iTunes U for you (but not for me?)

Apple has released an upgraded iTunes 7.2, and the two big features new in this version are iTunes Plus, where one can download higher-quality, DRM-free music, and iTunes U, a new section on iTS where lectures and talks from prestigious educational institutions can be downloaded.

To be sure, some talks and lectures had been available via some podcast programs. But iTunes U is an advance on a infrastructural level, and is a big step toward digitalized higher education.

For details, see the education product page at Apple's official Web site.

By downloading talks, lectures and discussions by prominent scholars, professors and researchers, anyone can now get a taste of education at some of world's most prestigious academic institutions.

I've searched and downloaded some programs related to philosophy, and there seems to be a lot of good stuff hidden in there. Recording quality of lectures (one of my intuitive concerns) generally seem to be pretty good.

The organization of the iTunes U section seems kind of messy right now, but this is just the beginning. As the content continues to increase and search function improves (there's a long way to go), things will get more orderly, I suppose.

Notable (from my point of view) institutions at this point include: Stanford, UC Berkeley, MIT, Duke, Texas A&M, etc. (I've only looked at philosophy and literature oriented sections.)

I heard MIT is going to put virtually all the lectures classes in coming semesters. That's quite amazing. When I heard this rumor, I said (jokingly), "then I don't have to go to school anymore!" and then my interlocutor (the source of the rumor) said, "well, MIT finally realized that the reason their students go there wasn't in the lectures." There's some truth in this.

I don't expect myself to follow any course available on iTunes U in its entirety: I ain't got the time and concentration. So I won't be a judge for the real educational possibility of this new system. I will nevertheless explore nice and handy bits of talks that fall within my interests, and hope to share some if I find something.