Yes, it’s true. Just about every year edition X+1 is published for the incoming fall class. The book is most frequently a mirror of its ancestor with maybe a footer addition or just enough copy to push the content of page 223 to page 224 and make the student nervous enough about the 6-month old hand-me-down to buy the shiney new edition for a week’s pay. Making the price of education steeper than it needs to be and wasting paper and ink in the process. Another business model with no consideration for environmental sustainability.

Here you go Jon, as you wished. Your good deed, self-initiated marketing effort and mentor to all college textbook buys everywhere is complete. Give youself a raise.

Dear Think Green Media,

My name is Jon Cheek. I am a recent college graduate concerned about the environmental impact of printing millions of college textbooks every year. Although I bought used textbooks whenever possible, I frequently had to buy new textbooks to keep up with new editions or to get supplemental software.

However, I recently joined a company called Zinio that provides digital textbooks to college students. These digital textbooks are exact replicas of the new printed version, but are offered to students at half the price. They also have many useful digital features such as the ability to search, take digital notes, and use multimedia embedded directly into the page. Most importantly, since they require no physical production, digital textbooks help save trees and eliminate waste.

Most of my friends who have tried Zinio digital textbooks have really liked them. If you think any of your readers might be interested in digital textbooks, I encourage you spread the word. If you’re curious to see what the textbooks look like, please have a look at our website: http://textbooks.zinio.com . Also, feel free to send us feedback at textbooks@zinio.com .

Best regards,
Jon Cheek