The Future Of Publishing Blog by Thad McIlroy

Articles

Most of my writing appears on this site. These are articles published elsewhere, including Publishers Weekly and Publishing Research Quarterly.

A note regarding writing about artificial intelligence (AI).
I’ve been writing about technology and publishing for more than 35 years now. Throughout that time the pace of change was measured. Innovations appeared — desktop publishing, the internet. New products launched — Aldus Pagemaker, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Acrobat, among many others. Sometimes I spotted the likely impact pretty quickly (desktop publishing), other times it took me a few years (the web). But change was slow in those days. The impact was not quickly felt, certainly not in the publishing industries.

At the same time, information as a commodity underwent dramatic change, not always visible on the surface. There’s a 20-year-old article on this site, “The Information Explosion and its Impact on the Future of Publishing,” that looks at the changes from a circa 2000 perspective. It points to a survey showing that, before the internet/web, the world’s knowledge base would double every 5 years. It projected that by 2020 it would double every 73 days. Of course “knowledge base” is a loose term — what’s knowledge? Should we talk instead about “information”?

An IBM report from 2006 stated that by 2000 “the world’s information base will be doubling in size every 11 hours.”

Whatever the numbers, it’s no secret that the information explosion is overwhelming. When people talk about the explosion, they’re often thinking as much about social media, in text, audio and video, as they are about information in books and journals.

What I find extraordinary in my work is not just the amount of social media dross. It’s the amount of good, solid information and analysis that’s published each day. It’s easy to filter out social media. But when I start to research topics for my blogs and articles, I’m exhausted by the number of solid sources I can find online, and behind each of those sources, a smart person, who, it often turns out, has written dozens of articles, and a book or two, on the same topic. Those invariably lead also to hour-long YouTube videos, and social media feeds, with heated discussions on controversial aspects of the topic.

The feeling of exhaustion is a problem of course. But for me what’s even worse is the sense that even after two days of research I’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg — it would take a year or more to be able to confidently claim a broad understanding. And the feeling of unknowability is compounded by the ongoing research and writing — just when you think you’ve got it, a new paper is published that refutes the consensus.

I’m going on about this here as a henceforth disclaimer. I used to intimate that I had a solid grasp of the facts before I wrote an article or a long blog post on a particular subject. I will no longer make that claim. I can only state that I’ve done my best within an allotment of time that seemed reasonable for the scope of the topic. Take my words with a grain of salt: I could be completely wrong.

I list my books and reports on a separate page.

