How do we tell the difference between books and magazines...? (Those that temporarily boost and those that make a permanent upgrade...?) Thanks...!

Magazines boost your skills by +10 (Or +20 with the Comprehension perk) for a short time and will be found frequently, Skill Books will permanently boost a skill by 2 (Or 4 with Comprehension) and are scarcely found.

http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Skill_magazine
http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Skill_book

also, an even more instant way to tell is that the BOOKS weigh. the MAGS don't.

Yep, books have a weight of 2 lbs, magazines have no weight. Books give the small permanent skill boost and mags give the big temporary skill boost. Books are also much rarer in New Vegas then they were in Fallout 3.

Books are bigger and thicker too, weight 2 pounds and are valued at 50 caps.

Oh definitely. You would stumble across books EVERWHERE in FO3. I think i've only found 3-4 so far in NV @ lvl 18. Ridiculous.

Skill books in FO3 only gave 1 point. In NV they give 2-4 depending on perks. I like fewer books with higher points.

Yea they are kinda rare. When you find them, they're for a skill you have already maxed out.

Fixed

Yeah, makes them really a worthy find this time, doesn't it?
Besides, there are still 50 skill books in vanilla alone. If you're not able to find more, you probably should pay more attention to the places you visit.
By Level 18 I'm usually at around 30 skill books found.

the books are really rare in FNV , Skill magazines are very handy mostly combining it with the comprehension perk making it 20+