Anyone else feel indifferent about the PDF thing?

[Nightchilde-2]

edit: I take that back---it might concern me a little if this place ends up more heated and annoying as a consequence of the PDF thing.

Hm. Too late.

 

[Rechan]

It is a big deal when an important company in the industry begins doing the stupid. Will it effect your local game? probably not. But honestly if it was not that big a deal to you, why did you start a thread about it?

My question is more, "Why's it a big deal in the sense of people getting up in arms about it"?

Posters do not seem mad because WotC is making a bad business move. That's not what the 26+ thread seems to be about.

 

[Blue]

I saw the news and, honestly, my reaction is: "So what?"

Anyone else have that reaction?

The sale of WotC books as PDFs doesn't seem, well, that big a deal one way or the other, to me.

It seems much ado about nothing.

I'm a hardcover man, but even if I'm not their PDF market I care because of the way they did it.

No notice, no communication, cutting out electronic stores that they've been selling their product through with a days notice or less, and cutting out PDF sales before they have a replacement digital product ready.

If I was running a retail business and one of my vendors told me with no notice that I had to immediately stop selling their product, that would be news. If it was the most sold brand which brought a lot of traffic to my store it would absolutely be news, both to myself and my customers.

If there is a company trying hard to sell subscriptions to digital content, bringing Dungeon and Dragon back in house and making them digital only, and constantly talking about their digital initiative ... and then they move away from digital distribution of their product, doesn't that undermine a lot of what they have been saying?

Just because you aren't the one to buy PDFs doesn't mean that this isn't news. There are ramifications to it that willl most likely affect you long term directly or indirectly if you play the game.

 

[Fenes]

My question is more, "Why's it a big deal in the sense of people getting up in arms about it"?

Posters do not seem mad because WotC is making a bad business move. That's not what the 26+ thread seems to be about.

People are up in arms because this business move (among other things)

- Caused some of them to lose products they already paid for
- Caused some of them to become unable to buy a product they liked
- Was allegedly done to battle piracy, meaning that either they were lied to, or someone (or many someones) at WotC has no idea about the internet, which casts doubt on the company's competency as a whole
- Was implemented in a very bad and callous way
- Was not communicated properly or at all

Now of course one can shrug and go on, and many may do, but not everyone is like that, especially those who rely on PDFs for various reasons (weight of books while travelling, disability) or know people who do.

 

[mach1.9pants]

I care. I just spent 500 NZ on an eReader because I hate reading PDFs on my PC (dungeon and Dragon mags) and I love my PDF copies of the books I own.


Maybe I shouldn't have posted here but WotC's decision sux!

 

[Stoat]

I care only insofar as it's clogged up the General Forum with angry rants.

The actual decision doesn't really affect me.

 

[Rechan]

People are up in arms because this business move (among other things)

All right.

I won't give my opinion on those. But, thanks for summing that up.

 

[Klaus]

This treads dangerously on "me too" ground, but I have to agree, it doesn't really bother me one way or the other, especially as I think WotC were very late to the PDF game anyway. I think Wizards might want to learn a lesson or two about communication, but that's not a reason to get all hot under the collar.

Shelves groaning under the weight of hardcover goodness... that is what I crave.

I'm right there with you.

There was a time when D&D books *weren't* available as PDFs. They became available for a while, and now are available no more (for now, at least).

 

[Nymrohd]

Do I *like* their policy? Not really.

But since I don't buy PDFs, Wizard's decision doesn't concern me at all.

edit: I take that back---it might concern me a little if this place ends up more heated and annoying as a consequence of the PDF thing.

This is my issue as well. Right before this happened there were a lot of threads on the front page I wanted to read or post in, either on new 4E rules items or roleplaying in general. Now most of the attention among the posters has been diverted to the megathread (were everything that was to be said has been said a dozen times over by now) and that thread is even getting half a dozen spinoffs and the lion's share of the community. And it happens again and again whenever WotC does something that can in any way be construed as wrong. Is the urge to rant and stick it to the man this great?

 

[Nymrohd]

I'm right there with you.

There was a time when D&D books *weren't* available as PDFs. They became available for a while, and now are available no more (for now, at least).

Consumer entitlement is a marvelous thing. Welcome to capitalism.