LSAT 66, RC Passage 1, Digital Publishing, LSATHacks

This is an explanation for passage 1 of LSAT preptest 66, the June 2012 LSAT. This passage is about digital publishing and how digital printing will revolutionize the publishing world.

This section has paragraph summaries and an analysis of the passage, links to the explanations for the questions are below.

Paragraph Summaries

1. Printed books will continue, with instant printing of electronic book files, even in small quantities.
2. Digital printing reduces various costs.
3. Authors will demand higher royalties. Unless publishers adapt and get rid of their redundant functions, authors will go to new digital firms.

Analysis

This passage is an argument. The author is making predictions about the future.

Books won’t disappear. Instead, when you go to a ‘bookstore’ you will look through a digital catalogue for the books you want. When you tell the clerk, he’ll give your order to a machine, which will instantly print your books. The quality will be the same as traditional books.

Right now, publishers get most of the money from book sales. They use this to pay for printing books, warehousing books, shipping books, etc.

If books can be printed in a bookstore, then these costs are unnecessary. So authors will demand higher royalties. Since publishers won’t be willing to get rid of their traditional functions, authors will choose new digital publishers who have lower costs.

You may have wondered whether LSAT RC passages are true. This passage is actually spot on.

If you bought the paper copy of this book, then you bought a digitally published book. I sent a pdf file to a printing company. They waited for your order with amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com. When the order came in, they printed an instant copy of the book and shipped it to you directly. It never went to a warehouse. My royalty is higher than with a traditional publisher, because of lower costs.

LawHub Order

LawHub Order

---