By Christy Shepherd
The new online textbook exchange made its'' debut this month. The exchange''s goal was to help students sell their books when they couldn''t get what they wanted from the BYU Bookstore''s buyback.
Matt Jaynes, BYUSA executive director of technology, said the site got off to a great start and he was pleased with the response this semester.
'We got a lot of positive response from the students,' Jaynes said.
The exchange had approximately 12,000 hits per day during its peak times, which were during the bookstore''s buyback and during the first week of classes.
Even though this semester was the first time the Web site was available to students, over 2,000 textbooks were posted, Jaynes said.
Students had mixed reactions about the service.
'I looked for the books I needed on the Web, but I couldn''t find any of them,' said Hope Hendrickson, 20, a junior from Carrollton, Texas majoring in psychology.
Brent Laker, assistant director of books with the Bookstore, said, 'I put some books on there, but no one bought them.'
But Jaynes had better luck. 'I bought some books and sold some on the Web site and saved a lot of money. It''s a lot cheaper sometimes,' Jaynes said.
Laker said he thinks the site will be more used and more successful as more students learn about it.
Other universities have similar services that are well used. Utah State University''s bookstore sponsors an online exchange that contains extra features such as the ability to post a list of needed books. When one of them is posted, an e-mail is sent to the student, informing him that the book is available.
Jaynes said he believes the site will continue and improve through the help of BYUSA volunteers. The Bookstore has agreed to help with the administration of the site to keep it going long term.
Although the Bookstore is willing to help, Lakersaid the services should be kept separate.
'The Bookstore buyback is not affected by the exchange at all. It is a secondary resource for students who aren''t satisfied with what the Bookstore can offer,' Laker said.
Many times the Bookstore can''t buy a book back because they have already bought their quota, teachers haven''t entered a request, or a new edition has come out.
Sometimes these types of books can still be used for the next semester. The online exchange works best for these types of transactions.
The site gives the buyer and the seller the contact information of the other, so they can arrange for the transaction of the book.
For more information, please visit the textbook exchange at http://hub.byu.edu