Wilz said the store's staff and the easy accessibility to return books is another reason students buy their books from them. She said it is easier for her to walk to the bookstore than to buy online. However, other students have found that the online bookstores are just as convenient, with lower prices. There have been many online bookstores started within the last year, but some of the more popular ones stick out in the advertising world. It has more than 350,000 books, and its discounts on some are as much as 40 percent.
Students can search by title, author, subject or ISBN number at the Web site.
When students find the book they are looking for, the summary appears on the screen and gives the size, weight, edition, copyright, publisher, author and amount saved. There is even a picture of the cover. There are other benefits offered on this Web site, like applications for jobs and scholarships. According to the site, students can save up to 25 percent on their purchases if they buy their books through the Barnes and Noble Web site. The prices for the shipping and handling are not even posted until a customer has committed to buying his or her books.