Last year Lego made a loss for the first time since it was founded in 1932, and now they're talking about a 10% cutback of the workforce. (See http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/business/the%5Fco mpany%5Ffile/newsid%5F259000/259803.stm)
> If anyone at Slashdot makes a total of $50 > from the excerpting of my book I'd be stunned.
If jonkatz@Slashdot.org doesn't make more than $50 I'll be stunned. Even if your current deal is so bad (which I doubt) then I can imagine the next one will be much more generous after this little bit of exploitation?
> I write for Slashdot for free, and gave the > rights to Slashdot for free, hoping that might > draw some attention to the site, which it did, > and if it helped them pay the rent
$50 to help pay the rent... ? Guess we all just got raped by Random House then. And the very idea that Slashdot needs Katz to "draw attention to the site"!?! Get a clue fellas. (Rob too, don't you really know the value of what you have here? This is no "rinky dink little website". You don't have to be ripped off by the likes of Katz (and/or his big-business pals.))
Katz: "I bought a tiny cabin at the very tip of a mountain in a remote corner of upstate New York and went there by myself. . . . I went for a lot of different reasons, but mostly, I think, to try to be a better human."
Try again. (Take your Linux box with you this time.)
Sorry, no more Price Checks from me. If Slashdot ever does turn into a Big Bad Business (please, no) then I'll start again. But as it seems to be they're genuinely scratching around for the next few (thousand) dollars to keep this thing going, then I'm not going to interfere any more with one of their few meagre revenue sources.
Rob, Hemos, does Slashdot's commission deal also work with Amazon.co.uk too? I could maybe use that more than the US version?
Seen positively: It's a review of a good book that just happens to help finance Slashdot.
Read the "Amazon Info" box by the review: "The books here are brought to us in Partnership with Amazon.com. If you follow the links around here, and eventually buy a book, we get a percentage of the cost!" The openness of the relationship is about the only thing that makes it acceptable to me.
Seen negatively: The books reviewed are rather too often surprisingly expensive non-discounted books at Amazon, when they can be had *much* cheaper elsewhere. Here I start to smell a rat. Especially when the reviewer attempted to include pricing info from other sources but had the info edited out by Slashdot (as happened in this review).
If the Slashdot affect works for book sales like it does for websites then CmdrTaco and Co. can be making a pile of cash off these reviews. If so, it can't be so healthy for a.org to operate like this. I think you're right to raise the possibility of the "advertising" polluting the editorial content.
But who can you trust in this respect nowadays, anyhow?
The "Buy this book here" Amazon link is oddly directed to an overpriced "The Age of Intelligent Machines" rather than the more reasonably priced subject of the review "The Age of Spiritual Machines".
Possible causes include a)/. trying to boost commissions from Amazon b) editor put to sleep by Katz review or c) plain-old mistake. Naturally I'll plump for c):-)
For "Age of Intelligent Machines": Amazon $35 BarnesAndNoble $35 Shopping $19.25 Kingbooks $21.50 1BookStreet $24.75
For "Age of Spiritual Machines": Amazon $15.57 BarnesAndNoble $14.97 Shopping $16.86 Spree $14.97
(Interesting to see that Acses now seems to use Shopping too. Still no BookPool or Spree tho.)
Slashdot Mirror
Geek : 4 (0.15%)
Regards, Ralph.
Geek : 4 (0.5%)
:-))
(Well, I don't have the Price Checks to do anymore, and I have to keep myself occupied.
Regards, Ralph.
Pentium III serial # soft-programmable would be interesting. :->
Regards, Ralph.
> yes ralph, you're a clueless twerp
:-)
I forgive you for your impoliteness and for not having the time to read Katz's article too carefully.
All the best with the work on the oracle-ish type help system for ilug. I should be doing more of my real work too.
Regards, Ralph.
DaBuzz, I'm happy to be able to read your comment before it gets demoted to -5 (which it surely will.)
Orwell was here.
Regards, Ralph.