  1. Over 30 Years, 40% of Publishing Jobs Disappeared. What Happened?, Publishers Weekly, September 20, 2024.
  2. Confronting Publishing’s AI Fears, Publishers Weekly, January 29, 2024.
  3. How Publishers Can Navigate the AI Revolution, Publishers Weekly, December 18, 2023.
  4. AI Is About to Turn Book Publishing Upside-Down, Publishers Weekly, June 2, 2023.
  5. Book Publishing Startups in the U.S. 2022, Publishers Weekly, November 18, 2022.
  6. Frankfurt Spotlight: How Book Publishing Startups Have Fared, Publishers Weekly, October 17, 2022.
  7. Ingram Backs Book.io, a NFT Book Marketplace, Publishers Weekly, October 17, 2022.
  8. Is TikTok the Future of Book Marketing?, Publishers Weekly, June 6, 2022.
  9. AI Comes to Audiobooks, Publishers Weekly, November 1, 2021.
  10. The Best Books About Book Publishing, Publishers Weekly, August 16, 2021.
  11. COVID-19 and Book Publishing: Impacts and Insights for 2021, Publishing Research Quarterly, February, 2021.
  12. How Covid-19 Will Change Publishing, Publishers Weekly, January 22, 2021.
  13. Dear Book Biz: The Devil’s in the Metadata, Publishers Weekly, August 28, 2020.
  14. The SUM of Metadata for Publishers, Publishers Weekly, March 27, 2020.
  15. Pondering the State of Digital Publishing, Publishers Weekly, January 24, 2020.
  16. Getting the Mueller Report Right, Publishers Weekly, July 19, 2019.
  17. Moving Metadata From How to Why, Publishers Weekly, February 15, 2019.
  18. Where Do You Go Next? Publishers Weekly Frankfurt Show Daily, October 10, 2018.
  19. Let’s Make Metadata Great Again, Publishers Weekly, October 8, 2018.
  20. Startups Within the U.S. Book Publishing Industry, Publishing Research Quarterly, Spring 2017.
  21. Ebook formats are a mess – here’s why, Learned Publishing, October 2012.
  22. A Consumer’s Guide: Forecasting Futurism in the Age of Information Glut, Strategic News Service, February, 2012
  23. Four Disadvantages for Barnes & Noble in the Bookseller Wars, Digital Book World, January 13, 2012
  24. What’s Really Going on at Barnes & Noble, Digital Book World, January 6, 2012
  25. Seven Advantages Barnes & Noble Has in the Bookseller Wars, Digital Book World, January 3, 2012
  26. Digitize This Book: The Politics of New Media or Why We Need Open Access Now, book review in Learned Publishing, April, 2010
  27. The Brave New World of Publishing: The Symbiotic Relationship Between Printing and Book Publishing, book review in Learned Publishing, April, 2010
  28. The Rapid Denoument of the Vancouver Olympics, Geist blog, March 9, 2010
  29. Report the Suspicious, Geist, Issue 75
  30. Adobe’s Curious Acquisition, PrintAction, December, 2009
  31. Newspaper Industry Ad Revenue at 1965 Levels, PrintAction,  August, 2009
  32. Steve Jobs and the Future of Apple Computer, PrintAction, December, 2008
  33. Acrobat 9: A Child Grows Up, PrintAction, September, 2008 (reprinted on AcrobatUsers.com)
  34. Trial By Water, Geist, Spring, 2008
  35. The Quark Dynamic Publishing System, The Seybold Report, April 6, 2008
  36. News From XML 2007, The Seybold Report, January 10, 2008
  37. Harry Potter and the Sustainable Forest, The Seybold Report, August 9, 2007
  38. HP Unveils Print 2.0 — A New Era for Printing, Gilbane Group Blog, June, 2007
  39. Thomson Learning Sold for Big Bucks!, Gilbane Group Blog, May, 2007
  40. The Negroponte Laptop, Gilbane Group Blog, April, 2007
  41. Is Adobe Really Going to Mars?, Gilbane Group Blog, March, 2007
  42. Moving JDF Upstream, PrintAction, February 2007
  43. Not All Newspapers Are Suffering, Gilbane Group Blog, February 27, 2007
  44. Usurious Association, Gilbane Group Blog, February 9, 2007
  45. The PDF ISO Standard, Gilbane Group Blog, February 27, 2007
  46. Overpriced Acrobat Upgrade, PrintAction, November 2006 & PlanetPDF, November 2006
  47. eBooks Return (again), Gilbane Group Blog, October 31, 2006
  48. Acrobat Still Suffering from Schizophrenia, Gilbane Group Blog, September 19, 2006
