Any reason to buy hard copies of comics anymore?

[Jim Kelly]

I see where the medium is at now and I accept it. Part of life is learning how to let go. But I'm really not interested in continuing with comics if they are on screens instead of in physical, paper booklets.

For me it was always the whole thing about the comic--not just those images and those stories--but the presentation of them on paper, finding the comics in the stores, handling them at home, takiing them out and looking at them again, putting them together in sequence, handling them again, etc.

You could call it collecting. But really I've never succeeded in selling any of my comics for profit--so whether they have resale value in this moment is immaterial. I just love those objets d'art, so why would I want to consume something completely different from that?

If I had grown up with the screens, then it would be something else. I'd have my own rituals attached to that experience and I would get all kinds of cultural feedback from that experience. But not having been immersed in that world--the screen experience is really empty for me. It leaves me with an unsatisfied sensation.

On top of that, in purely technical terms, screens and paper are completely different. We see differently when light is bouncing off of paper (or any physical object) and when light is being transmitted into our eye from a source. If you say that the comic looks better on screen, then that's because the artists creating the work are working on screens when they produce the work and they are making it to look good on those screens. If they were trying to create a better paper image, then at some point in the process they would go down from the screen to a physical paper proof, to make the page look right for paper. Clearly, in the old days, artists were working mostly on paper, so the images are made for that. Ideally a paper image should be adjusted when it is put on screen to make it look right for that visual experience; while a screen image needs to be adjusted (the proper CMYK files made) so it looks right on paper. You can't just use the exact same files for print and screen distribution.

[Clark_Kent]

Do you "own" digital copies yet, or are you just paying to have online access to them?

It's a pain in the butt, but on an iPad you can always take a screenshot of each page, email to yourself, & then print them later or keep them stored on your PC. You lose the guided view, but it's not that big a deal. I've done this a few times for splash pages that I wanted framed.

The last physical issue I bought was Action Comics #900. I came back with the launch of the New 52, and was all digital for singles & then physical for hardcovers & tpb's. Nowadays, I'm 100% a trade-waiter & physical for that.

[Doctor-Comics]

(**awesome thread topic**)

I'd like to know if there's a generational divide here.

The move to digital comics feels to me like the move from physical music storage to digital music storage (and streaming). Making a broad generality here, people of a certain age are often called "digital natives," meaning they have lived large parts of their lives interacting with media digitally. They rarely hold the physical representation of their media, but own virtual piles and piles of music and pictures.

It's a shift that's being discussed in a lot of places. It's made the news, especially in the music business as companies and artists try to monetize the digital and streaming versions of their labor.

It seems like we're becoming more comfortable with paying for the experience of media (listening, viewing, reading) rather than owning the physical copy of the media. The connection between music and comics might break down a bit here because I'll probably always be able to stream a particular song but my digital access to a particular comic could break down if an app disappears or one of the few services that offer digital comics fails.

I'm in my early 40s, so I didn't grow up a digital native, but I was part of the evolution into digital. So I own and work on multiple digital devices. I still prefer physical copies, though, and I buy the floppies of the stories I follow regularly (DD, Vader, Spidey, and a few others). I trade collect some other title (Saga, East of West). I've read some comics digitally, and found that i don't really enjoy the experience. It's less immersive for me.

Besides that, though, I really like the materiality of comic books. I'm a collector of both new and old books, and I hate to think someone in the next generation of collectors will miss out on the experience of finding a great old book.

I even like finding comics from the 60s that have been written in. It's like a connection to whoever owned them before me. (Someday I might want to track them down and be like "Hey, I've got your copy of Daredevil issue 5. Thanks for taking such good care of it!")

Part of my childhood was spent "discovering" my parents' music and books by flipping through the shelves and boxes. My kids won't have that joy if all my media are digital.

And besides, after the zombie apocalypse, we're going to want our floppies!

TL;DR: old man likes physical comics, thinks too much about physical comics

[GlennSimpson]

RE: Generational aspects - I'm 46, and while I am still doing physical, it's because of the price, not the format. If/when digital becomes cheaper for me to get day-of, I will probably switch to digital.

[md62]

Old school. Still like the feel of a real book.

[JasonTodd428]

RE: Generational aspects: I'm 46 and I wasn't raised in the age of computers and the internet (heck we didn't even have a computer with dial up internet at home until I was pretty far along in college) but I'm a fully digital reader as of this year. I slowly switched over from physical copies for monthlies to digital though so it it didn't happen all at once and I do still buy trades for things I want to actually "own". I find it's more convenient for me and I even get the books for a little bit less then I would if I bought them in a local shop because there are less taxes involved. I also get my music and books on "Tape" digitally though I still would rather hold an actual novel in my hands to read then to read it on a screen.

