EDITORIAL: Students can find cheaper means of getting textbooks
Issue date: 6/4/09 Section: Opinion
Technology may be advancing, but some teachers and students may not be ready for the change.
The Amazon Kindle allows users to download and read books, magazines, and newspapers.
For the older generations it may take some time to get used to flipping through pages on an electronic screen. At least the Kindle will cut down on paper cuts.
For the kids who are growing up on newer technology, they probably won't have a problem using the Kindle.
Although this sounds great the Kindle does come with a big price tag at $359.
The first version of the Kindle holds 1,500 books and sold out in five hours after it was released in Nov. of 2007. Needless to say, it was pretty popular.
The newer version, the Kindle DX, will set you back $489. The DX can hold 3,500 books, but is more suitable for magazines and textbooks.
Of course these prices do not include the cost of books. The Kindle store at Amazon.com has over 285,000 books to choose from.
There are other options for cheaper textbooks without buying them at full price at a bookstore.
Half.com, Amazon.com, and Textbooks.com all offer discounted prices for textbooks. These web sites are easy to access and navigate.
Another option is to ask your teacher if an older book would be work for the course that you are taking.
One of the reasons new textbooks cost so much is that the publisher will change or add information and then they will label it as "new."
There is a big difference in prices when you compare a brand new issue to the issue that came out just before it.
Some teachers are now offering the use of the electronic textbooks in their classrooms.
E-books are about half the price of a textbook, but in the classroom a user only has a certain time period, usually three months, to use them.
Think of the e-books like an online course, after the end of the quarter the e-books are no longer available.
E-books are cost efficient and students won't have to take out a loan to shop at the school bookstore.
Also, students won't have to go to a chiropractor for a back adjustment because of their backpacks.
E-books are a great idea for classrooms and hopefully we'll be seeing more of them in the future.
The use of e-books may also help teachers, students, and bookstores get used to the idea that print may become obsolete.
The Amazon Kindle allows users to download and read books, magazines, and newspapers.
For the older generations it may take some time to get used to flipping through pages on an electronic screen. At least the Kindle will cut down on paper cuts.
For the kids who are growing up on newer technology, they probably won't have a problem using the Kindle.
Although this sounds great the Kindle does come with a big price tag at $359.
The first version of the Kindle holds 1,500 books and sold out in five hours after it was released in Nov. of 2007. Needless to say, it was pretty popular.
The newer version, the Kindle DX, will set you back $489. The DX can hold 3,500 books, but is more suitable for magazines and textbooks.
Of course these prices do not include the cost of books. The Kindle store at Amazon.com has over 285,000 books to choose from.
There are other options for cheaper textbooks without buying them at full price at a bookstore.
Half.com, Amazon.com, and Textbooks.com all offer discounted prices for textbooks. These web sites are easy to access and navigate.
Another option is to ask your teacher if an older book would be work for the course that you are taking.
One of the reasons new textbooks cost so much is that the publisher will change or add information and then they will label it as "new."
There is a big difference in prices when you compare a brand new issue to the issue that came out just before it.
Some teachers are now offering the use of the electronic textbooks in their classrooms.
E-books are about half the price of a textbook, but in the classroom a user only has a certain time period, usually three months, to use them.
Think of the e-books like an online course, after the end of the quarter the e-books are no longer available.
E-books are cost efficient and students won't have to take out a loan to shop at the school bookstore.
Also, students won't have to go to a chiropractor for a back adjustment because of their backpacks.
E-books are a great idea for classrooms and hopefully we'll be seeing more of them in the future.
The use of e-books may also help teachers, students, and bookstores get used to the idea that print may become obsolete.
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