Adobe Targets Higher Education With Launch of eBook U

Posted on May 16, 2001

Adobe Systems Incorporated, a provider publishing software, has launched Adobe eBook U, a joint project between Adobe and a group of higher education institutions to explore the use and impact of ebooks on educational environments. As part of the program, students and educators at participating campuses will be able to experience course materials that will be made available as ebooks, based on the Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF).

Partnering institutions receive Adobe's software and training to create, encrypt and distribute Adobe PDF-based ebook content such as textbooks, course packs and customized course readers. In turn, Adobe will have the opportunity to learn and examine the way ebooks are being adopted in institutions of higher education. Participating institutions include: MIT Sloan School of Management, Cambridge, Mass.; Occidental College, Los Angeles; Miami-Dade Community College Medical Center Campus, Miami; Mills College, Oakland, Calif.; Scottsdale Community College, Scottsdale, Ariz.; University of Maryland University College, Adelphi, Md.; University of Utah, Center for Advanced Medical Technologies, Salt Lake City; Tufts University, Medford, Mass.; and University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wis.

``We selected these colleges and universities based on their interest in ebook technology and their willingness to share their experiences. It was also important to address a broad range of campus types. Together, we hope to better understand and meet the needs of academic administrators, professors and students,'' said Dr. Michael Looney, senior director of education and government marketing Adobe. ``eBook U gives educational authors, from faculty to campus administrators, the tools to discover the benefits of using interactive course materials and textbooks. ebooks are ideal for students: they have tremendous reading requirements, are very savvy with Web and digital content and they're mobile.''

Key features of the Adobe Acrobat eBook Reader include the ability to highlight and make annotations within an ebook, two-page layout, electronic bookmarks, quick text search, access to the Web and an interactive dictionary. Additionally, if the publisher grants permission, users can lend and give their ebook selections between Acrobat eBook Readers. The Adobe Content Server is one of the software tools being licensed to the eBook U campuses. It is an end-to-end software solution that enables publishers, content distributors and resellers, including schools and universities, to secure and distribute Adobe PDF-based ebooks.