Ebook Buying Addicts' Support Thread - Page 270

pdurrant · 12-20-2016, 11:20 AM

I shall have to do better next year. My raw read/bought figures for 2016 look bad:

Non-free books read: 172
Non-free books bought: 271

Katsunami · 12-20-2016, 11:23 AM

I've read a grand total of 8 books this year.

No, that's not a typo.

Rev. Bob · 12-20-2016, 12:22 PM

I finally got the contents of my Open Road spree into calibre last night. Now, once I get back from seeing the doctor today, I can go to the bottom of the list and start downloading/fixing the metadata - probably in batches of 20 - then saving them to a staging area where I can fix the filenames and organize 'em.

Gonna be a long haul, but doing a couple of batches at a time should make it go reasonably fast.

pdurrant · 12-20-2016, 02:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rev. Bob

Gonna be a long haul, but doing a couple of batches at a time should make it go reasonably fast.

Even 'free' has a price!

issybird · 12-20-2016, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Even 'free' has a price!

Preach it!

PurpleStar · 12-20-2016, 05:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Even 'free' has a price!

Yeah, another book to read. LOL

Rev. Bob · 12-20-2016, 06:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Even 'free' has a price!

And sometimes that price is your sanity!

PurpleStar · 12-20-2016, 06:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rev. Bob

And sometimes that price is your sanity!

Maybe it's a blessing those open road books aren't free here in Canada.

Tarana · 12-20-2016, 08:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PurpleStar

Maybe it's a blessing those open road books aren't free here in Canada.

Just so you don't feel bad, the majority of those books were classics that are public domain and can be had elsewhere. Still, I was at the ER with a family member and missed the one on Psychos. I went to buy it (for free) and the clock had already ticked over and it was now .99.

I'm way too cheap to buy that now.

issybird · 12-20-2016, 08:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tarana

Just so you don't feel bad, the majority of those books were classics that are public domain and can be had elsewhere.

If I had to characterize Open Road Media, I'd say backlist. Most of the titles I saw were copyrighted and regularly priced between $9.99 and $14.99. Not trying to make people who missed out feel bad, but those freebies for the most part weren't public domain.

PurpleStar · 12-20-2016, 08:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by issybird

If I had to characterize Open Road Media, I'd say backlist. Most of the titles I saw were copyrighted and regularly priced between $9.99 and $14.99. Not trying to make people who missed out feel bad, but those freebies for the most part weren't public domain.

I don't feel that bad. Last thing I need is more books! Besides, most of the open road catalogue is available from my local library though freading.

Cinisajoy · 12-20-2016, 08:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rev. Bob

And sometimes that price is your sanity!

What is this sanity you speak of?

Rev. Bob · 12-20-2016, 10:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

What is this sanity you speak of?

I used to have a little bit. Last time I saw it, it was hiding under the sofa and cackling.

issybird · 12-29-2016, 11:42 AM

Peccavi.

December 29. I almost made it through the month. But I read a review in my alumni magazine and I had a coupon and....

I knew I shouldn't. I could offer up a few semi-excuses, but that doesn't alter the reality of far too many purchased-but-unread books this year. In expiation, I'll try to justify it after the fact by making reading it a priority.

I do think that's it for the year, so I'll do my year-end wrap-up.

The very bad: I bought a boatload of books; my TBR has grown and not by a trivial number; I almost never fought the good fight with myself and won - that is, my reaction to temptation was invariably, "Why not?"

The pretty good at that: My numbers are way down compared to the prior few years, both in number of books bought and expenditure. While I didn't resist temptation at all well, I was tempted by far less - that is, I seem to have raised the bar quite a bit.

So, this is obviously still a process. I need to apply yet more discrimination, as I could probably cut from a quarter to a third of my purchases from the part year and feel the better for it.

I haven't quite formulated goals for 2017; I think I'll take it a month at a time and resolve not to buy anything in January, with exceptions for anything that would be read immediately or a 90% Kobo coupon (a girl's not made of stone, after all -and I think those will be rarer than hen's teeth going forward anyway). As a salutary lesson, I'm going to try to get through a reasonable number of my 2016 purchases, but not to the extent it impinges on my 2017 goals or my general enjoyment - more just to make the point that I already own a sufficiency of quite readable books!

