The future of textbooks

When reading the New York Times article “Are cookbooks obsolete?” by Julia Moskin, I had a vision of a possible future of textbooks. Ms. Moskin describes recently-released tablet apps — such as Baking with Dorie and Jamie Oliver’s 20-Minute Meals — and how they are replacing, for some users, the tried-and-true traditional cookbook.

These applications not only have the benefit of the usability that tablets offer, “apps can come to the rescue with features like technique videos, embedded glossaries and social media links.” To me, as nice as these features sound, this still sounded somewhat “traditional,” at least for a Web- or computer-based cookbook. Where these apps have taken it to the next step is in the alternative ways of presenting recipes (the raison d'être of the cookbook, so this is vital):

“Users can choose from four different ways of seeing each recipe. For novice cooks, a step-by-step view presents each recipe step in full screen, with a video of Ms. Greenspan doing what the text says (creaming butter and sugar together, for example, for her All-in-One Holiday Bundt Cake). Mr. Huntley also developed CulinView, a nonverbal way for a more confident cook to follow a recipe. After ingredients are measured and the oven heated, the rest of the process is shown in a flow chart, illustrated with bright images of mixers, whisks, ovens and ingredients. With arrows and color-coding, it sketches out the process for the more confident cook who already knows how to cream butter and sugar, say, but needs to be reminded what to do with the chopped apple and grated fresh ginger. SpinView puts the whole recipe on one page, with the option of scrolling through the steps. Finally, for the traditionalists, there is the Cookbook view, formatted in the old-fashioned way.”

That is a nice reconceptualization of what it means to present a recipe to the reader — think about how different readers differ, and create different views that are customized for the pertinent strengths of those readers. I think these cookbooks provide clear pointers to the future of textbooks; however, it is probably the case that the concept of “class” might have to be changed as well. For a future post...