Just Trust
Let me start by apologizing for not being around much lately. I wish I could tell you it's because I'm working on some new and exciting project or something, but to be honest - as many of you probably know, I just got caught up in another major forum drama. Why does this keep happening? These threads come along and take over my entire life, making it very hard for me to focus on anything else. If I'm trying to make a point and I feel passionate about it, I just can't break myself away.
This week's drama all began when it became publicly known that some random asshole in the lampwork community decided to give many, many people the Christmas gift of PDF E-books, written by other members of the community. That would have been a really nice thing to do, except that in this case, Random Asshole did not bother paying for all the copies that were sent out. When confronted, Random Asshole proudly admitted to what they had done and expressed intentions to keep doing so, showing absolutely no remorse whatsoever. Would you believe?
As far as I know, I was not a victim of this crime - no stolen copies of Think Pink were reported.
At some point, early on in the outraged thread, one person recommends using PDF tracking software as a solution to this kind of problem. She says she can see if copies of her file are being distributed illegally, and lock those copies down from her own computer. For a second or two, this sounded like it might be a good idea - but then, I thought to myself - wait a minute. That would be like using spyware. I hate spyware. I'm sure as hell not going to turn my own E-books into spyware.
I guess that was the point where a whole new kind of hell broke loose. Internet privacy has always been a hot topic, naturally, so many different opinions were voiced. The person who had recommended the spyware in the first place refuses to tell people what the software she is using is even called - not even her own buyers. Then, she pretty much disappears from the thread. I was curious, so I did a little research, as did a few others. I learned that what most PDF trackers do, is keep tabs on the user. Every time the user opens the PDF file - which they bought and is now on their own computer - the code which has been embedded in it sends out various signals through the internet, notifying the author/seller of the PDF how many times the file has been opened, which pages have been read and which haven't, how many times the file has been printed and if it has been sent to anyone else by e-mail. These applications also record the user's IP address, allowing the author to know things like which city they live in, what type of organization they work in, and all sorts of other little tidbits of information.
Is it spyware? (Do you really need to ask?)
"Absolutely not", declares one website. We're just collecting the same kind of information that hit counters collect when someone visits a website. You know, just normal communications being sent through the internet.
That's nice, except that a PDF file is not a website. When you buy a PDF file and you are viewing it on your own private computer, you shouldn't be sending out any communications over the internet. And if you are, you should absolutely be notified about it before you buy the file. These programs have figured out a way to get around spyware-detection software (some of them are, apparently, quite proud of this achievement) - so basically, unless the author of the PDF wants them to, users will have no idea they are being tracked.
Another website uses the cheapest of scare tactics to market their spyware:
"Don't forget… every moment you delay, someone is ripping you off. Show those lousy thieves and freebie-seekers that you're not going to let them steal your products - and your profits - any more!"
This stuff makes me me sick. SICK.
Anyway, back to our thread. Eventually, the person who first recommended using spyware reappears, writes a really long post which is - in my mind at least - so incredibly full of BS that it's almost a joke (I wouldn't say that on the forum, but I can say it here, right?). She concludes by telling everyone how sad and hurt she is feeling and announces that now she is considering leaving the forum forever because everyone is being so mean to her. Don't you just love when people do that? If there's a top-ten list of "incredibly obnoxious forum behavior" somewhere, the passive-aggressive guilt-trip is probably in the top three, along with trolling and going back and deleting all your posts on a certain subject once it becomes confrontational.
The problem with passive-aggressive guilt-trips is, they usually work. Dozens of people will appear out of nowhere, begging you not to leave the forum (as if you really had any intention of doing that anyway). Not only that, but anyone who has disagreed with your opinions - that would be me, in this case - automatically becomes the bad guy. Yep. One minute, I'm expressing my views, respectfully debating those who disagree, asking questions about things that don't make sense, and fighting for something that means something to me. Next minute, I am getting a myriad of hurtful, personal insults slung at my face. I am now pure evil, so anything goes. I get called bitchy, catty, mean, nasty, horrid, arrogant, snotty and all sorts of lovely things, just because I expressed a freaking opinion. My posts throughout the thread were polite and respectful to all (except for a few, perhaps, when I was really being pushed to a breaking point and needed to defend myself) - but few people seem to even remember that.
