by Lauren Norton
staff writer
“For the past few years, the price of textbooks has increased tremendously. Students always complain they are paying too much for textbooks,” Volick Derose, creator of Cambire.com, said. Derose was studying for his master’s degree in electrical engineering at Johns Hopkins University when he began the process of designing and implementing this unique website.
“Cambire.com has created a forum for college students across the United States to come together and help each other save money and exchange their textbooks,” Derose said.
“As a student, I spent hundreds of dollars on textbooks that were used for a few months then put on a shelf for good, and it was with this in mind that I developed Cambire.”
The purpose of Cambire.com is to allow students to browse, search, lease, and exchange textbooks.
“Our website has many advantages,” Derose said. First, it allows students to exchange textbooks among themselves, rather than buying new textbooks. Second, it allows students to donate textbooks to each other.
For students – like fist-year students – who do not have textbooks to exchange but want to buy textbooks, this website allows them to advertise what they are willing to pay for textbooks they want.
Although selling textbooks is not the main objective, this service is provided to accommodate students who are interested in gaining money.
Cambire also offers different types of exchange services suitable for students. Not only can a student post listings of textbooks, but also a listing of specific items they are searching for, such as music.
The service, of which registration is free, then provides the opportunity to match up corresponding items resulting in an exchange.
This service officially started mid-September of 2000 and has already received more than 300,000 hits in that short period of time.
For additional information on Cambire Inc. and the services they provide, you can visit their website at www. Cambire.com.
