A resurgence in reading habit has been accompanied by improved
gadgets that allow online reading as well as purchase of books, both
print and electronic versions. Rakesh kumar trawls through the
e-landscape to learn more
A series of advertisement clips, accompanied by the jingle "Pocket me
TV"(TV in the pocket), for an application that is available on a mobile
phone, has brought home the extent of revolution that gadgets have
made, shrinking several activities such as watching television,
listening to music, playing games like chess or cards as well choosing
from a library of books. Indeed, a plethora of applications are
available for entertainment as well as work on a mobile phone. A list of
negative fall-outs of too much time spent on the phone notwithstanding,
several good have emerged as well. Even if it was unconsciously done,
people picked up their reading habits, thanks to the digital
availability of books. Six year ago, Amazon released its first e-reader
Kindle, hooking on an increasing number of readers on the move. And
Kindle has seen several innovations since (See Box: Chronology of
Kindle). Moreover, the smartphone has made it more facile as it allows a
reader to download an entire book and peruse it as on a computer
desktop or laptop. Not just for an avid reader, but the application is a
boon for students, who are no more dependent on heavy books.
Reading habits
Down the ages reading has been termed as next to religion in India. In
ancient days, a person who knew how to read was termed as equivalent to
God. But reading today has taken a new meaning, quite different from the
traditional one. With education made universal, almost everyone,
cutting across class and creed can now read. Students are forced to read
textbooks but that does not lead to reading habit. In fact, educators
say, it's reading as a hobby that makes the cut. Reading a novel,
poetry, biography or books on travel, gardening, health or
entertainment, all would come under the ambit of reading habit. "Reading
habit is the art of personal investigation and self-study. It should be
followed by self-thinking and only this kind of self-study on one's own
accord, can develop into good reading habit," said a Delhi University
professor.
Unfortunately, down the years, due to several reasons, slowly but
steadily, this reading habit has changed a lot across the country. There
are millions of avid readers in India and abroad. But most have limited
access to the printed version of their favourite books. The scene gets
worse in even major Indian languages. For these readers, other modes,
including online, came as a boon. Coming to the online culture, it has
sparked off a drastic change in reading habits. In fact, online studying
has become the most preferred mode among a majority of students.
Dying interest
According to a survey by the National Book Trust last year, three
fourths of the total number of literate youth in the country do not read
anything other than their textbooks. And the proportion of leisure
readers among the youth is higher in urban India at 31.2 per cent, as
compared to the rural youth. Only one fifth of the youth from the
country's rural areas read books other than their textbooks. Moreover,
the rising disinterest in reading books can also be attributed to TV and
Internet. People are spending much more time watching television than
reading books. "Though one enjoys reading a book, there is more
enjoyment watching things live. Therefore, watching television has
become a greater source of entertainment for people,"
saidVishal Bhandari, a student of Delhi University. Tulsi Jha, who
works in a multinational company has a different reason: "After
returning from a hectic day in the office, I would rather avoid reading,
which requires a great deal of attention." However, for a bookworm,
they can never be far from a book. But even they admit that the Internet
and 24-hour TV are impacting their reading habits.
According to academicians, a good reading habit is based on five stages:
exploring, vocabulary, analysing, synthesising and understanding.
Tech matters
With deepening penetration of desktops, laptops, tablet PCs and
net-enabled mobile phones technology is opening up more choices for
people hungry for information. Moreover, with prices of paperbacks and
hardcover books going up, readers are increasingly taking to digital
textbooks and e-books. In fact, digital reading does not stop at
computer or laptops, mobile phones and tablets are a rage when it comes
to e-reading and more and more youngsters are drifting towards e-books.
Be it in the Metro or car, people could be spotted reading online
newspapers or books on their gadgets. "The major advantages of digital
reading is that most publications are easily available on the Internet
and can be downloaded for free. They are more viable whereas it's not
possible to buy every book one would like to read," argued Saurav Singh,
a young entrepreneur.
Several options
With a simple click, there are thousands of options available on the
net, making it simpler, quicker and more fun to choose. Be it Indian
tales, comics, graphic novels, poetry, ancient ballads, autobiographies,
literature, fiction or kids specials ~ anyone can enjoy reading them in
their regional Indian languages and in English, anytime from any place.
Name any author, publisher or the book you want to download and read at
your convenience ~ it is all possible with a perfect eBook gallery.
Even some of the rare books, which are forgotten, are available on
Internet. Now you can download and read on your iOS, Android, Windows or
Mac system. You can also find eBooks on any popular subjects such as
fiction, travel, biography, comic, literature, history, religion,
society, nature and more. Books in digital format have a global reach.
One can own them anytime from any part of the world at one's discretion.
There is no long wait for a book to get released, ordered and then
read. eBooks are instantly available worldwide. Having an universal
appeal, there is no age bar or geographical restrictions. Whether it is a
book on fiction, travel, society, history, literature, biography or any
subject you need, there are collections according to one's tastes and
preferences.
