So,
let's go on buying self-defense books!:
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There
are basically two formats to consider when
you are buying selfdefence books, manuals
and booklets (or any other
topic for that matter). On one hand is the electronic
book
(e-book). This is 99 % of the time
either in the Acrobat pdf-format (from Adobe),
or in the form of an exe-file, opening the
book as a html documents or similar. You can read
more about the obvious advantages of the
e-book here: Why
e-books? - click
here.
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On
the other hand you have the tried and tested
paper-book, either in a hard cover or a
soft cover (paper-back) variety. The paper-book
will be more expensive to buy and ship,
you have to wait for delivery or travel
to a bookstore in order to purchase it. But the advantages are that
you can bring it with you, write notes in
it, you don't need a computer (or a dedicated
hand-held reader or PDA like the Palm) to enjoy it. There is
also the reassuring side to having a physical
medium to hold.
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As
you can see both the traditional paper book
and the e-book have their pro's and con's.
Personally I enjoy both, but I often end
up buying e-books because they can be downloaded
and put to use the very instance that
you purchase them. Who can resist the
instant gratification syndrome :-)
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Buying
new?:
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Naturally,
if there's a bookstore close by, you would
try there first. Most of them are very helpful
in finding a particular item for you
- after all that's their job. Most places
are hooked up to databases and the Internet,
and they can quickly tell you if a
book is possible to get..
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Then
you can use the Net yourself to buy self-defense
books. How's that for a suprise! The "all-mighty" Google
will find stuff most of the time. Be aware
of all the advanced features that are hidden
within the Google-search. Like if you put
a word combo in brackets "like this",
then Google will search for that exact phrase.
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The
place I recommend for new books is Amazon
(do a search here). They have a fantastic
selection of books, the prices are great,
and the shipment is fast too. Never had
any problems with them. It is also a good
place for purhasing used selfdefence books
too, and they have other
suppliers using their network to sell books.
The best thing about Amazon is the reviews.
Even if you don't purchase there, it is
possible to find what other readers think
about a book. By the way they hav lots of
DVD and other stuff as well...
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There
are also lots of manuals, syllabus booklets
and similar that you can obtain only from
a web-site or supplier servicing a
special school, style or organisation. Eventually
you will find most of them here. In the
meantime, you need to do a bit of hunting
on your own.
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Where
do you look for secondhand books?:
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How
to find selfdefence books, manuals etc.
secondhand? The
best place I've found is a place called
Abebooks - the
perfect place for buying self-defense books.
They are basically a huge (and I do mean
huge) chain of Internet based book-shops
dealing with used, out-of-print and rare
books. The search function is great, and
the prices are moderate. Naturally, the
collectible stuff is seldom cheap, but it
is very often that you can find great,
old books to really nice prices! I have
bougt tons of books from them, and have
never had any problems what so ever. I highly
recommend you try them out!
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There's
a lot of secondhand selfdefence books,booklets,
articles and other itmes out there, just
waiting for you... A
great avenue to these used, but not abused,
selfprotection books is the great eBay. The things
that you cannot find there I would really
like to know about... Millions of items
are being auctioned there every year, and
you will find the book you are looking at.
Now, there are a few things you should know
about E-Bay, and how to get great deals.
I suggest you go to this special page I
have created to find that out! Oh and by
the way, below you have some real-time self-defense
book auctions going on at E-bay:
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Then by all means,
let's not forget the library! Guess
what, they've got books - lot's of them
even :-) It's not the place to go if you
wish to be purchasing self-defense books
and material of course. But maybe
you wish to "try before you buy",
or just need to find a single chapter, some
bits and pieces of information? Why
not just drop by the library and see if
they can help you out?
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As with new books
I really recommend you search Google.
I've found lots of interesting stuff
just by searching there. Do remember
that there are heaps of independent bookstores
and antiquarians - people you need to know
where to look for. Many (if not most of
them) are online. And guess what - if you
search for a particular book, then you will
find it if it is registered with a certain
store or antiquarian. These people are dead
honest and really dedicated, and they will
do everything they can to help you!
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Happy hunting -
have fun! Getting hold of that special item
can be really rewarding.
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