[wp-docs] More about a book

[virgil huston]

I would be willing to do the book layout, editing, interface with
publisher (I have an account with LSI, but could do lulu or whatever).
I can say more, but just wanted to throw out the offer. I agree this
should come from within and profit the project.

Virgil

On 7/13/05, Podz <podz at tamba2.org.uk> wrote:
> Late last year - before 1.5 - there was a post to the forums asking
> about whether a book would be warranted. I said No (as did others) and
> then promptly got very angry. The reasons why don't matter now. But what
> it clearly illustrated was that someone wanted to take information
> freely given by others, chop it about a bit and then sell it to a
> publisher. They make a nice profit for a few weeks work, and we forever
> pick up the pieces when people come to the forums saying "Well the book
> said....."
> That scenario would seriously annoy me on a number of levels.
> And it WILL happen.
> 
> Unless we get in first.
> WordPress is ours. GPL all you want, but we have laboured on the project
> in many different ways over a long period of time. If there is to be a
> book then that must come from our hands, not those of someone out to
> make a quick buck.
> 
> We can be honest about the shelflife of the book, we can have
> "Official!" all over it, we can improve it version by version, we will
> have a tangible product of our work and that of others, we could all
> even call ourselves "Authors" :) - it's it the logical extension of all
> the work we have done so far isn't it ?
> It will never be bang up to date but unless the coders take a few years
> off it never can be.
> And if we don't start now, when do we ? When can we possibly be ready ?
> (WordPress - the book. The /ideal/ stocking filler !)
> 
> I can't speak for Carthik but I doubt very much that given his time and
> involvement in WordPress that he would say No.
> 
> I can see there is a "rights" issue somewhere, but in some ways we
> already ride roughshod over that. If I post a solution to the forums and
> someone copies that to Codex, whose is it ? Submissions to the forum are
> not GPL. I wouldn't like to even guess where they would fall.
> My feeling is that if WE publish a book and are open about costs and
> profits then as others see that there is no nest-feathering going on,
> that it really is given back to the project then if anything that would
> have a positive effect.
> 
> But we'll know nothing until it's published.
> 
> P.
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