Free Scan Please.....?

As a bookseller with ABE of circa five year's standing, I have myself
been caught out by both fellow ABE sellers and those who flirt with
Ebay on the matter of scans: in particular, scans of very rare
dustwrappers.

Two or three years ago, when someone emailed me to ask for a detailled
scan of a rare book I invariably sent one back, and it often resulted
in a sale. But in the last couple of years, I have found that the
great majority of those asking for scans never purchase the book after
getting what they want. As the value of a very rare dw is in its
uniqueness, I started to wonder whether or not unscrupulous people
were feigning interest in a book just to get a free scan of a wrapper
that they never had any intention of buying. When I noticed that a
couple of my scanned images were starting to crop up on ABE and Ebay -
usually described as "offered with a colour facsimilie of the original
dustwrapper" - then the alarm bells started ringing.

I now operate a strict policy of not supplying scans; partly to save
on my time, partly to preserve the value and integrity of the original
dw or book. It's sad in a way, but what with the wholesale copying of
book descriptions from genre specialists by newbie mainstream sellers,
I suppose it was just a natural progression.

I wonder what stance other ABE or Ebay sellers take?

Chris Barker
The Haunted River
www.users.waitrose.com/~hauntedriver

On 17 Mar 2004 12:07:31 -0800, (Haunted
River) declared:

I now operate a strict policy of not supplying scans; partly to save
on my time, partly to preserve the value and integrity of the original
dw or book. It's sad in a way, but what with the wholesale copying of
book descriptions from genre specialists by newbie mainstream sellers,
I suppose it was just a natural progression.

I wonder what stance other ABE or Ebay sellers take?

the chief advantage of ebay is that pictures have become the norm, i
wouldn't dream of putting a book up without them. i've adopted a
similar stance on abe, where i think a picture will help sell my book
over another.


Robert

The sound of gunfire, off in the distance, I'm getting used to it now
Lived in a brownstone, lived in the ghetto, I've lived all over this town
This ain't no party, this ain't no disco, this ain't no fooling around

Haunted River wrote:

When I noticed that a couple of my scanned images
were starting to crop up on ABE and Ebay - usually
described as "offered with a colour facsimilie of the original
dustwrapper" - then the alarm bells started ringing.

I share your concern. I'm not sure, though, what one does about it. Proving
the source of the facsimile to be the particular scan you provided may be
difficult.

I think the most practical answer may be to forget about a scanner and
invest in a digital camera. This will enable you to take pictures of the
dust jacket that will show exactly what it is like, but not in a way that
can readily be used to create unauthorised facsimiles.

I agree with Robert that the use of images is one of the things that gives
eBay an edge over other online selling fora (such as ABE). I use images as
fully as possible in my own auctions and tend to bid more readily on items
that have clear images.

--
John
http://rarebooksinjapan.com

On 17 Mar 2004 12:07:31 -0800, (Haunted
River) wrote:


I wonder what stance other ABE or Ebay sellers take?

I scan every book I offer on eBay, but I'd never even consider using
a) someone else's scan, and/or b) a scan of any copy other than the
one I was offering. Anything else is misleading to one degree or
another - at best, you're baiting; at worst, you're lying.

In article ,
"John Yamamoto-Wilson" wrote:

I think the most practical answer may be to forget about a scanner and
invest in a digital camera. This will enable you to take pictures of the
dust jacket that will show exactly what it is like, but not in a way that
can readily be used to create unauthorised facsimiles.

Particularly considering that a digital camera, good enough for this
purpose, costs very little nowadays.

Bud Webster wrote:

I scan every book I offer on eBay, but I'd never even consider using
a) someone else's scan, and/or b) a scan of any copy other than the
one I was offering. Anything else is misleading to one degree or
another - at best, you're baiting; at worst, you're lying.

The point here is that unnamed eBay sellers are using the OP's original scan
to make a facsimile cover. The facsimile *is* part of what they are
offering, but they have no right either to use someon else's scan in their
auction description or to make unauthorised facsimiles of the dust jacket
(assuming it is still covered by copyright).

