Interest group seeks to lower textbook prices for students

"Used books are one way students can reduce the cost of textbooks, Blackledge said. He said he suggests web sites like Amazon.com, eCampus.com, and BestBookBuys.com, which are good for finding used books."

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Students: Save big

"College life comes with plenty of incidental expenses, but discounts, too: Books. You can save 50% or more by buying used textbooks online at BestBookBuys.com, which compares prices at 21 booksellers. A search for Financial Accounting by Clyde Stickney and Roman Weil (list price: $124.95) found used books for as little as $53.44, including shipping."

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Tuition is Only the Beginning

"Urge your student to treat the campus used-book sale like a hot concert ticket and to visit BestBookBuys.com, a Web site that compares the most popular online booksellers. You can search by ISBN so your student can be sure to get the right edition and save about 30% on average."

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Get More, Pay Less

"BestWebBuys.com

This price comparison site is tops for finding cheap books, CDs and DVDs, and it lists discounts that save you even more."

Cutting textbook sticker shock

"A semester's worth of textbooks, one of the major college expenses, can easily cost $300 or more.

Students and their parents will spend $8.8 billion on textbooks this year, reports the National Retail Federation. Following are many ways to save:

Compare several retailers' prices at www.bestbookbuys.com."

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Textbook Case of Runaway Prices

"Steve Loyola, president of BestBookBuys.com, says students can save 30% or more off retail prices on used books by shopping online. Loyola's service sorts by price and can calculate the cost of shipping and sales tax when students include their ZIP code in the search."

Trim the Bill for College Textbooks Series

"College textbooks can be a source of sticker shock, with price tags for a single book sometimes exceeding $100. Most colleges haven't adopted book rental, but students still can find ways to trim their textbook bills. Here are some tips for students facing big back-to-school book bills:

2. Do some sleuthing. Here's another way to use your time at your on-campus bookstore: Jot down ISBN numbers and book prices (for both new and used), then use that information to comparison shop on the Internet. Check prices on the Web sites of Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, eBay, Varsity Books and eFollet and of comparison shopping sites such as bestbookbuys.com or even foreign sites."

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Cut your college textbook bill: A semester's worth of textbooks, one of the major college expenses, can easily cost $300 or more.

"When buying your textbooks online, surf for the lowest prices; don't forget to factor in shipping. Some popular Web sites for textbooks include www.ecampus.com, www.half.com, www.amazon.com and www.bn.com. Compare several retailers' prices at www.BestBookBuys.com."

Net savings on books

"www.BestBookBuys.com -- Shopping "bots" that compare prices at different stores."

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These tips can help you stack up the savings

"Buy college textbooks online. One site offers online comparison shopping (www.BestBookBuys.com), where students can search among dozens of online stores (including Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, Overstock, Powell’s and Wal- Mart) in seconds. Average savings: 31 percent off the list price."

The Web: Back-to-school shopping online

"Another specialty site, BestBookBuys.com, provides online, comparison-shopping services for college students. Kids from 1,500 colleges have used the service since it started in 1997.

Seeking savings, students browse through books from dozens of online book sellers -- and can comparison shop simultaneously at Powell's, Barnes and Noble, and Overstock, among others -- often finding discounts of 31 percent from list price for the 5 million titles that the e-commerce site carries, a spokeswoman told UPI.

"Three popular college books -- 'Introduction to Algorithms and Java CD-ROM,' 'Microbiology: An Introduction' and 'Fundamentals of Adaptive Filtering' -- have a combined list price of $362.10," the HP spokeswoman told UPI.

A search at BestBookBuys.com, however, shows a student could buy those very same titles for $225.97, used -- a savings of $136.13, the spokeswoman added."

Today's Classroom

"This year, students can pay in excess of $800 on their text books and supplies. One easy way to save, of course, is to buy your books used...you can buy from a campus store or from friends or, of course, online. Do your comparison shopping on BestBookBuys.com, where we saved on average 30 percent."

The science of purchasing textbooks

"Comparative sites like...BestBookBuys.com search the prices listed by various online sources and rank them. These sites don't sell books directly, but rely on advertisers to be profitable."

Looking for Summer Book Bargains?

"The summer reading season is heating up and several new titles already have people talking. But you don't have to empty your pocketbook to load up your beach bag with new books.

If you always go to Amazon.com or BarnesandNoble.com to get your summer books, you might want to try some shopping around. It might save you a few dollars.

One site that is the good for comparison shopping when it comes to books is BestBookBuys.com."

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Getting Cheap Books

"Reporter gives tips on getting cheap books. She says you might want to shop around other places than Barnes and Noble and Amazon.com. Visual - BestBookBuys.com searches online prices for you."

Buy Books Cheap

"Like books? Like to buy them online?

