Resources for probability and counting I'm currently taking a Discrete probability course at my University.It isn't going to well,the grad student taking the place of the professor is not able to teach the material effectively.Nor are there any real resources provided by the professor for self learning.Basically I feel defeated.
These are some of the problems included on our last test to give you an idea      of what i'm looking for.
Test problems,     More, More.
I've tried Trev tutor videos and A First Course in Probability by Sheldon Ross but I haven't found them to be too helpful.Are there any other resources that you can suggest to help me?Do you believe I need to just try harder,I've been trying to put in 3 hours a day to study some of these problems but I get stuck a lot and I can't find clear examples that  are similar to the professors work.These seem to be traditional problems but I've been having trouble googling similar questions to them.Any advice would help,thanks a lot.
 A: Ross is a popular and well-written text, but I would not recommend it for
self-study. For one thing, Ross is fond of paradoxes, which are most instructive
only if you can get help with the ones you don't understand. And it doesn't
seem you have a lot of help available.
The first few chapters of the math stat book by Wackerly, Mendenhall, and
Scheaffer have lots of worked examples. You may be able to get an older
edition cheap online. (Differences among editions are unimportant for
self-study.) There are (sometimes cryptic) answers to many of the problems
in the back of the book. A probability book by Scheaffer covers most of
the probability topics and may be less expensive.
The probability book by Grinstead and Snell has a lot of nice examples
of discrete probability in the first few chapters. Although the book is available in hardback, authorized digital
copies are available for free from a web site at Dartmouth. There is a little
discussion of computation and simulation (using BASIC) in this book.
Nowadays, you might prefer to get familiar with R statistical software
instead of using BASIC. (R is high quality freeware with lots of help
sites online. As with any software, just learn to use what you need, and
don't worry about vast capabilities that are irrelevant to your purposes.)
In particular instances, you might get some help on this site. You
will get best results if you explain briefly when you are doing self-study, ask one question at a time, suggest topics that you think might be relevant, say what you have tried, and/or try to explain why you need help. Don't let
participation here act as a distraction or substitute for working lots of
problems on your own.
Finally, although you might not have the highest regard for the course you are taking, 
try to keep focused on the topics presented in lectures so that you can do well on
homework, projects, and exams.
A: For self-learning I would recommend Probability, Probability and Statistics (Schaum's outlines series) for its simlicity of exposition, a great number of fully solved problems, and many other features. 
It is always efficient to form a study group within your course and help each other.