My bottom bottom line is that I'm quite comfortable with how much I spent in 2016 and spending that amount on fewer but pricier books would feel like success to me.

Here's to an abstemious 2017 for all!

CRussel · 12-29-2016, 12:41 PM

Well, for all my attempts to try to keep reasonable track of exactly what I've spent on books this year, as a first step in actually trying to get a handle on it, I must admit that keeping track is still very much a work in progress. However, overall, I've done better than I thought I would. I _have_ succumbed to random splurges, usually as a form of retail therapy. But I've managed to keep it to books on sale or very reasonably priced. However, I now have a solid target for next year that will allow me to try to actually track against it. That's progress, if not a whole lot. Baby steps.

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12-20-2016, 11:20 AM	#4036
pdurrant The Grand Mouse 高貴的老鼠 Posts: 74,082 Karma: 315558332 Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Norfolk, England Device: Kindle Oasis	I shall have to do better next year. My raw read/bought figures for 2016 look bad: Non-free books read: 172 Non-free books bought: 271

12-20-2016, 11:23 AM	#4037
Katsunami Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,111 Karma: 34000001 Join Date: Mar 2008 Device: KPW1, KA1	I've read a grand total of 8 books this year. No, that's not a typo.

12-20-2016, 12:22 PM	#4038
Rev. Bob Wizard Posts: 1,760 Karma: 9918418 Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Here on the perimeter, there are no stars Device: Kobo H2O, iPad mini 3, Kindle Touch	I finally got the contents of my Open Road spree into calibre last night. Now, once I get back from seeing the doctor today, I can go to the bottom of the list and start downloading/fixing the metadata - probably in batches of 20 - then saving them to a staging area where I can fix the filenames and organize 'em. Gonna be a long haul, but doing a couple of batches at a time should make it go reasonably fast.

12-29-2016, 11:42 AM	#4049
issybird o saeclum infacetum Posts: 21,349 Karma: 234636059 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: New England Device: Mini, H2O, Glo HD, Aura One, PW4, PW5	Peccavi. December 29. I almost made it through the month. But I read a review in my alumni magazine and I had a coupon and.... I knew I shouldn't. I could offer up a few semi-excuses, but that doesn't alter the reality of far too many purchased-but-unread books this year. In expiation, I'll try to justify it after the fact by making reading it a priority. I do think that's it for the year, so I'll do my year-end wrap-up. The very bad: I bought a boatload of books; my TBR has grown and not by a trivial number; I almost never fought the good fight with myself and won - that is, my reaction to temptation was invariably, "Why not?" The pretty good at that: My numbers are way down compared to the prior few years, both in number of books bought and expenditure. While I didn't resist temptation at all well, I was tempted by far less - that is, I seem to have raised the bar quite a bit. So, this is obviously still a process. I need to apply yet more discrimination, as I could probably cut from a quarter to a third of my purchases from the part year and feel the better for it. I haven't quite formulated goals for 2017; I think I'll take it a month at a time and resolve not to buy anything in January, with exceptions for anything that would be read immediately or a 90% Kobo coupon (a girl's not made of stone, after all -and I think those will be rarer than hen's teeth going forward anyway). As a salutary lesson, I'm going to try to get through a reasonable number of my 2016 purchases, but not to the extent it impinges on my 2017 goals or my general enjoyment - more just to make the point that I already own a sufficiency of quite readable books! My bottom bottom line is that I'm quite comfortable with how much I spent in 2016 and spending that amount on fewer but pricier books would feel like success to me. Here's to an abstemious 2017 for all!

12-29-2016, 12:41 PM	#4050
CRussel (he/him/his) Posts: 12,297 Karma: 80074820 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Sunshine Coast, BC Device: Oasis (Gen3),Paperwhite (Gen10), Voyage, Paperwhite(orig), iPad Air M3	Well, for all my attempts to try to keep reasonable track of exactly what I've spent on books this year, as a first step in actually trying to get a handle on it, I must admit that keeping track is still very much a work in progress. However, overall, I've done better than I thought I would. I _have_ succumbed to random splurges, usually as a form of retail therapy. But I've managed to keep it to books on sale or very reasonably priced. However, I now have a solid target for next year that will allow me to try to actually track against it. That's progress, if not a whole lot. Baby steps.