Five things make a post, again

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This isn’t a randomness post because it’s mostly about me.

First: This is an interview with me over at Sci-Fi Bookshelf, a new book review site. Check it out.

Second: You know that trick where people add absurd sub-titles to the scene of Hitler having a tantrum in DOWNFALL? The first person who did it had a brilliant idea. Subsequent versions were mildly funny and a good way to mock other people’s sense of entitlement. Now, though, it’s played out. Let’s stop, okay?

Third: Amazon.com is pulling some major bullshit once again, this time in their dispute with Macmillan over ebook prices.. No, I don’t want to have a discussion about what price points are “fair” for ebooks. I’m not even all that interested in hearing what you’d be willing to pay. However, Amazon.com is using the 9.99 price to push their $400 Kindles, and if they achieve the market dominance they are aiming for in the ereader device market, they will be able to set the price as high as they like, and dictate revenue splits to the publishers. This isn’t about holding down costs for readers; it’s about being the one who sets the price.

Amazon.com is looking at long-term benefits, which is why I’m looking more and more at Indiebound.org. You order the book and have it shipped to you at home–or if you want to avoid shipping costs, you can pick the book up at your local independent bookstore.

Fourth, via Laura Ann Gilman: Google founders plan a stock sale that will surrender their controlling interest in the company. Whether they have lived up their company motto of “Don’t be evil” or not (and with the Author’s Guild book settlement, I say most emphatically not), they’ll have to change the motto to “The shareholders have certain expectations of short-term profitability.” Even if you think Google can be trusted with the IP they’re confiscating now, can you trust the shareholder-led company they’ll shortly become?

Fifth: After three days of waking early (and starting my writing early) due to morning nightmares, I was finally tired enough today to fall back to sleep after a bad dream at 4:30. Damn. And I’d been so productive, too.

2 thoughts on “Five things make a post, again

  1. One plus of the iPad is that it should help prevent any one company from getting a monopoly over the ebook business — and, ironically, abusing that monopoly the way Amazon and Apple have abused theirs!

    Sometime down the line I’m going to pick up either a Kindle/Nook/whatever or an iPad/whatever it’s competition is and it’s going to be a tough call. I imagine there’s going to be a pretty big split there, thus multiple stores.

  2. Heh. I have held out on cell phones (don’t own one, don’t need one) until now, so I’m not in line for a Kindle or a Nook.

    My kid is already begging for an iPad, though. :)

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