Is the enclosed a pirate site? Delete as necessary.

BookCat · 07-12-2009, 06:57 AM

I've come across a site called Scribd (sorry, delete if needed, but please answer query), and I'm unsure whether this is a public domain site, self publishing e site like Smashwords, or an in copyright file sharing site.

Please enlighten me.

I have downloaded Strunk's English usage book from here, but I assume that's PD.

Gideon · 07-12-2009, 07:00 AM

It's... well, kind of all of the above.

It's a legitimate site... it sells (I believe) and has much that is in the public domain and licensed, but people also frequently upload copyrighted material.

Abecedary · 07-12-2009, 07:18 AM

Yup. As Gideon said, it's sort of somewhere in the middle, though more towards the legitimate side. Think of it as YouTube for text. People are uploading anything and everything, and the site is trying to weed out the copyrighted stuff if they're informed of it.

Also, to further muddy things, they've recently signed some deals with publishers in an attempt to become even more legitimate. But remember that just because you found something there, it doesn't necessarily mean that it's in the public domain or that you can legitimately download it. Which means grab it while you can, cos it may not be there tomorrow.

Moejoe · 07-12-2009, 09:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BookCat

I've come across a site called Scribd (sorry, delete if needed, but please answer query), and I'm unsure whether this is a public domain site, self publishing e site like Smashwords, or an in copyright file sharing site.

Please enlighten me.

I have downloaded Strunk's English usage book from here, but I assume that's PD.

You can find a much nicer copy of The Elements of Style in ePub format at Feedbooks (if that's what you were reffering to by Strunk's) http://www.feedbooks.com/search?query=strunk+and+white

junkyardwillie · 07-12-2009, 10:52 AM

Yea I think Youtube of books is the right way to look at it, it started off as something for people to load docs up to an of course people loaded copyrighted material which was illegal but there is a lot of stuff on the site that is legal and good. A couple of the blogs I follow use it to post up docs related to articles like government or company filings because you can embed it in a site easily

I don't know how much luck a person would have just trying to search for copyrighted material on there anyway (most of the time people change the title so it can't be easily found by owners) but if you find a new book on there free something is probably fishy

They recently signed up with Simon and Shuster to provide their books on Scribd, I havent used it but here's their announcement http://www.scribd.com/doc/16342197/S...n-and-Schuster

Elsi · 07-12-2009, 01:01 PM

Personally, I don't like the user interface on Scribd -- nor on Smashwords. Simple is best!

07-12-2009, 06:57 AM	#1
BookCat C L J Posts: 2,912 Karma: 21115458 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Birmingham UK Device: Sony e-reader 505, Kindle PW2, Kindle PW3, Kobo Libra2	Is the enclosed a pirate site? Delete as necessary. I've come across a site called Scribd (sorry, delete if needed, but please answer query), and I'm unsure whether this is a public domain site, self publishing e site like Smashwords, or an in copyright file sharing site. Please enlighten me. I have downloaded Strunk's English usage book from here, but I assume that's PD.

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07-12-2009, 07:00 AM	#2
Gideon Wearer of Pants Posts: 1,050 Karma: 7634 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Norman, OK Device: Amazon Kindle DX / iPhone	It's... well, kind of all of the above. It's a legitimate site... it sells (I believe) and has much that is in the public domain and licensed, but people also frequently upload copyrighted material.

07-12-2009, 07:18 AM	#3
Abecedary Exwyzeeologist Posts: 535 Karma: 3261 Join Date: Jun 2009 Device: :PRS-505::iPod touch:	Yup. As Gideon said, it's sort of somewhere in the middle, though more towards the legitimate side. Think of it as YouTube for text. People are uploading anything and everything, and the site is trying to weed out the copyrighted stuff if they're informed of it. Also, to further muddy things, they've recently signed some deals with publishers in an attempt to become even more legitimate. But remember that just because you found something there, it doesn't necessarily mean that it's in the public domain or that you can legitimately download it. Which means grab it while you can, cos it may not be there tomorrow.

07-12-2009, 10:52 AM	#5
junkyardwillie Addict Posts: 316 Karma: 570 Join Date: Apr 2008 Device: Onyx Note Pro, Kobo H20 and iPad	Yea I think Youtube of books is the right way to look at it, it started off as something for people to load docs up to an of course people loaded copyrighted material which was illegal but there is a lot of stuff on the site that is legal and good. A couple of the blogs I follow use it to post up docs related to articles like government or company filings because you can embed it in a site easily I don't know how much luck a person would have just trying to search for copyrighted material on there anyway (most of the time people change the title so it can't be easily found by owners) but if you find a new book on there free something is probably fishy They recently signed up with Simon and Shuster to provide their books on Scribd, I havent used it but here's their announcement http://www.scribd.com/doc/16342197/S...n-and-Schuster

07-12-2009, 01:01 PM	#6
Elsi Wizard Posts: 2,366 Karma: 12000 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Texas, USA Device: Kindle; Sony PRS 505; Blackberry 8700C	Personally, I don't like the user interface on Scribd -- nor on Smashwords. Simple is best!