Quote:
Originally Posted by SigilBear
I also found a scanned version at Google Books, though I can't find it now.
|
Seems as if a copy was also recently scanned/uploaded to the Internet Archive:
https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.167851
Quote:
Originally Posted by SigilBear
Why do I need pictures that look good in grayscale? Don't all ebook viewing devices display color images?
|
No, e-ink is grayscale only... but the device would just take your color image -> display it in grayscale.
If you were creating your own State Flags book, just use full color images. Don't let this hold you back, especially in the case of flags (where colors bring just as much meaning as the symbols themselves).
Side Note: You may also want to look through the treasure trove of Wikimedia Commons. There are a ton of Public Domain images of any/all flags. For example:
Collection of some US State Flags:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/F...America#States
Pennsylvania:
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/F...nnsylvania.svg
Alaska:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Flag_of_Alaska.svg
Hawaii:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Flag_of_Hawaii.svg
[...]
or you can visit individual Wikipedia pages of each state for some examples (seals, etc. etc.):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_new_york
Quote:
Originally Posted by SigilBear
In summary, I think I've stumbled onto a unique opportunity. I'm extremely optimistic that my book will be well received; the only problem is navigating the maze so I can connect with libraries. I don't foresee any major problems selling my books via Amazon and iBooks. The second book will probably have a very large potential market, but I suspect the first book, largely because of its age, will appeal primarily to libraries.
|
Hmmm... I don't know the specifics of what libraries go through, but the latest discussion I can recall was this article from 2015:
http://the-digital-reader.com/2015/0...ublished-book/
Quote:
Wetta explained that a collection development librarian like herself only has a few hours a week to devote to buying books. And in library systems where collection development is just one of many primary duties, a librarian faces even tighter constraints.
As a result:
Quote:
|
It’s simply not efficient or cost-effective to acquire self-published books. They don’t often have existing records ready to add to the library’s catalog; these records have to be created. Self-published books might not be available from the library’s main vendor, who might do any number of tasks to make the book ready to be shelved in a library (a protective cover, property stamps, stickers to identify the proper location of the item, etc.). And of that work has to be done by library staff as an extra step if it is purchased by a different vendor (say, Amazon) and that’s only if the policies allow the library to do that (sometimes a library is restricted to specific vendors).
|
And that's not the only problem.
Even when a librarian wants to buy a self-published book, they are still constrained by a limited budget. The librarians need to make sure that the books they buy are in demand and of good quality.
That applies to all books, and not just self-published, but the latter are more difficult to quantify:
Quote:
|
It’s not that librarians are completely unwilling to buy self-published books, it’s just that the systems aren’t in place yet (or aren’t yet robust enough) to make it easy to evaluate the quality and to efficiently bring them to patrons.
|
|
The costs to create such a book are extremely high + the demand for such a book is extremely low.
And I suspect even if you did create an "ultimate, up-to-date, best State Flags book", it would languish just like the two books you mention (and in 80 years from now, someone would complain how your book had crappy/old images and didn't include info on states #51 and #52). :P
And who knows about the whole publisher situation (Reference book not published by an esteemed academic press? Straight in the garbage bin!). Expensive Textbooks + Academe is a very strange place.
Side Note: I recently took out a very expensive (~$300+) + rare economics book from the library... last time it was lent out: 1988. So in ~30 years only ONE person borrowed it. I suspect a book on the History of State Flags would be taken out at ~ the same rate (maybe even less), especially if quite a bit of this info can be found freely online. :P
* * *
Side Notes to Cinisajoy Below
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cinisajoy
Now who was it that said my cookbook would need hours and hours of work just to be a halfway decent ebook?
So I was listening.
|
Another type of book that is very resource intensive (lots of formatting + lots of pictures) + has a small market. You are closer to SigilBear than you think!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cinisajoy
Or more precisely, I don't want him to go to all the work just to find out he can't publish it.
|
I don't know... I seemed to have sensed a lot of extra hostility/baggage:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cinisajoy
Or I do have a better idea for you.
Since you think this is such a great reference, rather than stealing someone else's work why don't you write your own reference book.
|
Digitizing/Republishing a Public Domain work is is no way "stealing".
And in the future, I would recommend avoiding this "stealing" word. IF the book was still under copyright, it would be "copyright infringement".
Some examples:
"Why It's Important Not To Call Copyright Infringement Theft":
https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20...13210998.shtml
"The Absurdity Of Comparing Copying To Stealing":
https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20...stealing.shtml
"Guess What? Copying Still Isn't Stealing":
https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20...stealing.shtml