Last year Lego made a loss for the first time since it was founded in 1932, and now they're talking about a 10% cutback of the workforce. (See http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/business/the%5Fco mpany%5Ffile/newsid%5F259000/259803.stm)
Regards, Ralph.
> If anyone at Slashdot makes a total of $50
... ? Guess we all just got raped by Random House then. And the very idea that Slashdot needs Katz to "draw attention to the site"!?! Get a clue fellas. (Rob too, don't you really know the value of what you have here? This is no "rinky dink little website". You don't have to be ripped off by the likes of Katz (and/or his big-business pals.))
> from the excerpting of my book I'd be stunned.
If jonkatz@Slashdot.org doesn't make more than $50 I'll be stunned. Even if your current deal is so bad (which I doubt) then I can imagine the next one will be much more generous after this little bit of exploitation?
> I write for Slashdot for free, and gave the
> rights to Slashdot for free, hoping that might
> draw some attention to the site, which it did,
> and if it helped them pay the rent
$50 to help pay the rent
Regards, Ralph.
Katz: "I bought a tiny cabin at the very tip of a mountain in a remote corner of upstate New York and went there by myself. . . . I went for a lot of different reasons, but mostly, I think, to try to be a better human."
Try again. (Take your Linux box with you this time.)
Regards, Ralph.
Sorry, no more Price Checks from me. If Slashdot ever does turn into a Big Bad Business (please, no) then I'll start again. But as it seems to be they're genuinely scratching around for the next few (thousand) dollars to keep this thing going, then I'm not going to interfere any more with one of their few meagre revenue sources.
Rob, Hemos, does Slashdot's commission deal also work with Amazon.co.uk too? I could maybe use that more than the US version?
Regards, Ralph.
Seen positively: It's a review of a good book that just happens to help finance Slashdot.
.org to operate like this. I think you're right to raise the possibility of the "advertising" polluting the editorial content.
Read the "Amazon Info" box by the review: "The books here are brought to us in Partnership with Amazon.com. If you follow the links around here, and eventually buy a book, we get a percentage of the cost!" The openness of the relationship is about the only thing that makes it acceptable to me.
Seen negatively: The books reviewed are rather too often surprisingly expensive non-discounted books at Amazon, when they can be had *much* cheaper elsewhere. Here I start to smell a rat. Especially when the reviewer attempted to include pricing info from other sources but had the info edited out by Slashdot (as happened in this review).
If the Slashdot affect works for book sales like it does for websites then CmdrTaco and Co. can be making a pile of cash off these reviews. If so, it can't be so healthy for a
But who can you trust in this respect nowadays, anyhow?
Regards, Ralph.
Amazon $31.96
BarnesAndNoble $31.96
Bookpool $24.95
Shopping $19.97
Spree $31.96
Regards, Ralph.
Sorry I'm late.
Amazon $13.56
BarnesAndNoble $13.56
Shopping $11.01
Spree $13.56
1BookStreet $15.26 (includes shipping)
Regards, Ralph.
The "Buy this book here" Amazon link is oddly directed to an overpriced "The Age of Intelligent Machines" rather than the more reasonably priced subject of the review "The Age of Spiritual Machines".
/. trying to boost commissions from Amazon b) editor put to sleep by Katz review or c) plain-old mistake. Naturally I'll plump for c) :-)
Possible causes include a)
For "Age of Intelligent Machines":
Amazon $35
BarnesAndNoble $35
Shopping $19.25
Kingbooks $21.50
1BookStreet $24.75
For "Age of Spiritual Machines":
Amazon $15.57
BarnesAndNoble $14.97
Shopping $16.86
Spree $14.97
(Interesting to see that Acses now seems to use Shopping too. Still no BookPool or Spree tho.)
Regards, Ralph.
Amazon $45.95
AlphabetStreet (UK) $34.25
BarnesAndNoble $44.95
Dymocks (AUS) US$31.29
Spree $36.76
Regards, Ralph.
Amazon $15.96
BarnesAndNoble $15.96
Bookpool $13.95
Shopping $12.96
Spree $14.97
Regards, Ralph.