Textbooks, and not buying them.

stesh

So, can you really get away with not buying textbooks and using library ones all the time?

Pet

Mostly, yes.

During the first week, the freshers will enthusiastically take out a load of books, then promptly forget about study as their social lives kick off. Around the end of April/start of May, they [along with their seniors] suddenly realise that exams are looming, and borrowing begins anew, only this time far more frantically.

Outside of these periods, the library has ample copies of freshman textbooks, especially in the natural sciences. If the lending copies are all taken, there will be counter reserve copies too.

I've bought two textbooks in three years, and neither were very necessary purchases. I find it helps to annotate my textbooks, however, which is why I eventually coughed up the cash and bought them.

So, to answer your question in a concise manner: yes, you can.

ianmull

Yes. Use the library.

I got through 2 years of the engineering course only buying one book during the 1st week of lectures in 1st year (which I didn't even need to do, a hasty decision at the start really).
Plus you'll find college books are very expensive!

Mark200

Yeah just stick with the library books for as long as you can, and if you feel a need to buy any books the book shop is just around the corner anyway.

Don't forget to renew the library books every week though!

Unregistered.

Mark200 wrote: »

Yeah just stick with the library books for as long as you can, and if you feel a need to buy any books the book shop is just around the corner anyway.

Don't forget to renew the library books every week though!

I did.

Prof.Badass

Textbooks are ridiculously expensive. Not only can you get away with not buying them, you could also feasibly get away with not even using them at all.

They cannot ask you anything in the exam that was not covered in lectures and there is an awful lot of superflous information in text books.

Especially for last minute cramming, lecture notes are definitely the way to go about things. Granted some lecturers have shít notes, so it's not 100% foolproof. But for the most part I've found them to be of decent quality.

Jammyc

vinylmesh wrote: »

Especially for last minute cramming, lecture notes are definitely the way to go about things. Granted some lecturers have shít notes, so it's not 100% foolproof. But for the most part I've found them to be of decent quality.

Just on a side note of this,

How good are lexturers for putting notes online? and Would I look a right twat for putting a little recorder in front of me in a lecture?

celtic723

Jammyc wrote: »

Just on a side note of this,

How good are lexturers for putting notes online? and Would I look a right twat for putting a little recorder in front of me in a lecture?

:pac::pac::pac::pac: That is absolutely sad....yet absolute genius!

Jammyc

celtic723 wrote: »

:pac::pac::pac::pac: That is absolutely sad....yet absolute genius!

Aww cmon! Itd be totally nifty like! Instead of trying to scrawl down ****ty notes really quickly, do them at your leisure later on.

celtic723

Jammyc wrote: »

Aww cmon! Itd be totally nifty like! Instead of trying to scrawl down ****ty notes really quickly, do them at your leisure later on.

As i said it's genius.... I like the way you think. Although i wouldn't fancy enduring another hour of a previous lecture. Dunno about you!

Jammyc

celtic723 wrote: »

As i said it's genius.... I like the way you think. Although i wouldn't fancy enduring another hour of a previous lecture. Dunno about you!

If you were cool like me you would....:cool:

celtic723

Jammyc wrote: »

If you were cool like me you would....:cool:

Oh the irony!:pac::pac::pac::pac::D

stesh

Is there any limit to the number of times that you can consecutively renew a loan from the library?

Time Magazine

If you do want to buy textbooks (and if you don't have a rod shoved up your ass) you can buy them inexpensively online.

For example, the principles of microeconomics have not changed much between the 8th and 10th edition of your favourite textbook. So instead of paying about €50 including P&P for the latest version, get one that's a few years old for less than €6. Great success.

Mark200

stesh wrote: »

Is there any limit to the number of times that you can consecutively renew a loan from the library?

No. I think there's a limit to the amount of times you can renew it online, and then you just need to bring the book into the library and renew it there. But if someone has requested the book that you have out, you can't renew it.

skregs

in science, it becomes an absolute sh!tstorm from march onwards to try and get books. sure there's plenty of copies available, but there's about 400 people trying to get all those copies.
people hide books, steal them from the counter reserve, take them out and just pay the fines to keep them, steal them from your desk when you go to the toilet etc.

it depends on how you're planning to do. if you just want to scrape a pass you dont need the books and dont need to study.
but i'd seriously recommend buying at least 1 or 2 of the more used books, because you will go short when exams are coming up

ronivek

I know for my course there were a couple of books which were almost a requirement for large parts of the year; and also provide useful reference material for later years... I bought cheap second hand copies online and they've served me well.

Probably the best thing to do is try get in touch with someone who has completed the course and year you're going into and ask them if there are any books which you really could do with your own copy of; but for the most part you can definitely survive without buying any books.

Alexl

ronivek wrote: »

Probably the best thing to do is try get in touch with someone who has completed the course and year you're going into and ask them if there are any books which you really could do with your own copy of; but for the most part you can definitely survive without buying any books.