At today’s site, you can comparison shop for the best price in books. The site does not sell you the book. It searches dozens of bookstores and lists their prices - including shipping.

It's not limited to hardcover books. You'll find prices for new and used paperback and audiobooks as well.

For example, The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown lists for $24.95. You can buy it used for as little as $8.48 or new for only $17.08. Both prices included shipping. Such a deal!"

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Textbook prices hit record high, students look online

"I've bought books online every year," says senior Erin O'Connell, who purchases her books through BestBookBuys.com. "Each year, I've saved at least $50 and usually over $100."

Online textbook retailers offer many benefits to students. Books are generally available in large quantities, and are offered at substantially lower prices. "Economic Development," a new hardcover text sold in the bookstore for over a hundred dollars, is sold for a mere $45 on BestBookBuys.com.

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Shopping All the Way

"Steve Loyola, founder of online comparison shopping service Best Web Buys, advises consumers to research the seller's reputation and to compare each site's availability and estimated shipping time to ensure on-time delivery.

He also offers these tips:

Consider buying from out-of-state retailers to avoid sales tax.

Look for online coupons and free shipping offers.

Print your order confirmation page and keep it handy in case any problems arise.

If you use comparison shopping sites, scan the full list of results or sort them by price. Some sites give top billing to stores that pay to be promoted."

Supply and Demand

"OK, so you don't care about photo cards and you're just sending Hallmark. But surely you'll buy something online this year. With that in mind, BestWeb Buys.com, an online comparison shopping service, offers these tips:

• Consider buying from an out-of-state retailer, many of which do not charge sales tax.
• Research the seller's reputation. A poorly rated vendor's low price may not be the best deal.
• Some comparison-shopping sites give higher placement to stores that pay for it. Use the sort button to find the lowest price.
• Be aware of availability and estimated shipping time.
• Double-check the sales tax and shipping costs before submitting your order.
• Print the order confirmation page. It has details you may need to resolve problems with an order.
• Order early!
"

Want a deal?

"For decades, the high cost of textbooks sometimes more than $100 per copy have wreaked havoc on student wallets, not to mention beer funds. In the United States, the typical student doles out $450 (US) per semester for books and academic supplies, according to one industry group.

But times may be changing. Penny-pincher Web sites such as eBay and Half.com have rewritten the rules of the $8-billion textbook market, allowing students to cash in on savings and cash out of their campus bookstores.

"Ultimately, the best deals are on-line. It just doesn't cost as much to run an on-line bookstore," said Steve Loyola, president of BestWebBuys.com. "[On-line stores] don't need to maintain all the overhead of a campus bookstore and, also, they don't have to give a cut to the university."

To pinpoint the best deals, BestWebBuys runs a search engine that scrolls through major on-line retailers like amazon.com or eCampus. Then it ranks the offers."

The Best-for-Less Guide

"You know that you can get great deals online, but finding them can be a hassle. Price-comparison sites like BestWebBuys.com... make bargain hunting a breeze."

Money Savers: Saving You Money on Books!

"Next time you hit the web for a book, check out www.BestBookBuys.com. The website compares the goods at 21 different websites like Amazon and Books-a-Million. You can even shop for CD's, DVD's, electronics and bikes there too!"

Alternatives to Long Lines at the Bookstore

"In addition to the UB Bookstore and Talking Leaves, students can also buy textbooks online from nationally owned book companies. One Web site that helps students find the best deal they can is www.BestBookBuys.com.

According to Theresa Smith, a public relations representative for BestBookBuys.com, the Web site can help students save anywhere from 24 to 64 percent on new and used books.

BestBookBuys asks patrons to list the book they need and from there, they search for the book or books at many well known online sites such as Amazon.com, Barnesand Noble.com and BooksAMillion.com. The customer is then given a listing of which sites have the book and for what prices, listed from the cheapest to the most expensive.

In a press release sent to colleges across the country from BestBookBuys.com, Money Magazine referenced the site as a one of the best at finding deals for books online. The press release also stated that about 125,000 students use BestBookBuys.com for comparing and pricing textbooks online."

Internet Provides Textbook Alternatives

"With tuition rising every year, students are trying to save money where they can. Finding reasonable prices on textbooks is one is these ways.

Between the URI bookstore and the Internet world, online book buying appears to be the cheapest. According to Money Magazine, college students save an average of 62 percent on used books, and 24 percent on new books through the site Best Book Buys (www.BestBookBuys.com).

This site compares 21 websites to get students the best deal. An added bonus is that the site adds up all charges, such as shipping and taxes, when they give students the price of the book, so they know how much they are paying."

