NMJC and Luna questions

[rvm]

Hi Tennesseegirl,

I wish I could offer more suggestions than the one I'm writing you about but it could change your perspective concerning textbooks.  

I found a free textbook site.  I wrote a new post concerning it this morning but it hasn't shown up yet, presumably due to the link I provided which probably needs to be verified by a moderator.  The site is in its infancy so it doesn't have a large number of free textbooks at this time.  But I feel confident that number will improve.  It's openstax dot org.  

My 17 y.o. just enrolled in our local CC.  Her textbooks were outrageous, >$100 per book and that was for some used books as well.  I found textbooks and e-textbooks for rent on Amazon.  Be sure to review Amazon's policies on rental & check the return date.  Also, rent early.  I found e-textbooks on Amazon for $10-$40 per book when renting.  I didn't rent them immediately b/c the due date was prior to the end of the semester.  Because I didn't rent early, Amazon sold out of rental e-textbooks.  Who'd thunk it???  Anyhow, I later read, but please verify this, you can extend your rental if the due date is prior to the end of your semester.

Since Amazon sold out, I found the e-textbooks at bookshelf dot vitalsource dot com.  While not free, 2 e-textbooks cost $70 as opposed to >$250 for 2 in-hand textbooks.  When you rent, they are your e-textbook for 180 days; much better than Amazon's short rental period.   Bookshelf allows you to create flashcards and take notes in multiple colors.  You can even share your notes with other students which you approve.

The first day using the e-textbooks was a bit convoluted as my daughter had never used e-textbooks but she's a teen with good common sense so she figured it out quickly.  It took one statistics class to turn her from I-told-you-I-like-hard-copy-books lover to a dang-my-backpack-is-so-much-lighter-with-only my-macbook-it-in book lover.

Hope this helps!
Robin (a North Carolina girl)