The part that vexed me the most as a student was the constant release of marginally different textbook editions. The one time I tried my luck with an older (and

The part that vexed me the most as a student was the constant release of marginally different textbook editions. The one time I tried my luck with an older (and cheaper) edition was with a thermodynamics text that was only one edition out of date. The actual chapter text was almost identical, but the differences in exercise problems and corresponding look-up tables meant I ended up having to borrow other students' books on a regular basis.