Monday Postcard #248 – Print vs. Digital
My mornings are sacrosanct. I wake up early, make a nice cup of coffee and enjoy it with some bread with a hazelnut spread (well, I probably do not have to be that cryptic: of course, it is Nutella, the one and only (side note: no sponsoring has been received for this post)). I then catch up on the news which I now do mostly on my phone. It has become much easier, but still, it is just not the same. Sometimes, I do contemplate buying an “old school” print subscription.
When you hold an actual paper in your hand, it is similar to a book – you can feel it, smell it, the print may even come off and your hands may be dirty after. I love to rip out pages of magazines which I find important or inspiring. (You can read more about my “inspirational notebooks” in Monday Postcard #245.) Most likely, it is this feeling of holding something “real” in your hand.
When I scroll through the online news in the morning, it feels like 90% clickbait (when newspapers try to entice readers to click by using a sensational headline). It mostly sounds like “The 10 things you have to do…”, “This is what celebrities wear…”, and so on. You may now ask “What type of newspaper is this woman reading?!”. I have to tell you, even the newspapers which used to be considered “quality” have not refrained from integrating these strategies into their online presence. Another popular approach is to present the newest Instagram- and TickTock-trends. I never really understood that – if I want to know what is happening on Instagram, I do not need a newspaper or magazine to tell me. Whatever works for them, I guess… Needless to say, there is a huge need for advertising revenues through clicks or affiliate programmes. From a business perspective, I totally understand it – the revenues in print magazines with traditional advertisements have decreased steadily over the years. But does this mean that online content has to be “dumbed down”?
When the Kindle came out, I bought one. I love to read and it sounded like a practical tool. While it comes in handy when travelling, I never really clicked with it. My Kindle is now in some drawer, uncharged and unused. I just want a real book in my hand. I need to be able to turn pages, make earmarks and sometimes even underline or highlight things. I do know that Kindle has these fancy options too, but I just do not enjoy them as much as the “real” ones. Furthermore, it feels that I do not fully grasp the content. It feels fleeting – I probably make this up in my head, but I remember content much better when I read it printed on actual paper. This means, I usually lug 2-3 books around, depending on the length of my trip. I may have some light and entertaining books for a beach trip on the Kindle. However, when I thought about it just now, I realised that I even carried the paperback version of those books on my last trips.
Similarly, I really enjoy paper maps. I can orientate myself much better and also mark points of interest, restaurants, places I wanted to visit. I am aware that I can do that on Google Maps as well, but every time I prepared a map for a trip, there was some kind of issue – it did not load properly, or it just did not work offline, or the downloaded offline version did not work either. The only disadvantage of the old school map is that you cannot blend in with the local crowd. While nobody knows what you are doing while you stare at your phone, folding and unfolding a printed map makes it pretty obvious that you are a tourist.
Some things just cannot be substituted by tech. Or let’s put it like this: they may be, but the joy and fun factor may be different.
What about you? Have you fully digitized your reading or are you similar to me?
More Monday Postcards
Monday Postcard #247 – Why I Always Trust My Gut Feeling
Monday Postcard #246 – How We See Ourselves vs. How Others See Us
Monday Postcard #245 – The Joy of Analogue Work
Monday Postcard #244 – Does Haut Couture Need Sensationalism