Re: Inner-smile.com - What happened to it?

From: Dennis Landi (none[at]none.com)
Date: 06/06/04 

Date: Sun, 6 Jun 2004 06:48:16 -0400

"Dave Nottage (TeamB)" <dnottage@n0sp4m.bigpond.net.au> wrote in message
>
> OTOH, sales and new versions are obviously *not* the reason for a
> decline (if there is one) in books being written/sold. Personally, I
> blame the internet.
>

So you see no correlation between Delphi's decline in the technical
refererence market place in relation to its competitors who are selling
books like gang-busters and Delphi's relative standing in the software tools
market place?

Rather, you would blame the internet; although it doesn't appear to be
affecting Flash, PHP, Java, C#, VB, Perl, Python, and C++? Even when some
of these language entities have a full-blown cottage industry of
publications built into an internet presence like MSDN and Macromedia.com?

I scan the mighty technical section of my local Borders bookstore, weekly,
so I am keenly aware of the veritable "tech explosion" that is happening in
field of technical reference books at the moment.

Instead, you state that since Delphi is doing well in the market-place (you
are saying that aren't you?), there must be some other reason for the
decline in Delphi Book publications, right?

This stance is somewhat reminescent of the Iraqi Information Minister
stating that the Americans were not invading Baghdad, even as U.S. tanks
were trundling up the street.... Except in Comical Ali's case he was just
making things up as he went along (I don't believe that of you at all,
really).

What I am most concerned about here is the blatantly blinkered view you have
in regard to the your "defense of Borland". It actually isn't helping
Delphi. Because I really don't believe you are being honest with yourself.
You really do appear to be in complete denial of facts staring you in the
eyes. You don't appear to be able to even walk into a bookstore filled with
technical reference books for other languages, and admit that this has some
correlation to Delphi's standing in the market place. You "company line"
appears to be that "Delphi is selling well", so the evidence of you own
senses must not mean the Delphi is, in fact, not doing well in the market
place (even that of the books market you witness directly). And yet, you
appear to never have bothered to qualify for your own piece of mind what
"Delphi is selling well" actually means. But perhaps John Kaster can tell
you what to say next. He is the one you are quoting with "Delphi is selling
well", aren't you?

But let me just throw out one little bonus teaser. If in fact you were to
entertain the notion that Delphi is rapidly losing ground in the market
place because Delphi IS NOT SELLING WELL, perhaps you could have a more open
mind as to how to attempt to remedy the situation? You know, open to new
ideas?

Just a thought.

-d

Relevant Pages

  • Re: How can we assist in making Borland Press happen?
    ... they believe books won't sell so they don't print and market ... > Delphi for .NET? ... Xavier was talking about 3,000 printed books, not sold books... ...
    (borland.public.delphi.non-technical)
  • Re: Looking for unregistered V7 or 8
    ... I'm in the market for an unregistered Delphi V7 or V8 if anyone is ... selling. ...
    (borland.public.delphi.non-technical)
  • Re: Looking for unregistered V7 or 8
    ... I'm in the market for an unregistered Delphi V7 or V8 if anyone is selling. ...
    (borland.public.delphi.non-technical)
  • Re: Eric Noahs heard something about D&D Fourth Edition
    ... Keep the flavor stuff to dedicated non-crunchy books. ... you aren't the target market. ... I think Hasbro has recognized that there is some value in the WoTC ... PrC min/maxing. ...
    (rec.games.frp.dnd)
  • Re: Publishing (what would you pay for?)
    ... I don't register books typically, ... new version of Delphi. ... control which do lots of neat stuff, such as "true" ... hundreds of times, any spellchecker, dictionary, encyclopedia etc. needs ...
    (borland.public.delphi.non-technical)