The Fall of Domino, and questions for you

Last week, we broke the news to you about Domino magazine tumbling down the chute of financial catastrophe, falling fast on the heels of Pier I and Levitz Furniture, which are going out of business altogether, and perhaps preceding Sharper Image and the esteemed (and 99-year-old) Ethan Allen Interiors, which are shutting down many stores in an attempt to stay afloat. As with most news, this item about Domino was first roundly discussed in the blogosphere, and then made its way to print, notably appearing in an exhaustive aritcle in yesterday’s New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/05/garden/05domino.html

The blogs have had a heyday with the news, with many people wondering what will become of their subscriptions---we started wondering, too, and we’re trying to get a solid answer for you; when we do, we’ll post it here. Okay, Carson did published a book in 1999 titled “Print is Dead,” but what does that mean, really?One Domino reader quoted in the article said she would buy three copies of each issue, so she could keep one in a binder and rip through the others, cannibalizing for decorating ideas.Is this one reader proof that print is not, in fact, dead? What do YOU do with your print publications? Do you even subscribe to anything? Why read something in print---using up precious resources, making hell of your recylcing, and breaking your mail carrier’s back---when you could just zip right to the articles and photos you want online?And what difference does it make if it’s design your reading about? Does that make you prefer to read online or to thumb through an actual 3-d publication?

My own answer is that I’m old-school: I like print, no matter what the subject is. I like the feel of a book or magazine or newspaper in my hand. I like the inky smell of the freshly-minted New York Times, and I like flipping through glossy pages of gorgeously-designed homes.But am I alone in this (or in the company only of the 3-copies-of-each-issue Domino reader)? Was David Carson right?Is print dead? Meantime, what does the demise of Domino---both print and online---say about the future of print?

A note on the magazine’s home page tells readers that users of “My Deco File” can continue to downdown images for the next couple of weeks, but after that, the magazine will be gone forever, belying the idea that anything on the Internet is forever. (note to Facebook users: still, I’d procede with caution about posting those photos of your drunken revelry after last Sunday’s game)Way back in the dark ages of the Internet, the 1990s, there was considerable scuttlebutt about the future of print, notably Neville Brody saying the work of designer David Carson signaled “the end of print.”

Comments

[Alexia Rossetti]

I personally rip apart magazines and save the pictures I love on file. You can always research for articles on the internet, but you will never find the wealth of advertisements of new products on the online version - especially if you're researching months or years later.

Part of what I save from the magazines are the ads of new design products. Only a print magazine will have the depth and breadth of photographs - an online magazine will have much less (do you really pay attention to those annoying pop up ads?) and after a month or so, it probably won't post the ads anymore. Whereas I can keep my magazine photos for many years.

We can't let print magazines die....that's one less resource we have!

[Designer Garden Furniture]

After reading many posts about designer garden furniture your article gave me the right thoughts i was searching for.