Harry Potter could go digital - Page 5

Avarwen · 04-06-2011, 03:04 AM

LOL didn't know HP wasn't in ebook format. Meh I've read them all already so it's no biggie for me.

Jaime_Astorga · 04-06-2011, 03:19 AM

Rowling may not need it, but it is still rather hilarious to see her lose out on some serious cash due to her strange reluctance to authorize digital copies of the Harry Potter novels.

Quote:

Originally Posted by wodin

Well SCREW it! Google here I come!

Welcome to the dark side. We have cookies.

Exer · 04-06-2011, 03:42 AM

We have 2 sets of HP in hardback in my house, as well as a soft cover set, so I didn't feel all that bad when I went looking for a set to throw onto my Kindle.

Funny thing about that, I had taken my brother to the last Harry Potter movie. It was a midnight premiere so we arrived 4 hours early. We had a PSP (portable game system, for those who might not know) and my Kindle with me. While I was sitting against a wall quickly paging through the first half of the ebook so I could compare it to the movie version, people kept walking up and asking what I was reading.

I didn't even think twice before admitting it was an HP novel. It really just didn't cross my mind that there might be people in that crowd of die-hard HP and Rowling fans that might take offense to the fact I had electronic copies of the book ...

Turns out that nobody put up a fuss at all, but quite a crowd gathered around me when I turned on the TTS. I probably could have sold a handful of Kindles that night.

I just find it funny how casually I admitted to having something that isn't technically legal. Maybe it is because it was the first time I had put anything like that on my Kindle ... or maybe in my mind I just didn't consider it illegal, but I know I wouldn't be quite so quick to admit if I was driving a stolen car, or wearing a stolen Rolex, etc.

Perhaps after so many years of living with digital content it just feels almost natural to pick and grab whatever we want. I pay for my books, music, movies, etc ... but I go scouring the net for interesting desktop wallpapers all the time, do I ever think of that as stealing? No ... even though I know the content isn't mine and sometimes isn't supposed to be used as a wallpaper. I forward around article clippings and photo emails, even though I don't know the original creator and don't know if that person thinks of that work as being stolen ...

I think we do things like this without even thinking about it most of the time. Although some of the choices are a much more deliberate action.

tubemonkey · 04-06-2011, 03:50 AM

I'll wait until it becomes public domain.

ProfCrash · 04-06-2011, 07:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I'll wait until it becomes public domain.

That might be when it is first available legally as an ebook

FF2 · 04-06-2011, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

I'll wait until it becomes public domain.

I think you'll be public domain before HP books!

OtterBooks · 04-06-2011, 01:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jaime_Astorga

Rowling may not need it, but it is still rather hilarious to see her lose out on some serious cash due to her strange reluctance to authorize digital copies of the Harry Potter novels.

Rowling won the serious-cash game long ago. I suspect she'll break and allow them in ebook format, though.

Most people don't pirate, and many of those who do already did so and probably would have pirated them whether they were available legit or not. The "I had no choice" crowd is a minority within a minority. So, the Potter fans who worship her books and read them repeatedly and have developed a preference for ebooks in the last couple years will likely wind up purchasing the book again in ebook format. If anything, withholding the ebook version could be a brilliant move that results in many re-purchases (then she'll go from being criticized for missing out on profits to being criticized for being greedy). Just imo. edited for clarity.

Step 1: keep them in paper form only.
Step 2: sell a trillion of them.
Step 3: wait for ebooks to gain popularity.
Step 4: release them again as ebooks.
Step 5: $$$$$

mr ploppy · 04-06-2011, 01:09 PM

It would make sense to not release the ebooks until the realbooks stop selling. Like with the Beatles, when a format stops selling they make a new one for people to buy.

6charlong · 04-06-2011, 07:29 PM

I don't understand J.K. Rowling's position about publishing in eBook form.

Obviously a book in hardback binding is a real book since they've been around for centuries although in Jane Austen's time people bought books as sewn pages and then took them to a favorite book binder to have them hand bound in leather to match the rest of the library.

In the US publishers started mass binding the sewn pages with cheap cloth or even cardboard covers: these were criticized as not being 'real' books at the time.

Then some publishers started printing books without even that, with just colorful paper covers, but these were just 'trashy' detective stories and such, not real books at all.

Then in the 1950s some publishers started printing classics with paperback style bindings, it shocked everyone and launched a debate over whether they were real books or just throwaway trash like the rest of the paperbacks.

Now books are being published in digital form to be read on book readers. I wonder what it is that these other presentations have that is lacking on my Kindle. It has a leather cover like the first books and Jane Austen reads the same on my Kindle as she has for the past two Centuries on all the other presentations.

