Padd Solutions

More and more textbook rental services are popping up. BookSwim and BooksFree are two new examples for subscription based book rentals. Subscription book rental work much like a monthly magazine subscription but you can change the magazine at the end of a semester. That means you could easily switch your History 1 for History 2, after the fall semester ends and spring semester ends.

Chegg and BookRenter are true book renters. These last two will also donate on behalf of the renter to a favored charity. Some book renters tout that they are cheaper, socially responsible and eco-friendly.

Amazon is offering a special program for anyone with a .edu email address. The offer allows subscribers to order books with free two day shipping so a student order books after a schedule is set. Always check prices at Half.com and Barnes and Noble.

The Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 goes into effect this year. So in theory textbook prices will become cheaper. In compliance the AC Bookstore allows the student to view by ISBN or search by course number. Very helpful, until the site shows you that there are no new or used books available for the class you are looking at taking.

It would be great if there was a way for a student to use financial aid money online and just show the receipt/invoices of purchased books. If you are dependent upon financial aid to buy books you have to use the bookstore. In the past I have saved my money to buy books before the semester begins then reimburse myself once my financial aid comes in. I always watch the kiosk boards looking at what fellow students are offering their own books at discounted prices.

What I would like to see is a student coop or union buy books with students and alumni. Alumni could also help fund such an endeavor. The Student Book coop would rent the books back to students. An e-community would probably work best. Of course educators would have to cooperate and stop requiring new editions every few years or so.

This would really work for students and colleges because the money students spend on books would go back to students, instead of some antiquated publishers who have yet to cross the digital divide of online books. We all know the reason there is a new Intermediate Algebra edition every few years is to profit the publishers. Not because there is new information on linear mathematics.

It is very frustrating to lug around a six pound book, costing $150, that a teacher is only going to use 50 pages or so and assign only the odd number problems.

My Oceanography kit was only good for the Fall/Spring and Summer of 2009/2010 semesters. It will get axed for a whole new kit. Reselling that edition just will not work either. This seems to happen to many of the classes that have a whole kit of books and lab supplies.

So what are your textbook buying techniques? Do you rent, buy or borrow? Do you buy the new book and buy the expired cans of soup, instead?

Testing is a reality that some would rather delete from our experiences. You get tested to start school and to get out of school. There are tests for employment, parenting, driving a car, and just about everything else. Some tests are easy. Sometimes the environment for taking a test can make the test seem difficult.

The Testing Center at AC does try to make the testing environment not to strict. The testing aides are pleasant and helpful. There are the signs posted about the consequences of cheating. The cameras in the corners are obvious. Spacious testing desks and carpeted floor make for a nice facility. For the GED test, it is very different.

Lots of people have to take the GED test. Most take the GED because they did not finish high school. International and immigrant students may be required to take the GED. Some are forced to by the state due to criminal behaviors.

There are several facilities available to study for the exam. Lots of study guides and test prep books. They all are very helpful.

Because the degree, whether high school equivalency or GED, is so necessary, I was intimidated by the test and I avoided the test for the longest time.

When I went to the Testing Center to start the GED testing, I almost walked out and said "Forget it!"

The GED test itself is not difficult. Easier to take if you have done any of the prep programs available for free. Due to some people's inability to understand and follow instructions, everyone who takes the test has to experience a hard line of instructions and stern testing aides.

Here are some things GED testers need to take into consideration when in the GED testing zone.

• When you go for the test, the testing aide will take up the phones, bag them, and place them in a box. You are instructed to turn off your phone. If your phone goes off during the testing, you are out. No refund. You have to retest later and pay a retesting fee. Do not take your phone with you. Leave it in the car or at home.
• Leave your whiney-butt-high-school-foolery indifferent attitude, at the door. No one really cares about your latest tattoo or how your newest dealer scammed your first score with him. I can understand why the lovely testing aides have to act like those mean teachers you skipped out on at high school.
• Bring every piece of identification requested, every time, to every test. Repeat.

Currently the Testing Center is participating in a GED computerized test experiment. It does not count towards your GED scores. Participating in the experimental test will get your GED costs refunded and then some. Taking the computerized GED gives you an idea of what the real tests are like.

Paula Sosebee, is the GED Coordinator, and can answer all your questions.

I am not quite ready for the English Composition CLEP. Still studying and preparing. I will let you know how the CLEP test will go. Nola Bartling is the CLEP Coordinator.

