Change

Just a couple weeks before Christmas, I received a package from Kaplan University in the mail. I stuck a cup of hot water in the microwave, then ripped the envelope open and pulled out a new textbook while the water heated. I dumped in some instant coffee, sweetener and milk; grabbed the textbook and scurried upstairs. Though class didn't start till the 4th, I skimmed the text that evening. Over the next couple weeks I carefully read every chapter, making notes of new terms and highlighting key passages.
When classes started, I felt confident because I already had a good grasp of the material to be covered for that class on family law. My other text, however, wasn't available till the first day of the term. I entered my online classroom, hit the link to download the text, waited for it to download -- more than 300 pages, plus appendices and a glossary of terms. The text came with a warning; only the computer it was downloaded onto could open the file. I figured out how to enlarge the text so it's more readable. I considered printing it out, so I could highlight it and make notes in the margins. Instead I decided to write notes in a spiral notebook, not being able to justify the expenditure of time and ink to print that many pages. There they are in the photo -- my computer text for civil litigation and my hard copy text for family law. Which is better? Both have their advantages. If all my texts were on my computer, I could carry all my "books" just by grabbing my laptop. Nonetheless I prefer hardcopy -- the ability to easily page back and forth through a textbook, something I can make notes in, something that allows me to scribble a quick cheat sheet on the first couple pages, something I can tab with sticky notes. Sure there are technical versions of that for e-books, if you don't mind tabbing back and forth from screen to screen. But I do mind. I prefer the old way. What if the electricity goes out? or my computer crashes?