I got into Oregon State University’s post-bacc computer science degree program! Fall quarter begins September 21st, 2016 and I’m excited to start. (More on that later!)
This post, however, is about the book I needed for the first class, CS 161. The book, “Starting Out With C++: Early Objects (9th Edition)”, is available on Amazon, but it is expensive. And it has a 1-2 week processing wait.
That wasn’t gonna cut it – class starts next week.
I wanted a real dead tree book, not an ebook, and I live too far from OSU to “rent” the book from their bookstore for the quarter. My search led me to something called the “Student Value Edition” of Starting out with C++: Early Objects”.
The “Student Value Edition” is significantly cheaper than the usual version. But it had no reviews, and I couldn’t find anyone else talking about it online, so I was kind of hesitant to order it.
(I ordered it anyway.)
I’m happy to report that this book is the real deal.
It arrived 3 days after I ordered it. It’s basically an unbound stack of papers 1.5 inches thick. Nothing holds it together except for the plastic sleeve it arrives in.
Other than that, though, it’s exactly the same content you’d get with an actual binding and cover. It’s in color, printed on both sides, and the individual pages are thin(ish) but probably no thinner than what’s in the actual book.
An inexpensive 2″ slant-ring binder like this one solved the lack of binding problem.
And there you have it – a slightly more affordable way to get CS 161’s book in paper format.
As for the book’s actual content, I’ll be working through it over the next 11 weeks and I’ll let you all know what I think. I’ve read the first two chapters and it looks like it’ll be a solid introduction to computer science fundamentals textbook.
If you’re starting CS161 soon and want to save some money on the book, check out the “Student Value Edition” of Starting out with C++: Early Objects”.
How is the program. I am considering
Applying for the program ,