Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 11, 2000)
Text prices compared online I By Derek Lippincott Staff uniter Money is a luxury that most col lege students don’t have. It is also the basis for advertising campaigns of several online textbook distributors. Many major online textbook dis tributors claim to save students money and time with lower textbook prices and no bookstore lines. The distribu tors all have their own prices, shipping rates and taxes. Making its debut Aug. 15, 1999, anystudent.com began to offer a text book price-comparison service of all the major online textbook distributors. Hansmeet Sethi, director of busi ness development for anystudent.com, said the Web site has received a lot of traffic, especially at the beginning of new semesters in August and January. “You obviously save time by not standing in a line,” Sethi said. “You also save time and money with anystu dent.com because you’re not spending •• It’s a lot more reassuring to seek out my books in person. $ time surfing around on different Web sites trying to find the lowest prices on textbooks.” Sethi said he’s received e-maif and phone calls from students who have used the service. “Professors are calling us and ask ing for our link on their courses’ Web sites because they want to save their students money,” he said. Anystudent.com compares the textbook prices of the various online distributors as well as their shipping costs, availability and taxes. Robert Carlson, University of Nebraska-Lincoln University Bookstore director, said online text book distributors are not always true to their advertising. jim noue UNL freshman “A distributor might advertise that they’ll give you up to 40 percent off of bookstore prices,” Carlson said. “That might be the case with only one book in one university’s book store, but because they have that one book, it’s not false advertising.” In many cases, Carlson said, the money you save on your textbooks by shopping online will be made up by the shipping costs. Jim Hoke, a UNL freshman, said he doesn’t feel comfortable ordering his textbooks over the Internet, and price is not a factor. “I’m skeptical about how com plete a Web site is with textbooks,” Hoke said. “It’s a lot more reassuring to seek out my books in person.” CD program gives smokers the facts Start the new year off right with dailyneb.com ■ A new disc offered by UNMC educates people about smoking effects. By Jill Zeman Staff writer Every year millions of people make New Year’s resolutions. Every year millions of people break them. This year, smokers trying to kick the habit can get a little more help in keeping their resolutions because of a new program. The University of Nebraska Medical Center has created the “Guide to Quitting: Facts about Smoking Cessation,” an anti-smok ing compact disc. The interactive CD is a step-by step guide for smokers to understand why they smoke and how it affects their bodies, said Paul Magistretti. Magistretti works at the Nebraska Office for Tobacco Control and Research at UNMC. The CD explains the physical and psychological effects of smoking, Magistretti said. It was sponsored by a grant from Nebraska Health System University Hospital Auxiliary in ---———— The Largest Selection Of ‘ Used & New Textbooks ... 1998. “It is a very useful tool in teach ing people what’s going in the lungs when they smoke,” Magistretti said. One goal of the project was to avoid generalization and focus on the individual. The best method to stop smoking varies from person to person, Magistretti said. The interactive guide suggests ways to quit smoking: nicotine patch es, nicotine gum, counseling ses sions, medication and cold turkey. The CD features video clips of smokers giving personal testimonies, which allows viewers to find some one they can relate to and see how smoking affected someone else’s life. The guide can be especially use ful for college students because many of them don’t think about the long term effects of their actions, Magistretti said. The CD doesn’t condone or con demn smoking, it just gives viewers the/acts. “This isn’t a ‘don’t smoke’ CD. It just tells what can happen to you if you do smoke,” Magistretti said. Emily Williams, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln freshman ele mentary education major, thought the CD could be beneficial to some people. I don t think the CD will moti vate people to stop smoking, but if someone really wants to quit it could be helpful,” Williams said. Glenn Connot, a UNL freshman anthropology major, quit smoking on Dec. 31, 1999. He said he quit for a variety of reasons: the cost and smell of ciga rettes, as well as family and friends complaining about his smoking. Connot said he would use the CD if there were more available. “I wouldn’t go to the library and use it, but if it was handed out at Big Red Welcome or came in the mail, I would look at it,” he said. Because of limited funding, the CD is not yet available for individu als. It has been distributed to public institutions such as libraries, high schools and churches, but it is not yet available at UNL’s Love Library. ■ I