I see/appreciate your reply on the location. I can see where the transportation PITA would be worth having the ideal setup once you arrive!
As a thought... Can you buy the book online and then apply the cost as a credit toward taking a future course? Might help to break up the $$.
You can buy the books, but i don't give the full credit price back towards the class for lots of reasons. I do give about a $50 discount to anyone who has bought the books previously - but in the class, there are almost ALWAYS updated versions of the book that i supply everyone with. If you bought the books now, and didn't come to the class, the books used in the class are going to be different, and what we are working on as a class (EFI is getting ready to release new software so i have 4 sets of the old books left for sale and then i have to go update the books to match the newer software, where applicable)...
So - that is part of the reason i don't credit the full price, because i want everyone in the class to be working from the same thing - not being a page or two behind or missing something that everyone else has. That might sound wrong on my part, but as much work and cost as goes into making those books and keeping them updated with changes so that at class time everyone has 'current' information to take home with them - well, that's just how I do it.
I understand wanting to get a jump on the class though. alot of the information in the current books won't change at all. Some of it will though, and until i have the new official software in my hands i can't really start making changes to the book so it's cutting things close on time as it is to get updated info into the books, and get them printed and ready for the classes.
Sorry that's not what you were hoping for, but i hope it makes sense...