Re: VMS Pascal article

On 2025-01-08, Dan Cross <cross@spitfire.i.gajendra.net> wrote:

In article <vln5d0$318c0$2@dont-email.me>,
Arne Vajhøj  <arne@vajhoej.dk> wrote:
>

The problem will likely be that even if it would financially
be positive, then the amount would be very small. If the copyright
owner is an individual, then a plus of a few hundred or thousand
dollars will be OK. But if the copyright owner is
Big Mega Publishing Inc, then they will not do anything
with an expected profit under hundreds of thousands of dollars.

>
Many technical books that previously cost rather tidy sums are
now available for free, as authors and publishers realized that
the audience had dwindled to negligible and there was no longer
a financial incentive to holding on to the IP.
>
It's kind of weirdly fascinating how thing that used to cost
staggering sums are now available just for free.
>

Indeed.

About 20 years ago I found the VMS device drivers in C book in
a local large bookshop (either York or Leeds, I don't remember).

Such a thing would be utterly unheard of these days.

Simon.

--
Simon Clubley, clubley@remove_me.eisner.decus.org-Earth.UFP
Walking destinations on a map are further away than they appear.