Buzzz Roundup: Back-to-School Shopping

"Half of back-to-school shoppers are students buying for themselves, according to a Jupiter survey. Art students can find tubes of acrylic paint at MisterArt.com. Target.com includes housewares for the college students, and WalMart.com offers a minifridge on its 'Student Central' page. Childrens-Musical-Instruments.com and Giardinelli.com have band instruments. E-Bay's Half.com lets students buy textbooks from individuals, and BestBookBuys.com pulls information from Half.com, Barnes & Noble and Amazon. BizRate.com and Yahoo! Shopping offer back-to-school pages comparing prices."

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Tell our Political Leaders What to Read

"That's exactly what Stephanie McCullough, an 18-year old freshman liberal arts major at St. John's University (Santa Fe, NM) did in her essay for this year's Best Book Buys (www.BestBookBuys.com) online contest. She won a $1500 scholarship for suggesting The Politics by Aristotle."

Finance 101: A Parent's Guide

"Your child is heading off to college, and you've devised a plan to pay the big bill. But as Marc Freedman, a financial planner in Peabody, Mass., says, 'parents usually plan for the expense of college but forget about the discretionary cost during the nine-month period when the child is away.' Read on for suggestions about how to handle those often overlooked but unavoidable expenses.

...

BOOKS:

With book costs for a semester running as much as $1,000, the Web has become invaluable for students. One example: Buying books (including Homer's Iliad and Euripides' Medea) for the first semester of Literature Humanities, a core freshman course at Columbia University, would cost $120 at full price. Comparing prices from 21 websites at BestBookBuys.com shows that the smartest option is buying used books for a grand total of $54.61, including shipping, from Half.com. Another option for both buying and selling textbooks: eBay. A new copy of James Stewart's Calculus: Early Transcendentals (fifth edition), which retails for $135.95, was recently trading at $64."

Going Online For Textbooks Requires Study

"Computer-savvy college students, accustomed to booting up their computers to order everything from Eminem tickets to airline tickets, increasingly are turning to the Web as the place to buy textbooks.

...

For students who want to shop online, here are some tips:

• Buying textbooks online might not be less expensive than shopping at the campus bookstore, and you'll probably need to make a trip to the bookstore anyway to copy the International Standard Book Number for the ones you want to order. Many online sites ask for the 10-digit number, found on the back of the book above the bar code, when you place your order.
• Do your homework, checking Web sites such as BestBookBuys.com that compare prices from several online retailers.

"

Freshman Parents' Finance Guide: You've got the tuition covered -- here's a guide for the rest of your child's college costs.

"Comparing prices from 21 Web sites at BestBookBuys.com shows that the smartest option is buying used books for a grand total of $54.61, including shipping, from Half.com."

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Intro to Consumerism Students Flee Campus Bookstores in Search of Cheaper Prices

"University of Pittsburgh sophomore Kaitlyn Knoll got her books this fall the traditional way. She trekked to the campus store, gasped at the prices, then reluctantly forked over $450 for a semester's reading.

She understands why many of her peers gamble that they can do better by shopping online, borrowing books from a classmate, or -- in a trend that worries educators -- simply skipping the required text altogether.

'If there was any way I thought I could get by in the class without using the textbook, I wouldn't buy it either,' said Knoll, 19, a pharmacy major from Shaler. 'It's just so ridiculous.'

Just one of her 10 books for the fall semester at Pitt is a chemistry hard-cover for $137.35. That doesn't count the recommended study guide for the book that costs at least $21 extra.

Claiming they can lessen the sticker shock, online services from Half.com to Wal-Mart tout savings of more than 50 percent on some titles. Those services have won converts, despite warnings by campus stores that books sold over the Internet don't always match the edition required in class, can take weeks for delivery and aren't easily traded in for cash.

...

Still, with the average price of a new college text hovering around $80, it's not hard to figure why students over the years have been drawn to off-campus discount stores and, more recently, to the Internet.

BestBookBuys.com, one such service that culls prices from 21 online bookstores, points to three often-used college titles: General Chemistry, Calculus and Analytic Geometry and The Chicago Manual of Style.

The books collectively list for $282, the company says. As of last week, they were selling online for $227.36 new and $22.99 used - - a savings of $54.64 (new) or $259.01 (used), the company says.

Steve Loyola, president of the service's parent company, Best Web Buys, says some professors who post syllabuses online include a link to his site. He calls them part of a campus 'underground,' helping students bypass a system that is attractive to retailers partly because campuses give the buyer so little choice.

Loyola said sales through his site are up since 1998 from half a million dollars yearly to at least $10 million. 'A lot of it's simply by word of mouth,' he said."

Back-to-School Online Shopping Tips to Help College Students Save Time and Money

"With the nation's economy still sputtering, and with colleges and universities raising tuition and fees, many parents and students are looking for ways to reduce their college expenses.