I've given my granddaughter a Kindle because she loves reading and I wanted her to begin to build a library of her own, and because she's a child of the 21st Century and this is what books will be in her lifetime. I refuse to go to the Darknet even for a favored book because of what it teaches her.

I love J.K. Rowling's work. I've tried but I can't understand this.

tubemonkey · 04-06-2011, 11:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

That might be when it is first available legally as an ebook

Quote:

Originally Posted by FF2

I think you'll be public domain before HP books!

...I'll be pushing up the daisies long before; for sure.

GreenMonkey · 04-07-2011, 12:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 6charlong

I've given my granddaughter a Kindle because she loves reading and I wanted her to begin to build a library of her own, and because she's a child of the 21st Century and this is what books will be in her lifetime. I refuse to go to the Darknet even for a favored book because of what it teaches her.

I love J.K. Rowling's work. I've tried but I can't understand this.

Buy a physical copy of the book and download an "illegal" ebook. Worry about what is moral vs what is legal.

I guess I'm just Chaotic Good that way. Did you pay for a copy of the work? IMO that's what matters.

I feel the same way about ripping a DVD I own and dropping it onto a computer or ipod/tablet for the kids when we are traveling. Is it legal? No. Is it moral? Sure.

There's a growing disconnect between what is right and the kinds of restrictions copyright holders and DRM are piling unto people.

Ripplinger · 04-07-2011, 01:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GreenMonkey

I feel the same way about ripping a DVD I own and dropping it onto a computer or ipod/tablet for the kids when we are traveling. Is it legal? No. Is it moral? Sure.

Actually I believe the fair use doctrine allows consumers to legally make copies of movies and songs that you purchased to make backup copies for yourself or use on other devices. Just don't distribute or share the copies.

But I agree with GreenMonkey. Do what your conscious tells you. If you've paid for a hardcover copy of the book, I wouldn't feel bad about downloading a digital copy of it for use on the reader.

SolRaven · 04-07-2011, 03:09 AM

When I love someone's book, I want a physical copy for my shelf. When I read the ebook version of The Help, I didn't want to stop reading to do laundry, so I bought the Audible version as well. A few months ago, I bought 2 copies, one for a gift and the other for my shelf. When I love a book, it doesn't matter how I first read it, I will likely buy several copies in the same or different versions.

GreenMonkey · 04-07-2011, 04:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ripplinger

Actually I believe the fair use doctrine allows consumers to legally make copies of movies and songs that you purchased to make backup copies for yourself or use on other devices. Just don't distribute or share the copies.

But I agree with GreenMonkey. Do what your conscious tells you. If you've paid for a hardcover copy of the book, I wouldn't feel bad about downloading a digital copy of it for use on the reader.

Nope. Circumventing the copy protection is a violation of the DMCA and subject to severe penalties.

Stupid DMCA.

That's what I'm saying though. Act with your conscience. Worry about what is moral. Heck, since there is no official retail Harry Potter ebook...you're not even leeching the minimal costs associated with prepping a retail ebook release (editing, conversion, etc).

Poppaea · 04-07-2011, 05:06 AM

I read somewhere she refuses the ebooks because HP are childrens books and children don't own readers (normally). It might be she said so at a time when readers were outragously expensive.

This makes perfect sense and shows she is not greedy. If she were, she would take advantage of those who never grew up/missed something in their childhood or whatever it is that makes people read childrens books.

My guess is, she will come round when Kindle/readers come down to 50$ or are more or less for free or hired out by the libraries.

04-06-2011, 03:42 AM	#63
Exer I see Russia! Posts: 205 Karma: 234787 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Alaska Device: Etch-A-Sketch	We have 2 sets of HP in hardback in my house, as well as a soft cover set, so I didn't feel all that bad when I went looking for a set to throw onto my Kindle. Funny thing about that, I had taken my brother to the last Harry Potter movie. It was a midnight premiere so we arrived 4 hours early. We had a PSP (portable game system, for those who might not know) and my Kindle with me. While I was sitting against a wall quickly paging through the first half of the ebook so I could compare it to the movie version, people kept walking up and asking what I was reading. I didn't even think twice before admitting it was an HP novel. It really just didn't cross my mind that there might be people in that crowd of die-hard HP and Rowling fans that might take offense to the fact I had electronic copies of the book ... Turns out that nobody put up a fuss at all, but quite a crowd gathered around me when I turned on the TTS. I probably could have sold a handful of Kindles that night. I just find it funny how casually I admitted to having something that isn't technically legal. Maybe it is because it was the first time I had put anything like that on my Kindle ... or maybe in my mind I just didn't consider it illegal, but I know I wouldn't be quite so quick to admit if I was driving a stolen car, or wearing a stolen Rolex, etc. Perhaps after so many years of living with digital content it just feels almost natural to pick and grab whatever we want. I pay for my books, music, movies, etc ... but I go scouring the net for interesting desktop wallpapers all the time, do I ever think of that as stealing? No ... even though I know the content isn't mine and sometimes isn't supposed to be used as a wallpaper. I forward around article clippings and photo emails, even though I don't know the original creator and don't know if that person thinks of that work as being stolen ... I think we do things like this without even thinking about it most of the time. Although some of the choices are a much more deliberate action. Last edited by Exer; 04-06-2011 at 03:44 AM. Reason: typo explosion

