Chicho said:
People that say never usually end up wrong. Flight by machines heavier than air is unpractical and insignificant, if not utterly impossible. |
There is just as much absolutism in statements like "thinking physical will still be a thing in 2060 is hilarious" and "the idea that physical media will even exist in 2060 is a crazy notion". It's not much different from someone in 1960 being convinced that we'd all have flying cars or jet packs by now.
Newcomb's position is humorous to look back on in hindsight for sure. However, flight didn't completely eradicate other methods of travel (automobile, locomotive, sail, etc), so it doesn't really apply here. Meanwhile, print media is supposed to be dead, but even though E-readers have been around for a while, books still exist and achieve million sellers.
I don't deny the rise of digital media, but I also don't think physical media will completely disappear either. Projects like the Intellivision Amico are a worrisome prospect of the future. I can still insert one of my grandfather's Intellivision cartridges into a Mattel Intellivision from 1979 and play it 42 years later. But if the all digital Amico from Intellivision Entertainment goes bust, will there be a server running to download its games from even 5 years from now? The Ouya, which has been rendered a $40-$50 doorstop on ebay tells me the answer to that question is no.