It's okay. I'm over it. I've been on forums for almost ten years, and I get how they work - much "mob mentality" is involved. I'm not going to pull a passive-aggressive guilt-trip of my own and threaten to leave the forum, because that's just not my style. I'm not going anywhere, I'm not deleting my posts, and I'm not going to stop speaking my mind. Deal with it.
E-books in PDF format are certainly not a new concept, but they are fairly new in the lampwork community. More and more keep popping up, and I think that's a good thing (as long as they don't have "tracking devices" attached to them). They are relatively easy to produce, compared to a printed book - making a wide variety of new information available to all. When I first started playing around with glass, I tried to get my hands on every book I could. The problem with printed lampwork books, is that many of them are designed for beginners, and don't deal with more advanced topics that some users might want to learn about. There were no lampwork E-books back then.
However, their very existence raises many moral, ethical and philosophical questions.
How dare people charge money for information? Tutorials should always be free. What if now, no one wants to share anymore? What kind of effect would that have on the community? ARE WE ALL GOING TO DIE?!?!
How is this different from "charging money for information" in the form of printed books or teaching classes? Neither of those seems to have killed the global lampwork community, so I think we will all be fine. By the way, many E-book writers, myself included, also share free information regularly. There's nothing "greedy" about wanting to make a living.
How dare people write an E-book about a basic subject which may have been covered once or twice in printed books? Are they trying to make a profit off of other people's hard work? Are they?! Huh?! ARE THEY?!?!
This question is ridiculous. There are many, many topics out there, glass-related or not, that have been discussed by different authors in different books. For instance, I own at least three or four books about Salvador Dali. They contain a lot of the same information and the same works of art, but each one is a bit different. I'm guessing there are probably at least hundreds of books about Dali out there. Who decides which ones are illegitimate? Once someone mentions someone or something in a book, is that book automatically required to be the first and last one about that topic? Seriously.
If I buy a printed book, I can lend it to a friend if I want. Hey, I can lend it to ten friends if I want. If I don't want it anymore, I can sell it, give it away or do whatever the hell I want with it. Why can't I do that when I buy an E-book? AM I BEING RIPPED OFF? AM I?!?!
This is the question that interests me most - because I don't really have a good answer for it. All I can say is "yes, that's the way things are, and you're right - it doesn't seem fair, but that's just how digital files work." You could easily let a friend "borrow" one, same as you'd let them borrow a printed book - but when it's an E-book, you could just as easily let 100 friends "borrow" it, and let's face it - they don't really have to give it back. You could sell your copy when you're done with it, but you could just as easily sell your copy 1000 times. I'm not saying that everyone would. I tend to believe that most people wouldn't, or else I wouldn't be in this business in the first place. But the line has to be drawn somewhere, and until someone comes up with a better solution (spyware is not a better solution), most authors will draw the line at a single-user copy.
I guess in some way, it's the price you pay. E-books come with numerous advantages over printed books, such as saving you time and money for shipping (who doesn't like instant gratification?), being more environmentally-friendly and giving you choices as to how you'd like to read it. If you buy a printed book and lose it in some way, that's pretty much your problem. If you lose a PDF somehow, I'm sure most authors would be glad to send you a new copy at no extra charge. Updates to PDFs can be free, instead of you having to go out and buy a newer edition of a book you already have. I'm sure I could think of more, but basically, it's all a matter of choice. You need to weigh the pros and cons of E-books and decide if you want to buy one or not. Nobody is being forced into anything.
There are many differences between printed books and digital books, but in my mind, one major difference stands out above them all. I call it trust. When you buy a printed book, there is no trust involved - you buy it, you pay for it, it's yours, goodbye. The business of E-books requires trust, and it has to be mutual.
