Dinosaurs, Records, and Now Books...Nah

Are books following in the footsteps of the dinosaurs? Are we looking at the Ice Age for literature as we know it. I am not sure, but I would have a hard time believing people would let books be replaced without a fight. Who wants to sit at their computer to read? Even if I have to read and edit something as short as an article for my work newsletter, I print it out; I never read it off the screen. I have never used, or even heard of these readers for e-books, so I don't know how they work. They may be great, I don't know, but there is something about a book people love and want. I can just toss a book in my bag, but with an e-book I would have to make sure it is protected and secure before I could take it anywhere. Ok, I may be anal about my computer, but a book?!?! Do I really want that kind of responsibility over a story? What about the battery? I really don't want another thing that needs to be recharged; I already have enough electronics that need their battery life monitored. The great thing about a book is, even after my ipod dies, I still have something there to entertain me. I don't want to have to depend on a battery to read my story, or be tethered to a wall. And I don't want to have to scroll; I quite like turning pages, thank you. Here's a scenario we all know...You're lying in bed reading your book, when you come to the end of a chapter. It's a really good story, but it's getting late and you aren't quite sure if you should start a new chapter. You glance at your clock and flip ahead in your book to see how many pages you would have to read to find out what happens next. Is it going to get too late if I keep reading, or should I just put the book down now? You find out it is 20 pages to finish the next chapter, now chances are you know what 20 pages is, and about how long it takes you to read that; but do you have any idea what an inch on a scroll bar means? Probably not. Sure, it is convenient to able to check things quickly on a computer, maybe to reference an article, but if you truly want to read a magazine, you want the real thing. I know of a lot of companies which hoped to save money by stopping mailings and puting their newsletter online instead; but most of the time, the idea is put down by the readers who insist on having the paper in their hands. I know, I know, it has happened before; records were replaced with CD's...but that doesn't necessarily mean it will happen with books. Quality played a big part of that. People were willing to get rid of their records because the sound quality from a CD far surpassed what vinyl could provide. What significant improvement is an e-book going to have over a regular book? I can't see any. It isn't more convenient, it doesn't provide better quality, and it isn't easier to read. So why then, would I chose to change? I don't know about you, but it would take some real convincing to get me to read a book in an electronic version. And if there are enough people who feel the same way I do, then I don't believe we will see the extinction of books anytime in the near future.