  49. Realities of Job Jackets and JDF, PrintAction, September 2006
  50. Q&A with Thad McIlroy (by Teri Tan), Publishers Weekly, July 31, 2006
  51. The Importance of QuarkXPress 7.0, Gilbane Group Blog, May 25, 2006
  52. The Hazards of Island Hopping, PrintAction, March 2006
  53. The Impact of Internet Advertising on Printing, PrintAction, August 2005
  54. Microsoft Takes on the World, PrintAction, June 2005
  55. Microsoft Metro Takes on the World, creativepro.com, June, 2005
  56. Adobe & Macromedia, Gilbane Group Blog, April 19, 2005
  57. Inside Adobe Macromedia, PrintAction, April 2005
  58. Adobe Suite Offers Second Take on Integration, Printing Impressions, April 2005
  59. Seybold San Francisco 2004, PrintAction, October 2004
  60. The New World of Offshoring and Automation, Printing Impressions, October 2004
  61. Tackling the Workflow Challenge, Printing Impressions, August 2004
  62. The Real Meaning of Drupa 2004, PrintAction, June 2004
  63. The Next Stage in Composition, Printing Impressions, April 2004
  64. Attack Plan 2004, PrintAction, March 2004
  65. The Problem of Print, PrintAction, March 2004
  66. The Future of Publishing, PrintAction, March 2004
  67. Cross-Media in QuarkXPress and Adobe InDesign, Printing Impressions, February 2004
  68. XSL-FO: Ready for Prime Time? (PDF), The Gilbane Report, Vol. 11, No. 10, January 24, 2004
  69. Let’s Move Forward Quickly, Printing Impressions, December 2003
  70. Hollywood Confronts the Digital Revolution, Printing Impressions, October 2003
  71. Whatever Happened to Cross-Media Publishing?, The Bulletin: Seybold News and Views on Electronic Publishing, September 10, 2003
  72. Leveraging the Internet, Printing Impressions, August 2003
  73. Whatever Happened to Cross-Media Publishing?, Printing Impressions, June 2003
  74. Fools and Their Foolproof Workflows, Printing Impressions, April 2003
  75. PDF Generators Weigh In, Printing Impressions, February 2003
  76. PDF Progress Report, Printing Impressions, December 2002
  77. Watching the Sun Set?, Printing Impressions, September 2002
  78. The “Real” Power of Print, Printing Impressions, June 2002
  79. New Print Campaign Is Fatally Flawed, Printing Impressions, April 2002
  80. Concerns With Cross-Media Dealings, Printing Impressions, September 2001
  81. CoverIn Search of PrintTalk and JDF, Printing Impressions, June 2001.
  82. How Important Is Acrobat 5?, Printing Impressions, April 2001.
  83. Providing Network Publishing Services: A Future Role for Printing and Prepress, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), March/April 2001.
  84. Attack Plan 2001, PrintAction, March 2001.
  85. Answering the Critics, Printing Impressions, February 2001.
  86. Moving to Network Publishing, Printing Impressions, December 2000.
  87. The NPSP Challenge, The Bulletin: Seybold News and Views on Electronic Publishing, December 13, 2000
  88. The (Hidden) Meaning of DRUPA, Printing Impressions, August 2000.
  89. QuarkXPress and InDesign Battle it Out, Printing Impressions, May 2000.
  90. What is XML, and Why Should You Care?, Printing Impressions, March 2000.
  91. Are We in Worse Shape than Anyone Thinks?, Printing Impressions, January 2000.
  92. Seybold Announcements Were Aplenty, Printing Impressions, November 1999.
  93. Print Buying on the Web, Printing Impressions, September 1999.
  94. Print Production Managers Must Become Content Managers, Printing Impressions, June 1999
  95. Winning Battles, Losing Wars, Printing Impressions, April 1999.
  96. Publisher’s Newsletter Pays Tribute to Printer, Printing Impressions, March 1999.
  97. The Digital Workflow’s Future is Complex, eMediaWeekly, 2/01/99.
  98. Print is on a Collision Course with the Web, eMediaWeekly, 1/04/99.
  99. You Can Learn a Lot from a Friday Quickie, eMediaWeekly, 12/07/98.
  100. Still Awaiting Print Technology Dividend, eMediaWeekly, 11/02/98.
