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UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete

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Shena Wolf
02/09/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
My name's actually *Shena* Wolf.
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Ray Wert
02/09/09

@Shena Wolf: Sorry Shena. That must explain why I couldn't find your e-mail anywhere on the uClick website.
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PhilR8
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
What a silly article. Is the author actually convinced that the a 3.5" WQVGA screen is the latest serious threat to the print medium? And what happens if you want to read comics for three or four hours at a time? Better keep that charging cable handy.

It's just a silly argument to suggest that a $300 device is going to replace paper (and yes, I'm looking at you too, Kindle, even if I do kind of want you). The iPhone is an especially ludicrous suggestion, seeing that you have to sign up for a service contract to truly take advantage of the portability offered by this program (unlike the Kindle, which does not charge for their 3G WWAN access).

And "crudely-printed paper"? Come on, dude. I think that might be a tiny bit of hyperbole.
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Ray Wert
02/08/09

@PhilR8: I mean, when was the last time you bought ten comics and not found one poorly-printed one? Either missing in ink or miss-stapled or miss-cut?
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bonniegrrl
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
Doubtful. I like paper comics. I read and collect paper comics. I could give a Batman's ass about digital comics and iPhone apps. Don't think it's going to ever replace traditional comics.
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weatherman
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
I'm not a huge comic reader, and haven't collected in years, but I think that a big reason that comic readers buy is because of the collectibility - at least the ones who spend the most money. I know if back in the day I could spend $1 on a digital download or $2 on something that I could keep and that might be worth $10 in a few years, I'd spend the $2 up-front.

Maybe I'm out of touch, or maybe I just don't know the comic market. After all, every comic I ever purchased has gone down in value. But I'm still guessing that the tangible feel of comics and the idea of collecting them is a significant part of the reason people buy them, much more so than other ebooks.
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AmishJohn
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
I'm waiting for fanbois' heads to explode by having to slab their phones.
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Ray Wert
02/08/09

@AmishJohn: ROTFL! Epic.
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Theoutlet
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
Hmm, save money, support indie comics, and be able to carry hundreds of comics with me at one time?

I'm all for this.

The only way I wouldn't be for this was if I was irrationally afraid of change, or the iPhone.

Which, thankfully, I am neither.
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KaneRobot
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
This isn't replacing anything.
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Ray Wert
02/08/09

@KaneRobot: Sez you!
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Quilt
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
My comics are big, papery, and smell like loads of ink. The iPhone screen is small, plasticy, and smells like...I dunno, electronics?

I'll take my paper comics.

K Thx Bye
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Ray Wert
02/08/09

@Quilt: Luddite! Anti-technologist!
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♥AntiSocialSocialite♥
02/08/09

@Quilt: i like the way comics smell too - call me a weirdo, but they smell GREAT! and what about us late-adapters (read: poor students) without iPhones? what does this new-fangled future hold for US?
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twDarkflame
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
Of course it wont work.

I'm with Scott McCloud on this one; The future IS digital distribution, but with interfaces based on the idea of a scrollable "window" rather then pages.

And of course, iPhone exclusive wont help either.

It needs to support all browsers.
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Quilt
02/08/09

@twDarkflame: Just mention of Scott McCloud automatically makes you a knowledgeable source on this subject.

I'm not even joking. I wish I'd mentioned McCloud. I'm gonna go read some Zot! now.
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drdoombot
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
What a horrible idea. You will not find popular, modern-day comics with panels that are all the same size. Any artist worth his salt plays with the page layouts to tell a better story.

The size of the iPhone screen isn't attractive either. I've transferred a comic (originally in CBZ format) to my Sony Reader, and even in black and white, it looked pretty good. I'm betting it looks much better than what you get on a color 3.5" screen.

One thing that worries me is the popularity of the iPhone. If uClick and the like catch on, comic creators will be asked to rein in their creativity and produce work that fits the iPhone screen, in order to follow the "green" trail and so forth.

I support digitizing comics, but not cutting and resizing them to fit a new format.
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Ray Wert
02/08/09

@drdoombot: The panels aren't all the same size on the iPhone either. They use letterboxing to make longer panels look right and they cut up panels into two sections where necessary. Either way, the flow of the book is retained. Don't trust me? Download one and let me know what you think.
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Golem100
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
I have to agree with the comments above. I'm really into ebooks on my PDA for novels and short stories. But even my computer monitor doesn't cut it for reading comic books, let alone trying to read them one panel at a time.
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Ray Wert
02/08/09

@dougr650: Or, you know, use two fingers to use the iPhone's "magnify" tool. Which is something that worked very well with Bone.
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okenny :) ...building bridges (to hide under)
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
If this was on something like Kindle (perhaps a little larger and a lot thinner) except with full 30 bit color then maybe but until then, the idea that a shit device like the iPhone can replace printed comics is perhaps the most foolish idea I've come across today. I wouldn't even qualify it as an alternative. It would actually have to offer a comparably enjoyable experience to be seen as that much.

...Dumb internets! Get off my lawn!! >:(
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Theoutlet
02/08/09

@okenny :) ...building bridges (to hide under): Quite a convincing argument you have there. It won't succeed because you hate the iPhone.

Kudos.
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okenny :) ...building bridges (to hide under)
02/08/09

@Theoutlet: All joking aside, if that's all you could gleam from what I'm saying then you're probably to sensitive to read others opinions to begin with. Listen buddy, I don't like reading this sort of media on devices with small screens and that can't express the gamut of colors delivered with print ink. If you like that inferior experience and the iPhone is alright by you then that's just you're preference. I'm not here to tell people who lack a sense of humor what I believe they think and I don't plan to start with you!

Twix.
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Theoutlet
02/08/09

@okenny :) ...building bridges (to hide under): Heh, that's all I could gleam because, well, you didn't really flesh out your opinion.

I really didn't see why just because you prefer to not read comics on that screen would pertain to this succeeding.

Anyway, sorry I didn't laugh at your joke. Didn't mean anything by it.
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Evil Tortie's Mom: R.O.A.C.H.
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
Smaller size, and the art is rearranged in ways that the creators didn't envision.

Feh.
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jubal1
02/08/09

In reply to UClick for iPhone Will Make Comic Books Obsolete
Oh, and artists create entire pages at a time, not individual panels, many comics use panel layout and page design as storytelling devices, it's one of the key elements of the medium.

Take a look at the current comics posterboy 'Watchmen', its packed with examples of how inventive page and panel layout enhances the story, and its hardly unique in that.
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Kaiser-Machead
02/08/09

@jubal1: Most certainly agreed. I don't see how they'll get the same rhythm and transition on a small screen going panel by panel.
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