Remember the old riddle – what’s black and white and read all over?

The riddle was better orally than in writing, of course, but the answer was “the newspaper.”

We’re all familiar with the struggles this industry has seen since the advent of the Internet. There are still diehard readers who love the feel of the paper between their fingers, leisurely turning pages as they work through their morning cup of coffee or after a day at work, but there is no denying the impact computers have had.

Add to that mix our increasing environmental awareness that has some thumbing their noses at anything made of paper — even books — and you have the impetus to drive even the diehards to embrace the electronic age.

But here’s where the Whidbey Crosswind has been ahead of the rest of its Sound Publishing brethren. All Sound papers now offer a “green edition” on their websites. They are complete electronic versions of the newspaper that can be viewed online on most devices.

While this is new to most Sound Publishing papers, the Whidbey Crosswind has had this feature since our first edition back in April. Now, though, instead of having to scroll down to the bottom of the page to see our e-edition, you simply need to click on the “Green Edition” tab at the top of the page.

These full electronic versions of the newspaper can be downloaded to most devices and readers can choose to print the full edition, single pages or single stories. (Those folks with iOS devices will need to click on the “Gallery” link below each edition’s thumbnail image to view the pages in a Flash-free viewer.)

While I love gadgets, I’m still a little old fashioned, I guess. I still like the ability to hold a newspaper or book in my hands and feel the paper between my fingers. However, I understand why “green” is the new “black and white and read all over.”

-Kathy Reed, editor