BOOKs

BOOKS...

It's a revolutionary breakthrough in technology: no wires, no electric circuits, no batteries, nothing to be connected or switched on. It's so easy to use even a child can operate it. Just lift its cover. Compact and portable, it can be used anywhere--even sitting in an armchair by the fire--yet it is powerful enough to hold as much information as a CD-ROM.

Here's how it works: each BOOK is constructed of sequentially numbered sheets of paper (recyclable), each capable of holding thousands of bits of information. These pages are locked together with a custom-fit device called a binder which keeps the sheets in their correct sequence. By using both sides of each sheet, manufacturers are able to cut costs in half.

Each sheet is scanned optically, registering information directly into your brain. A flick of the finger takes you to the next sheet. The book may be taken up at any time and used by merely opening it. The "browse" feature allows you to move instantly to any sheet, and move forward and backward as you wish. Most come with an "index" feature, which pinpoints the exact location of any selected information for instant retrieval.

Portable, durable and affordable, the BOOK is the entertainment wave of the future, an many new titles are expected soon, due to the surge in popularity of its programming tool, the Portable Erasable-Nib Cryptic Intercommunication Language Stylus...

Courtesy of IFLA as seen in the February 2007 INFOcus column of www.LYPonline.com

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Every once in a while I see the above piece and it never fails to amuse me. The first time I saw it was in a library school class taught by Muriel Fuller at the University of Wisconsin School of Library Science back in, I think, 1963 or 1964. Computers were just beginning to be widely used in the military, business and the university and they seemed SO far away from meeting any of our everyday needs. The idea of the BOOK (above) was something we could really grasp and assure ourselves that we were really hip ;-> 'cuz we understood the computer 'connections' in the piece. At any rate, it's another example of 'what goes around comes around'.

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I came across the following piece this past week-end while cleaning out a drawer at home. I cut it out from something I was reading thinking that I would use it somehow as an example of how easy it is for us to jump to conclusions. Since I haven't yet used it, I thought I'd put it here in the blog so that (1) I might be able to find it again and (2) so that someone else might have access to it for some useful purpose.

Why are we there?

Every day there are news reports about more deaths.
Every night on TV, there are photos of death and destruction.
Why are we still there?

We occupied this land that we had to take by force,
but it causes us nothing but trouble.
Why are we still there?

Their government is unstable,
and they have no leadership.
Why are we still there?

Many of their people are uncivilized.
Why are we still there?

There are more than 1000 religious sects
which we don't understand.
Why are we still there?

We can't even secure the borders.
Why are we still there?

They are billions of dollars in debt and it will cost
billions more to rebuild - which we cannot afford.
Why are we still there?

It is becoming very clear

We must abandon California !!!

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Got'cha I bet !