Used textbooks?

I'm a community college professor too and I even have a homework question about this (I teach economics and finance). I always try to use the old text even after the new edition comes out so that students can get used ones on
amazon or barnes&noble. But sometimes the school bookstore conspires (well, not the right word...maybe instists) to have us use the new costly edition because they don't want to stock the old one. However it's true that economics (or at least current events) have made an updated text necessary in the last two years - not once but twice. But $135 for a new one...come on!

And now I'm the parent of a college kid and spend a lot of energy helping her get cheap new ones. I got one for this year for $15...retail is $100.

i was half way through my degree and figured out that barnes and noble.com, ebay, and amazon.com all had GREAT prices on used books. i spent a lot of time searching for the best price at the end since i was sick of paying tons for books. i remember finding a book on barnes and noble for like 8.00 and the bookstore wanted 80.00. it really pays to "shop" around via the net!

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Originally Posted by Groundhog

I'm a community college professor too and I even have a homework question about this (I teach economics and finance). I always try to use the old text even after the new edition comes out so that students can get used ones on
amazon or barnes&noble. But sometimes the school bookstore conspires (well, not the right word...maybe instists) to have us use the new costly edition because they don't want to stock the old one. However it's true that economics (or at least current events) have made an updated text necessary in the last two years - not once but twice. But $135 for a new one...come on!

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How are the new books organized? If it's a matter of 1 or 2 new chapters, maybe you can get permission to reproduce the new chapters as part of a course reader and save your students the expense of buying the whole book.

The bookstore at my university is part of Barnes and Noble and I am constantly getting emails about the new rent a text. I need to keep my texts, to study for my licensing exam, so that's not an option for me. I buy all of my books used through the college bookstore (never not been able to yet) and Amazon once in awhile. I realize it's cheaper elsewhere, but this is convenient. If I wanted to spend the time, I could go into one of the many used bookstores in Cambridge, but I haven't so far. I order online and pick them up at the store, to avoid shipping charges.
I never get the recommended books, only the required ones. It's actually been much less than I thought it would be, compared to my college days.

I don't think college is a racket at all. Of course, I went to a community college and 2 state universities for my BA and first MA and I feel that I got a very good education in my field and I never have been unemployed. I am now getting a second masters in a different field and it's the first time I've been to a private university. It is smaller, and I know my program is much more experiential than the other schools that grant the same degree, but that's more a function of the school's philosophy. Like anything else, you can do college in an economic way, and generally I have found that you get what you put into it.