self-teaching anatomy education help

[Flatulence Master]

I've been wanting to teach myself some field of science that I really enjoy doing during holidays so I don't get bored and I've come upon the decision of learning anatomy (mostly human, but some veterinary anatomy too would be cool). I'm not worried about the level of difficulty and commitment it takes to learn anatomy and I will also not be able to do dissections unless I become bored (or crazed) enough to dig up a dead body.I've got a pretty good understanding of physiology and microbiology so I don't plan on reading first-time beginner texts. I've done some searching on my own and have found books that I believe will be helpful:
-The Language of Medicine 9e by Davi-Ellen Chabner
- Grey's Anatomy for Students 3e
- Atlas of Human Anatomy 6e by Frank Netter (I would get Rohans, but like I've said before, I won't be doing any human dissections.)

 

These are only what I've been able to find through previously answered suggestions (which don't fit the way I'm going to learn anatomy), so I'm hoping to get some professional advice on questions like how I should go about self-teaching myself about this topic and if the books listed above are good ones to use? If not, what would be better? Are there any other additional items I may need to get? (I'm hoping to stay within a $300 price range.) Please answer quickly.

[Zaetus]

You chose a good topic to study. The human body is quite fascinating.

 

When I took A&P 2 semesters ago this web application called Visiblebody helped me ace the practical exams. This useful little app lets you break down a 3D model into anything you want, allowing you to zoom in and select an individual part. The name of the part, it's articulation, and a description of the part will be shown to the left. The app does not require internet connection to use but it will open in your browser (Chrome for me).

 

Now that app alone is just for naming and knowing body parts. It won't necessarily teach you the deep anatomy of humans. I recommend any good o' text book such as the ones you had already listed.

 

Anatomy being only a branch of Biology is still a pretty huge subject, but beautiful nonetheless. Good luck!

[physica]

I'd say the opposite. I had to learn anatomy for my first degree and clinical training. Although the fancy pictures look cool for the first 2 weeks it's simply rout learning. Will not improve your reasoning skills and will leave your head if you don't use it. Thanks to the fact that I can rely on google at work now I've forgotten most of mine. I'd say learn maths. It will change the way you look at the world and you'll be able to apply it to a whole range of situations. Maths and physics is becoming ever more powerful in physiology and areas like quantum biology. I'm sure there are other people on here with clinical backgrounds that will tell you the same thing. You know yourself better than anyone else so learn what you want but I urge you to think twice. It's far more rewarding to learn something that challenges you and your view than just memorizing a list of Latin words and their position in the body.

[barfbag]

These are free surgery games. Mostly to allow patients to understand the process, but still free...

 

http://www.agame.com/games/surgery_games/

 

Most courses seem to follow a prescribed textbook, but because of short print runs the costs are usually several hundred dollars. I'd advise buying University texts on preferred areas of knowledge but try to get an older printing (To save $) or use the textbook used previously for that course.

 

Some printing or drafting companies will blow up any photo for approx $8 per square foot. This might be a cheap way to get some of your favorite charts enlarged for your room.