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D&D Does Digital Part III: PDFs
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<blockquote data-quote="Dire Bare" data-source="post: 7685555" data-attributes="member: 18182"><p>Well, that's more clear, thanks. But I disagree. I would love WotC to release fully bookmarked and hyperlinked PDFs of their books, but it would be far from the ideal format. IMO, of course.</p><p></p><p>If WotC's ONLY concern was to provide digital books quickly, easily, and to meet current customer's perceived needs . . . than getting those PDFs out pronto would be the right call.</p><p></p><p>But WotC has more than that concern, and as a business looking towards long-term profits, they are right to tread carefully, as frustrating as it is for fans. WotC has to limit piracy as much as reasonable/possible (casual piracy) to protect their IP and investment and keep corporate honchos and shareholders happy. They have to use DRM, but make sure it doesn't get too much in the way of legit customer uses. And simply producing static ebooks (even hyperlinked) is backwards looking, WotC needs/wants to move forward with the promise that digital can bring to gaming.</p><p></p><p>As a fan, I want PDFs now! If I were in charge at WotC, I would not be doing PDFs at all. I would create an app or web-service (same thing, really) that allows D&D books (back catalog and new books) to be used within the app. I would increase functionality by not even really making them books. Essentially, the point of DungeonScape, the failed program that was announced during the launch of 5E. Even what we have now through Fantasy Grounds is superior in many ways (not all, especially price) than simply dead-tree books or static ebook versions of them.</p><p></p><p>That's why we don't have 5E ebooks yet, IMO, is that WotC is trying to bring this sort of thing to reality, and it's a struggle. Everyone loves to toss blame around when WotC or one of their partners fails and a project falls apart, but software is a tough business. </p><p></p><p>An interesting example is Games Workshop. GW has been experimenting with different ebook formats for their Warhammer rulebooks, and like WotC, they are avoiding PDF. They have released their rulebooks in .mobi and .epub formats, and have special (more expensive) "interactive" editions of their books for iOS devices.</p><p></p><p>The .mobi versions (haven't tried the .epub) are clunky, irritating, and less functional than PDF . . . but offers GW more control than the PDF format does. The interactive editions, which is where WotC needs to go IMO, include the text of the books but allow you to manipulate art images and include army roster features, to build your Warhammer armies! I don't have an iPad or iPhone, so I haven't gotten a chance to play around with one of these, but the promise is very cool! Reports I've seen say that the interactive features are fun and worth the extra price, but have been a bit clunky at launch.</p><p></p><p>WotC isn't the only company struggling with this, and if they can pull it off, we could see some pretty cool interactive products in the near future.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Dire Bare, post: 7685555, member: 18182"] Well, that's more clear, thanks. But I disagree. I would love WotC to release fully bookmarked and hyperlinked PDFs of their books, but it would be far from the ideal format. IMO, of course. If WotC's ONLY concern was to provide digital books quickly, easily, and to meet current customer's perceived needs . . . than getting those PDFs out pronto would be the right call. But WotC has more than that concern, and as a business looking towards long-term profits, they are right to tread carefully, as frustrating as it is for fans. WotC has to limit piracy as much as reasonable/possible (casual piracy) to protect their IP and investment and keep corporate honchos and shareholders happy. They have to use DRM, but make sure it doesn't get too much in the way of legit customer uses. And simply producing static ebooks (even hyperlinked) is backwards looking, WotC needs/wants to move forward with the promise that digital can bring to gaming. As a fan, I want PDFs now! If I were in charge at WotC, I would not be doing PDFs at all. I would create an app or web-service (same thing, really) that allows D&D books (back catalog and new books) to be used within the app. I would increase functionality by not even really making them books. Essentially, the point of DungeonScape, the failed program that was announced during the launch of 5E. Even what we have now through Fantasy Grounds is superior in many ways (not all, especially price) than simply dead-tree books or static ebook versions of them. That's why we don't have 5E ebooks yet, IMO, is that WotC is trying to bring this sort of thing to reality, and it's a struggle. Everyone loves to toss blame around when WotC or one of their partners fails and a project falls apart, but software is a tough business. An interesting example is Games Workshop. GW has been experimenting with different ebook formats for their Warhammer rulebooks, and like WotC, they are avoiding PDF. They have released their rulebooks in .mobi and .epub formats, and have special (more expensive) "interactive" editions of their books for iOS devices. The .mobi versions (haven't tried the .epub) are clunky, irritating, and less functional than PDF . . . but offers GW more control than the PDF format does. The interactive editions, which is where WotC needs to go IMO, include the text of the books but allow you to manipulate art images and include army roster features, to build your Warhammer armies! I don't have an iPad or iPhone, so I haven't gotten a chance to play around with one of these, but the promise is very cool! Reports I've seen say that the interactive features are fun and worth the extra price, but have been a bit clunky at launch. WotC isn't the only company struggling with this, and if they can pull it off, we could see some pretty cool interactive products in the near future. [/QUOTE]
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