E-books take sales: Is print dying?

Last December loyal hardback readers, book collectors and avid page flippers shook with fear. Amazon, America's largest online retailer, had just hit a startling milestone: Kindles had taken over top sales figures, and physical books had been thrown to the back burner.

Proponents of e-books have discovered a world of simplification. From the comfort of their home, or the coffee shop downtown, electronic books can be downloaded, stored and accessed efficiently.

These e-books are not only widely available, but also instantaneous and, according to some, environmentally conscious. They can save valuable time and money, but most importantly, the lower back muscles of diligent students. Rather than strain under the weight of five textbooks, one computer can easily store thousands of ebooks. E-books can also be interactive and contain stimulating audio and video, as well as larger font sizes for the sleep-deprived student.

The UCCS library has thousands of available e-books for students. Students can easily access these electronic books from the Kraemer Library Catalog, as well as other sites such as NetLibrary. NetLibrary has over 10,000 electronic books covering topics such as business, religion and literature. Other e-book sites are on hand to search, and students can rely on these services to provide valuable results.

With easy access comes strained eyes and blurred vision, though, and many UCCS students are resisting the e-book movement. Bryan Collins, a UCCS Bookstore employee, said that though the store offered 25 e-books this spring semester, few students exhibited preferences for them. "Personally, I don't like e-books because I don't want to stare at my computer screen for that long. Plus, I'll get too distracted with Facebook and such."

Other e-book disadvantages include tactile loss, lack of familiarity and comfort, and with overall awkwardness. Highlighter-hungry students may also find e-books dissatisfactory, and the printing fees to be expensive.

Though more Kindles did sell, the financials are still shaky for Kindle, as the company loses $1 for every Kindle book sold. Nonetheless, Amazon's goal of Kindle ubiquity has not been too farfetched. Though some resist the e-book movement, it seems that e-books have found a successful niche in the marketplace.