Buying textbooks is one of those academic chores every student dreads. Expensive and inconvenient to carry, textbooks can add to the stress of an already overwhelmed Husky. However, the rise of e-textbooks provides a good solution to these problems. The UW should work to provide a cheap or free e-textbook option for the entirety of its course offerings.

The high costs of printed textbooks are no secret. A 2005 report by the Government Accountability Office found that the average annual cost of textbooks for students at a four-year public institution was $898. Since 1986, textbook prices have increased at twice the rate of inflation. This only confirms what students have been saying for years: Textbooks are way too expensive.

While numerous solutions have been suggested, e-textbooks provide a good alternative for tech-savvy students. A 2007 Department of Education report determined students could save up to 50 percent of the retail price of a textbook by purchasing an electronic version. Combined with the ability to access material using everything from laptops to iPhones, e-textbooks have the potential of being both cheaper and more usable than their printed counterparts. However, these results will probable only come with pressure from students and universities.

The Student Public Interest Research Group recently released a report highlighting the barriers publishers are creating to stop widespread adoption of e-textbooks. They include pricing e-textbooks the same as printed versions, restricting printing options, and requiring students to use onerous DRM software. While e-textbooks can be cheaper and more convenient, publishers are making a concerted effort to prevent students from realizing these benefits.

This is where a large public university like the UW can have a huge impact. The university should work to provide students with a cheap or free e-textbook alternative for every course. If publishers are unwilling to help, we should switch to one of the free alternatives available now.

The UW already has access to many e-book resources. There are 28 e-book packages available to students at lib.washington.edu/types/ebooks. Open-source projects such as Project Gutenberg or Google Scholar are constantly trying to provide public access to academic material for free. While the selection of free e-textbooks via these sources is limited, simply allowing the option may convince publishers to be more cooperative.

Unfortunately, e-textbooks do have some drawbacks. Northwest Missouri State University, a pioneer in providing e-textbooks to their students, found that many students had a difficult time reading certain material on laptops or other electronic devices. It can also be much harder to highlight or write notes in e-textbooks than in printed ones. That is why the UW should only add the option of e-textbooks rather than replace the printed versions.

If done right, e-textbooks can provide extraordinary value to students. However, this will only happen if a large university like the UW makes a concerted effort to add an e-textbook option for all its courses. Digital technologies have revolutionized higher education, and e-textbooks are another way for Huskies to show they are ahead of the curve.

Reach columnist Mike Noon at opinion@dailyuw.com.