A dumpster full of books..... :(

@Atom Blitzer,

Yes, I do. Agree with Boomerang's followup question.

Many people cannot afford either.

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@Atom Blitzer,

It won't be paying for itself if you cannot afford it in the first place.

Just use your laptop!
What a closed world you live in.

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@Green Witch,

Quote:

It's cheaper and easier to update information in the long run.

I don't think this is necessarily true -- at least I've read a lot to the contrary. I'm having trouble finding one particular article I remember but I did find this....

http://www.educationbusinessblog.com/2012/02/apples_ipad_textbooks_cost_5x.html

http://www.educationbusinessblog.com/201202231854.jpg

Quote:

There is a case to be made that an interactive digital experience is a more powerful learning tool and thus worth more, but Apple didn't really make that claim. We are likely to hear lots of bleating about engagement and how much the kids love to work with these devices. To which educators should respond with "great - where is the objective data on improved outcomes?" There are enough schools deploying the devices now that a preliminary study or two ought to be available. As a long term advocate of ed-tech I hope the data supports the thesis, but until we see the proof, claims along these lines ought to be regarded as aspirational marketing.

If the political will was there on the national level an additional $6.5 billion per year would do the trick. That would be stimulating.

I'll keep looking for the other article.

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@boomerang,

My reaction is why do you not get a few people together with a few pick up trucks and rescue those books as one in a garbage container they are abandoned property.

Then see if you can find homes for them at shelters and so on.

1 Reply

This tells a bit about Zadie Smith.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Teeth
She learned from books in libraries.
That is what the linked article is about, the need for them.
She is fighting to keep them in her area in England.

Many libraries do now have - besides books - some computers for the public's use. But good luck finding an open library in many places.

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@maxdancona,

Quote:

don't get it. Would you be so upset by a dumpster full of typewriters, or a dumpster full of slide rules?

Lord do you know what a log log slide rule go for on ebay nowaday?

If I saw any such dumpster it content would end up being sold on ebay by me.

I once earned over five thousands dollars by buying many thousands of audio vac tubes from my former company for 900 dollars total that they was planning on getting rid of.

I would had earn far more if my wife did not care for the house becoming a tubes warehouse and kind of force me to sell most of them in a bulk sale to a Canadian gentleman with a vac tube store.

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@BillRM,

The books were already gone this morning. I guess the trash company picked up the dumpsters some time last night.

Plus, they were in a dumpster which brings up some sanitation issues.

I know I could find a home for the books.

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@ossobuco,

The libraries are constantly under attack here too....

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@ossobuco,

I understand what you are saying about the cost of devices and internet fees. My Kindle cost less @ $79 and my internet access is $20 per month (no TV or cell) which might be a lot for some. However, with my Kindle I now have access to ebooks from any library in my state, plus tons of free books on-line and I never even have to leave home to download them. My niece is in law school and she is renting textbooks for her Kindle from her school for a few dollars a month instead of paying literally hundreds of dollars to buy printed books. I know technology can be a great divide, but the reality is we are moving on. Technology will continue to get cheaper. People will learn how to push the buttons. Who would have thought back in the 1940s that 98% of Americans would own televisions by 2012?

1 Reply

@Green Witch,

There are a lot of people without $79.00.

I'm glad all this access is happening for those with the money, but many are left out. Books can be treasures for some of those people. Seeing them in the trash kills me. I understand we are moving on, have understood for years.

1 Reply

@ossobuco,

Schools already loan devices. Kids are assigned a device the same way they are assigned a textbook that must be returned. I know they are doing it with iPads and I can probably find a link given a little time.

I know people have a romantic soft spot for books, as do I,, but I'm currently sitting next to over 300 books in a device the size of a piece of toast so I'm not as concerned as I was before about the decline of printed books. I'm also someone who is starting to have trouble with my eyesight and I welcome the ability to make text larger and smaller with the touch of a button (or screen). I think eventually these devices will be very cheap or free and available to all just like our local libraries.

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@Green Witch,

I agree, greenie.

and eventually we will all have personal spaceships with virtual lapdogs.

but in the mean time, a lot of good can be done with printed books like those thrown away...

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@Rockhead,

That's right, printed books make a good bonfire for poor people who can't afford to the heating bill in the winter : P

1 Reply

@Atom Blitzer,

you've obviously never had to make your own heat...

books burn way too fast to fuel anything but your imagination.

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@Green Witch,

Quote:

Kids are assigned a device the same way they are assigned a textbook that must be returned

The link about costs that I posted above dealt with "loaned" devices. His calculations show that devices are considerably more expensive.

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@boomerang,

We are not just talking about kids.
People all over the place have lost their lodging, in the u. s. and around the world.
People are struggling to get jobs, any jobs.
Books can be a solace and a source of information and even beauty and joy. Not everyone is getting a device leant by an elementary school, and, as I said, libraries can be far away.

This is about dumping books into one dumpster, but also about dumping books as a rich source in general. Be careful what you ask for, about getting rid of books.

1 Reply

@boomerang,

I would question that only because the devices can hold 1,000 or so books and can be used for years. One book can go onto every child's device instead of having to buy numerous textbooks for numerous children. Break or lose a device? The textbook collection is still in the schools "cloud" and can be re-downloaded, unlike a a lost or destroyed textbook. I also think e-readers (not ipads) are going to become very cheap in the next few years because it is in the interest of publishers to get as many out there as possible.

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my take away from your words boomer is that what has you most on is this sense that you were lied to. was this a pta or pto lead effort? the dirty little secret is that admins and teachers dont want parents butting into their territory so in an effort to keep the busy bees buzzing on something else they set the parents up on fundraising efforts. The PTA leadership is down with this because they get to sell their work as important work. The entire scheme only works if everyone works together to claim that the target of the funds is critical to the education of the kids (or better yet the "SAFETY!" of the kids)

I long ago stopped participating unless I actually want what is being sold in the fundraiser, and I have noted that around my neighborhood schools this game has almost come to a stop...very few efforts are made to raise money now.

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@Rockhead,

I'm not saying we should turn books into garbage, but part of this discussion is the value of books now and in the future. I have no idea whythe books were dumped and I'm not against the idea that Boomer should find out what happened. I just get my hackles up when people get all misty eyed about an old technology when something new might actually be better (this coming from a woman who still churns her own butter).

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@Green Witch,

Did you read the article?

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A dumpster full of books..... :(

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