I think in the near future textbooks will be provided in other media such as CD's or other computer media. Portable notebook computers will become cheap enough for every student to have one, then there will be no need to print these textbooks. Should save a lot of money...of course those who profit from the current system will go kicking and screaming all the way.
Well said.
And laptops are unnecessary. PDAs work fine. If you're concerned that PDAs would be smaller writing and too tough to read, consider this: newspaper columns aren't any bigger than a PDA screen, and the writing is faded black on newsprint. Most PDA screens show writing black on white or reversed.
There are companies doing just that for less than $300 a PDA, converting textbooks with publisher permission. That would be infinitely cheaper and more portable than a bunch of textbooks. And data could be updated as needed, instead of buying a whole new PDA or textbook every couple of years.