Short weeks through me off. July the 5th was a holiday for banks, institutions, and many businesses. Not for retail of course. For students loaded up on college courses it was just a busy day. The day after a holiday gets me tilted. I got involved with my studies, getting school stuff finalized and the day was moving along. I realized to late in the day I had missed the Summer Cookout that I had planned on attending. Did anybody go? I had a lonely peanut butter and jelly sandwich instead.

Part of any schooling is taking a test. I am one of those students, who can study for a test, have a great attitude about my knowledge. Then when the test is placed before me, my mind goes blank. My blood pressure skyrockets, I begin to wonder why I am putting myself through school, and test anxiety takes over. I really hate taking tests.

One of the places that you will get to know here on the campus is the Testing Center. Everybody gets to make several trips there for many different reasons. Unless you are exempt from the Accuplacer, there are other reasons to visit. I have done almost every basic test they have available. I have some tips in dealing with the testing center and taking the different tests.

The first test you will deal with is the Accuplacer. The Accuplacer is a adaptive test, meaning there is no pass or fail grade. The Federal guidelines require the Accuplacer for Ability to Benefit for students with out high school diplomas to receive federal financial aid. This is a computerized placement test that will assess your knowledge of English, mathematics and reading. Take the time to study up on the basics for this test. Google the Accuplacer for practice sites. For studying up on the math go to the WTAMU Virtual Lab.

I did not have any problems with the English or reading parts of the test. I suggest reviewing some grammar basics and the how to write a essay. Sentence structure and reading comprehension are two different types of grammar functions to add to your studies. For the Accuplacer you will type a essay based on a random subject. Read over the basics of writing an essay. You will need to come up with 300 to 500 words that will support the stated theme.

There are three different areas to the mathematics part of the test. Basic arithmetic operations, elementary Algebra and college mathematics. My math score was low enough to place me at the basic mathematics level. When you take the Introduction to Algebra class you have to take the math part of the Accuplacer again as part of completing the class. It took me five semesters to go from basic mathematics to college algebra. Know your mathematics really well if you want to avoid the basics of math and algebra.

In my next post on the Testing Center I am going to cover the GED. There is a big difference with the GED and how the testing center deals with you.

Here is a trivia question for you. Who won the Tri-State Fair Canned Foods in 2007?
That would be humble ol' me. Let me tell you how that happened.

In the summer of 2007 my mother brought me a bushel of Colorado peaches on a visit here during the summer. I was perplexed on what to do with so many peaches. So I froze and canned the bushel over the weekend.

I was entering a black and white photo in the Photography Contest and thought that entering something else would be good too. So I grabbed a jar of the peaches and entered them. The peaches got a blue ribbon.

I am going to enter something again this year. So today when the Golden Spread Farmers Market opens I'll be getting some vegetable and fruits.

If you really want to get a good taste of the local market head to the market. The local Panhandle Coop of farmers harvest the crop on the day before and then sell them the next day. The market opens a 6:30 until everything is sold out. It really is best to get there on time if you want the best choices and avoid lines at the corn and watermelon farmers stand.

There are other things that the farmers sell beside the crop. There are fresh cut flowers, seasonal decorations and some canned items. The Potter/Randall Agriculture Extension usually has a table with information on local growing tips.

Are there any other foodies out there? I am always looking for good recipes and cooking tips.

Several news outlets today reported that a Dallas Dollar Tree customer made a purchase of a banner of an American Flag. There were some issues with the banner that the customer noticed and made a complaint. The flag banner had 61 inverted stars all clustered in the blue background. The red and white strips were placed incorrectly top to bottom. The flag banner was made in China.

It's just a banner. It is not a real flag.

So why the big deal? Would there really be an issue if the July 4th Holiday was not upon us?

The American Dream has become a bad diet of consumer economy debt feed to us by commercial materialism from large corporations who are trying to live the dream of Capitalism. Is it really all that bad? We as a nation have really lost sight of our goals.

I can not think a colonial farmer who would spend all their time and money to have a green front lawn like modern city folk do.

So what is the American Dream? If I relied on consumerism to tell me the definition is anorexic and shallow.

You get an education, to get a better job, to buy stuff.
But the stuff never lasts.
It isn't so cool to have the cool gadget of last month.
The style changes.
The music gets stale.
The ipod will die.
The computer will get a virus or the OS changes and all your games no longer work.
Worse, you drop your phone in the toilet.

I am just sure I can not buy into this American Dream. I really would rather talk face to face than twitter my friends. I would rather really kiss my wife than emoticon xoxo's.
Don't send me a youtube video of you jumping your bike down at the canyon. Tell me the exhilarating experience over a cold one. Show me the scraps and cuts too.

