Which Format is Best II – Annotation

Some people think books are sacred. I don’t like to crack the spine on paperbacks. Friends have told me it’s disrespectful to put books on the floor. Since they represent knowledge, they shouldn’t be down among the dirt and the dust. Because of this sacred nature, many see writing in books as sacrilege. In a way, it’s defacing the text with markings, highlights, and/or notes. Others see writing in books as essential to the learning process. Margins and end papers are there for the reader to contribute. Some say books aren’t truly owned until they’ve been marked in. Plus, we remember better when we write out notes; so, writing in a book helps us retain more of what was read. eBooks provide an interesting twist on this debate because readers can make notes and highlights without altering the original file. Thus the underlying book remains unsullied even though a reader annotates what she reads. Does this solve the riddle of whether we should write in books?

Which Format is Best II Annotation

To write in the book or not is a constant debate amongst readers, and I don’t want to rehash that debate here. Personally, I believe that writing in the book is the best way to engage and learn the material that’s in the text. It approximates a conversation with the author’s thoughts; writing in the margins provides reminders of passages that are important or memorable or beautiful; and it lets me question the author’s argument immediately. I retain the material better by writing in the text, and it helps me think deeper about the material. With all that said, I don’t often write in books because I donate a lot of my used books to the library. I want a pristine book from the library; so, I donate books in the condition in which I’d like to receive them. Also, I’ve noticed that I don’t markup fiction texts with the same frequency as nonfiction. What this says about me, I’ll leave up to the reader. This trend follows across format; whether it’s physical or electronic, I annotate nonfiction much more often than fiction. Also, I annotate eBooks more often than physical books as well. Based on this, do I think eBooks are the better medium for writing in books?

In order to answer that question, we have to look at the benefits of each medium. As I discussed in part one of this series, Which Book Format is Best?, each format has its own strengths and weaknesses. When it comes to annotating your books, the strengths and weaknesses are similar to those discussed in the other article. For eBooks, the notes are always at hand, conveniently organized, and portable. In physical books, the notes are yours and, if written in ink, permanent. They’re also not dependent on software and firmware changes. Since those have been covered, let’s look at other comparisons.

The major eReaders allow their users to annotate their texts with notes and highlights. In addition, by selecting a word, the eReader can connect users to dictionaries and Wikipedia to enhance the experience. If the word is in a different language, software will attempt to find the closest translation. The notes are conveniently listed and linked so that the reader can jump right to the note. With the Kindle1, the user can export all their markups, and some can create flashcards based on their notes and highlights. This convenience makes creating an annotated bibliography easier, and students can spend less time on study sheets. With the ability to take snapshots, quoting for social media, blogs/websites, presentations, or video is easier than ever. Add in the ability to modify that snapshot through any number of post-processing software, and the user can create a unique, exciting graphic that focuses in on a specific portion of the text. Once again, the strengths of the eBook lie in its conveniences and ability to organize a lot of information in a single location.

Ink and paper books are heavy and inconvenient. The quality of the paper varies. Highlighters and pens bleed through on the cheaper stock. Unless you put page markers, jumping to a specific quote or note is difficult. Creating a list requires flipping back and forth between the section and the location of your writing. So what are the benefits of the physical book? The act of writing – not typing but creating the letters – has been shown to increase retention and creates more of an interactive feel. The annotation along with the highlight or underlining is eternally present with the text. In eBooks, the user needs to select the note to see what has been written. Because the notes are in line with the text, it flows better with the reading as opposed to having to open another window. Marginalia are less intrusive than it might seem. When not reading, seeing the books with their tabs or index cards sticking out creates a sense of accomplishment that looking at an eReader will never give. Physical books in their way signal intelligence. Heavily annotated books double down on that signal. Who doesn’t like to be seen as intelligent? Finally, this record of the past ‘you’ is refreshing when the reader opens the book again. Not only can the reader have a conversation with the author, through the annotations, readers can have a conversation with their past selves. This easily shows an intellectual growth (hopefully), and the reader can comment on the past notes. In physical books, these layers exist all at once. In eBooks, the user has to overlay the comments, but the sense of time passing is missing from this process. Writing in physical books connects the reader to the material in a more organic way than typing on a file.

Which format works better for annotating? For this article, it’s a much more personal preference choice than for the ownership question. Each reader will have to answer this question on their own. For me, eBook is the clear winner here. I feel less like I’m defacing a book when I markup my eBook. Add in the conveniences of searchable notes, a list of annotations, and photographic quotes to make it the clear winner for me.

Well, now, eBook vs physical is tied at one win a piece.

Do you mark in books? Do you prefer annotating physical or eBooks? Let me know in the comments.


1. Other eReaders might have similar options; I don’t have experience with other apps when it comes to navigating annotations. Return.