According to Steve Loyola, president of Best Book Buys®, an online price comparison site for college students and a service of Best Web Buys™, students can save a considerable amount of time and money by shopping online for textbooks.

'After tuition, and then room and board, book expenses are the next largest single budget item,' said Loyola. For students looking to save money, Loyola offers the following online shopping tips:

• Use comparison shopping sites which scour the Internet within secondsfor the best deals available.
• Check for store coupons and free shipping offers.
• Consider buying from an out-of-state retailer. Many out-of-state retailers will not charge sales tax.
• Compare each store's availability and estimated shipping time.
• Before ordering, check out the store's reputation.
• Remember that not all comparison shopping sites are really showing you the lowest price first. Some give higher placement to stores that pay to be promoted. Make sure to click the sort button to find the lowest price.
• Order early. The best deals and selections for used books are when the supplies are at the highest.
• Purchase textbooks with the same ISBN as specified by your professor or class.
• Double-check the sales tax and shipping costs before submitting your order.
• Print the order confirmation page. It will contain information you may need to resolve any problems with an order.

Best Web Buys' five product specific sites -- Best Book Buys®, Best Music Buys™, Best Video Buys™, Best Bike Buys™ and Best Electronic Buys™ -- compare prices, shipping and availability of more than 2 million products at over 50 online stores.

The August 2003 issue of Money® magazine referenced BestBookBuys.com for finding the best deals on books online. And the August 2003 issue of Parents Magazine named BestWebBuys.com one of the 25 Best Web Sites for Families."

Easing Back Into School: Online stores offer variety, specials and convenience

"Just as at the mall, online consumers will have to hunt down the best deals, but online comparison-shopping sites make that job easier.

BizRate.com and Yahoo! Shopping offer dedicated back-to-school pages comparing retailers' prices on backpacks, electronic goods, computers and clothing, and BestBookBuys.com gives college students prices on new and used textbooks from various sources.

...

Cheaper books

One online product likely to beat any retail store's price: Used and new textbooks online. E-Bay's Half.com site lets students buy from individuals who are selling a used copy of the book, and comparison-shopping site BestBookBuys.com pulls price and availability information from Half.com, Barnes & Noble, Amazon and other sites.

A search for four textbooks, including General Chemistry and Atlas of Human Anatomy, were recently available at the site for a total of $236.74 new, 42 percent less than their combined list price of $407.40, according to a BestBookBuys statement. The four books used cost a total of $154, a 62 percent savings.

Still, buying used books online is not a perfect science. "It's not some company that has a whole warehouse full of that book at that price. It's often just individuals like you and me, selling off their own college textbooks," said Steve Loyola, president of BestWebBuys.com, which operates BestBookBuys.

"If you see a used book at a particular price, it may not be there if you wait a day. Don't procrastinate," he said. Still, it works the other way, too: "Good prices will come and go. You may see that it's $10 today and come back tomorrow and it'll be $5," he said."

Cash and Your College Kid: You may have worked out a plan for those big tuition bills, but don't forget all the little expenses can really add up

"Books:
With book costs for a semester running as much as $1,000, the Web has become invaluable for students. One example: Buying books (including Homer’s Iliad and Euripides’ Medea) for the first semester of Literature Humanities, a core freshman course at Columbia University, would cost $120 at full price. Comparing prices from 21 Web sites at BestBookBuys.com shows that the smartest option is buying used books for a grand total of $54.61, including shipping, from Half.com."

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Back To School

"There is a great Web site called BestBookBuys.com. You can go on, you can search for the best prices in books."

Learning Online: Book Web site offers comparison shopping

"What's the biggest expense after college tuition and room and board? Books. According to the National Association of College Stores, students spend an average of $693 annually on books.

BestBookBuys.com, cited as a top site by Money and Parents magazines for finding deals on books online, offers comparison among such online stores as Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, half.com, Powell's and Buy.com to find the lowest prices for books. BestBookBuys.com calculates total costs, including shipping and applicable taxes, before placing an order and offers a list of 'Hot Deals' from its bookstore partners for additional savings."

Book Value: Read up on your options before investing in college textbooks

"Price a hardcover best-seller in any bookstore, something by Stephen King or Tom Clancy or J.K. Rowling. Now price a textbook of similar size. The difference can be enough to pay for several CDs or a new pair of jeans. Why are academic books so expensive?

One reason is that publishers are selling to a smaller market.

'Very few people are looking for the latest chemistry book,' said Steve Loyola, founder and president of Internet comparison-shopping site BestBookBuys.com, based in Altadena, Calif. 'You have a captive audience. It's a smaller market than the latest "Harry Potter."'

BestBookBuys.com surveys dozens of bookselling Web sites and lists the prices, sales taxes and availability on thousands of books, a time-saver for comparison shoppers. 'All stores on our site pay a commission to us in one form or another,' said Loyola."

