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Books are not too expensive

millersbookreview.com

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Re: Books are not too expensive

#191

Post by ninalanyon »

ineedasername wrote: post #154
ninalanyon wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It only works because the educators are complicit. Most bachelors degree textbooks in basic sciences do not need to change from one decade to the next. My Lorrain and Corson Electromagnetic Fields and Waves from when I was studying applied physics in 1975 is just as correct now as it was then.

They aren't complicit when the cheap edition isn't reprinted and instead it's "2nd, 3rd, revised" etc.

Universities could band together and write and publish their own textbooks. These days they don't even need to print them.

Re: Books are not too expensive

#192

Post by rahimnathwani »

toast0 wrote: post #189
rahimnathwani wrote: post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What do you mean 'no one wanted it'? Most library users select from the books on the shelf. That's like saying you shouldn't write a book because no one wanted it in the past, before it existed.

Nobody requested it => no one wanted it.

If that's the case, then why do librarians curate collections? Why stock any book before a library user has requested it?

Re: Books are not too expensive

#193

Post by toast0 »

rahimnathwani wrote: post #192
toast0 wrote: post #189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nobody requested it => no one wanted it.

If that's the case, then why do librarians curate collections? Why stock any book before a library user has requested it?

To reduce latency on first use for books the curators think are likely to be used?

Re: Books are not too expensive

#194

Post by rahimnathwani »

so-cal-schemer wrote: post #184
toast0 wrote: post #180

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If nobody wanted it in the first 10 years it was available, chances are it's only going to get one circulation if they buy it for you. That's not a great use of the libraries purchase budget or shelf space budget. If they had a copy that wore out and it was circulated many times, they would have reordered it when they discarded it.

That's why it's great that SFPL purchases such a wide variety of books. You can't ILL something if nobody has it. When I was a teen I got my local library to acquire copies of a number of tech classics: SICP, K&R, Stevens' TCP/IP Illustrated, ANSI CL, ... all discarded to my everlasting disappointment.

SFPL doesn't have even one copy of SICP.

And I can't request a copy because it's too old.

Re: Books are not too expensive

#195

Post by rahimnathwani »

toast0 wrote: post #189
rahimnathwani wrote: post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What do you mean 'no one wanted it'? Most library users select from the books on the shelf. That's like saying you shouldn't write a book because no one wanted it in the past, before it existed.

Nobody requested it => no one wanted it.

SFPL doesn't have even one copy of SICP.

And I can't request a copy because it's too old.

Do you believe that no one in San Francisco ever wanted to read SICP?

Re: Books are not too expensive

#196

Post by toast0 »

rahimnathwani wrote: post #195
toast0 wrote: post #189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Nobody requested it => no one wanted it.

SFPL doesn't have even one copy of SICP. And I can't request a copy because it's too old. Do you believe that no one in San Francisco ever wanted to read SICP?

I can believe that nobody was checking it out and it got weeded. But you should be able to get it through interlibrary loan.

https://sfpl.libanswers.com/faq/97320

Worldcat says it's at 1483 libraries: https://search.worldcat.org/title/Structure-and-interpretati... (although some of them may not participate in ILL, and some may only have eBooks that you probably can't borrow unless you have an appropriate account)

I'm sure SFPL does tracking on ILL requests and if something comes up more than once or twice in a reasonable period and it's available for purchase, a copy will be purchased to add to the collection.

Re: Books are not too expensive

#197

Post by WillAdams »

bombcar wrote: post #183
WillAdams wrote: post #181

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My understanding (I am not an accountant or lawyer and this is not legal advice, but a layman's uncertain organic memory) is that it was just that: - old law: tax is deferred until item is sold - new law: tax is owed on property in inventory each year until sold There were hearings on Congress and Librarians holding marches protesting the bill, but it all seems to have faded away into obscurity and the new status quo…

> - new law: tax is owed on property in inventory each year until sold This type of "property" tax is very rare except on physical real estate (at least in US) but it might be they did that. If so, it'd destroy the long tail entirely, so much so that I'd think print on demand companies like Amazon were behind the tax bill.

Found it --- from:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backlist

>In the US, backlist and midlist publications were negatively affected by the US Supreme Court decision in the 1979 case Thor Power Tool Company v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue. This decision reinterpreted rules for inventory depreciation, changing how book publishers had to account for unsold inventory each year, and their ability to depreciate it. Because stocks of unsold books could no longer be written down without proof of value, it became more efficient tax-wise for companies to simply destroy inventory.

Re: Books are not too expensive

#198

Post by rahimnathwani »

toast0 wrote: post #196
rahimnathwani wrote: post #195

Earlier quoted context omitted.

SFPL doesn't have even one copy of SICP. And I can't request a copy because it's too old. Do you believe that no one in San Francisco ever wanted to read SICP?

I can believe that nobody was checking it out and it got weeded. But you should be able to get it through interlibrary loan. https://sfpl.libanswers.com/faq/97320 Worldcat says it's at 1483 libraries: https://search.worldcat.org/title/Structure-and-interpretati... (although some of them may not participate in ILL, and some may only have eBooks that you probably can't borrow unless you have an appropriate account) I'm…

OK I just submitted two ILL requests (for two different books).

Re: Books are not too expensive

#199

Post by bombcar »

WillAdams wrote: post #197
bombcar wrote: post #183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> - new law: tax is owed on property in inventory each year until sold This type of "property" tax is very rare except on physical real estate (at least in US) but it might be they did that. If so, it'd destroy the long tail entirely, so much so that I'd think print on demand companies like Amazon were behind the tax bill.

Found it --- from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backlist >In the US, backlist and midlist publications were negatively affected by the US Supreme Court decision in the 1979 case Thor Power Tool Company v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue. This decision reinterpreted rules for inventory depreciation, changing how book publishers had to account for unsold inventory each year, and their ability to depreciate it. Becaus…

Ah, that's much older than I thought.

Re: Books are not too expensive

#200

Post by so-cal-schemer »

rahimnathwani wrote: post #194
so-cal-schemer wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's why it's great that SFPL purchases such a wide variety of books. You can't ILL something if nobody has it. When I was a teen I got my local library to acquire copies of a number of tech classics: SICP, K&R, Stevens' TCP/IP Illustrated, ANSI CL, ... all discarded to my everlasting disappointment.

SFPL doesn't have even one copy of SICP. And I can't request a copy because it's too old.

I can't remember the number of times and ways I've tried to get them to re-acquire it. Maybe we should organize a good old sit-in?

https://mtpfriends.bigcartel.com/product/what-s-more-punk-ad...

Some universities have it, but the only copy in CA public libraries seems to be at the Sharp Park branch in Pacifica (which I believe was acquired in the last couple of years - good on them!).

Berkeley public library has copies of the JS edition for what that's worth..

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