4 ms·

I loved the post, but I will say it's incredibly frustrating to see an interesting book referenced, to go looking for the book and to find that a USED copy on A

by cwyers 11y ago

I loved the post, but I will say it's incredibly frustrating to see an interesting book referenced, to go looking for the book and to find that a USED copy on Amazon goes for $130.

profquail 11y ago
It's also available on Safari Books if you have a subscription (e.g., through your workplace). I agree, it's a pricy book though.
- cwyers 11y ago
  We don't, but it's not like it's something I couldn't ask for if there was enough value there, so that's good to know. (Although I don't think Safari works with any e-ink readers, certainly not my Kindle.)
deleted 11y ago
[deleted]
brudgers 11y ago
It's the sort of book that always makes me curious: Is it as awesome as its title suggests?
- logicallee 11y ago
  simple logic dictates that if it weren't awesome it wouldn't sell used for $130. Curiosity alone or a few references in some article or wherever won't drive a used price that high!
  - cossatot 11y ago
    A few professors requiring it to be used in a class will certainly drive it up that high, combined with the limited printing done by academic publishers. It's pretty common and pretty unfortunate...
    - eggy 11y ago
      More like it is old enough that what number of copies were printed are owned. I personally perceive value, and I am willing to buy in at certain prices for the pay-off in knowledge and convenience. For instance, driving to a college, spending umpteen hours copying pages for a sub-standard replica of a book that I can have delivered for $130? I will buy it and do something else with the time saved. I was looking at buying an old Lisp book, 'Common LISP Modules: Artificial Intelligence in the Era of Neural Networks and Chaos Theory'. I already own a copy, but not where I am living for now. It was $3 on Amazon. There was a thread on HN where I mentioned the book, and the author himself wanted a copy, so he ordered it. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9877314 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9877314 I checked back on Amazon, and it was over $80. Demand drove price. It is still on B&N for $86 right now: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/common-lisp-modules-mark-watson/1114279070?ean=9780387976143 http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/common-lisp-modules-mark-wat...
seliopou 11y ago
If you live close to a college or university, check to see if they have it. Almost all schools will let you into their libraries and let you browse (and photocopy) materials while you're there. Checking them out may be another issues, but you should ask about that while you're there as well.
- semi-extrinsic 11y ago
  If you're frequently passing by a university library, see if they have a shelf where they sell old books. Mine does, and I've scored some sweet stuff there, e.g. Dunford and Schwartz' Linear Operators Part 1 & 2 together for $8, which looks to be $150 + shipping for used copies from Amazon ($400 new). As you can probably tell, there's an arb opportunity there as well.

by cwyers 11y ago

I loved the post, but I will say it's incredibly frustrating to see an interesting book referenced, to go looking for the book and to find that a USED copy on Amazon goes for $130.

profquail 11y ago

It's also available on Safari Books if you have a subscription (e.g., through your workplace). I agree, it's a pricy book though.

cwyers 11y ago
We don't, but it's not like it's something I couldn't ask for if there was enough value there, so that's good to know. (Although I don't think Safari works with any e-ink readers, certainly not my Kindle.)

deleted 11y ago

[deleted]

brudgers 11y ago

It's the sort of book that always makes me curious: Is it as awesome as its title suggests?

logicallee 11y ago
simple logic dictates that if it weren't awesome it wouldn't sell used for $130. Curiosity alone or a few references in some article or wherever won't drive a used price that high!
- cossatot 11y ago
  A few professors requiring it to be used in a class will certainly drive it up that high, combined with the limited printing done by academic publishers. It's pretty common and pretty unfortunate...
  - eggy 11y ago
    More like it is old enough that what number of copies were printed are owned. I personally perceive value, and I am willing to buy in at certain prices for the pay-off in knowledge and convenience. For instance, driving to a college, spending umpteen hours copying pages for a sub-standard replica of a book that I can have delivered for $130? I will buy it and do something else with the time saved. I was looking at buying an old Lisp book, 'Common LISP Modules: Artificial Intelligence in the Era of Neural Networks and Chaos Theory'. I already own a copy, but not where I am living for now. It was $3 on Amazon. There was a thread on HN where I mentioned the book, and the author himself wanted a copy, so he ordered it. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9877314 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9877314 I checked back on Amazon, and it was over $80. Demand drove price. It is still on B&N for $86 right now: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/common-lisp-modules-mark-watson/1114279070?ean=9780387976143 http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/common-lisp-modules-mark-wat...

seliopou 11y ago

If you live close to a college or university, check to see if they have it. Almost all schools will let you into their libraries and let you browse (and photocopy) materials while you're there. Checking them out may be another issues, but you should ask about that while you're there as well.

semi-extrinsic 11y ago
If you're frequently passing by a university library, see if they have a shelf where they sell old books. Mine does, and I've scored some sweet stuff there, e.g. Dunford and Schwartz' Linear Operators Part 1 & 2 together for $8, which looks to be $150 + shipping for used copies from Amazon ($400 new). As you can probably tell, there's an arb opportunity there as well.