Just read the chronicle article. Comments covered the authors, the professors, the publishers, the law.... I didn't notice any reference to the _university_. If the school publishes tuition and fees, and the student acts on the basis of that publication--then if there is actually a _requirement_ to pay for an access code to successfully pass the class_ -- the school could be sued for failure to perform on a written contract. Academic bait-and-switch is no more legitimate than other forms.<br>
<br><div class="gmail_quote">On Wed, Sep 5, 2012 at 8:48 PM, Dan Buthusiem <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:dan.buthusiem@gmail.com" target="_blank">dan.buthusiem@gmail.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">
<p>I actually bought a combo for the CCENT / CCNA which came bundled with extra content. Once I opened the box, broke the seals for the disks, and put the disks into my computer, I quickly found almost all of the advertised materials on the disks were "lite" or time sensitive (45-day demo of a DRM-ed ebook which wasn't Android compatible). For me to have "full" versions of everything in the box, the cost of this bundle would go from $60 to somewhere between $300 and $400. The whole reason I bought it was to get around fighting for a spot in a class. I've found ways around some of the limitations (physical hardware access, for instance). The thing that burned me the most was how there was no mention of the limitations until I spun up the disks, voiding all terms of being able to return it. </p>
<p>That first link was a scary read. It's exactly what all of these devices with locked boot loaders are paving the way for. I've already shifted my purchasing to only support platforms which are open, or at least unlockable. It's also why I don't see myself ever owning a Chromebook. Why should Netflix have control over how I choose to run my machine? They serve me to earn my money, and any of my computing devices are just that - mine. Any business who forgets who they're working for deserves to lose revenue until they either learn the error of their ways, or go under. I guess only time will tell how many others open their eyes and adjust their spending accordingly. Granted, I am a current Netflix subscriber, but the moment they start to kill access on my rooted Android devices, they'll lose me. </p>
<p>Sorry for the semi-rant. Spooky find, Matti. Thanks for sharing. :)</p><div class="HOEnZb"><div class="h5"><p><br></p><p><br></p><p><br></p>
<div class="gmail_quote">On Sep 5, 2012 6:43 PM, "matti" <<a href="mailto:mathew_2000@yahoo.com" target="_blank">mathew_2000@yahoo.com</a>> wrote:<br type="attribution"><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">
<br>
<br>
Do you recall Stallman's "The Right to Read"?<br>
( Feb 1997 in Communications of the ACM )<br>
<br>
<a href="http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/right-to-read.html" target="_blank">http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/right-to-read.html</a><br>
<br>
Well, now we see what he predicting occurring more and more<br>
frequently:<br>
<br>
September 3, 2012<br>
With 'Access Codes,' Textbook Pricing Gets More Complicated Than Ever<br>
<br>
<a href="https://chronicle.com/article/What-Is-an-Access-Code-Worth-/134048/" target="_blank">https://chronicle.com/article/What-Is-an-Access-Code-Worth-/134048/</a><br>
<br>
<a href="http://lukethomas.com/the-textbook-industry-greed-its-getting-worse/" target="_blank">http://lukethomas.com/the-textbook-industry-greed-its-getting-worse/</a><br>
</blockquote></div>
</div></div></blockquote></div><br>