After 244 Years, Encyclopaedia Britannica stops the presses
March 14, 2012
(Credit: Surya Prakash.S.A./Wikimedia Commons)
After 244 years, the Encyclopaedia Britannica is going out of print, New York Times Media Decoder reports.
The last print version is the 32-volume 2010 edition, which weighs 129 pounds, priced at $1,395.
It is survived by a $70/year online edition (free trial here).
Comments (8)
by omar
@Giulio Prisco, Like you, I am not a nostalgic person. If I can have a more flexible medium for the information (and digital books are superior for the reasons you listed and more), I’d rather have the trees instead of the paper. However, I would be saddened if they don’t at least print out a number of copies of the future editions, so that the major libraries can have them. Simply as a physical testament to humanity’s achievements, much like statues and other art forms.
by SpottedMarley
Does anyone know if, when purchasing the $70 digital version, if you can download the entire encyclopedia? Not too long ago, as part of a survival kit, I downloaded the entire Wikipedia onto an sdcard so that I could have a source of information with me all the time but, you know, it’s wikipedia so it’s not exactly the most reliable source of information but since it is readily available to download in whole, it seems like a decent idea. A digital Britannica would be a fantastic thing to have in whole.
by SpottedMarley
oh but as far as the print version going away, I would have guessed they made that decision a long time ago. It’s like a really awesome band that still puts out cassette tapes.. or even CDs.. they are keeping with the technology and that’s good.
by RobinSongs
There’s always eBay…
by melajara
I own more than 100’000 ebooks on various Kindle, Nook, Ectaco JetBook color (first color eInk display) and soon enough an iPad 3, nevertheless it makes me sad too.
Reminds me of my youth in dusty libraries where I loved to muse in that encyclopaedia for an endless armchair journey.
The option to print it on demand should have prevailed, IMHO.
by Giulio Prisco
@Sebastian, it doesn’t make me sad at all. If anything, it makes me happy.
The real Encyclopaedia Britannica, the content, the bits, is always there, available on any screen anywhere, including the screen of your phone in your pocket, and much more affordable than the old paper version.
It is just the obsolete paper support that has gone, but why should I need it, and what for? I can do with the digital EB all that I could do with the paper EB, and much more.
Someday we will have a similar discussions on uploading from a biological brain to a better digital support, and my reaction will be also similar.
by Sebastian
makes me sad
by Editor
Sic transit gloria mundi.