[extropy-chat] finding old (and new) sf

[Jef Allbright]

David Lubkin wrote:

> Damien wrote:
>
>> When someone like Charlie Stross or Cory Doctorow releases a book 
>> under CC, it is ancillary to paper publication, and their hope is 
>> that readers who get enthralled by the e-text will get tired of 
>> reading on the screen and pick up a copy at the bookstore, or via 
>> Amazon. CC release is thus a form of advertising; the revenue still 
>> comes from the paper books.
>
>
> Indeed, a free download is best structured to be inconvenient to read, 
> even if it is ostensibly in a print format.
>
> I encountered something similar in a consulting job. We were 
> generating printed quarterly reports for company A to give to their 
> customers. I had ideas on making it much more convenient, such as 
> real-time reports the customer could view over the web. Turns out a 
> major reason they wanted the printed reports is to have a regular 
> excuse for their sales force to call.
>
> The moral for me, and perhaps others on-list, is that people almost 
> always behave rationally and if one doesn't think so, one may not be 
> looking at a wide enough range of considerations.
>

People don't rationally pay for that which they can get for free, and 
this is true at all scales of time, actors and types of interactions.  
However, people and organizations are increasingly coming to understand 
that identification with short term, limited context goals is 
detrimental to self in the longer term bigger picture.

So the current problem is one of balance:  How to contribute to 
sustaining the current systems, predominately based on immediate or very 
near-term payback, while also promoting and contributing to longer-term 
investments in the future that we (and increasingly, others) would like 
to enjoy.

I enjoyed Acclerando, downloading it for free and reading it on my 
handheld during free moments and in bed before sleep.  Because I enjoyed 
it and want to promote similar creative offerings, I've asked Charlie 
how I can send him a few bucks.  At the same time, I have little 
interest in promoting the dead tree version so I will not buy the paper 
book.  (I've already converted several hundred books in my paper library 
to PDF and have discretely disposed of the corpses.)

- Jef