, comments, emails, and reports, there’s no doubt that our brains are packed with digital information. We will eventually forget that reading is an activity that must carried out willfully, with single-minded concentration and intent. People are not that focused on reading anymore; they speed-read, skim-read, and cherry-pick paragraphs and headlines. They don’t bother reading long articles because it’s easier for them to read the comments to get an idea of that text.

man reading book while sitting at airport
We live in a society where we can download ebooks with a click of a button, so it shouldn’t surprise us anymore that reading has changed. Nevertheless, people should not allow advanced technology to influence their perception as far as books are concerned. The experience of reading a printed book can’t be compared with the experience we have sitting in bed with a Kindle in our arms. It’s not the same activity and it will never be.

If you want to make the most of e-books without losing focus or getting distracted by social media, here’s what you must do:

  • Allocate 2 hours a week to read an ebook (no social media interaction allowed)
  • Stop reading if you can’t get past page no.5
  • Hunt for a free ebook (and read it since it’s free)
  • Talk about the ebooks you read with your peers
  • Take notes while you read
  • Make an attempt to purchase one e-book a month

The migration of a book to the digital sphere is not just a trade of ink for pixels anymore. Believe it or not, e-book reading can be just as profound as traditional reading if done right. Parents can’t stop kids from interacting with technology anymore, and they can’t forbid their kids to access smart devices because they’re everywhere. Hence, rather than reject e-books and blame them that they can’t replace printed books, it might be a good idea to embrace their qualities.

Kids can grow extremely fond of e-books because they have beautiful imagery, they come in the shape of a tablet (which is cool), and they can make reading a really engaging experience. If you never thought your kid could become a bookworm child, maybe it’s time to rethink your options. There’s no doubt that e-books are changing the way we read, but that change doesn’t have to be dreadful, especially not in a world dominated by advanced technology where even if we wanted to go back we couldn’t.

Author Bio: Steve Brown wrote this amazing article. He love reading books and spends all his free time with a book. If you want to read a book online then you must log on to http://www.lovereading.co.uk/, here you will get a vast collection of new and entertaining books.