[cranger]

The one huge difference between digital vs hard copy with regards to everything else is that reading a paper copy and a digital copy are two vastly different experiences. While there are certainly things people can find different in how they listen to music, whether you own the CD or you are playing it from a CD quality file on your hard drive, the experience of listening to it through your speakers or headphones is essentially the same. Again, looking at paper and looking at a screen a very different.

And, it is that which keeps me from going digital. The look of the art on printed paper will always be more appealing to me than anything done on a screen. Well, until they come out with screens that look and feel exactly like paper.

[Ohnooze]

And, it is that which keeps me from going digital. The look of the art on printed paper will always be more appealing to me than anything done on a screen. Well, until they come out with screens that look and feel exactly like paper.

Very interesting perspective. I'm 44 and grew up obviously collecting hard copies but I find digital a better experience. IMO comics look far better on a decent large tablet. No shine coming of the page, lighting in the room isn't an issue, no worries about damaging the comic no matter how many times you read it, you can zoom in on panels....I don't know. I really don't see how someone would enjoy reading hard copies more but to each his own. I guess there is also comfort in what you know and have been doing for years.

[manduck37]

I'm mainly physical copies myself, for a few reasons. I like the experience of going to the comic shop. Plus it's a local business and I prefer to support local businesses. I also prefer to outright own something I pay for, which is a bit of an issue with the big two. Though with companies like Valiant, who do give you a copy of the digital issue for your purchase, it's not an issue for me. I have bought some digital comics and like them quite a bit. If I miss a run that I want to check out or there is a great sale, I'll pick up some digital books. I usually go Digital with the stuff I just want to try out or that I know I won't have physical space for. For example, comixology had a big trade sale a while back and I wanted to check out Fables. There are close to 30 trades for Fables out there and I don't want to take up the shelf space. Though I did want to check out the series, which I heard great things about. So for $5, I got the first volume digitally and really enjoyed it.

I think if my LCS ever closed, I go all digital. Every time I look at the pile of long boxes in my basement, it tempts me to go digital. Though when push comes to shove, if I pay for something I want something to show for it. Even if it's a file on my computer and not someone else's server. Plus the local business aspect appeals to me. So that's my two coppers on digital vs print.

[Ohnooze]

I'm mainly physical copies myself, for a few reasons. I like the experience of going to the comic shop. Plus it's a local business and I prefer to support local businesses.

This I agree with. In fact I wasn't planning on buying the 4 comics I did yesterday but I really want to support my local comic shop. It's really cool too because they are only 3 streets away and they are huge and have a ton of crap.

[Lee Stone]

As for myself, I'm 44 and went all digital in 2011. Not so much for New52, but rather because 'same day digital' just happened to coincide with it.

I use Comixology for purchasing (usually single-issues so I can see all the covers), and my library offers a Hoopla service that includes comics (usually digital trades as there's a ten item limit per month).
And I go to Digital Comics Museum for Golden Age public domain comics.

[ROM Spaceknight]

I'm in my mid-40's & am still old skool. Don't have any interest in digital comics (yet), and don't even have a Kindle (or whatever the device is) that will enable me to look at/read digital comics. My concern would be that the screen would need to be as big (or bigger) than a regular comic book page.

That being said, I do see the attraction re: not having physical copies of items, which will save space. I occasionally have to go through my older comics & "Purge" floppies I don't read that much anymore.

On a related note, I've never really gotten into I-pods or listening to music on a digital device - however, I do sometimes listen to music online instead of buying CD's. And, along with my comics, I have gone and "purged" some CD's that I don't listen to that often.

[Trey Strain]

A better question might be whether there's a good reason for comics companies to keep selling them.

[JasonTodd428]

my library offers a Hoopla service that includes comics (usually digital trades as there's a ten item limit per month).
And I go to Digital Comics Museum for Golden Age public domain comics.

We have a Hoopla service here as well and I'm going to start using it to read trades as well sometime in the next month or so. I've never heard of Digital Comics Museum though so I'll have to check that out as well. Thanks for mentioning it, Lee.

[Slaughter]

I'm a reador not a collector. These days I just downloads my comics.
I moved recently and I gave my collection to my kid nephew.