Aardvark Daily

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Have we gone 'e' yet?

Every now and then I like to check and see if we've actually weened ourselves off hardcopy print media.

In the area of personal communications it would seem that the hand-written letter to a friend has all but completely gone -- replaced with email, IM or your favourite cyber-equivalent.

Even in the area of recreational reading, ebooks are outselling print-media and have been for well over a year.

Newspapers have finally conceded that their online editions attract more readers than do their print ones and I've seen countless magazines either go online or simply disappear.

So what about something as simple as a club newsletter?

What about a regular "national association's" newsletter or magazine? Does it make sense to waste trees and ink on such a thing?

In the past, when I've asked "what do you prefer, print or e-editions", most people have voted for print.

You can read it on the bog, you can read it in bright sunlight while relaxing outside with a cold beer, you can repurpose it once done to light your fire in winter.

However, I suspect that with the arrival of smart-phones, the Kindle (and other e-ink readers) plus a growing acceptance of the benefits associated with e-editions, that preference may have changed -- or is changing.

Another factor in favour of e-versions is the proliferation of, and ease of creation of, rich multi-media content such as video and audio. There's just no way to embed a video in the printed copy of anything.

Last time I called in to Paper Plus to buy something I noticed how small the magazine section now was -- compared to a few years ago.

What stunned me more than anything was that you could still buy computer magazines!

OMG!

I honestly can't remember the last time I bought a print magazine on the subject of computers and computing. Does *anyone* buy these things?

Now I can understand that your average mother of three and housewife might want to have a printed edition of "The Woman's Weekly" laying about the house -- but surely computer magazines printed on glossy paper are "so last century".

Many, many magazines, especially those dealing with hobbies and recreations, have evolved from print to online, with the core being a forums-based system that encourages readers to interact. These forums end up providing huge amounts of valuable user-created content which reduces the editorial costs of the publisher and retains the engagement of the audience.

Given that the life-blood of virtually all print-media magazines has always been advertising, the shift to an online edition can be pretty painless. The cover price of most magazines has been applied mostly to reseller margins and print/distribution costs. Going online all but eliminates those costs so there isn't even a need for a paywall-type subscription.

So where are we now in regards to the public's acceptance of e-editions?

Why not cast your vote in the poll I've created in the forums and ask your friends, family or workmates to do the same.

Let's see if we've passed the tipping point.

And do you buy more or fewer printed magazines and newspapers than you did a year or two ago?

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