It is a book
Wed, 08 Jun 2011 14:00:00 GMT

Panel 1: Child sitting in front of a desk with a tablet pc, mother coming through door behind him. Mother: "Honey, what are you doing?" Child: "Doing my homework." Mother: "Oh god. You are again using this terrible machine again?" Child: "That is my tablet pc, and it is not terrible, Mom!" -- Panel 2: Mother: "You cannot do your homework with this terrible thing. I will take it for now. But here, I have something for you." Child: "What is this?" Mother: "It is a book." -- Panel 3: Now a book is lying on the desk in front of the child. Child: "Wah, it has no backlight. How am I supposed to read this?" Mother: "You need a lamp. Wait a sec." -- Panel 4: A lamp is now on the desk. Child: "Where is the zoom function. You know I cannot read that small." Mother: "Just use your glasses." -- Panel 5: Child now wears glasses. Child: "How can I put annotations to that text?" Mother: "Oh come on, use a pencil and a rubber!" -- Panel 5: Child: "It has no hyperlinks. How am I supposed to check the sources of this information?" Mother: "You note the names from the bibliography and get the books from the library." -- Panel 6: Now at the library. A big stack of books at a desk in front of the child and the mother. Child: "How am I supposed to take all of this heavy stuff home?" Mother: "Here, use your school bag." -- Panel 7: Back at the Child's work desk. Now the child wears glasses, has a lamp, a rubber and a pencil, and several books on his desk. -- Panel 8: A scorpion appears at the desk, the child is shocked, sitting in the corner of a room, pointing at it: "OH MY GOD WHAT IS THIS???!?!?" Mother: "Just a tiny little book scorpion. I will give you some lavender. They do not like that." Child: "Ok. That will hopefully also gilt that moldy stench." -- Panel 9: Child: "Mom. Why do I have to do all this. I could just use my tablet. It would be faster and easier." Mother: "Because books are better. They may not have a backlight. They may not have editable annotations. They may not have hyperlinks. They may not fit into a pocket. They may take a long time to obtain. They may be heavy. They may smell. They may harbor scorpions. But a bunch of worried parents, overaged politicians and frustrated teachers think that books ar easier to use and better suited for learning." Child: "I see."
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