Will E-Books Replace the Paper Originals

When introduced to the concept of e-books, the general public felt ambivalent about the prospect of this new advent. An e-book just felt out of place and far less superior than normal paper books. Constantly looking at the screen strained the eyes and the text often appeared difficult to read. The general consensus claimed that the e-book just did not have what it took to take the reins of the book market. Books were just better overall. Also the reader could freely annotate, highlight, and make the reading experience very personal to himself. E-books could do none of these. Almost in every aspect the e-book seemed to falter against the superior books and seemed impractical.

However, recent developments in e-book readers, such as the Amazon Kindle and the iPad, have paved the way for e-books to take the spotlight. Now, users of these e-book readers enjoy a large amount of benefits better offered by these products. Along with the ability to read in the dark, users can also access a huge library within one product. They can highlight and annotate these electronic documents in new, crisper screens, yet unlike with books, they do not have to risk any permanence in their markings. It almost seems that every advantage of paper book had been one-upped by the e-book market.
Even with all these advantages, e-books still face a long road ahead until they can dominate the market. First, the basic appealing features of e-books, the large expansive library, the simplicity and cost of making e-books, also spotlight the distinguishing aspects of books. While an e-book does not cost much to produce, the amount of effort and resources put into publishing a "real" paper books sets them immediately in quality. And while an e-book does allow a reader to access an incredible anthology, they do not enjoy the same feeling of ownership that a purchaser of books has in a physical library. Books, for now, will remain a staple of everyday tradition, like jotting down a note rather than