On the use of dictionary in the internet age...

I read, with keen interest, of the article on dictionary in this internet age.

When I was small, I used to love read dictionary. I like reading a seemingly complete collection of all words that one can think of, and what all those words mean. It's much like my feelings to libraries: Every time I go to a library, I have this urge to read all the books and articles that I can lay my hands on.

Much as the somewhat morphed use of library resources, as our reading habits change, so do our attitude and usage of dictionaries. While I still love holding a book in my hand, I'm just as happy reading all I can on the web, particularly on news which change much more frequently. I can understand why a growing number of people of using reading devices like Amazon's Kindle or Sony's eReader. I'd say, at some point, I might even give it a try.

The same is true with dictionary. I still have a few volumes of different dictionaries on my shelf, but I hardly used them. This is not to say that dictionary has no place in our life. Quite far from it, the concept of dictionary is more important than ever. One cannot say the same with the modus operandi of dictionary. One has to confront the reality that there are an increasing number of sources competing for our attention, in particular, the younger generations.

We insist on our kids learning how to use dictionary. The methodical way to locate a word in a thick book is still very applicable. Yet, if I look at my own behavior, it speaks volume. My dictionaries are gathering dust since I haven't used or touched them for ages now. The circular reference used in dictionary can be frustrating. New words get created daily, and dictionaries are hard to keep up. Due to space limitation, alot of dictionaries don't provide example of usage either. All these problems are resolved online. The only sticky point of looking up words on the web is that, there is really no one authoritative source to provide *the* meaning of a word. Users like me would sample the web search of the word over a number of search results. If they are saying more or less the same meaning, that's the one I'd take.

If only I have my volume of dictionaries reside online, with expansion on usage, and frequent updates, that would be a combination made in heaven for me. Although the only downside is, the art of looking up a word in a traditional dictionary is going to be forever lost when kids start using free-form search like google search.

I often wonder, for dictionary to achieve what would be useful to me, does that deal a death kilt to the art of word search, the traditional way? Would it die the same slow death the way that morse code did? I would be very sad when that day comes.