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Tim Ellis V.I.P. Melbourne, Australia 1234 Posts 
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We have had great success with our Lecture Notes, selling hundreds during tours and getting great feedback from people who say they've really enjoyed them.
Now we're on the verge of releasing them as Ebooks but fellow creators tell me it's the wrong way to go... They say we'll sell a few, then they'll be passed around the internet forever. Now a lot of people are saying they are done with making Ebooks and are going back to making "real" books as they are harder to copy. What are your thoughts?
www.MagicUnlimited.com
www.timellismagic.com Visit our online shop for instant downloads and ebooks https://shop.timellismagic.com/ Blog - www.magicunlimited.typepad.com |
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puggo Inner circle 2022 Posts
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While there will undoubtedly be s**m who copy and distribute on the internet, the major advantage with e-books is convenience.
Like the look of an idea? No problems, a couple of minutes on the PC and you have it. How often have you thought about buying something, only to be put off by physical cost, shipping, blah blah etc. On the other hand, I know I have made 'impulse' buys of e-books, due to the ease & speed of purchase, coupled with lower purchase price. What about reprints and stocking older items? I just picked up a set of John Gustaferro's 2005 Lecture notes. A fantastic buy. I'm in the UK - would I have sent off for them, and would they still be available in hard copy format? Perhaps the type of material may be an issue. If you're releasing the latest 'street' colour change or coin vanish, perhaps the main demographic of buyers will be from the younger youtube set, which arguably suggests that there will be more piracy than an established performer's lecture notes. I prefer (the physical) books / hard copy, but have picked up some great e-books that I would have not got in book / booklet format. Some of the e-books have a better layout than most books, some even have video clips.. Does the artist get better royalties (and bigger sales) from the e-format? Can the product be kept on the 'for sale' shelf for longer, to a much, much wider audience? I would have thought so, especially when comparing lecture notes to books Hope these thoughts help! Charlie |
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goldeneye007 Inner circle London 2430 Posts
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It IS a very good question. Difficult to answer I guess, because it's difficult to evaluate how many copies may be passed around.
PS: Isn't it possible to have the ebook protected by a password? I guess that would bring a further protection without being a 100% solution. |
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John C Eternal Order I THINK therefore I wrote 12968 Posts
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Don't use passwords it just annoys many. The password may be sent along with the pdf anyway.
Some won't buy notes, routines anymore if they AREN'T pdfs since the wait is too long - WE WANT IT NOW! Others will simply take lecture notes or even a BOOK and digitize it and send that around the Internet or even sell it on their site or ebay. I've had one send me Banacheck's PS PDF ... HE NEVER MADE A PS PDF! I let him know. There's no simple answer, certainly nothing in concrete that is a solution to the plagiarism problem. j |
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Scott F. Guinn Inner circle "Great Scott!" aka "Palms of Putty" & "Poof Daddy G" 6586 Posts
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Tim, I PM'd you.
"Love God, laugh more, spend more time with the ones you love, play with children, do good to those in need, and eat more ice cream. There is more to life than magic tricks." - Scott F. Guinn
My Lybrary Page |
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goldeneye007 Inner circle London 2430 Posts
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Quote:
On 2010-01-07 08:26, johncesta wrote: Yes, you're probably right. |
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Crowslide New user 50 Posts
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I have a bunch of pdf's that I've read once...maybe twice..only sometimes ALL the way through from "cover to cover" My books though... I read them and reread them again and again..like old friends. I know that there's stuff in those PDFs for me..just so hard to sit with them..you know?
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Cameron Francis V.I.P. 7025 Posts
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Here's my two cents: What matters is the content. If it's good, people will buy it whether it's hard copy or ebook. Of course, there will always be unethical people who rip stuff off. But they can just as easily Xerox pages as forward an ebook (well, not JUST as easily, but close).
I offer what I believe to be solid, real world routines via download. And my customer base has grown considerably over the past year. I think this has to do with quality of material (I hope!) and customer service. I can tell you that back before I started selling my own stuff, I would purchase downloads from creators I respected and I wouldn't share it. I know there are more than a few people out there like myself. Must be or else I wouldn't have so many new and repeat customers. Just my thoughts...
MOMENT'S NOTICE LIVE 3 - Six impromptu card tricks! Out now! http://cameronfrancismagic.com/moments-notice-live-3.html
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motown Inner circle Atlanta by way of Detroit 6136 Posts
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If there's a choice between buying published material as a printed book or ebook, I'll choose the printed book all the time. If the material is only available as an ebook, I'll print it out and bind it.
I work on a computer all day and as a result don't really care to read books on screen. Just too much eye strain for these middle aged eyes of mine. With a book I can make notations on the side, in pencil of course or on post-it notes. I can read them anywhere. Anywhere! The other great thing about books or booklets is they have a value outside of the magic itself. Think about all the great classic books you have in your library, no longer in print. At the end of the day it's all about the quality of the material.
"If you ever write anything about me after I'm gone, I will come back and haunt you."
