Electronic textbook
Introduction
An electronic textbook can be (1) a simple electronic version of a print book, or (2) a print book enhanced with extra elements (additional contents, multimedia animation, data/code files, etc.), or (3) a redesigned "document" that exploits various possibilities of the digital device, e.g. advanced hypertext navigation.
See also:
Standard E-books vs. print books
Currently (April 2012), most electronic textbooks are simple electronic version a print book. Electronic media have a really bad screen resolution (even the most expensive devices such as high-end CAD laptops) and they don't have an easy transportable built-in annotation mechanism. Therefore reading and navigation is cumbersome and rather painful.
“Students do not prefer e-books over textbooks regardless of their gender, computer use or comfort with computers. No significant correlations existed between the number of e-books previously used and overall preference of e-books: Participants who had previously used an e-book still preferred print texts for learning. Despite the ability to easily access supplemental content through e-books via hyperlinks and other features, students were more likely to use special features in print books than in e-books.” (Woody et al. 2010).
Bibliography
- Daniel, D. B., & Willingham, D. T. (2012). Electronic Textbooks: Why the Rush? Science, 335(6076), 1569–1571.DOI:10.1126/science.335.6076.1569