The BA 211 syllabus shows that we will be covering only chapters 1-11 of the 24 chapter textbook in this class.  This textbook is also used for BA 213 Managerial Accounting.   Thus, the purchase cost of the textbook applies to two courses/terms for students planning to take both Financial and Managerial Accounting in reasonably quick succession at WOU.

Recommendations:

1. Select the option to get temporary free access (covers the first 3 weeks) to the online course site + eText when you register for the online course site at Pearson MyLab/Mastering using the Course ID that was distributed in class. That will allow you to see if the electronic version of the textbook will meet your needs and buy some time to explore options for obtaining a print copy of the textbook if you decide you want one.

2. When you’re sure you’re not going to drop the class:

• Purchase access to the online course site directly from the site for $65.
• If you want to purchase a print copy of the textbook, or if you are planning to take BA 213 soon, check out the option under Course Home, Purchase Options to “purchase a physical textbook at a discount” directly from Pearson’s online store. For $75, you can purchase an unbound edition of the textbook (with free ground shipping). The content is the same as the hardcover print edition, and it arrives shrink-wrapped and three-hole punched, so that you can put it in a standard three-ring binder.
• If you prefer an e-textbook, you can purchase online and iPad-compatible access to the eText for the term for $65 from the online course site.

Contact Shirley (lincics@wou.edu) if you’d like help with any of these purchase options.

Read on for more details of my experience …

Purchase options

WOU Bookstore

The WOU Bookstore has a bundle that includes both a hardbound, print version of the textbook and an access code for the online course site for $271.50 (new) and $203.75 (used). There were no used copies available when I checked at the bookstore at 9:00 am on Monday, April 2, 2012 (the first day of spring term). According to its website, the WOU bookstore is also selling online course site access codes alone for $185.75 (new) and $139.50 (used). I’m a bit confused by the “used” access code pricing, since I don’t think that access codes are transferable and they are good only for a single course/term.

Online merchants

SwoopThat shows a list price of $253.33 for a print textbook with online access code bundle equivalent to the one on sale at the WOU Bookstore. Prices for print textbook rental range from $70.93 for 60 days to $204.80 for an unspecified  rental period. It’s unclear whether rentals include an online access code (probably not). Prices for used print copies range from $173.48 to $265.24 and most come with explicit warnings that online access codes are not included.  Prices for new print copies range from $259.09 to $454.87 and presumably online access codes are included, though that is not explicitly stated in any of the comments fields. Kno rents a digital edition that can be used on a personal computer or iPad for $81.60 for a six-month period (no mention of online access code).  Amazon sells a Kindle edition of the complete book for $158.81 and chapters 1-15 only for $114.70 (both without online access code).

Direct from textbook publisher (Pearson)

When I went to register for the online course site on MyAccountingLab on the first day of class (April 2, 2012), it clearly stated that students can purchase access to the online course site alone direct from Pearson for $65. For $130, students can purchase access to both an online electronic version of the textbook and the online course site. This e-textbook can be used on a personal computer or iPad. The site doesn’t state how long you get access to the e-textbook for that price (essentially $65), but a quick online chat with a Pearson customer service representative indicated that access to this e-textbook would end on the Course End date (June 15, 2012 in my case).  Pearson also gives the option to get temporary access to both the online course site and the e-textbook until April 21, 2012 without payment. It seemed like a no-brainer to go with that option for the first couple of weeks.

Once I got into the MyAccountingLab course site and started poking around, I checked out the Purchase options listed under the Course Home menu item. There, it gives an option to purchase “a physical textbook at a discount” directly from myPearsonStore.com.  If you click on this option, Pearson immediately provides links to download PDF files of the complete full-text of the first two chapters of the textbook in a separate pop-up window. You can download and save these even if you don’t purchase the discount version of the physical textbook. The cost of the discount version of the textbook — “MyAccountingLab — Print Upgrade — for Accounting, 9th Edition , 9780132569736″ –  is $75 with free ground shipping. Since this was only $10 more than purchasing access to the e-textbook just for this term, I went ahead and purchased it. Details on exactly what I purchased were a bit sketchy. The format of the discount physical textbook is listed as “Unbound (Saleable),” and the ISBN is different than that of the hardback version of the textbook currently on sale at the WOU Bookstore.  In a little over a week, here’s what arrived:

Accounting, Horngren 9th ed. "discount" print edition ISBN 9780132569736

The text block is the same as the hardcover edition of the book sold at the WOU Bookstore (and elsewhere). It arrives shrink-wrapped and three-hole punched, ready to load into a standard three-ring binder. I found this especially handy, since it allows me to carry around only the pages or chapters I currently need, rather than the entire book. I’m pleased with my decision to go with the “discount” version!

So, in the end, I paid $140 for online course site access ($65) and the textbook ($75), for a total savings of $131.50 (48.5%) compared to what I would have paid to purchase the print text + online access code bundle from the WOU Bookstore ($271.50).

Books That Go Where the iPad Cannot Yet

Please contact me if you have questions or difficulty accessing this report.

Offers funding to support research travel to the institute library and archives located in Cleveland, OH. $1500 for one-week, $2500 for two weeks.

I love this approach, and I hope that it catches on.

Offers fascinating insight into how search engines work and how it effects our ability to find information.

Commentary from Kevin Smith at Duke University regarding recent developments in two copyright-related legal cases with implications for academic libraries.