Monday, July 30, 2001- The Michigan Daily - 3 Internet offers options for buying, selling textbooks By David Baybik Book buyback has also remained a factor in the Daily StaffReporter online versus traditional store decision Michigan Ward Ernst spends a relaxing Sunday morning at his Dexter farm. Ernst, who will be 90 years old In September, credits charity work and "staying close to the Lord" for his longevity. Veto denies funds for renovations on School bf Public Health at U Book and Supply curre Long lines and lengthy wait times appear to be the that will purchase a tex trend at local "brick and mortar" bookshops across its origin. "Students ma campus. But on-line booksellers such as less of where it was pur ecampus.coit, efollet. cost and a vast array of others VrsityBooks.com is< swarm the market with an insatiable thirst for college ers" that will not pur bank accounts. Although these online book merchants those that do, such as ec have made a presence in the minds of college students costs of shipping to the and an imprint on the textbook industry, students and A third option for st local bookstores don't seem to feel a sharp impact. Close-to-home booksellers see a mar- ginal slump in textbook sales and shrug off online conapanies hy providing suh- stantiated customer service, simple worry-free return policies and reason- ably competitive prices. "We haven't really seen them (online textbook merchants) affect our sales. People aren't satisfied with paying shipping costs and the time involved with searching and waiting for books," said Adam Howell, store manager at Michigan Book and Supply. "We adhere to a general standard, we watch our prices and maintain competitive- ness." According to Howell, the only effects Michigan Book and Supply has seen as . a result of online book offerings is a longer waiting period before purchas- ing. "Students wait longer to purchase their books, and buy them closer to the beginning of the semester," Howell said. "Online sales just offer a negative experience for students." Students take the time to seek other prices online but soon find their time is Students are discovering the conveniences worth more than the three or four dol- online. lars saved. books from one anoth Though on-campus booksellers are able to provide approach to obtaining, instant book gratification, online dealers feel com- student book exchange3 pelled to leverage all facets of the mail order business The Student Book Ex to keep up. run book drive aimed a "Our books ship out in 24 hours and customers seeking endeavors. Stu receive them no later than five business days via sale and set their own UPS," said Chief Operation Manager Mark Uhl. "The days, and the remaining number one advantage is not having to go on campus, reserved for purchasin stand in line, and wade through the crowds each than student receives F semester." the remaining amount Uhl added, "Shipping overnight is possible, and if costs of overhead. The you order it before I1 a.m. EST you will get it the for the fall tet next day." http://wwv.umich.edu/ ntly offers a buyback program tbook in demand regardless of y sell their books back regard- chased," Howell said. among a select few of "e-tail- chase used books online. Of tcampus.om, may not cover the ir warehouses. Louie Meizlish ailyNetsEditor The University's School of Public ealth will have to wait at least another ear for renovations. Michigan Gov. John Engler (R) sed his line-item veto power to ove an appropriation from Senate 1 283. The appropriation would have paved the way for a $43 million bond for proposed renovations. "This item ... would reduce avail- able bond capacity to below $100 mil- lion," Engler explained in his veto message. The current bond capacity is $2.7 billion. Acting School of Public Health Dean Alexander said the move did not e as a surprise. "It was not unexpected given the fis- cal health of the state, which is not the best of late," Alexander said. "We had relatively low expectations that this would sail through this year." Alexander said the renovations would include new offices and laboratories for the school in addition to a wing connect- ing the school's two buildings, the Henry F Vaughan Public Health build- g and the Thomas Francis Jr. Building. 'A lot of the work we do requires laboratory facilities which are becom- ing desperately obsolete," he said. "Since ... (the Francis Building) was constructed, the student body has dou- bled and research has increased nearly threefold," University Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Robert Kasdin wrote in a February 2000 letter to the Board of Regents. *He added the bulk of the renovations would consist of gutting and rebuilding the Vaughan Building, which was built in 1942, while relatively little work would be concentrated on the Francis Building, constructed in 1971. Cynthia Wilbanks, University vice "A lot of the work we do requires laboratory facilities which are becoming desperately obsolete." - Jeff Alexander Acting Dean, School of Public Health president for government relations, said she realized state funding for the renova- tions might be unlikely when the state began using bondsinstead of cash for sev- eral of its major building projects, includ- ing the Michigan Hall of Justice, which will house the state Supreme Court. Alexander and Wilbanks both main- tained that securing funds for the reno- vations remains one of the University's top priorities and vowed to ask the state for the funds once again next year. Alexander does not expect the Legisla- ture to override Engler's veto. State Budget Office spokeswoman Kelly Chesney said the governor did not want to use up all available bond capac- ity in case of emergencies. "We have a lot of projects that are underway ... and many that are in the pipeline," she said, adding current bonded projects include the renovations of the School of Natural Resources and Environment's Charles T. Dana Build- ing and College of Literature, Science, and the Arts' Mason and Haven Halls. As bonds expire, Chesney said, addi- tional bond capacity becomes available for new projects. Chesney said she did- n't know when bonds for the renova- tions would be available. In the meantime, Alexander said minor renovations would be underway but major renovations will not be under- taken until state funding becomes avail- able. In addition,he said,the Uiversity is seeking funds from private donors. ier. An increasingly popular textbooks is through mediated programs. change is a non-profit student- at aiding students in their book dents bring in their books for asking price for the first two g two days of the exchange are g. If a student's book is sold, 85 percent of the revenue and goes to the SBE to cover the SBE's selling and buying dates rm may be found at -sbe. Account Executive I otthe Week lob Glaza The Michigan Daily would like to thank Shaman Drum for their donation JACKSON (cy N 9{ v Iy W L ht 'S' 7 i QIVI uS A CHANCE TO EA ANYONE ELSE'S ATAT _ _ _ ..