The Leaves and the Tree: Spectrum of Media
The graph above is what frames my thinking about the digital vs. print debate. In short, there is no debate because digital and print are two “poles” on a spectrum, each with value, each serving different purposes, both required at different times.
The “leaves” and the “tree” metaphor is not a new one, but I was reminded of it by Peter Morville in Ambient Findability, who compared newer information technologies like folksonomy to leaves, handy for quick tasks like trendspotting but short-lived in value, and older information technologies like taxonomy to trees, slower to build but more lasting in value. I believe the metaphor aptly extends to the spectrum of media we enjoy today. It is also clearly makes the point that print plays a critical role in our information technology.
“The Leaves” refers to digital technology. Cell phones represent a clear example of a technology that is highly suited to rapidly changing information. If it matters whether a stock quote changes between now and the time you get to your client’s office, a cell phone is what you want. “The Tree” refers to print technology. A cell phone is not a preferred medium for reading Walden. For anything of length or substance, give me a print book. There are many variants in between; I suggest that Print-On-Demand (POD) occupies the exact centre of the spectrum.
Notice that “data” is on the left end of the spectrum, and “knowledge” is on the right end. The spectrum overlies another one you may have heard of: the data to knowledge continuum. Simply put, when you are working on an idea, you want your information to be highly flexible, i.e., like leaves. I may want my favourite books as e-Books for searchability, and to copy-paste into a Word document. But once the working phase is over, I want to find a more permanent format for my finished thought, perhaps a print book.
At the bottom you see two other concepts. The spectrum could be extended further. Stretching further to the left, thought is even more malleable than digital technology. Further to the right, stone tablets are even more fixed than print. The latter is proof that format matters. I doubt the Ten Commandments would have made an equal impression as a blog post.
This idea has been kicking around in my head for some time. A recent conversation at Off the Mark spurred it back into life.
the digital vs. print debate.” The framework he provides (pic above) and his remarks about longer or shorter-lasting value got this comment out of me: “short-lived in value” That’s been a puzzlement for me for a while now. I put a lot of creative and intellectual energy into
“short-lived in value” That’s been a puzzlement for me for a while now. I put a lot of creative and intellectual energy into blogging. Setting aside considerations of “quality” that’s a lot of time and words. But I rarely revisit posts written, say, 6 months. Do I *have* to put it in another format to give it longer-lsting value? Probably. A book on literacy practice, written in 1973, sits on my bedside table. I’m re-reading it, still getting ideas and insight from it. I do no patient re-reading – slow reading – of old posts (mine or anyone else’s) at bedtime. Habit? Structure? Are we still a “bookish” culture, unprepared to glean knowledge through other mediums? Is it about convenience? Would a laptop change how and what I read? What’s the socio-economic implication? Is “real knowledge” still locked up in corporate-owned and controlled journals and hardcovers? Can the potential leveling impact of the internet, where everyone gets a say, be realized as long as it’s only short-term?
I dunno. Maybe I’ll go shovel snow and think about it. (But first I’ll copy and paste all this to my blog – gotta squeeze value out of these words before they’re gone – lol.)
Hi Wendell. Fortunately, you do not have to make a stark choice between blogs and traditional print. The media exist on a spectrum, so maybe an eBook or POD book would help give more form, readability and endurance to your ideas. That’s what I like about the new media, it’s easier to get started and keep moving with ideas. But in the end, we will still give our most careful attention to the most fixed forms, to the stuff that lasts. Why do we give more respect to fixed forms? Maybe because they require the author to put more effort into making them. Maybe because they don’t have any blinking ads to distract us when reading at bedtime. Sounds rational to me.
[...] previously posted The Leaves and the Tree: The Spectrum of Media. That piece described a continuum with digital technology on the one end and print technology on [...]
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