Going into 1st year science, willing to buy 3 or 4 books but not all, what would you recommend anyone whose just finished 1st year science, (Doing phys, maths and chem)

tolosenc

Jammyc wrote: »

Would I look a right twat for putting a little recorder in front of me in a lecture?

That's be copyright infringement. Sorta.

stesh wrote: »

So, can you really get away with not buying textbooks and using library ones all the time?

Buy the Hawkins & Towell French Grammar book, really handy. You'll also have to buy a French dossier. Syntax book is decent, I bought it, but not a must. I think you have to but the Language Study book for phonetics as well.

Jammyc

Toulousain wrote: »

That's be copyright infringement. Sorta.

Say whaaaaat? C'mon!:mad:

Epic Tissue

Jammyc wrote: »

Just on a side note of this,

How good are lexturers for putting notes online? and Would I look a right twat for putting a little recorder in front of me in a lecture?

You could record with a laptop mic? Would be less noticable.

Jammyc

Epic Tissue wrote: »

You could record with a laptop mic? Would be less noticable.

Mm, not a bad idear.

celtic723

To put this in perspective for me, could someone please tell me how much all books for Chem,Bio, And Geography would cost?


This'll give me a very good indication of what i need to get and what i'll pass on.

Cheers.

Sugarglass

Hey, this question has already been asked (but not answered) , just thought I'd ask too. For someone who has a bit of a budget and would like to get 3-4 of the textbooks, what books did people find useful for first year science (in my case, Biology, Chemistry and Maths). If anyone could answer that would be really useful. Thanks.

Unregistered.

Toulousain wrote: »

That's be copyright infringement. Sorta.

No it's not.

@JammyC: I'm dead certain that if you ask your lectures if they'd mind if you put a recorder on their desk/lectern in front of them, most would not have a problem. Sure, they'll say something the effect of "As long as it's for your own purposes" and as long as you don't post them online it's all good.

Jammyc

Unregistered. wrote: »

No it's not.

@JammyC: I'm dead certain that if you ask your lectures if they'd mind if you put a recorder on their desk/lectern in front of them, most would not have a problem. Sure, they'll say something the effect of "As long as it's for your own purposes" and as long as you don't post them online it's all good.

Thanks! Ive heard of people doing it before and Ive no intention of posting them online. Just doing notes from em that I didnt manage to get down in a lecture for whatever reason.

stesh

Toulousain wrote: »

That's be copyright infringement. Sorta.



Buy the Hawkins & Towell French Grammar book, really handy. You'll also have to buy a French dossier. Syntax book is decent, I bought it, but not a must. I think you have to but the Language Study book for phonetics as well.

Oxford-Hachette French Dictionary? 45 euro?

FECK

OFF.

dan719

If anyone here is doing maths, do not buy any textbooks for Analysis or Linear Algebra. DON'T! They are not necassary at all. You will soon find that the notes are on line on the Mathsoc wiki, or otherwise on the pages of some of the students who are into that sort of thing. Also if anyone is looking for notes for Intermediate Microeconomics, I can send you a copy of my (typed) notes with all nec. diagrams out of the goodness of my heart. It will save you buying Varian.

Also for any incoming first year taking econ pol., do not buy Case and Fair. If you do, you will be laughted at and pitied in equal measure. If you must buy a book, get Economy of Ireland second hand. It will get you through the first three years.

stesh

dan719 wrote: »

If anyone here is doing maths, do not buy any textbooks for Analysis or Linear Algebra. DON'T! They are not necassary at all. You will soon find that the notes are on line on the Mathsoc wiki, or otherwise on the pages of some of the students who are into that sort of thing. Also if anyone is looking for notes for Intermediate Microeconomics, I can send you a copy of my (typed) notes with all nec. diagrams out of the goodness of my heart. It will save you buying Varian.

Also for any incoming first year taking econ pol., do not buy Case and Fair. If you do, you will be laughted at and pitied in equal measure. If you must buy a book, get Economy of Ireland second hand. It will get you through the first three years.

Also for any incoming first year taking econ pol, you will be laughted at and pitied in equal measure.

Kidz ;-)

antiselfdual

dan719 wrote: »

If anyone here is doing maths, do not buy any textbooks for Analysis or Linear Algebra. DON'T! They are not necassary at all. You will soon find that the notes are on line on the Mathsoc wiki, or otherwise on the pages of some of the students who are into that sort of thing.

Sweet, I'm better than actual maths textbooks.

dan719

antiselfdual wrote: »

Sweet, I'm better than actual maths textbooks.

Technically so am I, as I edited ST251. Then failed it. Once, twice, possibly three times a lady.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIncdGED0I4&feature=fvst

No, tbf the wiki is dead helpful!