I am working on a textbook to be used NEXT SEMESTER in the classroom. Thankfully it’s an iBook, made with iBook Authors, and this first semester I don’t have to sell it; I can just give it to the students. So I don’t have to have it reviewed by Apple first.
I spent all day Christmas Eve sitting on my IL’s couch working on the iBook.
I spent most of the day Christmas Day sitting on my IL’s couch working on the iBook.
Finally my FIL asked my SO what I was doing–since normally I am reading and not working on the computer most of the time I am at their house. My SO explained that I have a book due… No more questions.
Here’s what I originally thought I was going to do:
Port texts into iBooks Author and use on iPad.
Expected time: 40 hours to find, upload, and download.
Here’s what I next thought I was going to do:
Get translation texts into iBooks Author.
Add my lecture notes and reading questions.
Add amazing Creative Commons or Public Domain images. This takes a LOT longer than I thought it would.
Add my Powerpoint lectures. (Two of them.)
Add videos.
Expected time: 200 hours.
Here’s what I would like to do:
Get translation texts into iBooks Author.
Add my lecture notes and reading questions.
Add audio of me reading the texts and discussing all the interesting and often missed points that students don’t know enough to get.
Add review questions to each of the readings.
Add amazing Creative Commons or Public Domain images.
Add videos–those other people have made and those I have made.
Translate my Powerpoints to Keynote, so they can go in the book, and add two or three Keynotes to the collection.
Expected time: 850 hours.
Here’s what I am actually doing:
Getting original texts into iBooks Author.
Finding some Creative Commons or Public Domain translations that I can port.
Creating other translations myself. (So far three works.)
Adding amazing Creative Commons or Public Domain images.
Adding a single video. (Though I still hope to do more than this.)
Trying to finish this book before I have to go to class and give it to the students.
Expected time: 400 hours.