Debates: VERSUS?
John: I agree that format and provenance are not linked in any way. Both print and digital are, for different reasons, subject to degradation over time. Both are subject to human folly, from the burning of the Alexandria library to the latest cloud server crash. Digital does have far greater survival potential, if only because we can make unlimited backup copies. However, I'd be cautious about declaring that "digital is forever." After a century or more, will we be able to decode all the bits that make up today's equivalent of Moby Dick or Walden?
John Parsons (john@intuideas.com), former Editorial Director of The Seybold Report, is an independent writer, ghostwriter, and editor. He is the co-author of the interactive printed textbook, Introduction to Graphic Communication, on the art, science and business of print, which has been adopted by Ryerson, Arizona State, the University of Houston, and many other schools and vocational training centers. Custom editions of the book are under consideration by major printing companies and franchises for internal training purposes.