The Case for Free Online Books (2014)

#1

Post by jimsojim » Wed, Jun 10, 2026, 4:54 PM UTC

The Case for Free Online Books (2014)
from-a-to-remzi.blogspot.com

Re: The Case for Free Online Books (2014)

#2

Post by dyauspitr » Wed, Jun 10, 2026, 5:16 PM UTC

Everything should be free. The people writing the textbooks should spend 5 years of their life working on it for free.

Re: The Case for Free Online Books (2014)

#3

Post by coeneedell » Wed, Jun 10, 2026, 5:19 PM UTC

dyauspitr wrote: post #2

Everything should be free. The people writing the textbooks should spend 5 years of their life working on it for free.

They should get paid. The press should pay them. The college pays the press. The students pay the college. The press releases information for free.

Re: The Case for Free Online Books (2014)

#4

Post by newer_vienna » Wed, Jun 10, 2026, 5:23 PM UTC

Copyright stifles creative output. I believe that if we got rid of copyright (not just for textbooks), the quality and quantity of published work will increase.

Re: The Case for Free Online Books (2014)

#5

Post by sixothree » Wed, Jun 10, 2026, 5:23 PM UTC

dyauspitr wrote: post #2

Everything should be free. The people writing the textbooks should spend 5 years of their life working on it for free.

The point of most complaints is that the author isn't the one enjoying the profit from textbooks.

Re: The Case for Free Online Books (2014)

#6

Post by vonneumannstan » Wed, Jun 10, 2026, 5:24 PM UTC

coeneedell wrote: post #3

dyauspitr wrote: post #2

Everything should be free. The people writing the textbooks should spend 5 years of their life working on it for free.

They should get paid. The press should pay them. The college pays the press. The students pay the college. The press releases information for free.

So you're saying colleges will just increase tuition to cover the cost of textbooks right?

Re: The Case for Free Online Books (2014)

#7

Post by Eddy_Viscosity2 » Wed, Jun 10, 2026, 5:27 PM UTC

coeneedell wrote: post #3

dyauspitr wrote: post #2

Everything should be free. The people writing the textbooks should spend 5 years of their life working on it for free.

They should get paid. The press should pay them. The college pays the press. The students pay the college. The press releases information for free.

Then students will just end up paying more in tuition, possibly more than the costs of textbooks. That extra money of course will go to increasing either/both the university president's or lead football coach's salaries.

Re: The Case for Free Online Books (2014)

#8

Post by free_bip » Wed, Jun 10, 2026, 5:29 PM UTC

vonneumannstan wrote: post #6

coeneedell wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They should get paid. The press should pay them. The college pays the press. The students pay the college. The press releases information for free.

So you're saying colleges will just increase tuition to cover the cost of textbooks right?

Or they could lay off some middle managers. If they blame the layoffs on AI the market might even reward them for it.

Re: The Case for Free Online Books (2014)

#9

Post by oinoom » Wed, Jun 10, 2026, 5:29 PM UTC

I read this book cover to cover after purchasing it with money, despite it being free online, and loved it. I think it’s pretty clear that the author was in a position where they could afford to put this out there for free. But not everyone is and I think people should be compensated for their time and efforts if that’s what they want.

Re: The Case for Free Online Books (2014)

#10

Post by peesem » Wed, Jun 10, 2026, 5:30 PM UTC

dyauspitr wrote: post #2

Everything should be free. The people writing the textbooks should spend 5 years of their life working on it for free.

if everything really was free then the textbook writers wouldn't need compensation since everything would be free for them too