Free Textbooks in Our Future?

California is taking the lead on free digital textbooks for high school. Commercial providers (like the one listed below) are also offering free online books in fields like business or science, with $19.95 print-on-demand copies available. That is called the "freemium" business model.

Is this the future? I must admit that the U.S. history text at "Digital History" (University of Houston) is good. Not great but good.

Or will students ignore even the free textbooks? A few complain of the price but they all complain of the TIME. "You mean we have to read the whole thing? That is so lame!"

http://washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jun/13/california-eyes-digital-textbooks/

http://www.clrn.org/FDTI/

Commercial provider (free online, $20 for a printed version):

http://www.flatworldknowledge.com/product-kit/6000

A good U.S. history textbook is available at

http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/database/hyper_titles.cfm

The second, revised edition (due for final release in January) is even better:

http://www.digitalhistory2.uh.edu/

Beyond the textbook, there is a rich collection of contemporary music and much more for teachers and students to use.