Let's say you buy a copy of Think Pink. You wouldn't do that if you didn't trust me to some extent. You have to trust that when you send me money, I am actually going to send you a file. You have to trust that the file lives up to my description of it, because you can't really leaf through it first. You have to trust that my file contains no malicious code of any kind, whether it be PDF-tracking spyware or just a random evil virus that will delete everything on your computer. You have to trust that I won't use your e-mail address to send you spam, or sell it to someone else who sends spam.
Let's say I sell you a copy of Think Pink. I may have no idea who you are, but you have put your trust in me, and now I must trust you. I have to trust you not to mail out copies of the file to all your friends. I have to trust you not to sell copies of the file, not to post it online where people could download it for free, not to break into it somehow, change a few details and sell it as your own. Hey, anything could happen.
Life is not worth living if you're going to spend it obsessing with paranoia. Digital files will get shared illegally, whether you like it or not. That's how the world works. Sure, you can use trackers, blockers and whatever type of spyware you can think of (in my mind, doing so without notifying your buyers about it and giving them the right to choose if they want it or not is nothing short of despicable) - but if someone really wants to, they will find a way around that. If someone really wants to steal your file, they will - and they probably wouldn't have paid for the file in the first place, so you're not REALLY losing that much profit.
I published Think Pink in full awareness that this is the way things are. I only care about the many decent people out there who have paid for the file and wouldn't share it around. I'm sure there are many illegal copies floating around at any given moment, and that thought doesn't make me happy - but I choose to move on, accept it, not give it too much thought and focus on things that really matter - not all those "lousy thieves who are ripping me off and stealing all my profits".
If I heard about someone "sharing" or selling the file on a large scale, I might decide to take legal action.
I will NEVER, under any circumstances, punish all of my buyers just because there may be a few "lousy thieves" out there. My PDFs are, and always will be, tracker-free. I don't see my buyers as being a group of "lousy thieves". They are a bunch of people who decided to trust me and give my product a chance, and I have much respect for them because of that. I don't believe that I have the right to track their reading habits or follow where they are opening the file from. I don't think they have the right to send the file to their friends, but I don't think I have any more of a right to spy on them and lock files on their own computers down.
File theft is a problem. Spyware is not a solution to that problem. Spyware just creates more problems and generates paranoia on both sides. I'd hate for people to stop buying E-books because they're afraid of being tracked.
As for the lousy thieves, karma can probably take care of them way better than I can anyway.
I will now try my best not to say anything else on this subject for a really long time. Okay?
The thread is here, if anyone really wants to read it.
Well said! I certainly agree with everything you have said.
All I want to hear now is what your next tutorial is about. The wait is killing me girl!!
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Sarah, I read what you wrote on the forum as it was going on, and I read what you wrote here and in both instances I feel you stood by "forum etiquette" quite well, and expressed yourself eloquently. Well done.
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Well said, Sarah. I found myself FORCED to break away from that thread this weekend, too much that had to be done. When I went back, I was overwhelmed and just could not catch up enough to feel justified in posting a response. You are absolutely on target and you are absolutely a class act -- now take your life back!
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Seems like the problem is that approaching the question of defending IP in the same way that the MPAA and RIAA and every other "copyright defending" trade group has been doing for years and years is apparently meeting with the same level of success.
Maybe you could consider the test case of Jonathan Coulton, of "Still Alive" and "Code Monkey" fame. Everything he does (almost, unless he's paid to write it, like with "Still Alive") is licensed under Creative Commons, which means anybody can do anything with it as long as they don't sell it to anybody. He doesn't charge you to download his music - you can listen to his whole catalog online, for free. If you have the technical wherewithal to find the files on his server, have at it, he's fine with that. HOWEVER, he asks that if you like his stuff, you can give him money so he can keep making stuff - and apparently is making an okay living off of it (as well as doing live shows, but the live shows wouldn't be possible without the viral nature of his "free" music). People download his songs, and then eventually decide they like them well enough that they throw him some coin. Seems like glassworkers with the skills to produce a tutorial worth anything would only augment their bead sales and increase their teaching offers by making it easy for newbies to know their name and what they can do. And if they want to later publish a hard copy of an anthology of their work as a "coffee table book" or whatever, nothing would stop the artist from doing so (most of the hard work of producing the IP would already be done, anyway).