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Where to go after Harry Potter	s1mp13m4n	Reading Recommendations	57	03-22-2014 03:51 PM
Harry Potter	happy_terd	Lounge	1	01-21-2010 02:18 PM
Digital Harry Potter manuscript allegedly stolen	Alexander Turcic	Lounge	120	07-20-2007 02:48 AM
Harry Potter goes digital (at least a preview of him)	Alexander Turcic	News	1	04-18-2007 07:45 AM
Harry Potter question	rsbuckland	Reading Recommendations	5	02-05-2007 09:10 PM

04-06-2011, 03:04 AM	#61
Avarwen Connoisseur Posts: 87 Karma: 12170 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: EZ_ Reader, Nook wifi, Kindle 3G	LOL didn't know HP wasn't in ebook format. Meh I've read them all already so it's no biggie for me.

04-06-2011, 03:50 AM	#64
tubemonkey monkey on the fringe Posts: 45,853 Karma: 158733736 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Seattle Metro Device: Moto E6, Echo Show	I'll wait until it becomes public domain.

04-06-2011, 01:09 PM	#68
mr ploppy Feral Underclass Posts: 3,622 Karma: 26821535 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Yorkshire, tha noz Device: 2nd hand paperback	It would make sense to not release the ebooks until the realbooks stop selling. Like with the Beatles, when a format stops selling they make a new one for people to buy.

04-06-2011, 07:29 PM	#69
6charlong friendly lurker Posts: 896 Karma: 2436026 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: US Device: Kindle, nook, Apple and Kobo	I don't understand J.K. Rowling's position about publishing in eBook form. Obviously a book in hardback binding is a real book since they've been around for centuries although in Jane Austen's time people bought books as sewn pages and then took them to a favorite book binder to have them hand bound in leather to match the rest of the library. In the US publishers started mass binding the sewn pages with cheap cloth or even cardboard covers: these were criticized as not being 'real' books at the time. Then some publishers started printing books without even that, with just colorful paper covers, but these were just 'trashy' detective stories and such, not real books at all. Then in the 1950s some publishers started printing classics with paperback style bindings, it shocked everyone and launched a debate over whether they were real books or just throwaway trash like the rest of the paperbacks. Now books are being published in digital form to be read on book readers. I wonder what it is that these other presentations have that is lacking on my Kindle. It has a leather cover like the first books and Jane Austen reads the same on my Kindle as she has for the past two Centuries on all the other presentations. I've given my granddaughter a Kindle because she loves reading and I wanted her to begin to build a library of her own, and because she's a child of the 21st Century and this is what books will be in her lifetime. I refuse to go to the Darknet even for a favored book because of what it teaches her. I love J.K. Rowling's work. I've tried but I can't understand this.

04-07-2011, 03:09 AM	#73
SolRaven Wizard Posts: 2,214 Karma: 12796976 Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: The Sunshine State Device: Clara, Voyage, Oasis, Paperwhite & PRS-650	When I love someone's book, I want a physical copy for my shelf. When I read the ebook version of The Help, I didn't want to stop reading to do laundry, so I bought the Audible version as well. A few months ago, I bought 2 copies, one for a gift and the other for my shelf. When I love a book, it doesn't matter how I first read it, I will likely buy several copies in the same or different versions.

04-07-2011, 05:06 AM	#75
Poppaea Lucifer's Bat Posts: 2,577 Karma: 20638583 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Earth/Berlin Device: Kobo Libra Colour	I read somewhere she refuses the ebooks because HP are childrens books and children don't own readers (normally). It might be she said so at a time when readers were outragously expensive. This makes perfect sense and shows she is not greedy. If she were, she would take advantage of those who never grew up/missed something in their childhood or whatever it is that makes people read childrens books. My guess is, she will come round when Kindle/readers come down to 50$ or are more or less for free or hired out by the libraries.