Watch this video of a young child trying to manipulate a printed magazine like an iPad. Notice how she tries to pinch and swipe the printed pages of the magazine. Frustrated that she can’t get the pages to respond, she begins to wonder if it’s her finger that’s broken, so she presses her finger into her leg to be sure the finger still works. Finally, she’s frustrated and leaves the paper magazine to find something that works.

It’s interesting to think about how each new generation sees the world. I’m in my 50′s, but consider myself a “digital migrant.” I was born in the paper publishing world, but have migrated to the digital world. My children live in the digital world, where mobile phones are a necessity and never leave their side. They are familiar with alarm clocks and corded telephones, but they’ve long since replaced them with their personal mobile phone. My grandchildren are like the child in this video, where an iPad is more familiar to them than a printed magazine.

Where do you fit in this continuum and where do you see it heading?

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