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(More customer reviews)Pearson makes MyMathLab and related products confusing on purpose. As if it's not already hard enough for most people to understand, they have to go and add "MyMathLab" to the TITLE of a textbook! This "review" is to help all of you understand the difference between the two different listings and ISBN#s for this hardcover textbook.
So, what is the difference? One listing is for the hardcover textbook AND a Mymathlab student access kit, and the other is for JUST the hardcover textbook. That's it. That's the ONLY difference besides price.
Here is a little bit of information for all of you, to keep in mind for any future purchases of Pearson math textbooks:
When Pearson publishes a textbook, it is assigned an ISBN#. When they create a "value package", also know as a "bundle", they will create a DIFFERENT ISBN#, JUST for THAT particular bundle! Usually, there are several different bundles created for each textbook. (Book+mymathlab; book+student's solutions manual; book+student solution manual+mymathlab; book+CD lectures, etc.) When you are given an ISBN# by your college or professor, PAY ATTENTION to what it is that you are supposed to get. ASK your professor if you can. Sometime the colleges list the supplements as required, but the professor says they are optional. You can always go to Pearson's website (google mypearsonstore), punch in the ISBN#, and it will tell you exactly what you should be getting.
I'll go over this again using this book as an example. One listing is ISBN# 9780135024331 (dashes are such a waste of time). This is the ISBN# for the TEXTBOOK. I know the title doesn't say anything about a supplement, but it used to a few months ago - Amazon finally changed it. The title of some Amazon listings CAN have mistakes in them, ESPECIALLY for a bundle listing!
The other listing is ISBN# 9780136065418. This is for the textbook AND a mymathlab student access kit. Notice how the title reflects that. Now some of you think that the book in this listing should have an ISBN# of 9780136065418. WRONG! The book is ALWAYS THE SAME ISBN# (except on rare occasions which does not apply here and is for a discussion some other time). So, if you were to buy this NEW, you SHOULD receive the book with an ISBN# of 9780135024331 AND an access kit, either glued inside the front cover, or with its own ISBN# (there are several different access kit ISBN#'s, but they all do the same thing - and I am ONLY talking about mymathlab powered by CourseCompass here). So, what product has the ISBN# of 9780136065418? There isn't any! When Pearson bundles the different items together, they place a STICKER on the outside of the shrink-wrap with the bundle ISBN#. THAT IS THE ONLY PLACE THE ISBN# ACTUALLY APPEARS! SOMETIMES,the person that opens the shrink wrap will remove the sticker from the shrink-wrap and place it over the ISBN# of the book, but this certainly doesn't always happen. Often, the sticker and ISBN# is thrown out with the shrinkwrap.
So, ISBN# 9780136065418 JUST represents the book AND the mathlab. There is NOT just one physical item with that #, unless a person does as I mentioned above. Even with a bundle ISBN# sticker on the book, however, that does not make it okay to sell "the textbook only" as a BUNDLE. At least in my opinion it's not!
*** IMPORTANT: When buying a used book, NEVER assume that the original supplements are included! This applies to ALL textbooks. Many sellers disclose that now, especially the book resellers (you know the ones with the same standard description for every single one of their books), but there are just as many who do not. Sometimes the omission is intentional, but usually it's an honest misunderstanding of what a listing should actually come with - the seller didn't know the difference between these two listings either, just like (most of) you didn't before now. PLEASE BE AWARE, this can also sometimes be the case for a "new" book being sold from a seller other than Amazon (all of Amazon's "new" books and bundles really are new - just as the publisher sent them) Since you never know when this might be the case, you should always COMMUNICATE with the seller if their description isn't clear - ask questions by sending them a message!
If you have questions, feel free to leave a comment here - I will then get an email notification that you did, and will try to respond as quickly as possible.
I hate to see us college students ripped off, and that is all that the publishers, college bookstores, some professors, and most of the big book re-sellers care about doing - putting OUR money in THEIR pocket! I wish EVERY student would follow this suggestion:
STUDENTS, SUPPORT EACH OTHER!! Buy your books from a fellow STUDENT, NOT one of the big textbook re-sellers'
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College Mathematics: 2009 UpdateCollege Mathematics: 2009 Update with MyMathLab is back and in a brand new updated editionfor 2009.Topics are introduced and reinforced using a step-by-step "spiral learning" approach supported by numerous examples and applications. Throughout the book, examples are presented in bothsymbolic andnarrative form and all concepts are applied directly to careers and professions in Allied Health, Nursing, Computer Technology, Aviation, the Industrial Trades and Technologies, Electronics, CAD, Drafting, Architecture, Agriculture, Telecommunication, Auto/Diesel, Criminal Justice, Fire Science, Business, Hospitality, and Culinary/Food Safety programs. All concepts are applied directly to careers and professions in Allied Health, Nursing, Computer Technology, Aviation, the Industrial Trades and Technologies, Electronics, CAD, Drafting, Architecture, Agriculture, Telecommunication, Auto/Diesel, Criminal Justice, Fire Science, Business, Hospitality, and Culinary/Food Safety programs.
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