Apple is in talks with legislators in Georgia to adopt iPads as textbook replacements in public schools. Think of it - the school system would save a lot of money in textbook costs over one device that could store all the student’s textbooks on one device. Imagine how much lighter your book bag would be every day. NFL coaches must play way too much Madden on their iPads, because now NFL coaches in Dallas are looking at replacing their paper playbooks with iPads as well.
According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Apple is offering the state of Georgia a great offer: for $500 a student (annually), Apple will provide each student in Georgia’s middle schools with an iPad, Wi-Fi network installation and install all the textbooks, handle upgrades, plus train teachers on how to use it. Sounds like a win/win to me. Of course one legislator, Tom Dickson, vice chairman of the House appropriations committee, doesn’t like the idea, saying “there’s a lot of groundwork that needs to be covered before we can even remotely consider moving forward. You know what our budget’s like,” he added. “We’re not looking for new ways to spend money. We’re looking for new ways to save money, so it’s not something we’re going to jump into.” To me it sounds like they’re more afraid of change than anything, but I guess they’re also considering damages that student may do to the iPads; not to mention the possibility of data loss as well.
Pete Walsh, the Dallas Cowboys’ head of technology, told CNET that there are a few teams in the NFL that are considering a move to replace paper playbooks with iPads. It could save each team the cost of printing 5000(!) pages per game. The one issue Walsh has though, is security. This seems to be the biggest concern of the NFL adopting iPads. Instead of reading coaches’ lips, hackers could grab playbook files from the devices. That would really be an unfair advantage. I thought everyone played by the rules in the NFL? Ha.
As the iPad gains more and more popularity, we will see more electronic substitutions in the near future. People want to make the jump to do things like this but there is always risk involved and the initial investment. Either way, it’s an exciting time to be alive in the tech world! Especially if you’re a student, and employee of the NFL or just an Apple geek.
[via Macworld]
