Apart from the fascination surrounding modes of instruction online, educators and researchers have also begun to raise questions surrounding the practicality and usefulness of etextbooks or other course alternatives. This panel will feature research investigating the empirical effects of etextbooks on student learning, as well as a variety of individual perspectives from basic course directors and administrators who have implemented similar textbook alternatives in their own courses. The panelists will address unique questions related to the viability of hard copy textbooks, the utility of e-textbooks, and the acknowledgment of other, lesser-known methods that may benefit the basic course.