Carr's response to Sporkin:

I am the author of the original blog post. I'm not sure what exactly Ms. Sporkin read, but although she accuses me of "countless errors," she doesn't actually specify any of them. The AAP numbers on e-book sales growth that I used come from AAP reports on 1st quarter book sales from 2009 to 2013. Yes, they are current year vs. previous year numbers, which is precisely how I describe them in the text and chart. And yes, they are for the overall e-book market, which seems a reasonable way to illustrate overall trends in that market. I agree, of course, that examining segments of that market would also be useful. Nick Carr

It's a fallacious analogy. People didn't use to drive to the library to look up tidbits of info - search engines create new demand. Also, use of libraries has gone up greatly since they began installing computers for patrons. So driving to libraries is increasing even as Net use is increasing.

Karl Max? Is that Peter Max's brother?

Ever heard of hyperbole?

The literary device he used it irrelevant. It is simply not tasteful writing.

How about irony? Right below Carr's post is a promo for Carr's own book.

Out of context? Sorry, saying something is "nothing but" means that your saying it's "nothing but."

Context changes the meaning of every phrase, including that, and often implicitly.