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Computer gaming helped kill the book industry
Kyleran
Member LegendaryPosts: 43,498
Well, at least for me.
Ever since I was a boy I used to read a lot, comics, short stories and then ever larger novels and book series. I still have a big box of paper back novels, several hundred "keepers" which I thought I would re-read one day.
Except it's been 5 years or more since reading any book, and 20 years since doing so with any frequency.
Computer gaming is a large reason for the decline, I never was much of a TV watcher so reading was my primary entertainment.
While playing single player computer games since 1988, I still found time to read a lot, as they were pretty easy to set aside for other activities.
Online MMORPGS for me started in 2002, and here is when my reading dropped way down. I now found my self furiously logging in every night to "keep up" with others, so the only time I read books was at lunch or in the loo, so the number dropped way off.
Enter the Smart phone and that pretty much brought all book reading to a halt as I spend my lunches walking and posting on forums rather than sitting by the pond and reading. (Is OK, they closed off access to the pond due to EPA restrictions.
Anyone feel either of these two factors impacted the amount of time spent reading, particularly longer books and novels?
Oh, single people need not apply, we know you have all sorts of free time to devote on entertainment.
For we married with children types carving out a few free hours a day for ourselves often meant forgoing something non essential, like sleep in my case, you'd be surprised on how little you can live on with proper "training."
Ever since I was a boy I used to read a lot, comics, short stories and then ever larger novels and book series. I still have a big box of paper back novels, several hundred "keepers" which I thought I would re-read one day.
Except it's been 5 years or more since reading any book, and 20 years since doing so with any frequency.
Computer gaming is a large reason for the decline, I never was much of a TV watcher so reading was my primary entertainment.
While playing single player computer games since 1988, I still found time to read a lot, as they were pretty easy to set aside for other activities.
Online MMORPGS for me started in 2002, and here is when my reading dropped way down. I now found my self furiously logging in every night to "keep up" with others, so the only time I read books was at lunch or in the loo, so the number dropped way off.
Enter the Smart phone and that pretty much brought all book reading to a halt as I spend my lunches walking and posting on forums rather than sitting by the pond and reading. (Is OK, they closed off access to the pond due to EPA restrictions.
Anyone feel either of these two factors impacted the amount of time spent reading, particularly longer books and novels?
Oh, single people need not apply, we know you have all sorts of free time to devote on entertainment.
For we married with children types carving out a few free hours a day for ourselves often meant forgoing something non essential, like sleep in my case, you'd be surprised on how little you can live on with proper "training."
"True friends stab you in the front." | Oscar Wilde
"I need to finish" - Christian Wolff: The Accountant
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
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Comments
I can still dabble in comics though, my Ipad gets used for that almost exclusively and my digital collection has well passed the 1000 mark.
/Cheers,
Lahnmir
Kyleran on yours sincerely
'But there are many. You can play them entirely solo, and even offline. Also, you are wrong by default.'
Ikcin in response to yours sincerely debating whether or not single-player offline MMOs exist...
'This does not apply just to ED but SC or any other game. What they will get is Rebirth/X4, likely prettier but equally underwhelming and pointless.
It is incredibly difficult to design some meaningfull leg content that would fit a space ship game - simply because it is not a leg game.
It is just huge resource waste....'
Gdemami absolutely not being an armchair developer
Godz of War I call Thee
MAGA
Might I recommend a good book for you? Dale Carnegie's "How to Win Friends and Influence People."
Appears you may have missed it, probably before your time, they used to offer courses based on it which my employer paid to put me through.
Cheers
"True friends stab you in the front." | Oscar Wilde
"I need to finish" - Christian Wolff: The Accountant
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
These days, I still make time for comics, and that's something fun I share with my kids. That said, my kids are voracious readers (of actual books!) in their own rites. This despite having access to mobile devices (and Fortnite) and other modern day distractions/temptations that I did not have access to.
So maybe it wasn't just gaming, but the transition period where the internet started to become something more then a curiosity for the general public. I'm sure that anyone who has seen their reading drop off over time has different motivating factors, so definitely an interesting topics to consider.
(and yes, understand that "kill the book industry" is meaning; at a personal level, not literal
-mklinic
"Do something right, no one remembers.
Do something wrong, no one forgets"
-from No One Remembers by In Strict Confidence
I still read quite often- perhaps not as much as in the past but still far above the norm (I average a book or two every month) and I grew up with gaming so its always been there.
What has happened - Not as a result of computer gaming but of tech in general- Is that I listen to a ton more audiobooks, college lectures and other such audio while playing games... In the 80s and 90s audiobooks were very limited and very expensive and 'on demand lectures' and such didnt even exist... You played the games with whatever soundtrack it came with or played music (or the BBC production of LOTR on cassette tape for the 1000th time lol)
The world has opened up greatly with unlimited and on demand media- Those seeking knowledge and to be intellectually stimulated have never had it better if you are able to 'drown out the proverbial noise' in the same way that those who are looking for mindless entertainment 24/7 now have that option as well.
Even reading them on a computer screen doesn't do it, at the office I routinely print longer reports to read, perhaps so I can use a high lighter on them.