"Steve Loyola, CEO of Best Web Buys, was a guest on the Ask Heloise radio show discussing online book buying tips and how to save money by using price comparison websites."

Quick Hits: Book Smarts

"Next time you shop for a book online, try www.BestBookBuys.com, first to compare the goods at 21 websites, like Amazon and Books-a-Million. A search for J.K. Rowling's fifth Harry Potter book turned up prices from $16.19 to $29.99 (even $11.75 for a used copy). You can price-shop for CDs, DVDs, electronics and bikes too."

25 Best Shopping Sites for Families: Sales/Comparison Shopping Sites

"WWW.BestWebBuys.com This site helps you compare prices and shipping on more than 2 million items. For more savings, check the Hot Deals section."

TIPS SHEET:: Save on college books by shopping the Web

"With the economy sputtering and universities raising tuition and fees, parents and students should look for ways to reduce college expenses, including for books, one group says.

After tuition and room and board, book costs are the next big single budget item, with students spending an average of $693 annually, according to the National Association of College Stores.

By doing some comparison shop online for books and supplies, students might be able to save a considerable amount.

BestBookBuys.com, an online retailer, offers several tips on trimming costs:

• Compare prices using shopping comparison sites.
• Do not rely only on the price quoted on comparison sites.
• Confirm the price on a store's Web site.
• Check for online coupons.
• Consider the availability and shipping time for purchases. If you are in a hurry, buy from a retailer with immediate availability and a short shipment time.
• Be aware that not all shopping comparison sites really show the lowest price first. Some give higher placement to stores that pay to be promoted. So click the sort button to find the lowest price.
• Don't finalize your purchase without knowing the sales tax and shipping costs.

"

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Buying Power

"...Just stumbled across www.BestBikeBuys.com, an online shopping site designed to help consumers find the best price on a particular item. In addition, the site offers specials offered by local independent bicycle dealers so as not to entirely exclude the small-guy shop. Looks like a great opportunity to stretch your hard-earned dollars. Of course, it's impossible to replace the expertise of your local shop, but if you're only interested in maximum buying power, this site looks to be one of the most sophisticated on the net (founded originally as the wildly successful www.BestBookBuys.com six years ago)."

Students Recommend Reading for Political Leaders

"Best Book Buys, a leading online price comparison shopping site for college students and a service of Best Web Buys, last month announced the grand prize winner of a $1,500 scholarship for its essay contest, 'What Book Our Political Leaders Should Read and Why.'

In all, 18,815 undergraduate and graduate students across the country, including 34 from Old Dominion, entered the online contest. More than 4,700 books were recommended.

'With the U.S. at war with Iraq, the results of this year's scholarship program are extremely timely for our political leaders," noted Theresa Smith of BestBookBuys.com."

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Really Useful Sites for Really Busy People

"Whether you're looking for Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance or Zen and the Art of Stand-Up Comedy, this site will scour online bookstores to help you find the best price for new and used titles:

www.BestWebBuys.com/books"

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"Shopping online for the holidays? Then save yourself some surfing (and some scratch) with BestWebBuys.com, an online comparison site. Best Web Buys helps you find the best price for books, music, video, electronics and bikes, searching dozens of online stores so you don't have to. The site calculates your total cost (shipping and applicable taxes included), so you get the best price right up front."

Web Sites Make Bargain Hunting Easier

"With the start of the holiday gift season upon us and the country reeling with economic uncertainty, consumers may want to stretch their dollars as far as possible.

According to a poll conducted last summer by Consolidated Credit Counseling Services, a nonprofit debt-counseling organization, Americans plan to spend less this holiday season than they did last year.

One way consumers can save is through online comparison shopping sites. For example, BestWebBuys.com at www.BestWebBuys.com can help consumers compare prices of more than 3 million items at dozens of shopping sites.

This particular Web site covers five specific areas: books, music, videos, electronics and bikes. BestWebBuys does not accept payment from online stores for better placement of their items.

BestWebBuys.com has some nice consumer perks. The site calculates your total cost, including shipping and applicable taxes, before placing your order. It also details 'hot deals' offered by online stores for additional savings.

Comparison sites can help not only in finding the lowest prices but also in checking the availability of dozens of products from online sites and other stores..."

"Next to tuition and room and board, book costs are often the next big budget item to attack a college student's pocketbook.

But BestBookBuys.com can help with a comprehensive line of services offered to save money on the purchase of even the most popular textbooks.

Through online comparison shopping at BestBookBuys.com, students can search among 25 popular online stores, including Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, Powell's and Wal-Mart to find big discounts in seconds.

An example of the buys: Hot college books General Chemistry, Calculus and Analytic Geometry and The Chicago Manual of Style have a combined list price of $282.

