tarchon said:
A 40 MB download takes exactly the same amount of time whether you do it through Save Link As or the browser window.
Yes, but it is my experience that the browser will do something wrong (like crash) while I wait 8 hours for the file to download in the browser window, whereas a direct save seems less likely to crash. Also, I don't get a status indicator that works properly with the browser load, whereas it works great for the zip download.
It's a quick fix on the SERVER side, so it's way easier than either of those. All you do is just associate a non-PDF MIME type (e.g. application/x-unknown) with the PDF extension, but as I've said I hardly think it's necessary anyway. I mean do you expect there are a lot of people who don't know how to use the File menu but do know how to extract files from an archive? I don't think so. My mom can barely turn on a computer, but she sure knows that if you want to save a file, you use File|Save. Give her a zip file, and she's calling me up long distance. I don't know how much time I've spent on like genealogy groups over the years with people posting things like "help! how do I view a zip file?" With XP, it's a lot easier (since the dearcher is part of the shell), but not everybody in the world has XP.
Good point.
So basically we've designed this whole system to suit a particular quirk of the way you personally have Eudora set up? Sorry, I think you're still on the post-hoc apologetics here. I don't for one second believe that that's the reason this is done the way it is.
No. That's just one reason. The real reason is that this is how the system is set up where we are vendors. And it works for me. In fact, I certainly prefer it.
My only complaint about the process is that the zip files have to be the product SKU and not the product name. This leaves me with a directory full of "XXX-####.zip" files. But from these, I extrac the PDFs and rename them if necessary. It also allows multiple file downloads, as indicated earlier.
This is without going into the problems I have using acrobat within a browser window - the crashes, system slowdowns and so on.
I know that people selling through RPGNet don't determine what RPGNet's policy but what I don't get is why you guys are vehemently defending it. On the one hand you say "don't blame us, we have no control" (and I wasn't blaming you) but then when I complain about it you all start busting my butt? I don't get it.
Actually, all I did was explain my reasoning, and you insist on claiming that you know the real reason I'm saying this (that is is some 'post-hoc apologetics' as you state).
I've been zipping them because I have no choice, because there is not universal support for .rar files yet (which compress PDFs quite nicely), and because I include multiple files in a package, and finally, because I find it a LOT easier to download a zip using a web browser than downloading a PDF.
Once again: I never zipped a commercial PDF release to reduce the file size. Never. That is not why it is done. My explanations are not post-hoc excuses, but are actually why I work this way.
I'm not accusingyou of ulterior motives, why are you constantly claiming that I have them?