Are we ready for electronic books and study materials in classrooms?

The latest news is that Sony has also entered the E-Book reader market. The mobile eBook applications are not far behind, Safari's bookbag application for iPhone is one such example. This indicates that the eBook technology is definitely gaining momentum.

Combining eBooks technology with the collaborative social learning platforms will definitely changing the way we study in classrooms. The additional benefit of the digital content are that they are more economical then their print counterparts. The eBooks are priced half of the print books and creating electronic study materials like multi-media flashcards are free.

Collaboration learning plays a important role in the usage of digital content. The students get the ability to share and create material with other students in any college or anywhere in the world for that matter. VitalSource and ebooks provide the collaborative features in eBooks space. These websites allow users to download and view books, and even take notes. VitalSource’s Bookshelf users have the ability to collaborate with each other. This sharing feature in VitalSource allows any Bookshelf user to subscribe to another’s notes and instructor can streamline lectures.

In addition to eBooks, websites such as FunnelBrain provide supplementary digital content. The students can use FunnelBrain to create multi-media flashcards with rich content such as photos, videos, audio voice recordings and math equations. In addition, students work in teams to create and review materials, paired with video explanations, for their class, In addition, the students can leverage a innovative learning management application known as the "Funnel" that tracks and monitors learning progress with a spaced repetition algorithm.

The innovations in the digital content are making online learning fun, ease and interactive. Its fair to say, that electronic books and digital material are here to stay.