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Digital magazines, what’s in it for me...

By Dale Griffiths posted 07-15-2011 10:01

  

May 1, 2012
  RESPIRATORY CARE journal makes it easier than ever before to keep up with the latest scientific advancements in respiratory care. Now, in addition to the print edition, you can access the Journal's original research at RCJournal.com. There, you will find papers before they are printed in the journal via ePubs Ahead of Print. And, you'll find the digital editions of the current issue and archives of past issues, past OPEN FORUM Abstracts, Clinical Practice Guidelines, podcasts, and the Editor's Commentary. 
  Researchers and authors can find even more with access to PubMed and the Journal's IngentaConnect version with cross references. Authors can also find the guidelines for preparing papers as well as the ability to check on the status of submitted manuscripts. Visit www.RCJournal.com

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August 4, 2011
  Medical libraries carry a large selection of journals and magazines in their serials collections for reference and research. In the past, they relied on the printed copy that was kept on the circulating shelf and in the banks reference materials. Unfortunately, printed copies can easily get taken by someone, damaged, lost or destroyed. That is why digital magazines are a boon to librarians and the researchers who frequent the libraries as the digital editions are always available and easily searched.

  I remember that nearly every time that I visited the library at UT Southwestern Medical Center, one of the journal's or magazines that I sought was missing. And, occasionally the paper I wanted to read was ripped out of the publication. That was most frustrating. With the digital library, you just have to worry about finding a computer terminal. Not always easy, but fighting over several terminals is easier that fighting over one copy of a journal.

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July 27, 2011
One of the things I like about digital magazines is how easy it is to research products that interest me. When I see an advertisement in my print magazine, I either have to tear out the ad for later reference, write down the information to look up later on my computer, take the issue to my computer, or call.
When reading my digital magazine all I have to do is click on the link in the ad. That link often takes me directly to the product. I can then save that information or forward it to someone else. I get instant information.
With the print magazine, it is easy to misplace or forget the saved issue, ripped out page, or hand-written notes.

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July 16, 2011
Yes, with a digital magazine subscription, I can save a tree, protect the environment, conserve energy and all that feel good stuff. But at the end of the day what do I get out of it?

 

For one thing, I will not get those “looks” when it comes to my stacks of magazines on the nightstand, next to my easy chair, or on my library desk. Oh, and there’s that stray copy on the breakfast room table. With my digital subscription, my stacks are reduced to one portable device: smart phone, e-reader, iPad, or laptop. I don’t get in as much trouble if I leave that on the breakfast table.

 

More importantly, what I get out of a digital subscription is convenience and access. Gone are the days when I carried a heavy stack of magazines on a trip so that I could catch up.

 

And, digital subscriptions are great for when I am deep in discussion with someone on a specific topic. Gone are the days of “there was a paper in an issue a few years ago.” Now, I can pull up my digital edition. Search for the topic. Find it and have full text while the subject is still fresh in our minds and the information is still needed. We can put the information to immediate use. That’s powerful!

 

Plus, I don’t have to worry about my copy getting ripped up in the mail. Delayed. Lost in the mail or in one of my stacks. Or worse,borrowed by someone else. And, I get it faster—by as much as two weeks earlier. That gives me an advantage over the other guys on my team who are gunning for my job.

 

In my digital magazines, everything is there that you see in the print edition. Even more, because there are links to additional information to expand my knowledge about what I am reading.

 

With digital magazines there is plenty in it for me. Best of all... no more “looks.”

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William Baker
07-29-2011 17:45

The Green Thing
In the line at the store, the cashier told an older woman that she should bring her own grocery bags because plastic bags weren't good for the environment.
The woman apologized to him and explained, "We didn't have the green thing back in my day."
The clerk responded, "That's our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment."
He was right -- our generation didn't have the green thing in its day.
Back then, we returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled.
But we didn't have the green thing back in our day.
We walked up stairs, because we didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks.
But she was right. We didn't have the green thing in our day.
Back then, we washed the baby's diapers because we didn't have the throw-away kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts -- wind and solar power really did dry the clothes. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that old lady is right; we didn't have the green thing back in our day.
Back then, we had one TV, or radio, in the house -- not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana.

In the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn't have electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used a wadded up old newspaper to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.

Back then, we didn't fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.
But she's right; we didn't have the green thing back then.

We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water.
We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull.
But we didn't have the green thing back then.
Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.
But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn't have the green thing back then?

