Storminator
First Post
herald said:
Yeah, but one of the "fancy" parts is free updates for life! So as soon as Anna pulls the new SRD together, we get that one too.
PS
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PDF: Free "non-fancy" SRD or $7 "fancy" version?
- Thread starter Chronosome
- Start date
Yeah, but one of the "fancy" parts is free updates for life! So as soon as Anna pulls the new SRD together, we get that one too.
PS
Mark
CreativeMountainGames.com
A "Non-Fancy" PDF of the SRD isn't anymore useful to me than the RTF files of the SRD. I see no comparison between a "Non-Fancy" SRD PDF and a "Fancy" SRD PDF other than being in a single file.
To be honest, without the "Fancy" parts, an SRD PDF is just one huge file that is more difficult to work with than the RTF files. Top that off with how useless a "Non-Fancy" SRD PDF is going to be in a few months when WotC updates the SRD (and the "Fancy" buying people get free updates). All a "Non-Fancy" SRD PDF would be doing is slowing down my work and taking up more space on my HD than the RTF files.
If someone was simply looking for something to print out and take to their games, I'd suggest taking the RTF files, copy/pasting them into another kind of Doc at a smaller font, and saving on the paper and ink (plus, less pages to sort through).
If someone needs the SRD on their computer (or uses it on a computer at the game table) then a well-built PDF of the SRD is irreplacable. There's simply no comparison between the two that favors a "Non-Fancy" version since if it is free and doesn't have the bells and whistles you're much better off if it isn't set up as a PDF.
To be honest, without the "Fancy" parts, an SRD PDF is just one huge file that is more difficult to work with than the RTF files. Top that off with how useless a "Non-Fancy" SRD PDF is going to be in a few months when WotC updates the SRD (and the "Fancy" buying people get free updates). All a "Non-Fancy" SRD PDF would be doing is slowing down my work and taking up more space on my HD than the RTF files.
If someone was simply looking for something to print out and take to their games, I'd suggest taking the RTF files, copy/pasting them into another kind of Doc at a smaller font, and saving on the paper and ink (plus, less pages to sort through).
If someone needs the SRD on their computer (or uses it on a computer at the game table) then a well-built PDF of the SRD is irreplacable. There's simply no comparison between the two that favors a "Non-Fancy" version since if it is free and doesn't have the bells and whistles you're much better off if it isn't set up as a PDF.
Pbartender
First Post
Mark said:
Just for the record...
For a recent D20 Modern game, my wife and I downloaded the entire SRD from wizards.com, did a modest amount of reformatting it into a Word file. Leaving out a few sections that the players won't need (like monsters, etc...), we printed it out on cardstock pages, punched holes, and stuck it into a 3-ring binder.
Voila! Instant D20 Modern "Player's Guide". The formatting took two or three (short) afternoon's worth of work. Between the ink cartridge, the binders and the paper, it cost less than $10 to make each copy.
As far as a .pdf of the SRD for $7... I probably wouldn't buy one. At least not right now. Once 3.5 is released, and the SRD is updated, then I'd consider buying a copy for each of my players to tide them over until they buy their own copies.
I wonder if anyone has considered selling a hyperlink cross-referenced SRD in .html or .pdf (or both on one disk) on CD?
Hmmmm...
seasong
First Post
Other.
I'm slowly building a word document which will have every rule the players need. It uses useful hyperlinks, generates its own table of contents (and a tabbed ToC to the left), and I might manage to pull of an index, if I figure out a good way to automate it. It also combines all of the OGL stuff I need and the flavor text I want in a single document. That's useful to me.
A PDF, which I can't edit, change, etc. is worse than useless to me. For cutting and pasting rules, I've got the original SRD RTF files, and those work better for briefly opening, finding the source, and copying it.
As for the lifetime updates - I'll believe it when I see it. I don't think there will be enough sales to cover the cost of upkeep in the long haul; and hours spent doing that are hours NOT spent producing saleable work. It's an unstable business proposition, which means that it doesn't factor into my decision to buy or not buy.
I'm slowly building a word document which will have every rule the players need. It uses useful hyperlinks, generates its own table of contents (and a tabbed ToC to the left), and I might manage to pull of an index, if I figure out a good way to automate it. It also combines all of the OGL stuff I need and the flavor text I want in a single document. That's useful to me.
A PDF, which I can't edit, change, etc. is worse than useless to me. For cutting and pasting rules, I've got the original SRD RTF files, and those work better for briefly opening, finding the source, and copying it.
As for the lifetime updates - I'll believe it when I see it. I don't think there will be enough sales to cover the cost of upkeep in the long haul; and hours spent doing that are hours NOT spent producing saleable work. It's an unstable business proposition, which means that it doesn't factor into my decision to buy or not buy.
I'm A Banana
Potassium-Rich
7 bucks is a wee bit much, IMHO.
Having a 'fancy' PDF with hyperlinks, etc. is very useful, no doubt about it. But I'm not willing to shell out more than a few bucks for convenience's sake, when, if I really wanted to, I can do the same thing for free and stick it on a website. All it takes is some time.
It's worth it to some people, but not to me. It might be worth it at a lower price.
The non-fancy PDF would be about as useful to me as the current RTF files are...thuogh something free is always fun, and the Find command works almost as well as hyperlinks.
Having a 'fancy' PDF with hyperlinks, etc. is very useful, no doubt about it. But I'm not willing to shell out more than a few bucks for convenience's sake, when, if I really wanted to, I can do the same thing for free and stick it on a website. All it takes is some time.
It's worth it to some people, but not to me. It might be worth it at a lower price.
The non-fancy PDF would be about as useful to me as the current RTF files are...thuogh something free is always fun, and the Find command works almost as well as hyperlinks.
jmucchiello
Hero
I'm waiting for someone to come out with all the SRD (3.0, 3.5 (when available), modern and future (when available)) in a side-by-side comparison collection. All 4 entries on "Craft" right next to each other. This would be a great multi-genre resource. Or it could be cross-linked between PDFs. If Anna releases the 3.5 SRD with hyperlinks to the 3.0 PDF (and Modern and Future...) so you can do comparisons, I'll pay for it.
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