  101. Managing Mixed Platforms, Printing Impressions, November 1998.
  102. Printing in the Era of the Internet, eMediaWeekly, 10/05/98.
  103. Where are We Going on the Web?, Printing Impressions, September 1998.
  104. Adobe’s PDF: What’s all the Fuss and Bother?, eMediaWeekly, 9/9/98.
  105. The PDF Files: Workflows that Work, Digital Production Executive, June, 1998.
  106. Digital Printing: Are You Making Money?, Printing Impressions, June 1998.
  107. What’s Holding Up Variable Data Printing?, The Eagle, Q2/’98.
  108. HDIA: New Name, New Concerns, Printing Impressions, April 1998.
  109. (with Craig Cline) Internet Showcase ’98: Tasting the Future at the Smorgasbord of Demos, The Seybold Report on Internet Publishing, Vol. 2, No. 7 (March, 1998)
  110. New Year New Media Trends, Printing Impressions, February 1998.
  111. Asset Management, Digital Production Executive, December 1997.
  112. PDF’s Prepress Popularity Takes Off, Printing Impressions, November 1997.
  113. Switching Channels for Survival, Printing Impressions, September 1997.
  114. Technology’s Edge: New Tools and PDF, The Seybold Report on Publishing Systems, Vol. 26, No. 14 (April 14, 1997).
  115. Preflight Checking, Part II, The Seybold Report on Publishing Systems
  116. The Benefits of One-to-One Marketing, Printing Impressions, March 1997.
  117. The Flexible Option, Publish, February, 1997.
  118. Color Management Today, Part 3 , The Future Image Report, Volume 4, Issue 8 (January/February 1997).
  119. Ruminations on My First Time, Printing Impressions, January 1997.
  120. Preflight Testing of PostScript Files: Tools for Aiding Production Workflow, The Seybold Report on Publishing Systems, Vol. 26, No. 8 (December 30, 1996)
  121. Oracle, Quark: Unlikely Bedfellows for E-Commerce, The Seybold Report on Internet Publishing, Vol. 1, No. 3 (November, 1996)
  122. Color Management Today, Part 2, The Future Image Report, Volume 4, Issue 5 (November ’96).
  123. Progress in the Preflight Process, Printing Impressions, November 1996.
  124. Defining the Elephant, The Bulletin: Seybold News and Views on Electronic Publishing, October 30, 1996.
  125. Old-Fashioned Short-Run Printing , Printing Impressions, September 1996.
  126. Process Color on the Desktop, Quick Printing, August, 1996.
  127. Distributed Printing Still Waiting for Takeoff, Publish, August, 1996.
  128. Color Management Today, Part 1, The Future Image Report, Volume 4, Issue 2 (July ’96).
  129. Understanding Value on the Web, Printing Impressions, June 1996.
  130. The Many Sides of Print on Demand, BlueLine, Spring, 1996
  131. Exploring the Depths of New Media, Printing Impressions, April 1996.
  132. Contemplating Multimedia, Printing Impressions, September 1995.
  133. Print That! Commercial printing showing signs of becoming the first casualties of interactive media, Digital Media, August, 1995.
  134. Shaping the Future, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), July/August 1995.
  135. The Long-term Effect of Short Runs, Printing Impressions, May 1995.
  136. The Real Market for Color Publishing, Printing Impressions, March 1995.
  137. All the News Fit for Prepress, Printing Impressions, January 1995.
  138. Trade Customs for a Digital World , Printing Impressions, November 1994.
  139. Small Printers Face the DTP Challenge, Printing Impressions, September 1994.
  140. PINC Group Develops Trade Guidelines for Digital Files, BlueLine, Fall 1994.
  141. Estimating and Pricing DTP, Printing Impressions, April 1994.
  142. Waiting for the Digital Future, Printing Impressions, February 1994.
  143. Will Microsoft Own It All?, The Future Image Report, Vol. 1, Issue 7 (Jan ’94).
  144. (with Bruce Fraser and Rudolph Burger) Testing Color Management Technology, Color Publishing, November/December 1993.
  145. The Pros and Cons of Photo CD, Printing Impressions, November 1993.
  146. DTP Scanning Software: A Comprison, Pre-, October 1993.