Paradigm shift
Ever since online reading has become available, reading habits across
the globe have witnessed a critical change. This trend of reading books
online is playing a vital role in changing the reading habits of the
Indian society as well. Since it is more accessible and interesting, it
has changed the tradition of reading paper books. Thanks to free books
available online, these days, it is very easy to develop a reading
habit. All kinds of books are available on the online bookstores and in
online book fairs, where a user can shop for their selected books. "Gone
are the days when people used to walk down to the crowded book stores
and purchase the desired reading material," said a book seller. "It is
the era of online book shopping in India and it is rapidly taking over
the purchase of physical books." Agrees Ravi Khera, a voracious reader:
"Why hunt in different places when I can find books online sitting at
home." Moreover, with the online shopping websites and bookstores
offering discounts, combo gifts and home delivery services, offline
stores are finding it difficult to match and keep pace.
Online benefits
Online shopping of books has not only carved a niche in its own sector
but has immensely garnished the reading habits in students, working
professionals, teachers and parents. "Online shopping websites get books
at subsidised rates from the US and the UK because of which they are
able to offer huge discounts," said a book seller. "Why would a reader
burn fuel and pay parking tickets to reach a bookstore when a book of
his choice can be delivered on his doorstep at a lesser price." The
other factor is cost. The printed versions usually come in the higher
price range and passionate readers may not find it easy or
cost-effective to feed their addiction.
Digital fairs
These days, even book fairs are devoting more and more space to the
online or digital books. For instance, at the 19th edition of the Delhi
Book Fair this year, every other shop was focusing more on digitising of
books. As everyone is moving fast towards digitization and e-books, the
role of libraries is increasingly under focus for a shift in mode. If
one does not want to buy a book, one can always rent it for a specific
period of time from online websites or libraries. Online book rental is
gaining popularity in India, with a number of websites offering free
doorstep delivery for a small monthly fee. Users can browse for books
online and have their choice home-delivered, rather than physically
visiting a library to borrow a book. The popularity of such websites can
be attributed to increasing Internet usage in the country. India is
expected to have the third largest number of Internet users in the world
by 2013. Some online libraries (like [INDIAreads.com]), however, have a
national presence and are trying to reach other smaller cities by using
courier companies and postal service to deliver books.
Gadgets only
Unlike earlier, when one had to track down from a collection of books in
a library, e-books are just a click away. The entire book of one's
choice can be downloaded within 3-4 minutes for an average size novel.
Moreover, there are gadgets which are reader-friendly, such as PC, Mac,
laptop, eReader, Tablet, iPad, iPhone, Android, PDA or any
Smartphone device one has. Apart from this, there are many
websites where e-books or PDF files can be shared for free, such as,
Scribd, BookYards, SnipFiles, EBook Lobby and, whereas all or part of an
e-book(s) can also be bought on payment from popular websites such as
Amazon, Google eBooks or Flipkart.
Last mile
However, there are several factors, which hinder a reader from reaching
online bookstores. Many observers have found that due to the low
literacy level of merely 65 per cent in India, the country's publishing
houses or online bookstores are not making much business. According to
one report, only seven per cent Indians surf the web on a regular basis.
The digital technology has thus very little chance of running down the
country's print industry. The other factor is connectivity. A large
segment of the readers in India are not well connected to the Internet.
Then there are those who are difficult to convert. They are more open to
classroom books, exam papers, course materials than the history of
great Indian literature. Conventional education system does not allow
them to read famous authors and their life-time publications. However,
the good news is that readers are now more comfortable with modern
computing devices. These people prefer reading books online and on their
handheld devices.
"Nothing can match the thrill of holding a novel in your hands. But, I
would rather read an e-book than not read at all," said
Sangeeta Kumari, a Bihar-based student, when asked to if e-reading had
the same charm as that of holding, possessing and reading a book. "I am
not in a habit of reading e-books right now. But, it is easier to
download e-books as many things are available at one place," said
Puneet Yadav, a medical aspirant, summing up where e-books and online
reading stands in our country. There is indeed a lot of potential and
much more needs to be done to nurture that reading habit.
Box item
Chronology of Kindle
A favourite e-reader, Kindle has engrossed the Indian reader since its
launch in 2007. The latest version, Kindle Paperwhite, was launched this
year but is yet to reach India. Here's a chronology of Kindle:
2007: Kindle
It was a revolution of sorts. The wedge-shaped device, with a grainy
black and white e-ink display and an oddly split keyboard sporting
diagonal keys, was an instant hit. Though steeply priced at 399 dollars,
it was soon sold out.
2009: Kindle 2
With a streamlined design, the new Kindle was slightly lighter and
slimmer. Its capacity increased from 200 books to 1,500 and the price
dropped to 259 dollars.
2009: Kindle DX
An improvement on Kindle 2, this version could sense when a user changed
orientation and adjusted text to flow in landscape or portrait mode.
2010: Kindle Keyboard
Armed with a sleek graphite body, this version used the e-ink "Pearl"
display, which had a higher contrast than the previous Kindle, making
the text much easier on the eyes. It was slightly smaller and had
built-in speakers for audio-books. The price started at 139 dollars.
2011: Kindle 4
Its price starting at 79 dollars, this was the first Kindle to sport a
touchscreen, removing the keyboard. The device was, however, ugly with a
grey bezel.
2012: Kindle Paperwhite
This Kindle had a gorgeous screen that was lit from "within" by a unique
grid-lighting technology that does not shine into the eyes like an LCD
screen. The screen looked almost like real paper, with black text on a
bright white background. It was priced at 119 dollars.
2013: Kindle Paperwhite
Available at the same price as its earlier version, this Kindle is more
evenly lit and has faster page turns. But the two versions are nearly
the same.
