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Dear friends,

I am K S Venkataraman, Associate Editor of the Dynamic Youth online magazine. I joined this august group only today.

With the advent of new applications of Information Technology some people have a mistaken notion that Books would lose their relevance soon. I would like to dispel this.

The new technological developments have enhanced the utility of books. They have facilitated to improve them qualitatively. Many new types of reading material have come only to aid better and faster communication and knowledge sharing; only to serve as a second line of defence. The purpose of books to showcase ideas of the day and preserve them for posterity has only strengthened.

From the point of view of Global Youth Development, we should ensure that the youngsters of all countries of the world close ranks.

They should explore fresh grounds transcending the national boundaries. Free sharing of knowledge has become a must. The concept of Knowledge Economy is gaining ground everywhere.

I believe that only by greater, more forceful flows and mingling of information on literary, cultural and religious heritages of different parts of the world, we can develop an attitude of global citizenship; we could develop the minds of posterity on the right lines, and, we could work more meaningfully towards universal peace and prosperity of the world.

Though the modern science and technology has brought the peoples of the world closer, mostly it has been only in the interests of business. Not much has been achieved in widening real understanding of the common ground among the peoples of the world.

I have some understanding of what the ancient country India has got to offer to the world in general. Similarly peoples of other countries also would have inherited valuable wealth of knowledge. I believe that the heritage should be shared with the entire world in general; and in particular, as a first step, within the English speaking world.

We should tell our Youth: "Please break all the artificial barriers we have created; wipe out all boundary lines we have drawn; forget all the divisive ideas you may have learnt from us. The world is one global village. Humankind is just a single family. Please work with total faith in Him, and achieve Universal Harmony and Global Peace.

For all these, I believe the Books are the only right tools.

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I could not agree more. Books whether they are paperback or electronic help the flow of knowledge from country to country. My current book is available in many foreign countries including India. India has accessed my site many times which shows the interest in the information and topics available on my site. Information technology has opened many doors which were not easily available in the past and has increased the speed at which the information flows. The knowledge not only in books but the methods used to communicate and learn is unbelievable. I see books being a great part of this environment.
Cute answer. So you mean to say that podcast or video form is as much as a book. A presentation is the core idea. There I entirely agree with you. Let's not debate on the form. We should continue to bring more and more youth to a form where author and reader or listener or viewer whatever we may call him/her communicate with each other and the experience of the author reaches to his consumer.
Is Bhagwadgeeta a book? Ofcourse I have a copy of it in my library. But it was not a book when it was narrated by Vyas in Mahabharat. What matters most is not the form in which the message is delivered, but the message itself. Now I have several versions of the same book in pdf format, mp3 and video. All I downloaded from internet. Message is not mediam.
Message is not medium. We are discussing the forms of media and their comparative relevance.

In the days of Vyasa, he used palm leaves. The prevalent system ensured that his work is now on the shelf of Prof. Prakash Ramkrishna Khadilkar after many thousands of years. The transition from palm leaves to printed books was slow, steady and cautious. The palm leaves were preserved till they became redundant.

Contemporary scene is fast and reckless. There were times when the letters were written patiently on good paper and were preserved by the receiver. Many interesting books, containing only such letters, have been published. Now, atrociously brief and cryptic e-mails have substituted the epistles, which were records of thoughts.

The transition from printed books to electronic media takes place in a different mood.

No damage seems to have been done so far but there is reason to highlight the importance of books, while welcoming the IT wonders.

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