Digital Reading Terminology
Posted on Tuesday, October 26, 2010 at 4:51 PM
A handy glossary of digital reading vocabulary for editors.
By
Meredith L. Dias
There are a great many devices available for
reading digital content. You may already be using some of them at home
or in your editorial department. However, for many, the technology can
be a bit confusing and overwhelming. This month, we have compiled a
glossary of devices and terms to help identify and differentiate between
portable digital reading devices.
Digital Reading Terminology
E-reader:
A computing device, usually a unitasker, engineered specifically for
consumption of e-books and digital magazines and newspapers. E-readers
come in a variety of sizes and offer a wide range of features, from
annotations to 3G connectivity. (Examples: Kindle, Nook, Sony Reader)
Laptop:
A portable personal computer, often with similar specifications to a
desktop computer. Characterized by its ability to sit on a user's lap.
(Examples: Toshiba Satellite, MacBook, HP Pavilion, Dell Inspiron)
Mobile
device: A blanket term that describes any pocket-sized computer
(e.g., iTouch), PDA, or smartphone.
Netbook: A smaller
version of a laptop with lower specifications, often geared toward
Internet browsing and on-the-go word processing. Netbooks are engineered
for longer battery life than their larger laptop counterparts.
(Examples: Acer Aspire, HP Mini, ASUS Eee, Toshiba Mini)
PDA
(personal digital assistant): A palm-sized computer or smartphone
that allows users to manage information (e.g., appointments, contacts,
etc.). Many modern smartphones have integrated PDA functionality, so
there is some overlap between PDAs and smartphones. (Examples: iPhone,
iTouch, Palm Pre, Blackberry)
Smartphone: An advanced
mobile phone with Internet connectivity via Wi-Fi or 3G networks. Other
advanced features include PDA functionality, on-the-go word processing,
social networking, and email. (Examples: iPhone, Android, Blackberry)
Tablet
computer: A portable computer characterized by touchscreen
maneuvering and virtual keyboard. Some models offer traditional
keyboards users can plug into USB ports. (Examples: iPad and the
upcoming Blackberry Playbook)
For Your Consideration: A New
Term
All of the devices above share an important feature:
portability. While some are more unwieldy than others, any of the above
devices can be transported to and fro' with relative ease -- unlike,
say, a desktop computer. We find that there is no commonplace term to
categorize all of the devices -- the laptops, the netbooks, the
smartphones, the tablets -- that facilitate on-the-go digital reading.
For simplicity's sake, Editors Only has devised a new term for
this purpose: portable digital readers (PDRs). You will likely
see this term pop up again in our future coverage of mobile and tablet
publishing.
Why the New Term?
We felt that a
blanket term like "PDR" was necessary, particularly given the wide range
of digital reading devices and the development of non-portable
technology like Google TV. We wanted to differentiate between the
devices that anchor readers to the nearest outlet and those that run on
battery power and can be taken virtually anywhere, much like a print
magazine. PDRs include not only the dedicated devices like the
e-readers, but also devices capable of various other functions.
Essentially, any portable device upon which someone may read a digital
book, magazine, or newspaper qualifies as a PDR.
There is overlap
between some of the terms on the list (e.g., between smartphones and
PDAs), but there doesn't seem to be one term to unite all of these
portable reading devices. For instance, while the term "mobile" applies
to the pocket-sized devices in our glossary, it doesn't apply to the
laptops, netbooks, e-readers, and most tablets. Similarly, the term
"e-reader" doesn't really fit the other devices on the list, which tend
to be multitaskers. It is the word "portable" that unites them all.
So
which PDRs do you use? I remain faithful to my rather large (but,
oh, so slick) 17-inch Toshiba Satellite, reading digital galleys of
books for review while the graphics processor warms my lap. Someday, my
schedule may demand a shift to an even more portable device that allows
me to read digital content while on my lunch hour or during my commute.
For the time being, though, I like to leave the Internet at home or in
my office. But thanks to the Editors-Only-coined PDR classification, I
can feel like a part of the rapidly expanding digital reading culture
rather than a total Luddite!
Meredith L. Dias is senior
research editor of Editors Only.
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