It's not even a hardcover! and it has a stupid cover!
We talked in class today about piracy and intellectual property. I have to admit I am not the most responsible member of society regarding this subject. Let's just say that I have 'seen out of the corner of my eye' my share of downloaded movies and tv show and 'may have been tricked' into downloading illegal music on my Ipod. But I have my own moral code regarding this. Anything Canadian I will buy and anything that is a quality tv show (Friday Night Lights) will be bought on DVD. Quality needs to be rewarded.
I could expand on this further and I might but for now I want to focus on the textbook. How can a publisher justifiable charge $160 for a tradepaperback that is a BOOK about the INTERNET! By the time they choose cheesier art to cover the book and call it the 6th edition, the material is out of date!
The publishing industry is struggling and textbooks can be considered somewhat stable they have to realize that there are methods to get around these prices and students will find them. Oh god will students find them! They are notoriously cheap and sneaky! And if the guy selling the book on Kijiji is any example, motivated.
Apple took over the music industry by dictating the prices to the sellers. Can there be an alternative to this for books? Amazon has done it with books for the Kindle. Is there a textbook alternative on it's way? Because that would be amazing. Come on marketing students! Stop showing me presentations about the shoe that has 3 styles of heels. Give me something I can use.
Admittedly the pricing would move back to the creator's hands. It's happened with Apple and Amazon but the prices are far more reasonable then before. How has no one thought of this before?
Wait. Everyone forget this post. Don't steal my idea, or go ahead, but credit me. I would like to be toasted in bars when students squander the money saved on something far more rewarding.
