Re: ebooks

[Rosanne Zajko <rmz@ADELPHIA.NET>]

Hi,

I saw Follett's e-books, and I was impressed.  I like the idea of remote
access, and particularly if it is a reference book, the impossibility of the
book just walking out the door with a student.  At the moment, there don't
seem to be too many titles that could be used by our middle school students,
although that may change in the future.  The price is a bit more expensive
than print, but worth it for the remote access.  The print downloads are
also a nice feature, but I don't know if that would pass a higher cost on to
us, with the use of paper and toner, etc.

The only drawback is that they require an initial purchase of 25 titles, and
lots of 10 after that.  For a small school with a limited budget, that's
more than we can afford...the titles would have to be those in great demand
by our students.  If they lowered the initial purchase number I would
definitely try it out for a year, but as it is, I will probably wait and
hope that either the price comes down or the initial purchase total comes
down to a more reasonable amount.  My rep suggested grant money, but again,
for a small library with limited staffing, I don't have time for grant
writing.  Maybe I can ask Santa??

I hope it doesn't make books obsolete...I can't imagine anyone wanting to
sit at a computer screen to read a fiction book....but I think having
e-books for reference expands the capabilities of the library.  Still, I'd
want to have a print version too....there's just something about flipping
through the pages of a reference book...the possibility of discovering some
new bit of information that you weren't looking for...I don't know how
browsing would translate to e-books.

Rosanne Zajko - LMS
Ancillae Assumpta Academy
Wyncote, Pa.

rmz@adelphia.net

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