Published: July 10, 2007

Cyber Swapping

Norwood, Colo., sits more than a mile above sea level on Wright's Mesa, surrounded by Lone Cone Mountain and the Uncompahgre Plateau. The town, population 456, offers plenty of scenery but few amenities. "There are no bookstores to browse in, unless I drive over two hours," Michelle Barkemeyer laments. And for Barkemeyer, who is working on a teacher's budget and has limited free time, the half-day trek is quite an investment.

Enter online book swapping. Cheaper than Amazon and more efficient than eBay, it's useful for rural residents and city slickers alike. Barkemeyer was thrilled when she found PaperBackSwap.com in an online teacher forum.

"For me, it's convenience and price," she says. "The more things I can do online, the...