i think it is ok to find the waterchip first and then retry it. you can also invest in barter to get cheaper books
btw i just thought the ghoul caged in necropolis could have repair book on his mattress lol it's pretty much only normal situation when we have to actually use that skill
some of the computers should let us learn too. they are pretty much useless. it would be nice if we could learn something from the 'blue screens', for example about big gungs and throwing in the military base, and in the glow about first aid and med skills, in the crypt e.g. speech and outdoorsman, in bos energy weapons, repair