– Karl Germain |
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Tim Ellis V.I.P. Melbourne, Australia 1234 Posts
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Quote:
On 2010-01-07 21:53, Crowslide wrote: Do you ever print them out?
www.MagicUnlimited.com
www.timellismagic.com Visit our online shop for instant downloads and ebooks https://shop.timellismagic.com/ Blog - www.magicunlimited.typepad.com |
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Chris Inner circle lybrary.com 1178 Posts
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Tim, retailing magic ebooks for a decade my advice is obvious, but let me point out a few facts:
1) Printed material is just as much ripped off as digital contents. For example, you can find pretty much any Kaufman book as illegal digital download - and they were never released in digital form. 2) Providing a digital alternative actually lowers piracy because those that want a digital version have a legal alternative. My best advice is offer it both as ebook and printed.
Lybrary.com preserving magic one book at a time.
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Judah Vee Special user of the JV Naughty Vanish.... 884 Posts
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Hey Tim.... I always print mine out if I can. The reason? Computers fail. I, like Motown above, work on a computer all night. Thirty two computers to be exact so I really know how often they go down. So, while I love the speed of getting an ebook, I rarely if at all read it ON the computer. And I can take my printed copy anywhere and thanks to the fact the I have access to a comb binding machine they are all kept neat and tidy. And I never have to worry about losing them if my computer crashes, which has happened more then once.
-J-
I don't care how fast or slow you are.... As long as I am faster.. -J-
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Dick Christian Inner circle Northern Virginia (Metro DC) 2619 Posts
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While others will have different opinions -- many have already posted them -- for me, books in print are preferred hands down. While I have purchased many e-books both online and as compiliations on CD, unless a quick perusal reveals them not worth my time or effort, I ALWAYS download, print and bind them to turn them into printed books/booklets, so that I will have PERMANENT PRINTED copies for future reference in addition to the copy on my computer (or stored on a flash drive or other digital storage. I almost never READ an e-book on the computer screen. The exception, of course, is in the case of compilations on CD where I can keep the CD itself as a permanent resource. IMO The ONLY advantage of having books, manuscripts, etc. in digital format is to reduce physical storage space and for easier searching and/or sorting.
While it is certainly true that printed material can be scanned and printed, unless one has an automatic hi-speed commercial style scanner a printed book of any size is far less susceptible to copying than something that is already in digital format and can usually be copied with a click of the mouse. Try copying all 8 volumes of Tarbell, the Albo books or Greater Magic on a typical home office scanner.
Dick Christian
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silverking Inner circle 4574 Posts
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Extremely vertical topics with a very small expected number of sales are ripe for .pdf distribution. Say 100 copies.
So as somebody interested in that vertical topic, I'll buy the .pdf simply because I'm glad to get information on a subject that presumably has little or no information available. But beyond that, it's all books and binding. |
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John C Eternal Order I THINK therefore I wrote 12968 Posts
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Quote:
On 2010-01-08 10:09, Dick Christian wrote: ... or you are 11 years old and have unlimited time on your hands. This is what they do! I've seen big books PS and Ian Rowlands book on cold reading. J |
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Chris Inner circle lybrary.com 1178 Posts
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And don't forget, it needs but one pirate to scan in a book and post it to a peer to peer website. Only one. That is a very low hurdle. As John pointed out, there is always one bored teenager who will do just that.
Lybrary.com preserving magic one book at a time.
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motown Inner circle Atlanta by way of Detroit 6136 Posts
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That's right blame everything on the kids.
I have to agree with Dick, you have less to worry about with books than you do with electronic files.
"If you ever write anything about me after I'm gone, I will come back and haunt you."
– Karl Germain |
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puggo Inner circle 2022 Posts
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Quote:
On 2010-01-07 22:00, Cameron Francis wrote: This is a point I did not mention (customer service). Having picked up some of Cameron's work, it is good to know you can get a bit of help if you need it. A bonus is that you are also supporting the creator. A quick look at some of the other threads here, shows that many have benefited from a bit of help from the creator.. Charlie |
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CardWiz Special user Charleston, SC 626 Posts
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I think ebooks with a low price are a good way to rake in the cash....a $15 ebook with good material is the way I would go.
I would buy a $15 ebook with a few items and not a $15 book (plus shipping) with few items. CW
People have been calling me "Yu" lately. I don't know, must be Chinese.
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mormonyoyoman Inner circle I dug 5,000 postholes, but I have only 2440 Posts
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Quote:
On 2010-01-08 11:02, johncesta wrote: Or college kids. In the early 1970s, college kids and drop-outs made the game Dungeons & Dragons "go viral" before the full-fledged internet -- by photocopying the booklets at school copiers. A few years later, they did the same thing with the sf game Traveller. They were making hundreds of physical copies BEFORE it was simple (and useful, since hardly anyone had a method of reading digital copies) to digitize. Never overestimate the morals, boredom, and free time of intellectual thieves. *jeep!..and God Bless! --Grandpa
#ShareGoodness #ldsconf
--Grandpa Chet |
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Posted: Jan 7, 2010 09:39 am 
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