Both print and digital have their advantages and disadvantages. (Read our reasons for working in digital here!) Really, we keep a mix of both. Our print books consist of graphic novels, comics, old favorites, great quality printings of good books, really visual books, and books meant for the kitchen. We subscribe to a lot of mainstream magazines digitally, as well as keep reference books and audiobooks on our phones. Like DVDs vs. streaming services, there is definitely room for both. So WHY do we like print so much, specifically?
going offline feels good
a noiseless break is priceless. whether it makes physical noise or not, the internet can feel frenetic. there’s always something to check on, notifications pop up at the worst times, and our attentions go in many different directions every time we’re on a digital device. when i want a break - a true break - i go offline. whenever i go camping, i bring along a couple of magazines and a book because it takes me completely out of my normal hectic world. it feels more refreshing to step away from the screen for a while.
paper feels & looks better
if you’ve never gotten our magazine, or similar high-quality publications, you may not understand the pure tactile enjoyment of flipping through our pages. there’s something about the uncoated paper that brings images to life and wakes up your fingertips.
you never have to charge, update, or back up a book
print has a simplicity that seems to be slipping away in popular culture, year by year. it’s never made incompatible with chargers, docks, operating systems, or the latest technology. it doesn’t take up space on your hard drive or cloud storage. it just IS, and that makes us love print even more.
it’s better in the kitchen
we really hate bringing out our digital devices in the kitchen. it’s easier for us to see a whole page of instructions at once than to swipe through instructions or zoom in and move around a digital page. i yell at my partner every time he gets flour in our brand new Macbook keyboard or accidentally spills oil on my phone. it’s just too scary to think about replacing an expensive device because of kitchen use. we wear cocoa powder smudges on our cookbooks proudly, if they do get spilled on, and it’s not hundreds of dollars to replace it in case anything terrible did happen.
Which type of book/magazine do you like more? Are you a print or digital person, or both? :)