Textbook and Aplia
requirements:
This course requires the use of online Aplia software. This software is included in the price of a new textbook purchased from the ISU bookstore or directly from Aplia. Most importantly, students will work on problem sets (about once a week) by visiting Aplia's webpage. Aplia has tailored these problem sets specifically to our Hall & Lieberman textbook. Students may work together on the problem sets. We will also use Aplia for class experiments, graph tutorials, economic news, and extra credit assignments. Outlines of my lecture notes will also be accessible from that website (beginning with the second lecture).
Students can obtain an Aplia license in one of two ways:
Option 1 (highly recommended): Buy a new copy of the Hall & Lieberman textbook bundled with an Aplia license code. The total cost is $170 if you buy the bundled textbook at the bookstore or $132.50 if you buy the same package directly from the Aplia website (after you pay $80 for the software, their website will offer the physical book for $45 + $7.50 shipping). The price of using Aplia is included in the price of buying the textbook. In addition to owning a physical copy of the textbook, you will also be able to read an identical online version at Aplia's website. They use "flashpaper" technology that makes the online pages look identical to those in the physical textbook.
Option 2 (acceptable, but less recommended): To save money, you can bypass purchasing a physical copy of the textbook and rely exclusively on the online version. This option entails purchasing an Aplia license at their website for $80 (or at the bookstore for $90.60) with nothing else to buy. I don't think students learn as well from an online book, and past experience has shown that many students eventually wish they had purchased a physical textbook. Nevertheless, it is your choice and may depend on your financial situation. If you try the online-only option and later change your mind, Aplia will sell you a physical textbook at a price that allows you to break even compared with the price you would have paid in the first place.
Notes:
(a) I'm told that the campus bookstores pre-package textbooks for
incoming freshmen students. The pre-packaged book will include an
Aplia license code. That is, the pre-packaging will reflect Option 1
above, and you'll be all set. (In the event that you might wish to
return the pre-packaged items, you shouldn't open them.)
(b) Aplia does not require
immediate payment for the license. You can use Aplia until Sunday,
Sept. 13
without paying - e.g., if you're temporarily short on funds or not sure if
you want to stay in the class. (Again, if you have purchased a
textbook with Aplia, then you have already paid.)
(c) Be sure not to buy a version of the new textbook that doesn't include an Aplia license (check for an Aplia logo on the textbook cover). If you do, you won't be able to do the problem sets or participate in the class experiments without paying an additional $80 license fee. You'd almost certainly be wasting money compared with Option 1.
(d) It is
rarely cost-effective to buy a used textbook for this class because used
books do not include an Aplia license. The combined cost of a used
textbook plus the $80 Aplia fee generally exceeds the total cost under
Option 1.
(e) I'm not affiliated with Aplia or the textbook publisher and receive no
financial compensation from them.