  147. CD or Not CD: That is the Question, Printing Impressions, September 1993.
  148. Has Desktop Color Finally Caught the High End?, EC&I, September, 1993.
  149. Making Sense of Color Management Systems, Publish, August, 1993.
  150. Obscure Rituals of Photography, Geist, Volume 2, Number 10, July-August, 1993
  151. Can Color Management Solve Desktop Color?, Decisions (EPS Section of PIA), Second Quarter, 1993.
  152. The Next Stage in Image Correction, Printing Impressions, May 1993.
  153. Lessons from the Last War, The Future Image Report, Vol. 1, Issue 1 (April ’93).
  154. At Your Service, Publish, May 1993.
  155. The Good Old Days that Never Were, Printing Impressions, March 1993.
  156. Getting the Most from PostScript, Printing Impressions, January 1993.
  157. Testing New Technologies, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), Nov./Dec. 1992.
  158. (with Henry Eakland) Color Management Systems, Pre-, November 1992.
  159. Six Clues to the Future: Trends in Desktop Color Prepublishing, Concepts Special Report #2, (Fall) 1992.
  160. Estimating PostScript Prepress, Timeout (The Newsletter of the AISB), September/October 1992.
  161. Storm Warning, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), September/October 1992.
  162. Planning Pages for the Press, Publish, October 1992.
  163. Real Color Comes to the Desktop, Printing Impressions, September 1992.
  164. How to Buy a Desktop Publishing System, Business Management Advisory (Printing Industries of America), September 1992.
  165. Cachet: Color for the Rest of Us, Publish, August 1992.
  166. Printers Turn to Desktop, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), July/August 1992.
  167. Pricing in the PostScript Age, EC & I (Electronic Composition and Imaging), June/July, 1992
  168. Power of the Press (Heidelberg’s GTO-DI), Mac Publishing & Presentations, May June 1992
  169. The Union’s Desktop Resistance, Printing Impressions, May 1992.
  170. Seminars Address Issue of Marketing Desktop Services, The Typographer, April 1992.
  171. Color Connections 3, The Quality Control Scanner, Volume 12, Number 3 (April 1992).
  172. Digital Prepress Tools, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), March/April 1992.
  173. Guide to Desktop Publishing in Color, Technology Trends Advisory (Printing Industries of America), March 1992.
  174. Chronicling the DTP Revolution, Printing Impressions, March 1992.
  175. Color on the Desktop: The Progress to Date, Graphic Exchange, February, 1992.
  176. Desktop & the Color Tradeshop, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA) Jan./Feb. 1992.
  177. A Case of Burn-Out, Desktop Communications, January/February 1992.
  178. Paul Brainerd Shares his Experiences with AISB, Pre-, January/February 1992.
  179. DTP to Become a Printer’s Staple, Printing Impressions, January 1992.
  180. Talking to Printers about Desktop Publishing, PrintAction, December, 1991.
  181. Prepress Technologies: Fin de Siècle, Desktop Communications, November/December 1991.
  182. Associations Diversify with Industry, Printing Impressions, November 1991.
  183. PostScript: Estimating Output Time, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), September/ October 1991
  184. (with Miles Southworth) Understanding Color Prepress, Pre-, September 1991.
  185. (with Miles Southworth) Training for the New World of Color, Pre-, September 1991.
  186. Color Prepress Technology, Timeout (The Newsletter of the AISB), Summer, 1991.
  187. The New Language of Color Prepress, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), July/August 1991.
  188. Training for Color, Desktop Communications, July/August 1991.
  189. Frontiers: Color Space, Screen Angles, Printing Impressions, May 1991.
  190. The Trouble with Laser Prep, Timeout (Newsletter of the AISB), Spring, 1991.
  191. Desktop Decisions, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), May/June 1991.
