PLATTSBURGH — There’s a war out there between college students and pricey textbooks.

For many Plattsburgh State students, the burden can lighten wallets by hundreds of dollars every semester. For those enrolled in math, science or health-related majors, book costs can surpass $1,000 every year.

But the scholars are getting creative — by sharing with friends, renting from Netflix-like services or, in the spirit of Napster, stealing PDF books on the Internet.

ALTERNATIVE EDITIONS

Amanda Belden, a senior at Plattsburgh State, doesn’t break any laws to find reasonably priced textbooks. She did, however, take her search global this semester. At the suggestion of her boyfriend, she bought the international editions for two of the books her professors were requiring.

“It’s cheaper, and it has the same content,” said the 22-year-old, who is in her fifth year as a communication-disorders and sciences major.

The books don’t just have the same content but also the same page numbers, she said.

She said she’s racked up plenty of savings over the years just by avoiding the campus’s College Store.

“I do all my shopping for books online.”

Belden gets most books from Amazon.com, but sometimes she’ll buy from eBay. That can take a few weeks, though.

But all that extra effort and waiting pays off.

“Every semester, I usually save about a hundred dollars,” Belden said.

PAYING HUNDREDS

It’s a statement a lot of students wish they could be making. It’s especially true these days, as the cost of just about everything hedges higher and available credit — including money reserved for alternative student loans — dries up amid the financial crisis.