Books stacked on shelves, ordered using a system whose name is a misspelt synonym of condensation. Sometimes the shelves move, scaring you to death if you are caught between two of them. There are rows of computers running MS-DOS that try to hold people off from approaching the head honcho (or one of her assistants) that knows where all the books are. Trying to find a quote from a book takes a couple of days in a brick and mortar library, but it is free. Most everyone is happy with the arrangement — authors, publishers, librarians. Except readers interested in a little research.
Online behemoth borrows books from a few libraries, and scans them in digitally. Finding a quote from a book takes a few milliseconds.
Publishers hate it. And today writers have decided they hate it too. Go figure.
2 Responses to “But, where are the shelves?”
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The old order seldom yields place to the new without an ugly battle. My grandpa still laments the loss of the typewriter to the computer!
True. If you think about it, all that it does is make things a little easier on the reader. I guess Google being associated with it makes people suspicious, although I am not sure why.