Use of eBooks:
Experiment with eReaders and Netbooks
Objectives
Target users
Promote the use of eBooks
Evaluate the use of different
reading devices
BA3 students in Chemistry
Teachers & research assistants
-> practical bibliographic work in the library
Contents
Reading devices
• eBooks from 2 publishers
• 10 eReaders SONY PRS-600
-> reading device, electronic ink
• 10 Netbooks ASUS EeePC
-> multimedia device, comparing tools
• Additional notes,
exercises and complementary texts
Take notes on a paper beside the document being read
Work simultaneoulsy on several print documents
Underline/highlight words or phrases
Check/clarify a concept or a reference on the Internet
Write in the margins
Take notes in an electronic document on your PC
Insert bookmarks
Annotate the text between the lines
Insert a reference to this document in your course notes
Record oral comments
Reading Strategies
Searching
OFTEN
SOMETIMES
NEVER
85%
Quickly spot
information
in the text
Book accessibility & handling
65%
Print
eReader
Carrying and storing
books
Laptop
92%
70%
Handling text
Highlight and copy text
60%
Print
55%
eReader
Handling several
books simultaneously
88%
79%
Print
eReader
74%
Laptop
73%
80%
Sharing comments
about the contents
Print
Laptop
81%
Book accessibility
at any place any time
83%
Laptop
eReader
91%
71%
52%
48%
Print
eReader
Laptop
57%
Read & Understand
100%
Deep understanding
84%
70%
77%
Print
eReader
Laptop
52%
Quick overview
Advantage
Print
eReader
Laptop
Print
71%
eReader
Laptop
Disadvantage
73%
Conclusions
eBooks provide many usage opportunities: table of contents displayed permanently; search
facilites; facet classification; sharing notes with students and professor; compile tailor-made
textbooks from separate sources; semantic linking across resources; simultaneous users
eReader as a reading device:
Touch screen; bookmarks;
annotate, search and highlight text;
transportable, light and affordable
Not adapted for graphs, tables and
diagrams, no colours, small screen, slow to
browse, not enough textbooks available
Christophe Algoet, Dominique Lerinckx, Françoise Vandooren –email of corresponding author : [email protected]