An important consequence of the printing press was the increased speed of book production. In the early years, monks wrote and copied books by hand. In the beginning, the printing press imitated the handwritten styles people were accustomed to, but that was soon abandoned to save time for copiers. Soon, there was a surge of small, affordable bibles people could carry in their pockets, and by the early 1500s there were millions of copies of the Greek classics available.
The increased spread of information and the creation of a larger literate public were other important consequences of the printing press. Information took two main forms, scientific and religious. Scientists were now able to record their experiments, findings, and theories, and publish them to more of the scientific community. In like manner, theologians were able to publish old and new spiritual ideas to a larger audience. With the prevalence of books, people were reading more, and taking in new information rapidly.
At this time, the church was largely responsible for the production and distribution of printed materials. An important consequence of the printing press was that the church suddenly had competition it could not keep up with. The larger issue this created was more people beginning to question the church. Martin Luther capitalized on this use for the printing press in a large way. The dissolving of religious unity during the Protestant Reformation is largely related to the advent of the printing press.
A much broader, important consequence of the printing press is the effect it had in molding western civilization. The printing press is arguably one of the most important inventions ever created, more so than, say, radio or television. In the aftermath of the printing press, there is unprecedented decentralization of church and state, massive growth in scientific knowledge, theology and industry. Chris Butler writes, "It has advanced and spread knowledge and molded public opinion in a way that nothing before the advent of television and radio in the twentieth century could rival."