From Aldus to iPod: Books and Personal Media Devices as Extensions of the Self

By:
Dr. Anna H. Perrault,
Courtney Crummett
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During the Renaissance, the printed book became a personal object, a surrogate or personification of the self. The iPod has assumed the same role in the digital age that the printed book played in the analog world. In a dialogue between two presenters, the roles of the book in the formation of “the early modern self,” and the iPod as equivalent in the post-modern era are explored. The aspects of community vs. individuality and the parallels between the fostering of community and the isolation of the self that new media have influenced are presented with the book and the iPod as exemplars for their respective technologies. Implications for the future of the “book” in both technologies are addressed. The paper references sources in both the history of the book and print culture and modern writings on personal digital devices as social phenomena.


Keywords: Books, Print Culture, Digital Media, Personal media devices
Stream: Information Society, and Print and Electronic Texts
Presentation Type: 30 minute Paper Presentation in English
Paper: From Aldus to iPod

Dr. Anna H. Perrault

Professor, School of Library and Information Science, University of South Florida
Tampa, Florida, USA

Anna Perrault, Ph.D(Florida State University); MS, MA(Louisiana State University); BAHons(U. Mississippi). Research interests: analysis and assessment of information resources and services, academic libraries and electronic resources. Widely published in collection analysis and assessment of academic library collections, aggregated collections of global resources. Distin. graduate FSU (2003; LSU (2004). President of Beta Phi Mu, intl. lib. info sci honor society.

Courtney Crummett

School of Library and Information Science, University of South Florida
USA

Courtney Crummett recieved her M.A.L.S from the University of South Florida's School of Library and Information Science and her M.S. in Geology from the University of Maryland. She is currently a National Library of Medicine Fellow. Her research interests include the impact of technology on information access and information seeking behaviors, social softwares, and electronic resouces.

Ref: B06P0188