A recent search at BestBookBuys.com found the same books selling for a total of $238.86 new and $42 used.

Unlike other online shopping comparison sites, Best Book Buys® calculates your total costs, including shipping and applicable taxes before placing your order, says Theresa Smith, a spokeswoman for the service.

Only bookstores with proven customer service are added as partners and users are able to see the store's rankings before making their selections.

In addition to serving the college market, Best Book Buys - launched five years ago by Best Web Buys - also can help consumers find new, used, closed-out and audio books. Best Web Buys has four other product-specific sites -- Best Music Buys, Best Video Buys, Best Bike Buys and Best Electronic Buys."

Green Eggs, Not Hamlet

"Your typical 'greatest hits' lit syllabus might include Joyce, a little Shakespeare, even some Vonnegutbut not, a new survey reveals, if students were to choose the 'hit list'.

Best Book Buys, an online comparison shopping service, recently asked undergrads, 'What book should be read by all college students?' And the answers B3 received didn't in the least resemble the typical syllabus. Here, the top five picks culled from more than 11,000 responses. Sorry, Will: Not a Shakespeare among 'em:

The Holy Bible
Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
Oh, The Places You’ll Go! By Dr. Seuss
Who Moved My Cheese? By Spencer Johnson, MD
Chicken Soup for the College Soul by Jack Canfield

'Students shared personal experiences about how a book made a difference in their lives,' explained Best Book Buys president Steve Loyola, who is now asking 'What should our political leaders read and why?' Submit your essay by December 15, and you could win one of six scholarships. For more info on the contest, head to www.BestWebBuys.com/books/scholarship.html."

"When freshman Rachelle Fell arrived at Pitt a few weeks ago, her $300 bill for textbooks taught her a lesson that many students know all too well: Books are expensive. In the wake of Pitt's recent 14-percent tuition hike, paying hundreds of dollars for books can be a crippling blow to already depleted wallets. There are, however, several options students can explore to get the best deal.

...

The Internet offers students several options for lower-priced books. BestBookBuys.com is an especially useful Web site because it allows you to search for the exact book you need. The site lists a series of Web sites where you can purchase the book. The list of sites is arranged by the overall costs of the books, shipping and handling included."

"For consumers, instant access to online price information should mean the world more closely approximates to perfectly competitive markets -- often taken as the building-blocks of economics but rarely approached in reality. Rather than sustaining inefficient retailers because the cost and effort of trudging down the high street to compare prices outweigh the gains, online consumers lounge effortlessly beside their terminals while business fights to get the lowest prices to their screens.

...

Even the laziest consumer can therefore switch between online bookstores to find the cheapest, aided by websites such as BestWebBuys.com that help to compare prices..."

"If you're not careful, you easily could burn through a year's worth of spending money in the first few weeks of school. To make sure you still have some cash at the end of your freshman year, spend responsibly. ...

Shop for used textbooks. The savings can be huge. Or check out Internet deals at www.BestBookBuys.com or other online stores."

"Book this Web site: Got a student heading to college this fall? Chances are the bill for textbooks will be a shocker. One way to cut the cost of textbooks -- and any other books you buy -- is a quick visit to Best Book Buys (www.BestBookBuys.com).

The site searches for the best prices for new and used books among 25 online bookstores, including Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble and Powell's. And when the semester is over, students can sell back their books to Best Book Buys regardless of where they were first purchased.

I tested the site using The Chicago Manual of Style (ISBN 0226103897), a common textbook with a list price of $45. Best Book Buys found a new copy at Buy.com for $27.95. Yahoo! (shopping.yahoo.com) has a similar service, but the cheapest price it could find for a new copy of the same book was $29.13."

Bible Leads Students' Online List of Best Books

"Oakland University freshman Korey Campbell recommends that every college student read The Great Gatsby. Campbell, 18, is among 11,388 college students nationwide who responded to the online essay scholarship contest 'The Book All College Students Should Read.' The five top-ranking books cited by the college students who responded to the online competition are The Holy Bible, Tuesdays with Morrie, Oh, The Places You'll Go, Who Moved My Cheese? and Chicken Soup for the College Soul.

Campbell's favorite, The Great Gatsby, was ranked No. 34 among the top 105 books from a total of 3,000 books recommended by students participating in the online scholarship competition sponsored by www.BestBookBuys.com."

