Last night, I was reading my textbook using Kindle on my iPad. I love being able to do that, because my iPad textbook weighs far less than the print text my other class uses. I can highlight in the app, and leave notes, but I can't leave notes floating in the margin (boo!) and I haven't figured out how to leave bookmarks yet. Yes, the Kindle will jump straight to the page I last viewed, but I was reading chapters 1 and 10, and now I'm working on a project in chapter 5. With a print text, I can use just about anything (flat) as a bookmark - with this e-reader, I've a learning curve ahead of me.
So, as I was saying, I was reading along in my lightweight textbook, highlighting and note taking away, quietly listening to music to screen out the distractions of working in a public place, when I came across a word I didn't know. Ten years ago, I'd've looked for context clues to figure out what the word meant, or looked it up in the dictionary if I happened to be at home or work. Last night, I highlighted the word and asked the app what it meant. Kindle checked an online dictionary and I no longer had to guess. A little while later, a quiet chime and a small box in the middle of my screen told me that it was time to pack up and walk to class. Ten years ago, I'd've been anxiously checking my watch every minute or so, afraid that I'd be late.
Progressing on to today, when I'm back on campus for my other class - the one with the print text book. I'm schlepping across campus with my computer bag and stuff bag, wilting under the heat and the weight. While I'm considering converting over to a backpack, I'm also thinking about whether or not actually need everything I'm hauling with me. The computer bag is obvious - I need the laptop and iPad to do my homework. My other bag... what's in it? I could leave my purse at home if I took the wallet and a few pens (which could all live in my pockets). The real weight, and reason for the bag, is my text book and notebook. But do I really need them?
The text book wasn't offered as an e-book, so I do need to carry it with me. As for the notebook? That's more complicated. Back in the '90s, I was taught that notes were taken in notebooks. This idea is so entrenched in my psyche that I'm having trouble accepting the evidence of my eyes - that most students in my class take their notes directly onto their laptops. The fact that all the laptops are Macs is probably due to this being the College of Education - I'd expect the Business College to be mostly PC. Looking at myself, my real notes (the ones that I actually review) are being taken using the Audiolio app on my iPad. I'm an auditory learner with very little time for reading - but if I import the Audiolio file into iTunes, I can review the lecture while driving or cooking. And do you know what? I actually hear more of the lecture the second or third times through - content I'd've missed completely if I was relying on the traditional pen and paper notes.
I don't know when, or if, I'll be able to cut the strings and come to class without my notebook, but at least I recognize it as the crutch that it is. Who knows, maybe the lure of leaving that second bag at home may help push me the rest of the way into the digital age. I love technology - it's hard to believe I'm this resistant to migrating away from my (spiral) notebook!
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