In the digital age where the cost of reproduction is essentially zero, value will not be gained from restricting access, like in the current model. Future models will probably be much more like when the old rich guys would keep a court composer or painter or sculptor or whatever on staff so to create entertainment for them - but in the modern age, it will not be just one person but tens of thousands who chip in.
Course, what do we know - we're just stoopid monkeys.
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That is an interesting concept. I guess it would take some serious guts though.
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Well, if I understand you correctly, you're main source of income (at least until your e-book, don't know how well that sold for you) is from selling beads and doing classes. The classes are like a musician doing a gig, and you have one up on them too, since you also get to sell your performance frozen in time by the beads you sell.
But that doesn't mean you can't also make some money of the tutorial end too. If you make it a "suggested contribution", say 3,4,5 bucks or so, folks who wanted to steal when it was 20 bucks are still not going to pony up anything. But others sitting on the fence are far more willing to drop a couple bucks than 20, especially when (as you say) it's a question of trust: you trust your fans to help you out, and in return you will continue to provide for them. That way, trust blows both ways, and the "customer" can have greater emotional connection to the artist since it's more a cooperative endeavor and not just a business transaction.
Gutsy? Sure. Know what would be more gutsy? Quitting a well paying career you hate to make beads full time without knowing if it would work or not - I think I remember hearing of somebody who did that once. ^_^
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Touché.
I need to think about this one a bit. You definitely make some interesting points.
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Here's a more detailed explanation of the idea - 1000 true fans, and the "Long Tail".
http://www.kk.org/thetechnium/archives/2008/03/1000_true_fans.php
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Well...very well, and very passionately said Sarah!
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Delete this if you must, this is your blog and you're most welcome to say what you like. BUT to speak about a respected Artist in the community as you have here is a gobsmacker for sure. Call me a troll, call me whatever - it certainly seems to make you feel better. I for one have lost all respect for you.
Michelle
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Methinks you have already made this clear, but thanks for the reminder.
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Not all PDF solutions include tracking information. Please, please, please ensure that there is a difference specified. The fear of the unknown is actually restricting very real resolutions to the problem from even being considered.
The only good analogy I can come up with to help explain how the NON-tracking PDF protection software works (and the concerns raised by users) would be akin to attempting to explain to your insurance agent that a spark from a stove in your kitchen will not cause your torch setup to explode when it is several rooms away in your house (provided all safety measures are followed, that is). Which is to say, if you use firewalls and have your own computer protected from being invaded by the group of "them" who invade on the internet, there are PDF solutions that allow everyone to exist peacefully and, at the same time, limit digital theft. To diss all products as spyware is highly inaccurate.
Just my .02 cents.
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If it's not spyware, then there should be no problem with letting buyers know about it, so they can decide for themselves if they want it or not. Right?
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This is what I tried to bring up in the thread. There is something called "secured pdf" files. Meaning you can't attach them to emails or do the copy/paste thing. No tracking envolved. Thus no spyware. You are basically locking it so that only the person who bought it can open it. It won't stop all pirating, but it'll deter the stupid people who aren't computer savy and I think the not savy ones are the one that lend themselves to the most stealing in our parts.
And there are my 2cents.
Very well put post. I gotta say, I agree with you on so many levels. The whole mob thing had me feeling like I couldn't even tell the forum about my book for fear of being told I am showing off.
My stars... you monsters... the things you must do, the things you must see...
I love Bugs Bunny cartoons. That quote from the one with the Big Hairy monster is my favorite.