--
John
http://rarebooksinjapan.com

On Thu, 18 Mar 2004 12:13:50 +0900, "John Yamamoto-Wilson"
declared:

Bud Webster wrote:

I scan every book I offer on eBay, but I'd never even consider using
a) someone else's scan, and/or b) a scan of any copy other than the
one I was offering. Anything else is misleading to one degree or
another - at best, you're baiting; at worst, you're lying.

The point here is that unnamed eBay sellers are using the OP's original scan
to make a facsimile cover. The facsimile *is* part of what they are
offering, but they have no right either to use someon else's scan in their
auction description or to make unauthorised facsimiles of the dust jacket
(assuming it is still covered by copyright).

actually if he is sending a scan of high enough quality to make a
facimile dj from, it's way higher than what is needed.


Robert

The sound of gunfire, off in the distance, I'm getting used to it now
Lived in a brownstone, lived in the ghetto, I've lived all over this town
This ain't no party, this ain't no disco, this ain't no fooling around

On Thu, 18 Mar 2004 06:53:26 +0900, "John Yamamoto-Wilson"
declared:

I agree with Robert that the use of images is one of the things that gives
eBay an edge over other online selling fora (such as ABE). I use images as
fully as possible in my own auctions and tend to bid more readily on items
that have clear images.

found out today that the reason my picture management page on ABE has
been coming up slowly (and often timing out) is i have to many
pictures uploaded!


Robert

The sound of gunfire, off in the distance, I'm getting used to it now
Lived in a brownstone, lived in the ghetto, I've lived all over this town
This ain't no party, this ain't no disco, this ain't no fooling around

On 17 Mar 2004 12:07:31 -0800, (Haunted
River) wrote:

As a bookseller with ABE of circa five year's standing, I have myself
been caught out by both fellow ABE sellers and those who flirt with
Ebay on the matter of scans: in particular, scans of very rare
dustwrappers.

Two or three years ago, when someone emailed me to ask for a detailled
scan of a rare book I invariably sent one back, and it often resulted
in a sale. But in the last couple of years, I have found that the
great majority of those asking for scans never purchase the book after
getting what they want. As the value of a very rare dw is in its
uniqueness, I started to wonder whether or not unscrupulous people
were feigning interest in a book just to get a free scan of a wrapper
that they never had any intention of buying. When I noticed that a
couple of my scanned images were starting to crop up on ABE and Ebay -
usually described as "offered with a colour facsimilie of the original
dustwrapper" - then the alarm bells started ringing.

I now operate a strict policy of not supplying scans; partly to save
on my time, partly to preserve the value and integrity of the original
dw or book. It's sad in a way, but what with the wholesale copying of
book descriptions from genre specialists by newbie mainstream sellers,
I suppose it was just a natural progression.

I wonder what stance other ABE or Ebay sellers take?

Chris Barker
The Haunted River
www.users.waitrose.com/~hauntedriver


How strange... Here's a current listing from the Haunted River.

Burrage, A.M.
Some Ghost Stories
Cecil Palmer, London, 1927. First edition with original dw front
cover pasted onto free endpaper. Original black cloth with white cover
and spine titles. 276pp. Spine edges slightly frayed, couple of wax
marks to boards, a good copy. *Email direct for precise details*. *A
colour xerox of the entire pictorial dw is also available. The
disturbing dw depicts the image of an outsize human face appearing a
window, with its tongue lolling to one side. Bookseller Inventory
#ABE-162660894

Was this from your spare copy, or did someone scan it for you?

TTFN,

John

On Thu, 18 Mar 2004 06:53:26 +0900, "John Yamamoto-Wilson"
wrote:

Haunted River wrote:

When I noticed that a couple of my scanned images
were starting to crop up on ABE and Ebay - usually
described as "offered with a colour facsimilie of the original
dustwrapper" - then the alarm bells started ringing.

I share your concern. I'm not sure, though, what one does about it. Proving
the source of the facsimile to be the particular scan you provided may be
difficult.

I think the most practical answer may be to forget about a scanner and
invest in a digital camera. This will enable you to take pictures of the
dust jacket that will show exactly what it is like, but not in a way that
can readily be used to create unauthorised facsimiles.

I've seen images that had the seller's initials or something like it
in the image itself. Perhaps a bit of mylar with a design of some
sort? Wouldn't this negate any copying?

Gary
Remove NOSPAM to reply by email.