Cengage Advantage Books: Calculus: The Classic Edition [With Infotrac]

I bought this text back in 1993 for $2.95 at a used bookstore in El Cajon, California. It sat on the shelf ever since until August of 2007 when I retired. Then having some time on my hands I went through the text systematically and found the book excellent for self-study. The presentation is excellent and detailed and therefore requires much effort if you wish to understand all of it. All the proofs require quite a bit of effort, specially if you are, like myself, not mathematically proficient. But the effort is well worth it when you get the feeling that you actually UNDERSTAND the stuff beyond knowing just the techniques of calculus. I am told that this edition is out of print and newer editions are now on the market. If you have not been exposed to calculus before and this is your first go-around try other textbooks unless you are good at math. But if you have had some exposure to calculus and now want a fuller understanding of the subject AND you have the time and inclination to pursue the same then grab a used copy.

I was introduced to this book as a Freshman engineering student. Being a bibiliophile, I have sampled other calculus text books. As far as taking a good rigorous standard approach to the subject, it doesn't get better than this. It is certainly superior to the text I used in high school. Concepts are clearly presented with excellent examples. I'll put it like this. When I lost my orginal textbook, I bought a replacement from a used bookstore. This is two years after I was done studying Calculus!

Swokoski's book is easy to read and presents the topics with lots of explaination. There are at least 7 examples fully worked out to help you understand, usually they take 2 or 3 pages per example to show you how he gets the answer and why that method works. The exercises are pretty thorough. With this book and a good professor you can gain a solid calculus foundation.

I just graduated high school. While still in school, I used a swokowski book. It was perfect for me. The first year I took first semester college calculus in an AP class. I was introduced to calculus through this book. Personally, I thought it was a very good textbook, especially compared to previous ones I had used. I got an A in the class and a 5 on the AP exam. Perhaps partly because of the teacher, but the book was essential.The next year I (effectively) had an independent study class for Calculus II (much harder class/concepts!) Once again, I used swakowski. I passed the exam again, this time with a 4 (5 subscore in Calc I).The merits of the book lie in it's concept as calculus as an accumulating course - everything builds up. First we learn the concept of limits, then derivitive, then area, and integrals, then series... and on and on to ifinity ;) Many of the practice exercises draw upon concepts learned much earlier. My favorite part of the book (and perhaps this is only me) was that it showed every derivation for all major theorems. I understood where the theorems and equations were coming from -I understood the concept behind it, rather than learning by rote, which is (shockingly) becoming more the norm (easier for teachers...?). For someone interested in mathematics, especially in the higher-level study, this book is ideal.Also nice: wide margins, extensive example problems, answers to odd problems in back, numbered theorems for reference in later chapters (easier to find!)Not so great: uses a lot of technical/"math" terms - good if serious about math, bad if just started/dabbling/unsure also, tends to build on concepts, so if you're starting this book 1/2 way through, expect some page flippingAlso see if you can get a copy of the solutions manual. helpful to see the STEPS to solving the problem. nice.One more note. My teacher senior year used a new textbook geared entirely toward AP students (ie it took all of the thinking out of the math). I didn't like it. I preferred swakowski. It's a college textbook, so it's not easy. But it gets you thinking the right way. :)

the above reviewer was a bit harsh in their treatment of this fine text. I found this this to be an excellent calculus text for all three semesters of calcI, calcII, and calcIII. It does not however, alleviate the need for hard work and determination in studying, no text can do that. The level of rigor is equivalent to any other text such as stewart's claculus or anton's calculus but does not delve into theory at the level of tom apostol's calculus. An excellent resource for learning basic calculus.