International ed VS. USA ed which should I get?

[Fellowroot]

OK, I'm kind of upset right now and I was hoping someone would have an answer for my question.

Right now I don't have too much money but I need to buy my Classical Dynamics textbook.

The book is Thornton 5th Classical Dynamics of particles and systems.

New at the book store at my school the price is $277.00 dollars.

But online the INTERNATIONAL EDITION is around $40 to $50 dollars.

So what do I do?!

Do I just buy the international edition and "HOPE" that the problems and questions have the same numbers as the US edition?

I did find a US edition for about $150.00 dollars used online but still, what do I do?

Sorry, but I get really upset when I'm in situations like this.

So does anyone know if these two versions are the same?

 

[Stengah]

Generally they are the same. I don't know about your book, but there have been instances where some of the problems are different for some textbooks. You can always find someone who has the US edition in your class to compare problems to make sure, or ask your professor. I've never heard of the chapters being different for international versions though.

 

[jtbell]

International versions tend to be flimsy. A few years ago, one of the students in my E&M course bought the international edition of Griffiths's "Introduction to Electrodynamics." It fell apart before class even began!

Otherwise it worked OK for him. He just had to watch out not to lose any pages.

 

[Sankaku]

Yes, as has been said, International Editions often vary in paper and cover quality. I have had some success, but the PHI (Prentice Hall International) books labelled "Eastern Economy Editions" are particularly low-quality. The McGraw-Hill books I ordered from the UK were much better.

Generally they are exactly the same content-wise, but I can't say for your particular book. The other issue is that the books are often shipped from India and take longer to arrive, and the postal system may not be kind to the book...

 

[ahsanxr]

International versions tend to be flimsy. A few years ago, one of the students in my E&M course bought the international edition of Griffiths's "Introduction to Electrodynamics." It fell apart before class even began!

Otherwise it worked OK for him. He just had to watch out not to lose any pages.

I just bought mine, and it seems rather high quality. The pages are soft and the binding doesn't look like the kind to fall apart easily. Best part of all, it cost 12 dollars, compared to the original one which on amazon is for $125.

OP: I think most of the time international editions have pretty much identical content. The only difference is the cover and the page quality.

Check this link out: http://www.valorebooks.com/textbooks/classical-dynamics-of-particles-and-systems-5th-edition/9780534408961?utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=campusi&utm_source=campusi&buy=3

PS the best source for finding cheap books I've found is dealoz.com. It basically searches pretty much all online book stores and lists the prices each one is selling the book for, so you can choose your pick.

 

[lisab]

I'm taking engineering dynamics right now, and the prof said not to use the international edition of our book because it uses strictly SI units, and "we're training to be engineers in the US", so we have to know both systems. She has a good point.

You should check with the prof, though.

 

[Sankaku]

"we're training to be engineers in the US"

Don't forget Burma or Liberia. You could be an engineer there, too!



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrication_in_the_United_States

 

[Elwin.Martin]

Just throwing in my opinion;

I like most of the intl editions I've received, but you have to be careful and it's good to check if you have an okay return policy. My copy of Apostol may be on slightly flimsy paper, but it's otherwise awesome. My copy of Griffith's Qmech...not so much. See if your university library has it, maybe while you wait for it to come in? Someone you know should have a copy.