the demise of print?

this semester i am taking an online publishing class that i am actually very excited about. as well as simply studying online publishing, we will actually be collecting and compiling works to create our own fine arts magazine in an online format. i am excited about this because i love magazines and hope to someday work for one as a feature writer, photographer, or editor.
part of our homework for today was to read this article : http://web.nmsu.edu/~jalmjeld/online_publishing/Introduction_Writing_Spaces.pdf. while reading, i became increasing astonished and appalled. some technology enthusiasts, apparently, are so stoked about electronic communication that they "imagine a classroom in which books are replaced by virtual environments." can you imagine? i cannot imagine living without printed reading material. i love books and magazines. i love the way they smell. i love that i can read a book in bed. i love that i can make notes in the margin, and upon a future reading rediscover my past thoughts. i would not want my children (if i ever decided to have children) to grow up in a world without print.

this is my bookshelf. yes, it also houses dvds and vhs tapes. no, these are not all the books i own. yes, that bin on the right is also full of books. no, i don't ever plan to stop buying books.

don't get me wrong, i think technology is great. the internet is awesome and there are so many amazing things we can do nowadays thanks to technology. but electronic communication also annoys the hell out of me sometimes. it is so aggravating when i am trying to spend time with a friend and she is texting the entire time. what could possibly be so important that you can't give me your undivided attention for half a bloody hour? it's just plain rude.
people simply rely too much on their cell phones and computers these days. people often create an event on facebook to invite guests to their birthday/graduation/whatever party. oftentimes they don't send an actual paper invitation or even make a phone call to invite them. it's ridiculous. not to mention lazy.
i saw an interview with John Mayer a while back and he talked about this "technology detox" that he did. he was allowed to check his email or text messages but had to return them with a phone call. he said you would be surprised at the number of people who don't bother to contact you if they actually have to pick up the phone. it's appalling.