  192. Where’s it all Going?, Desktop Communications, May/June 1991.
  193. New Tools make the Color Connection, PrintAction, May, 1991.
  194. Warning: Quicksand Ahead, Proceed Cautiously, Pre-, May 1991.
  195. Mastering Electronic Prepress, Pre-, May 1991.
  196. Seybold Seminars ’91, The Quality Control Scanner, Volume 11, Number 4 (April 1991).
  197. Color DTP: Nothing But the Facts, Printing Impressions, March 1991.
  198. Desktop Publishing: What are You Going to do About It?, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), March/April 1991.
  199. Looking at Pictures, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), January/February 1991.
  200. Membership Has its Advantages, Pre-, January 1991.
  201. Thinking in Color (profile of DX Imaging), appearing in Publishing 2000, published by Xerox Corporation, 1991.
  202. Corporate Coupling Breeds Change, Printing Impressions, January 1991.
  203. Desktop-to-Prepress Links, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), November/December 1990.
  204. Newsletter Focuses on Prepress Issues, Pre-, November 1990.
  205. Journal Answers Hackers Plea, Printing Impressions, November 1990.
  206. The New Service Bureau, The Prepress Bulletin (IPA), September/October 1990.
  207. Show Preview: Seybold Conference, Pre-, September 1990.
  208. Grandiose Claims Plague DTP, Printing Impressions, September 1990.
  209. Reality Check, PrintAction, September, 1990.
  210. Computers and Color, Quick Printing, September 1990.
  211. Color Prepress Options Multiply at DRUPA, BlueLine (PINC), Summer 1990.
  212. Revelations on Making it Work, Pre-, July 1990.
  213. It’s Your Deal, Quick Printing, July 1990.
  214. Beyond the Hoopla, Pre-, July 1990.
  215. Prepress at DRUPA: More Imitation than Innovation?, PrintAction, June 1990.
  216. The Evangelist of Desktop Publishing, Small Press, June 1990.
  217. Defining the New Service Bureau, Pre-, May 1990.
  218. Conference: Hype or Quality?, Printing Impressions, May 1990.
  219. Desktop Publishing: A Not-so-Secret Weapon for Quick Printers, QP Today, Spring 1990.
  220. DTP Demands New Approaches, Printing Impressions, March 1990.
  221. The New Role of the Printer, PrintAction, March 1990.
  222. Terry Satterthwaite Moves On, Pre-, March 1990.
  223. The Link to Prepress, Pre-, March-April 1990.
  224. The Changing World of the Service Bureau, Newsline (NCPA), March 1990.
  225. IBM & Mac — Twin Towers of Desktop Publishing, Desktop Publisher, March 1990.
  226. The Changing Role of the Service Bureau, EC & I (Electronic Composition and Imaging), February/March 1990.
  227. Skills and Training: Desktop Publishing’s Secret Ingredient , PrintAction, Feb. 19, 1990.
  228. Service Bureaus are in a State of Transition, Pre-, January-February 1990.
  229. The Evolution of Imagesetters, Pre-, January 1990.
  230. How to Get Started in DTP, Printing Impressions, January 1990.
  231. The Big Desktop Publishing Issues for Printers, PrintAction, January 1990.
  232. Color Publishing — It’s not all Black and White, Desktop Publishing Buyer’s Guide and Handbook, Volume VIII, Issue 9 (1990).
  233. The Mac Versus IBM Debate Rages On, NADP Journal, Vol. 4, No. 2, 1990.
  234. Desktop Publishing: A Primer for Printers, PrintAction, December 1989.
  235. Desktop Dilemma: IBM vs. Mac, Printing Impressions, November 1989.
  236. Buying a Laser Printer, Quick Printing, June 1989.
  237. Recall the Tortoise and the Hare, Printing Impressions, May 1989.
  238. Macintosh, IBM, or Both?, Quick Printing, April 1989.
  239. Desktop Publishing: Taking Quick Printers into the Future, Print & Graphics, April 1989
  240. At Seybold Seminars, Color Prepress is Vendors’ Battlecry, Print & Graphics, April 1989
  241. Desktop Choices, Quick Printing, March 1989.
  242. Disk Conversion to Fax: Other Aspects of DTP, Copy, February 1989.
  243. Filling in the Forms, Personal Publishing, February 1989.