Re: Open Books and XML

[Doug Loss <dloss@csrlink.net>]

Ian Bicking wrote:
> 
> Making a high-quality textbook doesn't seem much harder than
> making a high-quality program.  Textbooks often come out of
> academic circles which share hackers' desire to spread information
> freely.  It at least seems possible that textbook-writing sorts of
> people will want to participate in something like this.  The
> corporatizing of acadamia doesn't help any...
> 
I'm glad to see that my initial post generated some discussion.  I tend
to agree with you that if we make it easy enough for people to write and
publish their on-line texts and if we publicize it in the right places,
the writers will start showing up on their own.  I don't know a lot of
teachers who got into the field because of the great pay and
benefits--teaching is for most of them a calling rather than just a job.

> The current situation with computers is quantitatively different than
> the situation with Xerox machines -- but I think it crosses an
> important threshold that changes the effect qualitatively.  Texts
> contained on computers can be distributed more easily (via the
> internet and CDs) and, as importantly, can be modified.  More than
> price, modification seems one of the more interesting possibilities
> of Open Source textbooks.
> 
These are interesting points.  My major point in raising the idea of
open content texts being printed and used off-line was that we take care
to make sure that whatever is produced _be_ useable on-line, in
hard-copy, or in whatever other medium it might be found.

> Keeping a textbook current is also a large project.  Many a good
> textbook has fallen by the wayside because it wasn't maintained
> by its authors.  Just as with free software, a good book can be
> maintained regardless of the will of the authors, reducing the
> redundancy of effort and increasing the quality of textbook offerings.
> 
This is a valid point, and should be a major selling point for open
content texts.  To take advantage of this will require some project
around each text, I suspect, as there's probably a minimum number of
people needed to keep a text current and lively.

> You're right, printing texts on-site isn't a good idea.  However, a
> textbook that is freely redistributable can be printed by any knock-
> off press that cares to put the effort into it.  It commoditizes the
> printing process, which reduces the price dramatically.  I think
> Cheapbytes is great... I'd love to see something similar for books.  I
> think it would be quite possible.
> 
That's a very good analogy.  Printing the texts on-site is analogous to
assembling your own Linux distribution from parts.  It's doable and
probably educational, but not very likely the best use of your
resources.  A press that takes open content texts and prints them is
analogous to the Linux distros that you can get.  The variation in paper
quality, covers, etc. would be analogous to the various installers,
configuration utilities and package managers the distros use.  This is a
good argument for making sure that whatever we do is available in (or at
least easily convertible to) LaTeX form.  Are there such printing
houses, or would we have to hope for something to spring up after we
start creating these texts?  I suppose print houses that publish
primarily or wholly public domain works would be the most likely ones
for this.  Is Dover Press still around?

> There was talk for a while of FSF setting up something to print free
> books (technical documentation in this case) at cost, or close.  I
> don't know what will come of this -- there seems to be commitment
> by the FSF to do more about documentation, but it might not end
> up extending to the actual printing process.  But if this matures in
> that direction, maybe there'd be a place for textbooks too...?  Or at
> least a model upon which to base it.
> 
We should keep a close eye on that effort.

-- 
Doug Loss                 The difference between the right word and
Data Network Coordinator  the almost right word is the difference
Bloomsburg University     between lightning and a lightning bug.
dloss@bloomu.edu                Mark Twain