With the growth of online studying, the popularity of online books or eTextbooks is likewise on the rise. However, I am wondering if online books are as good as traditional books. Does online book can really replace the good old book?
Well, for me it cannot because having books in paperback are still better because you can bring it with you and read it anywhere even without any gadget. Also, the prices of eTextbooks are not that affordable. In fact, according to this report, the costs of online books are still overpriced.
I am more turned-off in using eTextbooks when I learned that one of the major publishers of eTextbooks implements an expiry on their eTextbooks; the books are expired after 180 days; hence, students will not have the ability to access the books they bought in the future. And if this is the case, buying traditional books are more practical as your book ownership is almost perpetual and you have the option to give, donate or even sell your book in the future.
On the other hand, I knew that even online studying is done “onlineâ€, it does not necessarily mean that you need to be online most of the time just to study. It is very inconvenient if you always need to turn-on your PC or laptop and log-in to the web to access the books that you need to read.
So I don’t think that online studying should be always matched with online books as I still believe in the wonders of reading off the PC. Reading traditionally published books are more relaxing and engaging. But of course, eTextbooks will always be a good supplement resource for online studying especially if the price is right.