Kerry
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Sorry - didn't see you'd asked this here as well.
Absolutely - full disclosure should be part of whatever an author may choose to do to protect their own interests. I would be really disappointed to think anyone would fail to disclose the facts to potential buyers.
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Well said! Good for you Sarah.
I watched that train wreck too, and think you handled yourself just fine.
Most people are pretty good, glad your not letting a few idjits sour you.
jo
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Lovely post Sarah. It's clear that you've thought this through and I appreciate your thoroughness and honesty.
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Thanks for bringing this to light, Sarah. The artist on LE who asserts it's OK to install spyware on her customers' computers is so ignorant it's scary. I've worked in the software industry for a decade and I have seen many examples of such spyware harming users in unintended ways (for example, the infamous Sony rootkit which was installed by music CDs and left users' computers vulnerable to hackers).
I would never steal a tutorial, and I will never purchase a tutorial from any artist who uses spyware. I have removed the offending artist's tutorial from my wish list. Hopefully in time she will realize that her position is costing her more money than it is saving.
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As you have said, if people want to copy, they will, regardless of spyware or any other attempted protection. A simple photocopier would do it, and I'm not aware of any spyware that would assist in preventing that! So I agree with you about there having to be some 'trust' somewhere along the line.
Best wishes.
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I love your comments above. I have read the thread you are referring to...I think you handled yourself well
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Brilliantly said Sarah. I, too, had to distance myself from that train wreck - especially after the first 500+ posts.
All I have to say is that you are the one that came through shining, a class act, well informed & armed with well informed, valid points. No tantrums or threats – just stating the facts. Impressive.
What should have been obvious to anyone who was paying attention is the fact that out of the two - there is only one with any sort of decent business ethic & a good dose of integrity.
The most valid point of warning people about tracking software being in a PDF prior to purchase cannot & should not be overlooked.
From reading that thread I now know whom I would happily purchase a PDF from .... & believe me it would have to be the person who showed that she values both ethics & integrity ;o)
Yep - mutual trust is what it is all about.
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Hey Sarah,
I remember being in the thick of my very own forum drama when we met...
A wise lady advised me to stop spending my energy on it & stop giving other people my power by letting it worry me...
Hmmmmm !!!
Sal
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Perhaps she wasn't quite as wise as she thought she was.
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I joined that forum a little while ago, and have hardly used it, because of the 'mob' mentality on some of the threads.. There's a lot of very useful info but some odd behaviour going on too.. and after all, I mostly just want to talk and learn about glass, with perhaps a bit of a laugh thrown in.
I have to admit to not joining in sometimes in a debate if my opinions are contrary to everyone elses, but you're right, there's nothing wrong with having an opinion, that's what a debate is! I haven't bought a tutorial online yet, and I do find it disturbing that people can see when you are accessing the files - makes you wonder what else they can see?!
By the way, I would be very interested in a tut on your gorgeous silver glass beads, (unless you are, quite rightly, keeping some secrets back!)
By the way, I haven't actually read the thread in question yet..
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Sarah,
From many past experiences with the "harmless" pdf pusher.... you would never have gotten a straight answer as there isn't one to be gotten. There is nothing but a pile of lies and ignorance. The passive aggressive dodging of facts is at least a consistent reaction from her. If you want the truth of the matter...best to go elsewhere - you won't ever get it from her. Thank you for at least calling her on it and trying to get at the truth though... too many times everyone believes her lies without question.... sheep. baaah.
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Are you by chance referring to me? If so, please feel free to PM me on LE to explain what you're talking about?
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I don't think she was. I think she's referring to the person who initially recommended using spyware.
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Its important to stand up for what you believe in & you have expressed yourself so well....
Having said that I do feel a little sad for all the beads that did not get made during this period
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Sarah....
Who really gives two shits what any of them think of you?
Remember, never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.
What lies behind us and lies before us are small matters compared to what lies right to our faces...
Now enough loss of time.
Before I find my whip
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