The Wikimedia Foundation--the group known best for the open-source, freely licensed encyclopedia project Wikipedia, which invites users to write, edit, and expand upon encyclopedia entries to create a collaborative, free-to-use online information resource--has begun a similar initiative for textbooks.

If the effort catches on, it could have a profound impact on the for-profit textbook and online content markets for schools.

Wikibooks invites users to collaboratively write and edit freely licensed, online K-20 textbooks and related nonfiction, such as literary criticism, for all subjects. The project uses wiki web-publishing software, which permits users to read, edit, and write the eTextbooks themselves. Wikimedia describes the software as "a vast simplification of the process of creating HTML pages, and thus a ... very effective way to exchange information through a collaborative effort." The intent is that online communities of experts and novices will police the eTextbook content for readability, accuracy, and the latest advances in the field.

Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikimedia, said he believes the Wikibooks project is representative of the changing landscape of information and services in the digital age.

"I think that Wikibooks and projects like it will challenge licensed textbooks in the same way that Linux [the open-source computer operating system] and other free software and licensing models are challenging the software world," said Wales. "I don't know where it's going, but things are definitely changing."

Angela Beesley, a member of the board of directors for Wikimedia, said she believes Wikibooks will work in tandem with existing textbook markets and serve as a guidepost for industry transformation.

"Wikibooks will complement the traditional market for textbooks, and also approach a new audience," Beesley said. "As we move toward life-long learning, the old textbook market that targeted high school children will need to expand, and collaborative projects--where the distinction between learner and teacher decreases--will grow to meet a new market, as well as providing content more cheaply and more quickly and in more languages than the traditional textbook industry could do."

Wikibooks is still in its early stages. Since 2003, volunteers have written nearly 12,000 book modules for expansion by other users.

The featured Wikibook for the month of October (featured books are established by user votes) is meant to teach an introductory course on the Mandarin dialect of the Chinese language. According to its summary, the textbook contains "several weeks' worth of material, including detailed grammar explanations with example sentences, audio samples, and instruction on writing characters."

Newly added Wikibooks include subjects such as "signals and systems," "colonising Mars," "folkstyle wrestling," "systems of logic," and "Linux commands."