Upcoming cover of Esquire: DIGITAL. (Let's just prep the media history ebook entry from 2020: Although intended as a talisman to rebuff critics on the longevity of print magazines, Esquire's 2008 'digital' cover became the harbinger of an industry gasping to upgrade to the digital era but completely mystified on how...)
' Magazines have basically looked the same for 150 years, Mr. Granger said.' Jeepers. That's like saying books have been the same for the last 500 years because they all contain the same 26 letters over and over again.
posted by Alex at 1:58 PM on July 21, 2008 
I disagree; books have changed a lot, even in the past 50 years (to say nothing of the past 500). New technologies, new materials, new formats -- color! -- paperbacks, trade paperbacks, etc.
Granted these aren't as revolutionary as replacing paper with some digital stand-in (with a wireless connection! whoah!) -- but they're still significant changes.
If you grabbed someone from 1900 and walked them through Borders today, I think they'd be fairly agog.
posted by robin at 1:17 PM on July 22, 2008
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