As the popularity of Internet trading sites such as eBay.com continues to grow, Student Council is hoping to join the trend by offering University students the ability to trade their used books online.
Once established, the online book exchange will allow students to set their own prices for their used books, said Brock Jolly, Council vice president for administration.
The program, set up as a joint effort by the online company Bookswap.com and Council, will allow University students to register and purchase used books from other University students.
The online exchange also will "eliminate paper, be faster, and be an overall better program" than Council's old book exchange, he said.
The old program required students to bring in their books and set specific prices for them. At the end of the exchange they would receive money if the book was sold, or get their book back.
The lack of students retrieving their books at the end of the exchange led to a 600-book surplus, which made the program "not worth the man-hours and paper work that the Student Council was putting into it," Jolly said.
"Students can access [the new book exchange program] themselves," Council President Taz Turner said. "It removes stress from the budget and time of Student Council, and it also promotes student-to-student interaction."
Students will be able to access the online book exchange through Council's Web site at http://scs.student.virginia.edu.
"It is a great way to get books for a cheaper price and an easier way of doing it," College Rep. Marc Olson said.
The program also will not have to wait for a Council vote and could be operational by fall semester, certainly by next year, Jolly said.
"Right now it is a matter of getting it established," he said.
Once up and running, the online book exchange eventually could expand to include features such as online teacher evaluations and trading of personal possessions like televisions and furniture.
At the University Bookstore's online Web site, students can buy new books and clothing that usually are sold in the Bookstore. But the Bookstore does not allow students to sell their own books on the site.
Turner said he hopes the online book exchange will encourage people to take advantage of the system and register online.
"I think it is a great idea," College Rep. Carrie Altman said. "People get screwed over by the bookstore by selling back books for a fraction of the price"
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