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Top College Books

"Students across the country participated in an online essay contest that asked them to write about the one book all college students should read. More than 11,000 students participated in the contest by Best Book Buys, www.BestBookBuys.com, an online book comparison shopping site. Here are the books students recommended the most, with a fittingly No. 1 choice this Easter morning:

1. The Holy Bible
2. Tuesdays with Morrie
3. Oh, The Places You'll Go
4. Who Moved My Cheese?
5. Chicken Soup for the College Soul: Inspiring and Humorous Stories About College
6. To Kill a Mockingbird
7. A Child Called "It": One Child's Courage to Survive
8. The Catcher in the Rye
9. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
10. Ishmael

"

College Kids Put Bible on List of Top Reads

"Headed for college in the fall? You may want to spend some time reading -- or re-reading -- the Bible, Mitch Albom 's Tuesdays With Morrie and Dr. Seuss' Oh, the Places You'll Go! These three titles top the list in a survey asking college students to name the most important book for all students to read. More than 11,000 respondents recommended over 3,000 different titles in the contest sponsored by Best Book Buys, an online book comparison shopping site."

"'I've never heard of Best Book Buys, but if it saves me money on my books I would check it out,' said Jamie Powell, a junior communications major. 'I think it's absurd that we're supposed to spend so much on books and then they give us hardly anything back when the semester is over.'

...Forbes magazine recently rated the web-based company as one of the best on the web in its Dec. 3, 2001 issue. The magazine reported that shoppers at Best Book Buys, 'Find prices on a wide variety of books, videos, music and even bikes.'

The periodical recognized what makes Best Book Buys different from its competitors. 'The site calculates the total cost of the books and the shipping before you order. It also includes delivery time and states where sales tax is charged, so you get the bottom-line figure,' stated Forbes."

Forbes' Best of the Web Pick:

"Find prices on a wide variety of books, videos, music, even bikes. Sort through results by store, store rating and price. The site includes shipping costs, delivery time and states where sales tax is charged, so you get a bottom-line figure. There are also detailed merchant info pages that supply (among other things) e-mail addresses for anyone wanting to cancel an order."

"For students who want to avoid the long lines and big bills at the campus bookstore, there's BestBookBuys.com, an online-shopping bot that compares prices at 25 online bookstores and reports the cost (including shipping and sales tax) for new and used books. We found a copy of Ross L. Finney's Calculus ($124 retail) for $109, and Henry Gleitman's Psychology ($79 retail) for $79. Just make sure you get the right editions! When finals are over, use the site to sell the books back."

"College students may also want to browse BestBookBuys.com, an online comparison-shopping site for new and used textbooks. A search on the site showed that the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, a reference manual for grad students, was selling for $15.06, well below the list price of $23.95. Used copies were as little as $11."

"For those of you who are looking for the cheapest way out, the Internet may be the best place to look. In a day where Internet buying is a common occurence, some Internet companies have the luxury of selling books for lower prices.

Here are a few of the top Web sites to check out before buying your books:

. . .

BestBookBuys.com

Best Book Buys is designed to search through all online deals for textbooks. It will give you simple price estimates and easy ordering information.

Online buying is fairly safe if you use a well-known company, and may prove to be a big money-saver if you can wait for your books to arrive. Shop around, make the best choice and maybe by the time you graduate you will be getting the best deal on your textbooks."

"Oklahoma State University students may not be getting the best deal for their books. With the click of a mouse, students could be saving anywhere from 5 cents to $16.95 on selected school textbooks online. These savings can be found at such online sites as www.BestBookBuys.com. BestBookBuys.com is a collection of search engines that find the lowest price on a particular book and list them to the user."

"Looking for a hard-to-find book and want to know which stores have it and at what prices? Check out www.betbookbuys.com. This site searches up to 26 search engines to find the information you're after. You can find new and used books, including textbooks, on the site. I used the site to find deals on my expensive graduate school textbooks and realized a significant savings compared to the traditional bookstore."

"Other book-related shopbots include Bookradar.com, addALL and BestBookBuys, which search new and used books from various sources, and Respond.com, a shopbot for all kinds of products, including books."

"Meanwhile, bargain book hunters turn to BestBookBuys.com. Type in the title of a book, best seller or otherwise, and a price list, complete with shipping costs, allows you to comparison-shop."

"For scorching deals on the Web, BestWebBuys.com goes the distance to make sure you're paying as little as possible for books, CDs and, oddly enough, bicycles."

"A book by David G. Meyers titled 'Psychology' (sixth edition) was $83 new ($59 used) at both The Book Center and Amazon.com, while Barnesandnoble.com sells it new for $59. A Web site called BestBookBuys.com, which compares prices from many stores on the Internet, found the title for as low as $51.36."

"This fall, book lovers saw discounts disappear for the most part from Amazon.com and Barnesandnoble.com. But bargain books can still be found speedily at the Best Book Buys site (www.BestBookBuys.com)."

"To pay the least amount possible, you can compare prices, shipping fees, availability and taxes at up to 24 booksellers at the shopping bot BestBookBuys.com."

