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Advantages and Disadvantages






There is no doubt about it -- cuddling up with a good computer (even a small good computer) is not the same as cuddling up with a good book. Reading and learning from electronic books certainly have some disadvantages. Most obvious is the fact that the book can't be read without a computer and, most likely, a fairly sophisticated one. To read books on CD-ROM requires that the computer have a CD-ROM drive and often a relatively high-level operating system. Books retrieved from sites on the Internet require a modem, communication software, and a web browser if the book is distributed on the World Wide Web. And all this requires electricity, or at least a good set of batteries. Given these requirements, most electronic books suffer because they are not very portable, and therefore probably not the ideal choice for diversionary reading on a backpacking trip. This situation may be changing, however, as various companies race to produce lightweight, battery operated " e-books" that fit into the palm of one's hand and allow readers to download the specially formatted text of books from the Internet.

Whatever their disadvantages, electronic books possess a number of important advantages, at least from an instructional point of view. For students, the advantages of electronic books evolve from the specialized features inherent in almost any kind of electronic document. Specifically, electronic documents are usually searchable, modifiable, and " enhanceable."

Searchable means the reader can quickly locate key words or phrases simply by entering the desired word or words into the program's " find" or " search" function. This initiates a search for all occurrences of the word and reports the finding to the reader, who might then view each occurrence in context or look at just the first and last occurrences. This feature is helpful if students are researching a topic in a large document (perhaps a CD-ROM encyclopedia) or studying variations in how something is treated by the author over time (perhaps a character in one of Shakespeare's plays). If searching a set of web pages, readers may receive a list specifying all matches for the desired word or phrase, thus allowing easier access to a single desired occurrence and easier comparison of multiple occurrences.

Modifiable means that the electronic book can be changed during use to meet the needs of the reader. For example, electronic books often allow students to choose their own font and font size. This could be especially helpful for students with vision impairments. Some electronic books are written in multiple languages, allowing the reader to decide, for example, whether to read the text in English or Spanish. Other features might allow students to add their own documents and images to the book, or annotate the text with personal observations in the form of notes.

Enhanceable means that resources designed to enhance text use and comprehension can be embedded into an electronic book by the developers or by teachers. These resources might be designed to support students' understanding of the text (e.g., definitions, explanations, pictures) or extend their learning (e.g., background information, primary source material, links to related documents). By supporting students' literacy skills, embedded resources can also help students with diverse learning needs achieve success in their efforts to read and learn from electronic books. Different types of embedded resources have different functions (see the next section) and therefore support or enhance learning in different ways.

Whether these advantages outweigh the disadvantages of using an electronic book probably depends on your reasons for considering this medium and what outcomes you hope to achieve (not to mention your comfort with and access to the needed technology.)


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