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From: cross@spitfire.i.gajendra.net (Dan Cross)
Newsgroups: comp.os.vms
Subject: Re: VMS Pascal article
Date: Thu, 9 Jan 2025 01:51:04 -0000 (UTC)
Organization: PANIX Public Access Internet and UNIX, NYC
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In article <vln5d0$318c0$2@dont-email.me>,
Arne Vajhøj  <arne@vajhoej.dk> wrote:
>On 1/8/2025 7:09 PM, Dave Froble wrote:
>> On 1/7/2025 7:00 PM, Arne Vajhøj wrote:
>>> Once upon a time there were a reasonable number of of VMS books
>>> available - including about development.
>>>
>>> I have a list:
>>>    https://www.vajhoej.dk/arne/vms/books.html
>>>
>>> But most of them are both not available for sale any longer
>>> and not uptodate (either describe VMS VAX or VMS Alpha).
>>>
>>> Probably not enough market today. How many would buy a book
>>> about VMS Pascal development today? 25? 50? 100?
>> 
>> If a book has an electronic format, does it matter how many would 
>> purchase it?
>
>The variable cost per copy would be very small (maybe only
>the fee for processing payment).
>
>But there is also fixed cost for distributing electronically.
>Decide on what to do to prevent illegal copying. Generate the
>file to distribute. Get it up on some e-commerce web site.
>Not zero but not that expensive either. It would require a little
>bit of sale though.

I think the hope is that the authors and/or publishers would
offer them gratis; there would be no need for working about
illegal copying, the content would simply be available as a
download (in PDF format presumably).

>The problem will likely be that even if it would financially
>be positive, then the amount would be very small. If the copyright
>owner is an individual, then a plus of a few hundred or thousand
>dollars will be OK. But if the copyright owner is
>Big Mega Publishing Inc, then they will not do anything
>with an expected profit under hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Many technical books that previously cost rather tidy sums are
now available for free, as authors and publishers realized that
the audience had dwindled to negligible and there was no longer
a financial incentive to holding on to the IP.

It's kind of weirdly fascinating how thing that used to cost
staggering sums are now available just for free.

	- Dan C.