Maricopa Nursing Program-Technology Questions

U.S.A. Arizona

Published

Hello all:

For any current or past Maricopa Nursing Program students I would love some insight into the following:

1) Standard books or ebooks?

I currently have a Kindle fire HD and am curious about ebooks. Are they convenient, easy to use? Pros and Cons?

2) Smart Phones: What do you use your smart phone for? Which platform do you recommend and why?

I currently have a windows phone, which I absolutely love, however the apps are very limited and I'm not confident I will be able to do what I need to with it.

Any insight is most appreciated,

Thanks!

A lot of it depends on how you learn and study. I got the ebook package and I hate it. While it is easy to carry around (you can have it on up to 2 devices with the app or anything with internet access) I just find it a little difficult to navigate at times. I've survived this long without the books but I honestly don't read a lot of the course material anyway (its impossible to read it all and I only read if I need further clarification). As far as devices go DO NOT go buy something new. you can get free apps (medscape, micromedex, drugs.com, even free nclex apps) which is nice for like lab or in class but in clinicals the are constantly telling you NOT to use your phones even to look up drug info. They want you to do it on the facilities computer or with a book. that has been my experience anyway. I think you have a certain window to check out the ebooks and if you don;t like them you can upgrade to the ebook/actual book combo. So you could always try them. Or you could just use used books like some people in my class did/do and do just fine as well. Hope that helps

I go to ASU (for 27 more days, wahoo!), not MCC, but I think I can help. I have only used the e-books. They took a little getting used to, but overall, I'm satisfied. You can search for topics quickly, they are always with you, and I don't know if yours will do this (mine did not do it well), they will provide APA references for anything you copy from the book. This can be handy for papers. Mine (Elsevier) did not work well, but I did get the information I needed for the citation. I just had to organize it myself. I tried to keep up with the reading assignments for the first few weeks, but quickly fell behind. It is impossible to read everything. Focus on the lectures and go to the books for clarification. Learn to skim.

I agree with SuchAMuffin. Use what you have and get a free app. I like Epocrates. It's free and works great. I have never been told not to use my phone in a clinical site. We have actually been encouraged. At one time they were down on phones, but they realize that this is a tech tool and ALL the nurses use them on occasion. I guess it depends on the instructor.

I use an iPhone. If you like yours, keep it. You don't want to get started on a Mac addiction... once you go Mac, you never go back! And it can be expensive!

Good luck to you. You are in for a wild ride!

Thank You both so much! I really appreciate the insight. I absolutely love the idea of being able to have all my books on a Kindle so that anytime I have a spare moment I can do some reading and always have my books with me. I like the idea of being able to try them out. I believe amazon would let me try the Kindle versions and then return if it's not something I find usable. One of the "required" items on my list was called skyscape constellation package that is just over $100 and seems to be an app for iPhone or Android. Only reason I can think they'd require this is to use in clinics. But I'm wondering if I can just use one of the many freebies out there. So Many Expenses!

+ Add a Comment