Print History: Do We Actually Miss Reading Newspapers?
Do We Actually Miss Reading Newspapers
If you’re someone who has gotten used to the bite sized news bytes that are fed to us via the various phone apps that we have at our disposal, newspapers are probably a distant memory. But do you not yearn for the sound of the newspaper being swished under your door, or the satisfying thump of it landing on your doorstep? Do you not miss those moments of ‘Me’ time each morning as you sift through the world’s happenings with a cup of your favorite beverage, ensconced in your most comfy chair?
In today’s highly digitized world; a bewildering environment of information overload, the smell of a new book, the feel of newsprint in the hand, the glossy glamour of fashion magazine are all but soon to be forgotten joys. And yet when we look at the history of printing, we realize that the printed word was a hard won achievement. We also realize that the print media has in no way lost its relevance today.
The History of Printing
The first ‘printing’ probably dates back to about 3000 BC when stamps and seals were first used to create multiple impressions on clay tablets etc. Then perhaps came larger blocks for printing cloth. It was much later that the printing press made it possible for newspapers, books, periodicals and other reading material to be mass produced so that it could reach more people and promote literacy. Processes such as screen printing, offset printing, stenciling and so on fairly changed the landscape of possibilities. These are the very processes we tend to take for granted today.
How Your Home Printer Placed a World of Convenience at Your Fingertips
The printing machine continued to evolve: the rotary printing press, lithography, intaglio and later the wonderful world of color printing opened up ever more vistas. Then it was the photocopier that amazed and delightedwith the new set of possibilities it introduced. The advent of the dotmatrix printer and later the inkjet and laser printers put within our reach a whole wonderful world of printing; our offices and homes were never the same again!
You now have the option of creating your very own, completely unique holiday greetings, stunning wall art and other décor around your home. You can print your own photos without having to visit a print shop. You can print out articles, letters, emails, invoices and practically anything that you think is worthy of preserving. You can make your own labels and tags so that you can be more organized around the office or the home.
The World of 3D Printing
And as though the convenience of printing whatever, whenever wasn’t enough, we now have the amazing world of 3D printing; an ever changing, ever evolving concept. 3D printed prosthetics and body parts are no longer in the realm of sci-fi.
Concepts like bio manufacturing, bioink and the actual ‘printing’ of human tissue is within the realm of probability, not just possibility! Consider this: a conventional, titanium prosthetic limb for a child could be expensive. Parents may think that it makes sense to just wait until the child is fully grown to invest in a prosthetic so there is no requirement for it to change as the child grows. However, a 3D printed limb, costing a mere fraction of the conventional option, opens up a whole new world of possibilities!
There are potential applications and benefits of 3D printing even in space, in the auto industry and the construction industry. In China, they are creating whole houses using a 3D printer and auto parts are being ‘printed’ according to specifications even as we speak!
So clearly the world of printing is an exciting one that keeps surprising us; certainly there is nothing obsolete about the print media. And you may want to revive that subscription to your daily newspaper…