[size=55:383vaxj4]BBC

Encyclopaedia Britannica ends its famous print edition


After 244 years reference book firm Encyclopaedia Britannica has decided to stop publishing its famous and weighty 32-volume print edition.

It will now focus on digital expansion amid rising competition from websites such as Wikipedia.

The firm, which used to sell its encyclopaedias door-to-door, now generates almost 85% its revenue from on-line sales.

It recently launched a digital version of its encyclopaedias for tablet PCs.

"
The sales of printed encyclopaedias have been negligible for several years,"
said Jorge Cauz president of Encyclopaedia Britannica.

"
We knew this was going to come."


'A lot faster'

Companies across the globe have been trying to boost their on-line presence in a bid to cash in on the fast-growing market.

Various newspapers, magazines and even book publishers have been coming up with online versions of their products as an increasing number of readers access information on high-tech gadgets such as tablet PCs and smart phones.

Britannica said while its decision to focus on on-line editions was influenced by the shift in consumer pattern, the ability to update content at a short notice also played a big role.

"
A printed encyclopaedia is obsolete the minute that you print it,"
Mr Cauz said.

"
Whereas our on-line edition is updated continuously."


At the same time, frequent users of the encyclopaedia said they preferred using the on-line version more than the print one.

"
We have to answer thousands of questions each month through chat, through telephone, through email and we have to do that as quickly as humanly possible,"
Richard Reyes-Gavilan of Brooklyn Public Library told the BBC.

"
In many instances doing a keyword search in an on-line resource is simply a lot faster then standing up looking at the index of the Britannica and then finding the appropriate volume."


Encyclopaedia Britannica, the company, has largely moved away from its encyclopaedia work focusing most of its energies in recent years on educational software.

II think this is sad, but understand why. I can remember as a child browsing our ancient
encyclopaedia, and losing an hour lor two!
Even though I now have a kindle, there's nothing quite like flicking through
a good book. Progress eh? :Study:

Shame ... yet another case of 'paper' going 'digital'.

Also, if it wasn't for the Britannica, I doubt I'd have done as well with my O and A levels (Google wasn't around in them days!) [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

Online resources are great for quick research, but for academic research they are completely useless. Here today and gone tomorrow comes to mind. For academic papers you need a quotable source, one someone can check when they read your paper and know that it is the same information that you had seen when you quoted it. Electronic editions are not much better as there would be too many of them.

EB was a fundamental and cherished part of my learning experience growing up and the much-read volumes still take pride of place in my parents' home. Nearly 20 years on, I may have given in to technology and the Internet like many but still enjoy the weight, feel and information in the book version - good luck to them, I hope this is a decision that works for them and keeps people learning!

In such works it is the accuracy &
quality of the information which is provided that's most important. While it is always nice to have a copy of the printed edition, it does need to be remembered that some entries will always be out of date just as soon as they are published. e.g. on law &
medical facts. On the other hand - some works of literature will always be regarded as timeless.