*i*nnovation and progress

 I've always refused to let e-mail take over the function of the telephone in my life; I've got an old Nokia that has no enhancements at all. I do not need to be in constant contact with all you digiblips out there, because I've got enough voices clamouring for attention in my head (no, I'm not crazy: I write, duh).

This outlook has given me some protective resistance to the advertising of the latest *i*nnovation, which is better, more user-friendly, more enhanced in ways never thought possible before (It sings! It dances!). They won't hook me for all that progress until they figure out how to make it do my laundry and dishes.

As far as e-book readers are concerned: I love the feel and smell of paper and ink. I love the associated memories of buying real books--I have a very large collection of second-hand books; some are especially great finds, others have this hint of their former life in smell or dog-ears or other marks. My real books are treasures. E-books, as I see them now, are commodities. They have no memory. For me, sort of like the difference between an LP and a CD, back when LPs still ruled.

I find the main hurdle for me to acquiring an e-book reader is hi-tech's weakness in moist situations: I do most of my reading while soaking in a hot bath. But then, the only reason why most of my reading happens in the bathtub is because my laptop has that same weakness. I would be writing in the tub if it didn't (and, funnily enough, steamed paper is only good enough for reading, not writing). So even if they produced a 100% waterproof reader, I'm not quite sure I would buy one.

That said, I guess we'll have to liken the rumoured next innovation in e-book readers to the step from a generic cell phone to the iPhone. And while I can't see why I need a phone to do a whole range of other stuff (except my laundry!), I do see possibilities in e-readers that sing and dance. I'm not just thinking animated covers, either; it could open a new bag of tricks for the "interactive" novel. "Show, don't tell" could get a whole new layer of meaning.

Hmm (starts rifling through folders) now where did I leave that old hypertext project?

That said, the recent mutations of the cell phone did have an impact on the world, as did the proliferation of the internet, and before that, the personal computer. Things have changed, whether for the better or not is not even the question, only that progress makes regress difficult. The day my old Nokia breaks, I won't be able to replace it with the same dumb appliance. So whatever your take on the latest innovation, you will end up buying one, some day, some how.