''Why the Smart Reading Device of the Future May Be … Paper'' by Brandon Keim tells us about how the use of paper and screen, to read, makes a difference not only depending on the viewer but also depending on the situation that person is in. Building a common relationship with the author regarding the subject was instant as the article does make the reader feel obliged to be biased towards any side of the argument. The article creates a connection of sorts with the reader, as the author gives his opinion and describes his own personal preferences and habits throughout. The content of this article is backed up well through sources however Brandon Keim seemed to lack the distinction between the type of material one is reading. People are drawn towards e-books for reasons of convenience, and the facts Keim presents in favour of reading print and on screen are well written. That sense of ownership and feeling of a book, that sense of satisfaction and completion when finishing and closing it with a sigh of relief is common to all avid readers. Seeing as they might be impractical as to space, they are somewhat cheaper, don’t crash, and nor could they ever run out of power. My intent is not to discredit the positive aspects of ereaders at all, although I don’t believe print should be pushed aside as yet as it is my belief there is still room for improvement when it comes to reading on a screen. Erik Wästlund’s research states that it’s easy to get tired reading from a screen, constantly scrolling further down – it’s tedious and distracting, as you need to stop and re-focus on a starting point. A backlit device, be it a Kindle or a tablet of any sort, tends to distract the viewer with clutter and eye strain. Even though these experiments date back to 2005, they are still extremely relevant. Surely nowadays page flip illusion has been created, but does it really emulate the feel of printed material? Keim points out that maybe we should not see print and screen as being in competition but as two completely different platforms and interfaces both used for different things which work better for what they provide; pixels for browsing and scanning, print for essays and novels.

Keim, B. , 2014. Why the Smart Reading Device of the Future May Be ... Paper. WIRED, [online] Available at: http://www.wired.com/2014/05/reading-on-screen-versus-paper/. [Accessed 13 December 2014].

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