[Mycropht]

I will comment on the first few posts in this thread.

Let us assume that in a country there is a written law against walking on the street without a veil (I have fantastic imagination). A person breaking that law is a criminal. Would YOU consider such person a criminal? For the people on this forum, I would guess the answer in "no". Why do you not consider such person a criminal? Probably because you do not believe such law is a proper law. You do not believe in that law.

Fine. By the same token, do you consider that a person is a criminal if (s)he buys an e-book, reads it and then strips DRM so her/his cousin could also read it? The law says such person is a criminal. Do you?

I have no problem paying to an author 3 times what (s)he gets for a sold book now. However, I do have a problem paying for renting an e-book (in the Kindle way) as much as a hardcover costs. IMHO, the path between an author and a reader is getting quite short and I imagine not so many people will be able to squeeze in the book publishing industry as before. That's tough. Then again, the world changes. People change. Laws change. Good luck to the publishing industry in their fight for the old ways which will probably turn out to be a search of Lost Time. For a start, I suggest an agency which will sue people left and right and will spend more money than it is able to squeeze out of defendants (that's my imagination again).

Before anyone accuses me of promoting book piracy, I do not own an e-book reader (although I want one). Also, I have never bought a stripped book. I honestly believe authors should be rewarded for their work. In the vanishing world of the paper books I am not sure that is happening in all cases where an author deserves a reward. I also believe the people enabling that a book gets to a reader should be rewarded. But, if that part gets simpler and easier, they should get less. Simple.

Btw, has anyone read any of the books written by Charles Barnes or Clifford Noble?