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Are these textbooks good?

 
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Feb14-13, 02:48 PM   #1
 

Are these textbooks good?


I've finished my first semster (which included Calculus 1 and Physics: Mechanics). I'm currently in my second semester (which includes Calculus 2 and Physics: Waves and Fields).

So apparently the textbooks that my university assigns are terrible according to the reviews here. So I'm looking for supplemental books, but I'm totally overwhelmed. Can anyone help me lower my number of choices?

For physics (waves & fields):

http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=670160
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=666388
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=666108
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=665636
http://www.amazon.com/Vibrations-Wav...=vglnk-c905-20
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=665800
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=666677
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=666185
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=666083
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=665596
http://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=666157

For calculus 2:
Will finish this later. I have to go to class right now.
 
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Feb15-13, 03:35 PM   #2
 
Mentor
You should name the books here so that we don't have to click on every link. But it can't be a bad idea to include the links as well.
 
Feb16-13, 12:03 AM   #3
 
Did you even click on the Amazon links for those books? Most of the books you listed do not even cover the subject you wish to supplement. You should have waited until you were done with class to make a proper post.
 
Feb16-13, 01:05 AM   #4
 

Are these textbooks good?


Quote by Mmm_Pasta View Post
Did you even click on the Amazon links for those books? Most of the books you listed do not even cover the subject you wish to supplement. You should have waited until you were done with class to make a proper post.
Can you be more specific?
 
Feb16-13, 01:07 AM   #5
 
For those who prefer the titles:

Problems in General Physics
The Road to Reality
The Feynman Lectures on Physics
Mathematical Methods of Classical Mechanics
Vibrations and Waves
Classical Dynamics of Particles and Systems
Newtonian Mechanics
Vibration and Waves
Classical Mechanics
An Introduction to Mechanics
University Physics with Modern Physics
 
Feb16-13, 01:15 AM   #6
 
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Quote by InvalidID View Post
For those who prefer the titles:

Problems in General Physics
The Road to Reality
The Feynman Lectures on Physics
Mathematical Methods of Classical Mechanics
Vibrations and Waves
Classical Dynamics of Particles and Systems
Newtonian Mechanics
Vibration and Waves
Classical Mechanics
An Introduction to Mechanics
University Physics with Modern Physics
People usually recognize textbooks by the authors and less by the titles. So you might want to list the authors...
 
Feb16-13, 01:28 AM   #7
 
For those who prefer the authors:

I.E. Irodov
Roger Penrose
Richard P. Feynman, Robert B. Leighton and Matthew Sands
V.I. Arnol'd (Author), K. Vogtmann (Translator), A. Weinstein (Translator)
A.P. French
Stephen T. Thornton (Author), Jerry B. Marion (Author)
A.P. French
George King
Herbert Goldstein (Author), Charles P. Poole Jr. (Author), John L. Safko (Author)
Daniel Kleppner and Robert J. Kolenkow
Hugh Young, Roger Freedman, Lewis Ford
 
Feb16-13, 03:13 AM   #8
 
IMO, you shouldn't always trust reviews on Amazon...often times there are negative reviews from students who expect to be spoon-fed :)

If you've already covered a semester of mechanics than I think K&K's mechanics text would be good (I'm learning mechanics 'properly' from it but sometimes refer to a more standard text for clarification). I like the questions in it - really makes you think about the physics.
 
Feb18-13, 03:46 PM   #9
 
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This list may be helpful:
http://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~abhishek/chicphys.htm
 
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