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Marginalia is the general term for notes, scribbles, and comments made by readers in the margins of a book. Marginalia has both an extraordinary power and a history of being taboo. How many of us have been chastised by a parent, teacher, or librarian for writing in books? Such reprimands lead us to assume that marginalia is a form of vandalism. Perhaps it is the most constant vandalism our literary world has seen, as those of us with the inclination to write in the margins join the ranks of some very prolific writers. Samuel T. Coleridge made extensive in margin notes in almost all the books that he read. Six volumes of just his marginalia have been published. Voltaire composed in book margins while in prison, and Sir Walter Raleigh wrote a personal statement in margins just before his execution. Also, John Bethune was a poor English poet whose only available paper was borrowed space in books.

But marginalia is more than just writing in small spaces or defacement of property, it is an information sharing practice that has existed for centuries and is well preserved today in digital libraries and online tools. The basis for its persistence over time is not only the economy of paper, but is the added value that marginalia gives the primary text. By reading the notes left in margins we can appreciate our predecessors’ distillation of knowledge and gain from notes the unique perspectives that each previous reader lends to the text.

With the advent of e-books and digital libraries, marginalia transformed from jotted scribbles to vital and constantly evolving commentary. It is no longer prohibited but is now a welcomed practice. With the Internet, annotations or comments can be added to online texts, hyperlinks connect personal notes and blogs with articles and e-books, and what were once the thoughts of single authors have become platforms for multifaceted discussions. In the article Annotation: from paper books to the digital library Cathy Marshall writes that “indeed, the digital library is a place where annotations are not only feasible, but also may become important adjuncts to the primary text, a place where we may (and are welcome to) write in books. The roles of reader and writer blur in this regime”. In this regime the very definition of a ‘book’ wavers and encapsulates so much more than previous publication models allow for; e-books allow for constant addition and flexibility of value and information.

It is on the foundations and history of marginalia and its recent manifestations that Symtext incorporates “My Notes” and “Annotations and Comments” features into our Liquid Textbooks. These features enable readers to keep private notes on each page as they read as well as add comments for others to read. Additionally, there is a highlighting feature, which allows professors and students to highlight text and connect notes to the highlighted segment, adding new dimensions and meaning to exactable portions of text.

In Symtext the blurring of author and reader leads to the creation of value added information. This enables students to get more from the text than the author’s singular view; they get multiple perspectives generated by professors and other students. This leads us to ask two questions: one, with more perspectives does more understanding follow? And two, with greater information can greater learning be far behind? We will look to answer these questions in the months ahead as learning outcomes are met and hopefully surpassed.