On Wednesday 01 July 2009 12:21:47 pm Vu Nguyen wrote: > Hi Bruce, > > It is unfortunate that the paper book business is suffering, but I > think it is just the sign of the time. There are now ebook readers as > well as free online resources that anyone with Internet access can tap > into. For me as a developer, if I needed to find a solution to a > problem, I simply do a quick search and I have the answer. The only > time I see anyone still buying books is if they are still in school. > With free online resources easily accessible, I don't think anybody > needs to pirate books. Vu, Your are right. It is a sign of the times. Things are changing and this is only one part of the publishing business. From what I can tell the technical book area is the first to be hit in this way. Most people who buy books for pleasure still buy lots of paper book. I've yet to meet a single person with an ebook reader. I find that strange being in a computer store. You would think that at least one of my fellow geeks would have let me know if they had purchased such an item. I buy thousands of dollars of books from IEEE/Wiley every year. The last 2 years I've noticed that 85% of the books I purchased through this channel where print on demand. A very reasonable approach to publishing if you ask me. -- Bruce Harding, Member: IEEE, SPIE, IACR Manager, Computer Books for Less 210 Bank St. Ottawa ON K2P 1W2 Phone: 613-233-7357 Fax: 613-233-6823