Every year at JSM, those staffing the ASA-SIAM series booth offer a short survey to obtain attendee feedback on issues relating to the series. This year’s survey asked demographic questions and then focused on respondents’ use of electronic books (e-books). Of the 201 survey-takers, 73 (36%) had used an e-book for professional purposes within the last 12 months. Only 11 (5.5% of total respondents) purchased the e-book; the remainder either used a copy that belonged to another person or library or received a free download.
Thirty-six of 146 people (25%) said they would consider using e-books for work-related purposes in the future. Reasons why respondents were not interested in using e-books included that they can be hard to read, don’t provide a means to make marginal notes, are hard to transport since you need a computer to access get ativan no prescription them, and have limited accessibility.
For those respondents who answered that they have used or would use e-books for professional purposes, some benefits of the format were the ease of searching, accessibility from multiple locations, cost being sometimes lower than printed books, and that e-books are environmentally friendly.
The board and council of SIAM, the organization that handles the production details of the books in the series, have recently approved a proposal to begin an e-book program, and the vendor search is ongoing. Survey respondents’ feedback about e-books will be a valuable resource as the details of the program are determined. Keep an eye on this column for more news about the e-book program and how it will affect the ASA-SIAM series.
As always, if you are working on a book project and are interested in submitting a proposal, contact Series Acquisitions Editor Sara J. Murphy at murphy@siam.org.
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