Contributing Member Ferg Posted January 16, 2012 Contributing Member Report Posted January 16, 2012 Sylvia, Settle down and think about what you done for just a few minutes. No matter how it is stated, you hacked Amazon's software to get a free book. Each time an e-book is sold the author gets about 30% of the price listed on a site. The remainder goes for all the overhead Amazon and others have endured. Do you think it costs nothing to put that book together so it can be read on-line? Place yourself in this scenario: You design some leathercraft pieces and put them into a book format. You decide to see if you can make a little money, perhaps do the publishing yourself, writing the program so all the e-readers can understand and render correctly. Jo Blow sees the book on Amazon, figures out how to download those carefully prepared drawings etc. without paying for them. You would have been hacked. That is exactly what you did and it is not right. Probably didn't break any laws but it wasn't the right thing to do. ferg No one calls me a thief and gets away with it. NO ONE! I am perfectly fine using this method otherwise I would not have shared.
Members Sylvia Posted January 16, 2012 Author Members Report Posted January 16, 2012 Sylvia, Settle down and think about what you done for just a few minutes. No matter how it is stated, you hacked Amazon's software to get a free book. Each time an e-book is sold the author gets about 30% of the price listed on a site. The remainder goes for all the overhead Amazon and others have endured. Do you think it costs nothing to put that book together so it can be read on-line? Place yourself in this scenario: You design some leathercraft pieces and put them into a book format. You decide to see if you can make a little money, perhaps do the publishing yourself, writing the program so all the e-readers can understand and render correctly. Jo Blow sees the book on Amazon, figures out how to download those carefully prepared drawings etc. without paying for them. You would have been hacked. That is exactly what you did and it is not right. Probably didn't break any laws but it wasn't the right thing to do. ferg Ferg, I hacked nothing. I used the search feature on Look inside. Nothing more. I downloaded nothing, I broke into nothing, I stole nothing. A teacher pointed at me with a ruler and said "At the end of this ruler is an idiot." I got detention when I asked "Which end?"
Members HellfireJack Posted January 16, 2012 Members Report Posted January 16, 2012 Sylvia, If you're putting this out as a way to save people money then you're not being honest with us here. You can't just go into the preview and see those pages. The search feature is not intended to give you access to the most or all of the book. You're using what a hacker would call a simple exploit to access information you shouldn't normally be able to access. If you're using it to gain information rather than just seeing if the book is good to buy then you are doing something wrong. Sorry but I call a spade a spade. If people use this to read a book for free they would normally have to purchase then they're taking money from the author. This is pretty simple to understand. You can do it all you want but don't sit and tell me that pointing out what this is is makes me wrong and then call me names because I'm not afraid to say it.
Moderator Johanna Posted January 16, 2012 Moderator Report Posted January 16, 2012 I am reporting myself. Apparently, according to some members here I am a thief and a liar. So please delete this entire thread. Please cancel my membership as well. I do not intend to subject myself to the abuse of the members here any longer. So I'll be on my way. Thanks for attempting to put up a good board... to bad you have curmudgeons that like to be trolls. Thanks Sylvia The way I see it: If you want to browse through a book to see if you want to buy it online or at a book store, fine. Reading it in the store or in the way descibed above is pretty iffy. I think it's very important that we make sure authors are compensated for their work. We wouldn't have books by Bruce Grant, Peter Main, Al Stohlman, Valerie Micheal, Paul Burnett, George Hurst and on and on if there was no financial compensation to the authors. If you want to know what others think of the book you can ask here or read the reviews on Amazon. If you want to glance through the book, fine. Read, copy or redistribute, NO. I'm sorry you feel you have to quit LW, Sylvia. I think Jack presented the other side of the coin quite well, and if that offends you, well, maybe you do realize that circumventing the honor system isn't popular here on LW. Johanna You cannot depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus. - Mark Twain
Members DoubleC Posted January 16, 2012 Members Report Posted January 16, 2012 I think the use of the information is being a little misunderstood. The Library has books to lend for reading. They are supported, for the most part by tax payer money of which there isn't much being distributed these days. They have to make up the shortfall in ways that may aggravate some folks but fees are one way to do it. As for the e-books that you can peruse on site without buying them........ Amazon for instance, makes money from selling a subscription to folks so they can read the book/books. If they are terribly upset because Sylvia, and others, have figured out how to beat the system, they will close that hole in the software. At that time who is the winner? Don't anyone give me the "Greed" bit. Every student has a vast amount of expenses when attending college. Books are certainly a large part of that. Soon, the printed page will be for those of us that still like to read a physical book at abysmal prices, I could go on but you get the idea. BTW: Sylvia, don't become so defensive about your method, that may show you are not quite comfortable with it either. Just my .02 ferg Right on Ferg. Wouldn't we all like a huge library stuffed full of the printed word we love? What Sylvia taught us, and borrowing from a library is exactly the same. I don't know who Hellfire thinks he is, but I have two published SS in two different anthologies in my library back in my roots of Ohio. And I proud they are there for people to read. What's to be uncomfortable about? We've always made books available, but try and download a SONG and you'll end up in prison. And I'm sure she's right about the fees at her 'county' library. I live in Rutland VT. now, and the only people who can use the library are the ones who live in Rutland 'city.' Not anyone else in the county, unless you pay a fee. Damn disgrace. Cheryl http://www.etsy.com/shop/DoubleCCowgirl
Contributing Member Ferg Posted January 16, 2012 Contributing Member Report Posted January 16, 2012 Cheryl, I will admit I am a little confused with your post. It seems to begin you are agreeing with me, at the end you aren't. I think many folks do not understand the way a public library has to work. When I was a kid and growing up, we went to the library, got a card, checked books out for two weeks time, if you didn't return the book on time you were charged .02 per day the book was overdue. We don't have the luxury of that anymore. Did you vote for the last County or City Library request to the voters for operating capitol via taxes? If you didn't,you have no right to grumble about the fee you get charged. County and City Library's have become separate entities quite often now. They simply do not have the funds to provide the best service. Borrowing from the Library is not the same in any way shape or form. Again, Amazon or whoever, is in the business to make money. If they didn't, a lot of folks would have no job. The money to run the e-book system has to come from somewhere. Do you think the owners are all rich? I can probably answer that question myself. Come on, How do you think the musicians and singers survive monetarily? Every time someone downloads a song illegally, that is money out of the artist's pocket. Do you actually think you have the right to manipulate the "viewing" software so you can get a free book or song? Unfortunately you are not the only person in the world that thinks in this way. I really feel sorry for you. Somewhere along the way you did not learn "Right from Wrong". I have said my piece. BTW: Hellfire was right on!!! ferg Right on Ferg. Wouldn't we all like a huge library stuffed full of the printed word we love? What Sylvia taught us, and borrowing from a library is exactly the same. I don't know who Hellfire thinks he is, but I have two published SS in two different anthologies in my library back in my roots of Ohio. And I proud they are there for people to read. What's to be uncomfortable about? We've always made books available, but try and download a SONG and you'll end up in prison. And I'm sure she's right about the fees at her 'county' library. I live in Rutland VT. now, and the only people who can use the library are the ones who live in Rutland 'city.' Not anyone else in the county, unless you pay a fee. Damn disgrace. Cheryl
Members DoubleC Posted January 16, 2012 Members Report Posted January 16, 2012 Cheryl, I will admit I am a little confused with your post. It seems to begin you are agreeing with me, at the end you aren't. I think many folks do not understand the way a public library has to work. When I was a kid and growing up, we went to the library, got a card, checked books out for two weeks time, if you didn't return the book on time you were charged .02 per day the book was overdue. We don't have the luxury of that anymore. Did you vote for the last County or City Library request to the voters for operating capitol via taxes? If you didn't,you have no right to grumble about the fee you get charged. County and City Library's have become separate entities quite often now. They simply do not have the funds to provide the best service. Borrowing from the Library is not the same in any way shape or form. Again, Amazon or whoever, is in the business to make money. If they didn't, a lot of folks would have no job. The money to run the e-book system has to come from somewhere. Do you think the owners are all rich? I can probably answer that question myself. Come on, How do you think the musicians and singers survive monetarily? Every time someone downloads a song illegally, that is money out of the artist's pocket. Do you actually think you have the right to manipulate the "viewing" software so you can get a free book or song? Unfortunately you are not the only person in the world that thinks in this way. I really feel sorry for you. Somewhere along the way you did not learn "Right from Wrong". I have said my piece. BTW: Hellfire was right on!!! ferg I just wrote you a 5 paragraph answer that was lost and that's probably best for all concerned since I was raised to respect my elders, even rude, know it all ones. I won't say but two things.......Don't you EVER doubt the way I raised and I hope you and Hellfire get out into the real world sometime, where it's not a meeting of the top 1% pooh poohing the rest of us trying to get by and better ourselves. Ferg, you only respond to posts where you can judge other people, you never offer help. With you it's negative, negative, and more negative. I guess at least it gives you something to do. I lied, 3rd, I VOTE in every election, do you. And you must not have been raised right because you can't even spell manners. http://www.etsy.com/shop/DoubleCCowgirl
Recommended Posts