Spring Break
Book rentals, buying online leads to cheaper alternatives
Jeff Sullivan
Issue date: 9/10/08 Section: News
09/10/08 - The University of Rhode Island Bookstore offers all texts for every course listed at the Kingston and Narragansett Bay campuses, respectively.
Options such as online buying, box-and-carry and books arranged by courses are featured in the URI Bookstore, but do these perks outweigh the lower online prices?
"I spent $297 on three books and I got them online," said senior Ashley Cornell, a chemical engineering and biological science major. "One of the books for my classes I already had from last semester, one I chose not to buy and one I borrowed."
Many students have taken similar paths in their acquisition of textbooks, online textbook Web sites apparently being the most viable alternative. In some cases it could cost more than $700 to purchase all necessary books at the bookstore.
The Rhode Island Book Company boasts cheaper books and stocks more used books, but when the prices are lower than the bookstore, they usually amount to less than a $5 difference.
For an extreme example, one of the most expensive books required for a URI class is Classical Dynamics of Particles and Systems by Stephen T. Thornton, which is $200.35 new at the Bookstore Web site and $150.25 used. At the Rhode Island Book Company Web site, the book is priced at $195.45 new and $146.55 used. On Amazon.com, a popular book Web site, there are varied prices for new and used copies of Thornton's book, but for a new copy the lowest price is $140.64, and for a used copy, $137.64.
Mike Giacalone, a music education major, said that he only paid $36 dollars total for his three required texts.
"They're just so expensive at the book store, I really don't know why," he said. "I got one book for 45 cents online, I don't know how much it cost at the bookstore."
The book he was talking about, HipHop America by Nelson George, is listed at the Kingston Bookstore for $15 new online.
Online purchasing seems to be the way to go, but quality is always an issue, as a viable "real-world preview" of the state of a book is not easy and can be unreliable.
Options such as online buying, box-and-carry and books arranged by courses are featured in the URI Bookstore, but do these perks outweigh the lower online prices?
"I spent $297 on three books and I got them online," said senior Ashley Cornell, a chemical engineering and biological science major. "One of the books for my classes I already had from last semester, one I chose not to buy and one I borrowed."
Many students have taken similar paths in their acquisition of textbooks, online textbook Web sites apparently being the most viable alternative. In some cases it could cost more than $700 to purchase all necessary books at the bookstore.
The Rhode Island Book Company boasts cheaper books and stocks more used books, but when the prices are lower than the bookstore, they usually amount to less than a $5 difference.
For an extreme example, one of the most expensive books required for a URI class is Classical Dynamics of Particles and Systems by Stephen T. Thornton, which is $200.35 new at the Bookstore Web site and $150.25 used. At the Rhode Island Book Company Web site, the book is priced at $195.45 new and $146.55 used. On Amazon.com, a popular book Web site, there are varied prices for new and used copies of Thornton's book, but for a new copy the lowest price is $140.64, and for a used copy, $137.64.
Mike Giacalone, a music education major, said that he only paid $36 dollars total for his three required texts.
"They're just so expensive at the book store, I really don't know why," he said. "I got one book for 45 cents online, I don't know how much it cost at the bookstore."
The book he was talking about, HipHop America by Nelson George, is listed at the Kingston Bookstore for $15 new online.
Online purchasing seems to be the way to go, but quality is always an issue, as a viable "real-world preview" of the state of a book is not easy and can be unreliable.
