Rincewind

An article with some interesting facts about the book publishing industry:

http://parapublishing.com/sites/para...statistics.cfm


Some of the facts:

• Women buy 68% of all books.
• 58% of the US adult population never reads another book after high school.
• 80% of US families did not buy or read a book last year.
• The time Americans spend reading books.
  1996: 123 hours
  2001: 109 hours
• 70% of the books published do not earn out their advance.

It's a very interesting read. (If you read)

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Required Reading for all TG sandboxers

thebleakaffinity

that's just depressing.

El_Gringo_Grande

This explains alot.

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- "The essence of tyranny is the denial of complexity". -Jacob Burkhardt
- "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds" - Emerson
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- If software were as unreliable as economic theory, there wouldn't be a plane made of anything other than paper that could get off the ground. Jim Fawcette

H-Hour

"42% of college graduates never read another book."

That one is very interesting.

UnDeaD77

I haven't read a book since 7th grade. I hate reading books, Now I enjoy reading a game magazine, or computer one.

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CingularDuality

That's a shame.

From 7th grade until I was a Junior in high school, the novel Fahrenheit 451 was assigned to me in one class or another every single year. I hate that book and that is a shame, too.

I don't have time to read books anymore. I'll read maybe four or five books a year? There was a time in my life when I would read four or five books a month.

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TacticalGamer TX LAN/BBQ Veteran:

tau_neutrino

I love reading. Nothing can beat the power of detailed imagery, subtle and not-so-subtle plot twists, and other plot nuances in books; movies cannot even begin to compare.

IMO reading is a good activity to keep the mind active and alert. This report reflects the sad state of today's society in which intellectual hobbies are decreasing in popularity.

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TacticalGamer TX LAN/BBQ Veteran:

xTYBALTx

Isn't the internet just like one big book? But with pipes?

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icky

What's a book? You mean one of those things with math equations and stuff in it?

I have bought a few books over the years since getting my degree. One day I'll read one of them.

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Switchcraft

I read 50+ books a year.

UnDeaD77

I can even recall the book I read, was something called "third demension" or something along those lines, It took me forever and like 5 chapters to get into it.

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Dark Viper

Buks ar fer burnin! Arrr

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|TG-33rd|Dark_Viper

GhostintheShell

I don't even have enough room to display all my books. They sit on bankers boxes stacked in my cellar. The recent ones are stacked under my side of the bed.

Admitedly, about half the books I buy are technical manuals on electronics or something else techy but they dont really count as reading, the rest are mostly fiction as I enjoy it a lot.

BTW, no the internet is nothing like one big book with pipes I hope that was sarcasm. Also, magazines don't count as "reading a book".

The scary thing about electronic media is the potential for widespread public opinion swaying and propaganda, which we have already seen in abundance. We seem to be pretty savy as consumers to identify when people are selling something to us, but not so great at identifying the same behaviour in our governments and various lobby groups. Also, it doesn't take much of a stretch of the imagination for those that are currently in power to start to engage in manipulating electronic "history" such as in the book 1984. (Power in terms of not only who's in government but also who's in charge of electronic data publishing and their interests.)

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Apophis

We love you and all, but the latest Archie & Jughead doesn't count.

How do you choose the books you're going to read? Just pick them up on a whim because they look good or do you follow best seller lists and stuff to pick your books?

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Dirtboy

I just got into reading again...now that I have a TON of free time. I guess when I was back in the states, I had Cable and CS:S, but now that I have neither, reading just has to cut it I guess...I really got into the Dan Brown books...I realize that it is the "thing" to do but it is REALLY good

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