The Evolution of the Book

Book Description: Oxford University Press Inc, United States, 1998. Hardback. Book Condition: New. 234 x 156 mm. Brand New Book with Free Worldwide Delivery. Distinguished scholar and library systems innovator Frederick Kilgour tells a five-thousand-year story in this exciting work, a tale beginning with the invention of writing and concluding with the emerging electronic book. Calling on a lifetime of interest in the growth of information technology, Kilgour brings a fresh approach to the history of the book, emphasizing in rich, authoritative detail the successive technological advances that allowed the book to keep pace with ever-increasing needs for information. Borrowing a concept from evolutionary theory--the notion of punctuated equilibria--to structure his account, Kilgour investigates the book's three discrete historical forms--the clay tablet, papyrus roll, and codex--before turning to a fourth, still evolving form, the cyber book, a version promising swift electronic delivery of information in text, sound, and motion to anyone at any time. The clay tablet, initially employed as a content descriptor for sacks of grain, proved inadequate to the growing need for commercial and administrative records. Its successor the papyrus roll was itself succeeded by the codex, a format whose superior utility and information capacity led to sweeping changes in the management of accumulated knowledge, the pursuit of learning, and the promulgation of religion. Kilgour throughout considers closely both technological change and the role this change played in cultural transformation. His fascinating account of the modern book, from Gutenberg's invention of cast-type printing five hundred years ago to the arrival of books displayed on a computer screen, spotlights the inventors, engineers, and entrepreneurs who in creating the machinery of production and dissemination enabled the book to maintain its unique cultural power over time. Deft, provocative, and accessibly written, The Evolution of the Book will captivate book lovers as well as those interested in bibliographic history, the history of writing, and the history of technology. Bookseller Inventory # AAZ9780195118599

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Book Description: Oxford University Press Inc. Hardback. Book Condition: new. BRAND NEW PRINT ON DEMAND., Evolution of the Book, Frederick G. Kilgour, Distinguished scholar and library systems innovator Frederick Kilgour tells a five-thousand-year story in this exciting work, a tale beginning with the invention of writing and concluding with the emerging electronic book. Calling on a lifetime of interest in the growth of information technology, Kilgour brings a fresh approach to the history of the book, emphasizing in rich, authoritative detail the successive technological advances that allowed the book to keep pace with ever-increasing needs for information. Borrowing a concept from evolutionary theory--the notion of punctuated equilibria--to structure his account, Kilgour investigates the book's three discrete historical forms--the clay tablet, papyrus roll, and codex--before turning to a fourth, still evolving form, the cyber book, a version promising swift electronic delivery of information in text, sound, and motion to anyone at any time. The clay tablet, initially employed as a content descriptor for sacks of grain, proved inadequate to the growing need for commercial and administrative records. Its successor the papyrus roll was itself succeeded by the codex, a format whose superior utility and information capacity led to sweeping changes in the management of accumulated knowledge, the pursuit of learning, and the promulgation of religion. Kilgour throughout considers closely both technological change and the role this change played in cultural transformation. His fascinating account of the modern book, from Gutenberg's invention of cast-type printing five hundred years ago to the arrival of books displayed on a computer screen, spotlights the inventors, engineers, and entrepreneurs who in creating the machinery of production and dissemination enabled the book to maintain its unique cultural power over time. Deft, provocative, and accessibly written, The Evolution of the Book will captivate book lovers as well as those interested in bibliographic history, the history of writing, and the history of technology. Bookseller Inventory # B9780195118599

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Book Description: Oxford University Press Inc, 1998. hardback. Book Condition: New. *** NEW COPY *** TITLE SHIPPED FROM UK *** Binding hardback Distinguished scholar and library systems innovator Frederick Kilgour tells a five-thousand-year story in this exciting work, a tale beginning with the invention of writing and concluding with the emerging electronic book. Calling on a lifetime of. Bookseller Inventory # 0195118596

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Book Description: OUP USA 1998-05-21, 1998. Book Condition: New. Brand new book, sourced directly from publisher. Dispatch time is 24-48 hours from our warehouse. Book will be sent in robust, secure packaging to ensure it reaches you securely. Bookseller Inventory # NU-GRD-00477304

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Book Description: OUP USA, 1998. Hardcover. Book Condition: New. Bookseller Inventory # ST0195118596

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Book Description: Oxford University Press Inc, 1998. Hardback. Book Condition: New. New book. Shipped from UK. Bookseller Inventory # GB-9780195118599

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Book Description: Oxford University Press Inc Country = UNITED STATES, 1998. Hardback. Book Condition: New. 180 pages. This study is a concise history of the book in all its forms, starting from the very beginning with the invention of writing and concluding at the present time with the electronic revolution and what it may hold for the future. 8 halftones, 8 line drawings (Hardback). Bookseller Inventory # AB0195118596

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Book Description: 1998. Hardcover. Book Condition: New. 162mm x 18mm x 236mm. 192 pages. 0.417. Bookseller Inventory # 9780195118599

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Book Description: Oxford University Press. Book Condition: New. New. Bookseller Inventory # 0195118596

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Book Description: Oxford University Press, 1998. Hardback. Book Condition: New. 234x156. (180) THIS BOOK IS PRINTED ON DEMAND, PLEASE ALLOW UP TO 10 DAYs EXTRA FOR DELIVERY. Kilgour's study is a concise history of the book as we know it in all its forms, starting from the very beginning with the invention of writing and concluding at the present time with the electronic revolution and what it may hold for the future. Kilgour himself is a highly respected figure among the bibliophile set. He brings a lifetime's accumulation of knowledge and an historian's curiosity to the writing of this book, which should be picked up enthusiastically by libraries as a tribute and indespensable guide to the object whose legacy they are dedicated to preserving. (Hardback). Bookseller Inventory # AQ0195118596

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