From: ptkwt@...1.aracnet.com (Phil Tomson) Date: 2002-04-14T07:19:47+09:00 Subject: Re: Barnes & Noble putting on the squeeze In article , Pat Eyler wrote: >On Sun, 14 Apr 2002, David Alan Black wrote: > >> Hello -- >> >> It looks to me like Barnes & Noble (at its actual stores) has cut down >> the number of books in the "Programming Languages" section. There's >> now a total of about three shelves (i.e., not even a whole bookcase), >> much of it Python. There are two copies of the Pickaxe at my local >> B&N, but no other Ruby books -- and, as of a few weeks ago, they >> definitely carried "Nutshell" and I think they'd gotten in at least >> one of the others. >> >> Of course, there's also an entire row (with spillover) devoted to C++ >> and VB and Java. Moreover (and this is the part that concerns and >> depresses me the most) they now have a separate "Microsoft .NET >> Resource Center" -- basically an entire bookcase, with its own >> signage. Something had to go, to make room for this, and apparently >> the miscellaneous non-.NET, non-Micros**t programming languages were >> at the top of the list. >> >> This is more than a symbolic example of .NET infestation; it could >> really make a difference. I discovered Ruby by browsing at a >> bookstore. That option is probably on the way out. > >Fortunately, this is something we can all do something about. If you >go to you local Barnes & Nobel and ask for books, complain (nicely) that >you can't find sufficient coverage of areas you are interested in, and >follow up by buying things, the stores will listen. > >If this doesn't seem to be working let them know that you have other book >buying options, and follow through. Let them know when you go in ... 'Oh >by the way, you remember that book I asked you to carry? I bought it at >bookblah.com, and while I was there, I bought these others.' > A few weeks ago I was in Borders and they had the Pickaxe, Ruby in a Nutshell and The Ruby Way. Of course for those of us fortunate enough to live close to downtown Portland, Oregon there's Powell's Technical Books - I was in there last week and they had copies of all of the Ruby books forsale. (the above list + "Teach Yourself Ruby in 21 days" and "Ruby Developer's Guide".) It seems more like it would have made more sense for the .NET books to have eaten into the Java section... Unfortuneatly, I'm not sure that complaining to a B&N store clerk that they have no Ruby books will do any good since they are a national chain and decisions like this are probably made in their corporate headquarters. With an independent like Powell's it would do some good because the people who make those decisions are right there... Another idea would be to frequent the independent bookstores in your area... places where your suggestions will have some impact (Places like Powell's or Elliot Bay Bookstore in Seattle). There are still some independent booksellers out there, but they're an endangered breed. Phil