Leading E-Textbook Seller Reports 400 Percent Sales Increase in 2009

This is the largest purveyor of e-textshttp://www.coursesmart.com/and this is some interesting information on the trend:http://www.maketextbooksaffordable.org/newsroom.asp?id2=44596Several people at the Nashville Conference indicated that this was the way to go and/or a software package with some etxt in the bookstore. It depends on the school- but most seemed to think the e-book approach is viable. Could the Creative Brain or part of it be included? And maybe a few choice articles and exercises? We own all of that!Pat

Dear Ms. Allen and Ms. Laster,The students needs are very important, and I am glad you point them out. Many of today’s middle class and especially working class students are being priced out of the education they need to have a chance at a meaningful career, and a better life for THEIR children. This is truly sad.However, the authors, editors, janitors, cooks, energy providers, utilities, food providers, housing providers, insurance companies, ionvestors, and every other human involved in this chain has needs as well, and these need to be considered.With all due respect–and allowing for the possibility you may be right about lower prices– you’ve simply done sloppy work here. If this were a legal case, and you stopped there, I’d throw the case out. (Either that, or the writer did your case a disserice by omitting it.)Where is evidence of your detailed knowledge and understanding of the costs associated with producing traditional textbooks? In other words, how would you know what a fair price is? (Let me add that I believe this will likely be a moot point shortly, as the e-book phenomenon is a last gasp for the traditional publishers, who need to do what’s almost never been done before to survive: morph (faster and better) than small nimble, disruptive companies into hip, smart techno firms. It almost never, ever has happened in the hiistory of disruptive innovation (See Clayton Christensen’s (Harvard Biz School) excellent books on this subject):http://www.claytonchristensen.com/(Oh, and one more thing: do you, Ms. Allen, invest in mutual funds? If yes, does any of your holdings have McGraw-Hill, Pearson, or Cengage in it? If so, you are slapping these people with your left hand (lower your prices — and reduce your profits) while telling them to bring you better-than-bond returns with your right. Which would you REALLY like for them to do?)

There is a terrible irony in the high cost of printed textbooks. When I asked our book rep if half the cost of the book was due to the many electronic ancillaries that almost none of my students use (enclosed CDs, online tutoring services, etc.), she corrected me: nearly 60% of the cost of the printed general ed book was due to these bells and whistles, needed to compete with other companies’ books in the eyes of the faculty adopters. In addition, they were rolling new editions every two years instead of 4-5 because of the efficient redistribution of used texts cutting their sales. We could easily have a print biology text for ~$65 rather than $160 without the electronics.No one seems to be discussing reading speed, comprehension, energy and environmental costs, or the likely rapid obsolescence of eReaders as the technology (hardware and software) merges with other formats. The paper book is carbon sequestration, and if disposed of, is nearly 60% recycled. (And students must print off if they have open book tests since the electronics are communicable during a test.) Electronics are among our most difficult pollution/disposal problems. And sure, some students never used the print books they bought, but I suspect the don’t- and-say-we-do rate is higher with vapor-books.

Etexts have many advantages in addition to lower prices. If you have a child who goes t6o high school, just weigh her backpack. And what is her school’s policy if she marks a school book, even with a good note?Ebooks are easily bookmarked; passages can be highlighted; students can take copious reading notes right in or next to the book. And, if a college student comes home for a break, she can only forget that key book she needs to study if she forgets her laptop of Kindle.I bought a kindle for my daughter and want one for my wife and myself. I think this is a superb way to deal with certain kinds of books. I also have a library of over a thousand books, and I don’t plan on getting rid of them either.What I hope for most now is that authors will be well treated in this new medium. If the price of an ebook is .5 that of paper, then the author’s take has to be doubled. Because publishers will no long have to pay compositors, printers, and binders, and because distribution will be a snap, the publishers will easily afford this increase in royalties to authors.

pgrudgin made the point:” And what is her school’s policy if she marks a school book, even with a good note?”That’s an interesting point – firstly what’s a “good note”? So, the part of the text I personally find interesting mayn’t be the same as those others have. Or maybe the bit I’d want to draw my attention to because I don’t understand it mayn’t be the bit someone else didn’t understand. Do they know what the difference between “interesting” & “I don’t understand, need to find out more mean”. That said, I don’t mark text books anyway (even if it’s my own property) – other than with postits so I can remove them. I find other people’s marks distracting; however, clearly for some, it’s useful – as you say there are “good notes” (and, more so “accidental” ones)e-texts can allow for them – users can have their own personal styles; I’ve also seen the point that notes can be shared, though clearly that brings along different ideas – how you write them, what you write etc. I was amazed at the price that someone said for a biology text – $160 … I’m not sure if that’s a typical price for a biology text; nor what a typical biology text would cost in £ (I’m UK based); but I tend to baulk at suggesting texts that are more than £25 (c $40) – unless I really can’t get the information in any other texts. (And, then I’d put in a request to the library to get several copies for short loan section)I’d rather alter what I teach & have most (some!) of the students have the text, then do what I’d want & have few students have it.