There is the human experience that we have taken out of the staple of this American Dream.
What do you do to bring the American Dream into reality? You could really help a parent
who is being pressured to buy a teenager a new ipod. Just because the "black one doesn't have
as much gigabytes as the white."

After making a decision that I need to move through my college curriculum at an accelerated pace I am going to CLEP some of my core hours. English 1302 will challenge my grammatical and style ability. I hope to avoid some prevalent violations that I commonly catch myself doing. Here's a look at 8 of my common writing glitches:

1. Its vs. It's No big surprise by this one. It has plagued my writing because common sense nudges me towards seeing the apostrophe as a possessive instead of a contraction. Commit to memory this phrase. It-apostrophe-s has one meaning -- a contraction for it is. Everything thing else is its.
2. Then instead of than I tend to over use than, misplacing then, in my fictional writing.
3. Cliches Not including the accent over the 'e' doesn't go the whole nine yards on this puppy. For me it is just a sign I am getting lazy in my writing.
4. Overuse of 'that' It gets overwhelming to see how many times that is used when trying to make a point that needs some supporting description or evidence. Try to read the sentence again with the 'that' taken out and see how it sounds. Does it have to be there? If not, nuke it. Also, don't confuse who and that.
5. Comma Splices There is phenomenon that I try to stay away from, once I have delivered the subject-verb-object content of sentence structure. Instead of attaching a comma to a butt end of a sentence. Just end it. Don't even go a third or fourth time. Writing a sentence needs not be a buffet experience to fill the paragraph.
6. One word vs. two words Some common mistakes with adjectives and nouns are to use a one word version instead of the proper two word version. I blame laziness of email and everyday usage of the advertising media. Billboards, menus, and ads full of slogans that promise "Everyday Value", or "Everyday Freshness." Everyday is an adjective. When will Walmart start promising savings or freshness everyweek or everymonth.
7. Acyrologia Nope not a horrible disease. Though I am sure there are many english professors who would disagree. Acyrologia improper use of a word. The prescribed treatment is a Dictionary/Theusarus combination paperback. Use often. I often see this kind of examples in the sports section of the newspaper.
8. Dangling Dependent Run-on Sentences I work really hard to avoid these things in my writing. I already have too many dependents who dangle their run-on sentences with emoticons I don't understand in txt messages I rarely understand. Why create more?


I know I have more writing issues to work on and through. I know the CLEP will not be easy, in fact, it might be easier to take the class than to test out of it. Got to give it an attempt. What are your writing or grammar issues? If you need to find out more about the CLEP you can visit the Testing Center on campus and pick up a brochure.

My name is Brandon Carpenter and I will be adding my Amarillo College experiences to the AC blog. I plan to tell you, not in a cloyingly cheerful way, what you can expect here at Amarillo college through what I experience.
Let's finish the introduction.
The economy and technology advances have created an opportunity to change. I am a returning student, changed my major, to a degree that has more possibilities. I am a husband, father, step-father, full-time student, somewhat employed. With my degree plan in Mass Communications I plan on working in New Media Journalism.
I still get to keep doing some of the technology I have been using in the workplace and to continue to write. Hopefully to even get paid for writing.
For my summer classes, I decided to fill plate with Government in Texas, Oceanography, Intro to Mass Communication and the TV Workshop. All my classes are online classes, except for the TV workshop.
The TV Workshop focuses on screenwriting. There are eleven students in the class, all I think are Mass Comm. majors. I will have to let you know more about the class and what the results will be. There just might be Quentin Tarantino on campus.
Oceanography does have complete kit and manual. The online lessons heavily use the American Meteorological Society and the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration websites.
The Government in Texas is quite insightful. There is no physical textbook, the online lessons contain the reading material and lecture notes. I still think it could use some audio or video links.
The Intro. to Mass Communication has been revelatory. Opening my eyes to media ethics, entertainment buzz and insight about the industry. That class is taught by Jill Gibson, who is 2010 dual recipient of the John F. Mead Award.
Of course all these classes take lots of study time, but I do schedule some time with family.
Follow along and I will share insights and helpful tips at the AC campus.

How do you feel about food here in Amarillo? I used to think that small town equals small food choices, but lately I've been finding some truly good eats in our panhandle city. Here's a few of my favorites so far.

Hey guys! Long time no update. I really apologize for my absence around here. Things got crazy over spring break and they're just starting to settle back down a little bit, so hopefully I can catch you up on some things.