Book rentals, buying online leads to cheaper alternatives

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.

One other option yet unknown to many students is renting books from an online service, which can save a student up to one-third off of a price.

Right now, Chegg.com is offering books for rent of the duration of a quarter, a semester, a whole year or the summer for prices much lower than posted on buying sites, and the quality is guaranteed.

For example, that same advanced physics book, Classical Dynamics of Particles and Systems, is only $72.19 on Chegg.com for the semester.

The only downside to Chegg is that if you lose or for some other reason fail to return the book on time or in good quality (no writing, missing pages or broken spines, as defined by the Web site,) you have basically just bought it for full price.

"I buy the books and keep them anyway," said Kate Tartaglia, a nursing major. "You won't save money, but you'll keep the knowledge. Plus you get to have a bigger library in your study."

Another site, flatworldknowledge.com, is going in a totally different direction for textbooks.

While the site isn't active yet, it could help revolutionize the way textbooks are updated, written, sold and organized by giving the customer complete control over the book's presentation to its consumers.

Teachers can pick and choose which parts of a book they want for their class, put them in the order they find best and then put it up online for their students to use. Students can also put notes on the digital version of the text so that they may share their own insights and inquiries with the teacher and other students.

Instead of charging students separately for the same content, one lump sum would be calculated from the teacher's choice of material and divided among class members, saving money for students.

While it may seem like a great idea, time will tell as to whether or not it generates enough customers, and whether or not it will prove a profitable business model to stick around long-term.