Just for fun - a poll on PDFs v. Books

[Kanegrundar]

Ah, but are you liking what you see in one over the other? I guess that was what I was really trying to say, that the stuff in PDFs have been really inspiring me.

It depends. As far as content goes, I've bought a few more PDF stinkers than print books. Overall, I kinda prefer having a book to sit in my lap that I didn't have to print myself over a pdf. My main reason for buying pdf's is there are some great smaller companies that put out material that isn't being covered by the big publishers (mainly D20 Modern/Future material). My Modern material collection is overwhelmingly pdf's. I also tend to pick up pdf's of print books that I can't really warrant the cost of buying the print version, but I'm interested in the material anyway. I bought the Savage Worlds Revised pdf for that very reason.

Like I said before, I've bought some stinkers in the PDF market. I've got to the point that I look for certain publishers like I do in print books. RPGObjects, Ronin Arts, Adamant, and LPJ Designs are some of the pdf publishers that have earned my trust with quality material time and time again.

Kane

 

[trancejeremy]

I've gotten where I really really don't like PDFs as a format. I usually don't buy them, but Chuck @ RPGObjects sent me a bunch of review copies of their stuff. While most of them are quite good, just reading them is a struggle for me, much less actually using them or reviewing them. Blah.

The only good PDFs for me are the short ones, which can be read in 4-5 minutes. But conversely, they are the worst value.

 

[Jdvn1]

I like hardcopies of stuff -- and I don't like printing paper.

 

[philreed]

Yeah, I'm a big fan girl. I really do love your stuff. I think the planes stuff has been some of the best, really. It made me change my mind on planar settings and I think it's going to influence the direction of my campaign.

To be fair, Michael Hammes was my co-author on A DM's Directory of Demiplanes.

I find that writing for the planes allows me to be as creative as I want. It's almost as if I challenge myself more when writing planar material and I feel as if there are no limits to what I can do.

Kind of like how I felt while writing my first few PDFs of treasures.

 

[Crothian]

I like hardcopies of stuff -- and I don't like printing paper.

Then read from the screen for PDFs, more and more these days they are being set up for easy reading on the screen.

 

[Jdvn1]

Then read from the screen for PDFs, more and more these days they are being set up for easy reading on the screen.

Like I said: I like hard copies. I dont' have a screen at the gaming table.

 

[Crothian]

Like I said: I like hard copies. I dont' have a screen at the gaming table.

books are not meant to be read at the gaming table either.

 

[Jdvn1]

books are not meant to be read at the gaming table either.

Says who?

 

[Umbran]

I'm not a big pdf fan, but not because of any flaw in the media. As far as I can tell, I lack the most common factor I've seen in folks who like pdf gaming materials - a laptop at the gaming table. While I may make maps or write stuff down in a word processor in prep, when working at my desk, I find actual physical books more useful. That might change if I were doing prep "on the go".

 

[arwink]

I'm not a big pdf fan, but not because of any flaw in the media. As far as I can tell, I lack the most common factor I've seen in folks who like pdf gaming materials - a laptop at the gaming table. While I may make maps or write stuff down in a word processor in prep, when working at my desk, I find actual physical books more useful. That might change if I were doing prep "on the go".

I'm without a laptop as well, but I became a PDF fan primarily because they did mesh with my preperation method so well. If I wanted to use a feat for an NPC, I could just cut and paste the feat details right below the NPC description on the word processor. If I wanted the stats for a specific monster I could do the same.

When I was travelling to games, that saved a hell of a lot of carting around books. All I had to do was print out the adventure notes, and all the crunch I needed was right there.