mab:Given that these are electronic editions and Logos is doing the heavy lifting to get them into place, I would think that Brill would be more considerate of being able to expand their market at what would be a reasonable amount.
Agreed.
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Last month we had this discussion. I stumbled upon this news article this afternoon which seems to speak to the problems being addressed by LOGOS users:
http://news360.com/article/310511316/#
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Floyd Johnson:http://news360.com/article/310511316/#
Pretty interesting but only a bit surprising. Sounds like an interesting way to work for nothing and yet help make a publisher turn a profit on taxpayer purchases.
I am pretty sure he (my apologies) he or she wasn't contacted by Brill, however, so it probably is a misleading diversion from the specific case and topic David brought up.
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Floyd Johnson: Last month we had this discussion. I stumbled upon this news article this afternoon which seems to speak to the problems being addressed by LOGOS users: http://news360.com/article/310511316/#
And now there is evidence that the above article was a fake (ala The Onion):
http://bit.ly/1iprGvM
Even if it was satire, it was biting satire of the "only one or two clicks in the absurd direction" variety. Honestly, I'm not even sure it was that far off the beaten path. And compared to the reality of what Brill charges, this seems almost like a puff piece. It's pretty clear that there are people out there who will pay nosebleed prices. I think it has a lot to do with vanity...the idea that "most sane people would never pay such an exorbitant price for this book (or series), so I will be one of the few to actually own it!" Have at it. As far as I'm concerned, I've simply added Brill to my Zondervan boycott list. I would like to own titles from both, but I'm only going to do it if they become sane in their pricing. The deep pockets can have at 'em.
David Paul: I think it has a lot to do with vanity...the idea that "most sane people would never pay such an exorbitant price for this book (or series), so I will be one of the few to actually own it!"
This seems more like slander than experience. I'd suggest you talk to some of the scholars who actually need one of these volume rather than just library access.
Orthodox Bishop Hilarion Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."
Inspired by M.J. reality checks I'll toss this in from a codger's perspective. I already have more Logos titles than I could have imagined. As suggested by the Pareto Rule, I'm finding out which resources are in the 20% I actually turn to again and again in my now much reduced ministry of study and teaching in congregations. One factor is my limited linguistic competence (decent Greek; improving Hebrew). A weightier factor is time to use the truly good stuff with which I've been blessed. Just because, "They [the marvels of electronic publishing] built it," doesn't absolve me of the stewardship responsibility of deciding, do I really want to "come" into the stadium, uh, all the halls of the universal virtual library.
MJ. Smith:This seems more like slander than experience. I'd suggest you talk to some of the scholars who actually need one of these volume rather than just library access
I'm not sure why some scholar's "need" is greater than my desire to access and utilize the information in this and other Brill resources. I'm sure by "need" you mean said scholar gets a paycheck for rolling an obligatory quote and comment into his most recent publication. But I don't see said scholar's need to be any greater than my own. I'm certainly not convinced this faceless scholar will make better use of the information than I would. Regardless, the old insular "brick-and-mortar" type system that has evolved among institutions and their inmates employees and their publishing masters partners has guaranteed that whatever information may have been gleaned and published reaches the smallest possible population. That is so insular it's almost inbred.
I don't need to be lectured on "how and why it became what it is", especially since that trope sounds a whole lot like Donald Trump explaining his devolutionary desire to prop up the coal industry. Times change, occasionally for the good, and it's time for Brill to join the here and now.
David Paul: MJ. Smith:This seems more like slander than experience. I'd suggest you talk to some of the scholars who actually need one of these volume rather than just library access I'm not sure why some scholar's "need" is greater than my desire to access and utilize the information in this and other Brill resources.
I'm not sure why some scholar's "need" is greater than my desire to access and utilize the information in this and other Brill resources.
I agree, I would love to get "The Context of Scripture" https://www.logos.com/product/2210/the-context-of-scripture for the wealth of information on the OT world to enhance my understanding of the background the OT writers were writing in — but at $300 for three volumes just can't justify it. So Brill loses a sale. Now if one person buys at $300 they get $300, if 10 or let's say even 20, buy at $100 they've got $1,000 or $2,000.
"I want to know all God's thoughts; the rest are just details." - Albert Einstein
Patrick S.:I agree, I would love to get "The Context of Scripture" https://www.logos.com/product/2210/the-context-of-scripture for the wealth of information on the OT world to enhance my understanding of the background the OT writers were writing in — but at $300 for three volumes just can't justify it.
Noticed "The Context of Scripture" https://www.logos.com/product/2210/the-context-of-scripture is included in => Cultural Concepts Collection (20 volumes) and => Ancient Literature Collection (25 volumes) that have lower price per volume albeit collection costs a bit more overall (less than $ 490).
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Logos would seem to be a great opportunity for a thoughtful publisher to do some research on their customers' demand curve. One could imagine them offering similar specialist materials at very different price points to see where they maximized their profits. The sentiment that's been expressed in this thread (which I believe is probably correct) is that if they offered significantly lower prices they would also see significantly more purchasers. That's something that, at least in principle, could be empirically verified or refuted.
I have Context of Scripture. It's in the Ancient Literature Collection which I'm guessing is how it got in my library. By itself, I couldn't justify $300 either.
I thought the only volume of Brill I had was a hardcover I picked up ages ago secondhand. My wife recently got a library loan of a Brill book. It would have been $170 to buy. Ouch!
The mind of man is the mill of God, not to grind chaff, but wheat. Thomas Manton | Study hard, for the well is deep, and our brains are shallow. Richard Baxter