Charles Friderici
07-29-2011 09:42

I also like the convenience of being able to click out of a story or advertisement for further information. It does save alot of time when I'm near a computer. It's also really easy with the digital version to share an article, advertisement, or photo (repecting copyrights of course) with other people at work. Several of the magazines I subscribe to also have digital versions, but yet I still take the print version. Why, you might ask? Well, you can't read a digital version while sitting in the swimming pool, lounging by a lake, or waiting for a fish to bite....
Charlie the Luddite

Dale Griffiths
07-21-2011 11:38

Charles, well said. I agree with the values that you cite for print publications. Education moments are important.
I must say, that after 32 years in publishing, it is hard for me to give up my printed books and magazines--I still have a print subscription to the newspaper and subscriptions to my favorite magazines/journals and I have yet to buy an e-book.
As you say, readability can be a problem on the smaller devices. Especially as we grow older. Alas, reading the smaller type has forced me into bi-focal lenses. Fortunately, we are in the early years of this shift. There are many "Star Trek" type devices on the horizon that will make all this easier.
However, I do see the value in digital publications. One of the biggest advantages for me is that I can readily access articles for reference. It is much easier than trying to find a clipping in a stack of papers or in a file cabinet. Sometimes, I scan a paper and save it as a PDF on my computer. But then I still have to remember it is there and where I filed it. Unfortunately, in my advancing years, my remembering doesn't work as well as my forgetting. At least I remember my wedding anniversary is next month--I think.

Charles Friderici
07-21-2011 10:50

Yes, we are in a digital age. But there is value in paper based products. For instance, you can't leave a digital copy of the AARC times in your hospital's waiting room for your patients to browse through and find out more about our profession. You can't carry a brightly colored issue of the digital AARC times in to work with you and have someone ask about what you do. Education moments! So many people staring into their electronic devices, oblivious to the world around them.... and those tiny little screens you have to hold just so... my old eyes can't take it...but I digress. There is great convienience to having these publications available wherever I have a computer- I have many times taken advantage of electronic access to articles and studies, and embrace that instant gratification. But I hope that paper is also here to stay- Thank you for listening

Michael Nibert
07-20-2011 17:56

We could go back to writing letters, no smart phones, no computers, and practice as an inhalation therapists. Dig Mag is here to stay and our professional association has made a wise decision in our behalf. Thank you AARC for the many benefits that Dig Mag brings to our busy lives---

Dale Griffiths
07-18-2011 16:17

Agree, bathrooms are not the best place for digital devices. Though, sometimes I have wanted to flush an article I was reading in Time magzine. Pools are not the best place either, but taking a digital device on break, to lunch, and at home is pretty convenient for me.
Yes, search engines on any website can be frustrating. But, it beats the heck out of the old card catalog system in the libraries when we were younger. Wonder how many younger readers are familiar with those. And, at least it is dedicated to the publication's pages so that limits some of the garbage. With Respiratory Care's Ingenta site, you also get click throughs on the references. That is really helpful.
Remembering passwords is a problem. Have considering tatooing mine on my forearm but my mother and wife would frown on that.

William Baker
07-17-2011 12:33

Digital - has its draw backs, I'm not going to take my lap top into the bathroom with me for reading... while I agree a search of a topic sometimes brings back the correct answer and artciles... quite often I find it does not, requires some 'password' that was eons ago forgotten to acquire it, or the article is for "sale or rent" not free at all. The advertisements of years gone by also give some age of time of the article and thoughts of what was then, vs the article online has no background to it, its there or its not. I like the feel of paper in my hand, but my eyes sure do like the 'view - zoom in' feature on me puter.. old eyes make for troubled or less reading no doubt about it for me. That an article comes out in say the 'abstracts' may lead one to read something they were not thinking about but find amazing, which is not seen or felt when 'search is used' ...you don't get unrelated topics that carry you away... its good for my ADD to wonder at times down the same pathway. So which is it for me. Well I"m here posting, which is fun and I wouldn't have thought much about this otherwise.
In looking at this, does this mean the AARC backs the 'smaller carbon footprint'? Is world weather really an issue? man caused not weather cycle? Is the AARC run by 'democrats'? OMG! Do they contribute to the democrats? If so, was I given a choice of which dollars where, when, how, who? or were they just used? Is this the begining of AARCgate? Or just my ADD kcking in again.
Oh well... G'Day!