I dont often read books, but when I do it has to be in traditional paper format, guess I'm just old school in this area as well.
But no, you can't have my Smart Phone. It's weird how I can read and type on it all day, but not read longer items.
Can't play games on my phone though, but that's another story.
"True friends stab you in the front." | Oscar Wilde
"I need to finish" - Christian Wolff: The Accountant
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
I have always loved reading though...i still have 20-30 boxes of books in my garage i need to give to a library or something. Vast majority of them i have on my (2nd now) Kindle.
Gonna plug Kindle Unlimited for anyone that loves their kindle and reads a lot...really a lot:P I read like 10-15 books a month on that...for 10 bucks a month...can not beat that deal. Lot of all types of books there. Was surprised how many new authors i have found that i like through unlimited.
But i am one of the caveman types...do not have a cell phone, at all...only type media i have is my kindle. Almost exclusively play single player games anymore as well, when i do play something.
So for me, reading is something i will never not do. Big part of my life, and always has been, since i was a kid.
For reference 50+ married and no children. And wife is like the opposite. Has phones, and games more than i do. Never reads much except for work.
New players can get a welcome package and old/returning players can also get a welcome back package and 7 days free subscription time! Just click here to use my referral invitation
They have a 'trade in' program where you get credit for books you bring back to them which places the cost of most books at around $1.00 as long as you sell them back when you're finished. Hardcovers are between $5- $6 and my wife and I were able to fill 2 giant bookshelves with some really nice books (including a mint condition copy of a 1st edition printing of the D&D Rules Cyclopedia. worth quite a bit of money)
Between that bookstore, Amazon (I actually dont mind reading digital books on a tablet) and audible I have never had so many options for so cheap. In the 90s my entertainment budget was far more than it is today and was also very limited...Audiobooks alone used to cost around $50- $70 and were on very limited shelf space- Now they are around $15 or less and the selection includes almost everything you could want- All on demand, right now, without leaving home.
I've got to say - We have it really good. I know we bitch about MMORPGs being total shit and a dying genre (and thats mostly true) but outside of MMORPG's our options for everything else have never been this great... I couldnt go back to the old way even though inb many ways I think the world was a better place before it all went digital.
Anyhow, this is a very interesting conversation.
Godfred's Tomb Trailer: https://youtu.be/-nsXGddj_4w
Original Skyrim: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/109547
Serph toze kindly has started a walk-through. https://youtu.be/UIelCK-lldo
EQ1, EQ2, SWG, SWTOR, GW, GW2 CoH, CoV, FFXI, WoW, CO, War,TSW and a slew of free trials and beta tests
I prefer the "idea" of a kindle or similar device because of space issues but the tactile feeling of a traditional book is part of the experience for me.
Godfred's Tomb Trailer: https://youtu.be/-nsXGddj_4w
Original Skyrim: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/109547
Serph toze kindly has started a walk-through. https://youtu.be/UIelCK-lldo
"True friends stab you in the front." | Oscar Wilde
"I need to finish" - Christian Wolff: The Accountant
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
One never finds time, one always has to make time.
For me, I'm very protective of "my time."
I have a rather busy social schedule with friends/girlfriend but i make sure that I get time for myself in order to do my things. Whether that's creative pursuits, reading, watching a particular movie, playing video games, I basically say "this" is when I'm doing it. Case closed.
But again, choices. So, if your job is a work 12 hours a day job then that's a choice. I would never work such a job.
If one has young kids that's another choice. For me, I've never wanted a family except a family of friends.
If one has to commute 2 hours to work each day, that is also a choice. I know a young girl (well she's in her 20's) who just HAD to have a house. However, everything is expensive here so she purchased one up in New Hampshire. Her commute to work is about an hour (if she leaves at 6 am) but going home can be up to 2 hours.
My commute is a 30 minute walk. I don't live in a house, I live in an old, small apartment in an absolutely awesome area. But old and small.
Godfred's Tomb Trailer: https://youtu.be/-nsXGddj_4w
Original Skyrim: https://www.nexusmods.com/skyrim/mods/109547
Serph toze kindly has started a walk-through. https://youtu.be/UIelCK-lldo
But, when I started with the PnP RPG's like D&D, the books were the lore of the game, they were a part of the whole game experience. They were the world building, the background, the setting of the stage, AKA: The flavor text if you will.
The Books were what brought the game to life in way the players at the table would (or could) not, just like MMO's really.
Sure I sat down every week to play, I was there, and I was ready to game, but reading books, was digging deep into the lore of the game, it functioned as a continuation of my game time and I looked forward to that, as much as I looked forward to playing the game itself.
I suppose to use an analogy, every week we sat down as a group and ground out content together, akin to say, the Weekly Raid run of MMO's,or the Dungeon Run, but the books, the novels about the rest of the world, the stories of the heroes and villains that had come and gone, those were the whole other part of the game. that was the "Solo World Exploration" of the MMO experience, the vastness of the game world to be explored. The nooks, the easter eggs, the side quests, the little details, the history, and the like.
I guess it all depends on how you look at it.