Princeton Boasts Its Kindle Project Is Noblest

theodp writes "Mirror, mirror, on the wall, what's the noblest Amazon Kindle DX project of all? While other universities announced similar programs, Princeton is boasting its project is unique in that it will focus on sustainability by reducing the amount of electronic-reserve course materials that students print. Under the pilot program, $60,000 will reportedly be used to provide 50 lucky Princeton students with $489 Kindle DX devices loaded with materials for three courses. In a FAQ, students are told not to worry about 'this time of severe economic constraints' — Princeton and Amazon have managed to tap into a fund specifically endowed to support sustainability projects to provide Kindles at no cost. In addition to a $30,000 grant from the High Meadows Foundation, which is headed by Princeton alum Carl Ferenbach (who, coincidentally, serves on the Board of Trustees of the Environmental Defense Fund with the wife of Amazon Director John Doerr), a matching amount will be provided by Princeton alum Jeff Bezos' Amazon. The E-reader Pilot Program has more information."

Comments

Taking notes?

[Anonymous Coward]

How do you take notes on these things?

In all my studies, I REALLY liked to take notes in margins, highlight sections, and draw diagrams/charts/figures/etc.

How are you going to do this on these ebook readers? Even if they were pen enabled, they won't have nearly the resolution needed.

MOREOVER, I like to lay out several pages of notes and open books on my desk while I study so that I can quickly glance around.

I don't see this as being a benefit to students. Just some shiny and fancy technology that someone somewhere thought was good.

They have NOT thought out the usability aspect of this, just what 'sounds' good.

Re:Why use Kindle?

[nurb432]

Why is 'markup' a requirement for it to be useable in the classroom?

i have *never* defaced one of my textbooks, ever. Even my lab books remain pristine, as i made any notes on blank paper instead.

Re:Kindle isn't the only e-book reader!

[langelgjm]

First of all, the iLiad doesn't have a bigger screen or higher resolution than the Kindle DX. Bigger than the Kindle 2, yes, but the reason the DX is a big deal is because of the larger screen.

Now the iRex DR-1000 is bigger than the Kindle DX, but it also costs nearly $1000. I was looking at the DR-1000, but the reviews seem so mixed... some people are very happy, others really pissed that they spent so much money and got a buggy and apparently very fragile device.

In spite of all that, I was still thinking about dropping a grand on a large e-reader. Then, the DX came along - large, half the cost of the DR-1000, and from a reputable company with a large volume of previous devices sold. iRex may not be a bad company, but they don't have US offices (only through resellers), and their communication with customers leaves much to be desired. My customer experiences with Amazon have been fantastic (had two items replaced w/o question: one had never been delivered, other was defective).