Books vs Web Pages

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php_east
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Books vs Web Pages

Post by php_east »

i wonder if instead of purchasing books, if one relied on just what is available online in the internet, one can get sufficient or even 'good' education ?

the reason for a book is perhaps organised presentation ( chapterised ). but if you are organised in your mind in the first place, you could surf with virtual chapters in your head while looking for relevant contents. what do you say ?
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greyhoundcode
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Re: Books vs Web Pages

Post by greyhoundcode »

Personally, I often like to sit with a paper reference on the desk so my eyes can easily swivel between print and screen, and I also find that though the web is good getting an insight into less mainstream bits and bobs, good quality printed references have the edge when it comes to learning new material quickly.
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php_east
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Re: Books vs Web Pages

Post by php_east »

yes, thanks, but i am not referring to paper vs screen. i am referring to books vs web pages, though i fully agree with a book and a cuppa.

what i mean to say is that compared books vs printed web pages, nicely compiled and binded. academic institutions insists on books. they have not taken into account that now and in future, the wealth of knowledge will actually come faster and better via properly organised web pages, printed or otherwise. also perhaps the hassle of getting copyrights form all the authors. but for personal use, maybe this is the way to go.

thanks.
matthijs
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Re: Books vs Web Pages

Post by matthijs »

The most important point is that in general info in books is of higher quality then info found on the web. Before a book gets published:
- a publisher finds a well respected authority in a field
- that person spends a year writing the book
- often other experts will review the manuscript
- the publisher will revise the manuscript (technically, language, etc)

Before a webpage gets published:
- blogger X gets out of the coach behind the pc
- blogger X opens his favorite blogging tool, writes for 20 minutes and publishes

Of course, I'm not saying there is no good info on the web. There certainly is. However, finding it can be quite difficult. Maybe before finding it you first find tons of low-quality info and learn the wrong things
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califdon
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Re: Books vs Web Pages

Post by califdon »

matthijs has said it perfectly. The weakness of web information is that the 'good stuff' is mixed in with a lot of 'noise' and it is up to the reader to find and evaluate what is useful and what is not. It's the same issue when comparing newspapers and magazines with reputations for good journalism, with blogs and other non-professional web pages. There are many very reputable sources, but they share the web with an avalanche of highly questionable sources. This is why librarians are not worried about the future of their profession; they are trained to locate and evaluate information, not just stumble across it in a search engine inquiry.
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php_east
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Re: Books vs Web Pages

Post by php_east »

califdon wrote:This is why librarians are not worried about the future of their profession; they are trained to locate and evaluate information, not just stumble across it in a search engine inquiry.
this is what i am trying to get at. using librarian skills on the internet.

wiki for instance is surely a good source of info, but of consistency and of reliability is questionable. still, it is extremely useful.

recently i needed some quick info on 802.11n, and wiki has the latest updates, which is good. this, you can not get from a book. as soon as it is published, it is out of date. it is difficult to get industrial information from books, books tend to be good for academic structured learning, but as soon as you throw in industrial and commercials topics, a book becomes less attractive. i think a book is for more permament sort of info. the web for the latest. the problem is as you said, credibilty of the web info is unchecked. a librarian for the web is needed.
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