<p>I beeline straight for Amazon, then check my school’s website if nothing fitting is reasonably cheap.</p>
<p>Last semester I went on Amazon to buy my textbooks, but 1) some of my required books had supplements that could only be purchased at the bookstore and 2) I had homework due that needed the books. So I ended up going to the bookstore anyway. It was also such a hassle because I use my parents’ Amazon account and at some point I was scared that I wasn’t looking at the right edition.</p>
<p>Long story short, I decided to rent all my books from the bookstore this semester and in used condition if possible.</p>
<p>I’m not sure. Parents maybe? Or lack of better knowledge. I’m very please this semester because I got most of my books in ebook for for free on the internet. </p>
<p>Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Tapatalk</p>
<p>I don’t know anyone who buys books at the campus book store, including those who don’t care about cost. A lot of people in this thread talk about it being more convenient, but isn’t it more convenient to order the book on Amazon from the comfort of your room and then have it delivered to your dorm two days later? Of course, most people I know are Amazon Prime addicts, myself included.</p>
<p>I usually just find my textbooks online for free, and if I don’t, I buy them online used and sell them back to the bookstore at the end of the quarter and end up making a profit.</p>
<p>@Millancad, at D’s school there’s the equivalent of an “easy button” to purchase through the bookstore. You go online to the school’s registration site, and once your classes are set, you select the option, pay online, and the bookstore packages up all the books for you. So students don’t have to shop for the books - they just walk in to the bookstore, show their online receipt, and the bookstore hands them a package with all their books. In that case, it is more convenient than having to copy the ISBNs and enter them in to Amazon. You don’t even have to know what books you’re purchasing - the bookstore does it all based on your class registration.</p>
<p>So you get to spend hundreds of dollars more but at least you save a few minutes by not having to search for a book on amazon. And then you get to find out your professor says you won’t even be using half the books you paid full price for. Sounds like a good plan to me.</p>
<p>At my school, they have that, and the bookstore allows you to return the within with the first week.</p>
<p>@blke360 - I didn’t say it was a smart option, but it is an option :). @millancad had said ordering from Amazon is more convenient than shopping at the bookstore. I was providing a scenario where the bookstore is more convenient. There are lots of families at D’s school who don’t worry about cost and use the bookstore option. We’re not among them…</p>
<p>I look for my books online in digital format first, then online hard copy, then the bookstore only if it is the only option. I got one book this semester that was $233 in the bookstore for $80. I get 2 day shipping so speed generally is not an issue. Sometimes the bookstore is even out of books that are available online!</p>