" JamesBritt" <james / jamesbritt.com> wrote in message
news:CIELJOOMCFBDNHLICOEFKEJNCEAA.james / jamesbritt.com...
> Re: USD $5 for a single Dr. Dobbs article
>
> > It does seem a lot.  I think I would fork out 1USD for the article
without
> > thinking about it.  That is not indicitive of the value of that article
> > itself, just my perceived value within the space of a $6USD magazine.
> >
> > The problem arises though in that DDJ generally has a whole bunch of
> > articles using different languages centered around a single theme.  Most
> > people would only be interested in a single article.  If they
> > started making
> > it reasonable for purchasing only what you wanted, they might start
losing
> > money.  Its much like getting 100 channels of cable vs. just the
programs
> > you watch.  Also remember that they get a lot of money from advertising.
> >
> > You may also consider that in 6 months the magazine will be hard to get.
> > For something you really need, 5USD may then seem reasonable.
> >
> > I don't necessarily agree with it, although I do like the
> > magazine.  I would
> > prefer a model like the IEEE where you pay for a digital subscription
and
> > get every article ever written while you pay for it.
> >
> > John.
>
>
> Recently I was shopping online, looking on bn.com for a particular book.
I
> found three versions: paperback, hardcover, and Adobe e-book.  Both the
> hardcover and the electronic version cost the same, USD $18.50.  The
> paperback was half that.  I was stunned, and decided that, a year from
now,
> publishers will decry the failure of E-books to take off, and claim the
> public just isn't ready for them.
>
> I'm curious, though, what people would consider a reasonable price for
> electronic articles/books, and how the availability of the free,
electronic
> version of Andy & Dave's book effected sales of the hardcopy version.
>
> James Britt
>
>

I already bought the pickaxe book before I knew of it being available
electronically.  I bought it purely on the strength of the Pragmatic
Programmer book.

I think magazine articles are a difficult topic, due to the inherent
advertising.  Magazines could not survive it seems without ads.

I too have been dissapointed with the ebook selling prices.  I think that
the whole market for ebook readers has been hampered by short-sightedness.
Pricing the readers at over 200USD is not going to work.  Pricing them at
50USD and having a contract length is the way to go IMHO.  Just like cell
phones.

Personally I subscribe to safari, which is the O'Reilly online books site.
I think I pay 10USD per month for viewing up to 5 books.  You can then
change your subscription each month.  I like this as it cuts down on the
room required on my book shelf and books I read generally don't last much
more than a few months.

Bruce Eckel doesn't seem to be hurting from giving away the Thinking in
series.

John.