"There's little mystery about where to go on the web if you're in the market for a popular new thriller -- or virtually any in-print title. Even though their discounts aren't as steep as they once were, the big three booksellers (Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Borders) still markdown bestsellers by 20 to 40 percent. To pay the least amount possible, you can compare prices, shipping fees, availability, and taxes at up to 24 booksellers by using the shopping bot BestBookBuys.com."

"...the spread between the highest- and the lowest-priced vendors listed on a Best Web Buys search is often 30 percent or more."

"Saving a buck is a big sales motivator and it's an important part of many effective affiliate sites. A growing number of sites cater to an audience angling for bargains. For folks that want to save a buck on every online purchase, ebates.com offers a unique agreement-shop through their links and they'll funnel those affiliate dollars back into your hands. Anyone looking to get the best price on a book would do well to check out BestBookBuys.com-this site scrapes the Web to come up with the lowest cost for each book, including shipping."

"For books, one of the best ways to do this is by clicking onto www.BestBookBuys.com. This site allows you to search for books by title, author, keyword or ISBN reference, and generates a list of the best prices offered by nearly two dozen different online booksellers. BestBookBuys' charts include information on availability and sales tax, along with estimated shipping charges, and also offer links so that once you've found a price you like, you can order right away. There's also a 'Hot Deals' page that provides data on the special discounts and promotions offered by each of its participating e-tailers."

"Looking for a used copy of Faulkner's As I Lay Dying? Then go to BestBookBuys.com, which searches 29 sites and compares prices, shipping charges and availability of more than 3 million titles. The site also has a 'buyback' feature, which tracks the amount of different sites will pay for used books."

"Best Web Buys is in part responsible for reversing a trend in the bookstore industry, according to company spokeswoman Theresa Smith. A number of the bookstores that www.BestBookBuys.com connects shoppers to are smaller independent bookstores that have an online component."

"Web sites that really deliver. This site lest you search and compare prices at 28 online bookstores, including BooksaMillion.com, Powell's Books, and others you may not have heard of. The novel Hearts in Atlantis by Stephen King, ranged in price from $17 to $32, including shipping. Comparisons also show you whether a book is in stock or back-ordered, how soon it will be shipped, and the approximate shipping cost."

"With more students buying new and used textbooks online, BestBookBuys.com makes searching for the lowest prices an easy task. The company, the president of which is an USC alumnus, released its sales figures recently and revealed that USC was its No. 2 user at the end of last year."

"Best Book Buys (is) a search engine designed to sift through all of the deals onine for college textbooks, this site cuts through all the hoopla and gives you simple price estimates and easy ordering information. A subsidiary of Best Web Buys, this site was named Money Magazine's May 1999 winner for best online book deals. It has a large selection and very good deals on books if you order through BestBookBuys itself."

"[A letter from a viewer] BestBookBuys.com compares prices at about a dozen different sites. I recently bought a book that was priced at $107 at every site but Borders, where it was $69! Of the three technical books that I bought, there was a different best-price site for each."

"Best Book Buys allows users to search by title, author, ISBN, or keyword, at no charge. More online booksellers are reaching out to college students. And more students are trying online purchasing, although many are finding mixed success."

"[A letter from a viewer.] "I prefer to use BestBookBuys.com... I ordered 2 books from them and saved over $5. Great savings.""

"The most satisfying results came from BestBookBuys.com, which pointed me to retailer 1BookStreet.com. There, East of the Mountains costs $15, but shipping is free (for a limited time). That's cheaper than the real-life cost of buying the book from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Borders, which is $16.45 before tax ($12.50 plus $3.95 shipping).

BestBookBuys offers an easy-to-read comparison chart ... and was the only site I surveyed which clearly made this point: Books-A-Million's 55 percent discount is only available to club members, who must pay $5 to join. It also warns you if sales tax is applicable because it asks what state you live in, and tells you about when you'll receive the book."

"The model behind BestBookBuys is quite simple. Consumers looking for a book run a search on the site, and they receive a list of the prices of that book at a variety of online merchants. Select the merchant you wish to purchase from based on price, then click once to get to that merchant's order page for that particular book. (I learned through using this service that Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com, the two dominant online booksellers - and whose prices are well below conventional brick-and-mortar bookstore prices - are nowhere near the cheapest online stores.)"

"The bookseller Amazon.com has always touted its low prices. A search by the bot Best Book Buys for David Remnick's new book, King of the World: Muhammad Ali and the Rise of an American Hero, confirms that Amazon, at $15 for this one, is one of the cheapest sources of books on the Net. But the Best Book Buy search reveals that Amazon's price is not the lowest. That honor again goes to Shopping.com at $12.50.

One of the more interesting aspects of a bot search is that you can see the enormous price range on products. The search for King of the World turned up one company that was selling the book for $25, double the Shopping.com price."

"Compare prices of 26 cyber bookstores at www.BestBookBuys.com."