Snu Voogelbreinder - Garden of Eden

[Lichen+]

Greetings all,

I'm trying to track down a used or secondhand copy of Snu Vooglebreinder's mammoth reference tome that maybe someone here lucky enough to have a copy would be willing to sell.

It's entirely out of print, and not for sale secondhand anywhere as far as I can find - I didn't even realise this books existence until only recently, which I think was compounded by the confusing lack of presence, references or discussion about the book online.

I have been in correspondence with Snu, and he is not aware of any used copies for sale and that there are no plans of a reprint at this stage. Also, he has given me his consent to photocopy if I find someone who would be willing to lend.

I understand that this book is prized possession for many - and understandably so considering its rarity - but if anyone is considering a sell, or a lend, please let me know.

Edit: wow, is this really my first post? I spend far too much time here to be such a non participant (shame-face).

Edited November 5, 2013 by Lichen+

[theuserformallyknownasd00d]

What were you after in particular mate? If you have permission I could do you some copies when I'm at office works next... Not keen on spending all day but if you were after A, B & C that's fine

[simhanada]

I've seen one for sale online at what would probably be around $300 delivered to Australia. To pricey for me. Let me know if you'd like the link.

[Lichen+]

Hey Prioritse, not after anything in particular actually- just became aware of the book and really wanted a copy to add to my arsenal. I really appreciate the gesture

Simhanada, 300 is mega steep and I've spent a lot of money recently - but if you've still got the link, please PM it to me - I'd like to check it out.

[terracottacactus]

You know I never heard of that book until I read this, now I'm desperate for a copy. Maybe Snu could get some kick starter thing going? Only do a re print if the pledges (and therefore money) is there?

Just an Idea... And I'd love a copy.

[Change]

^^ Me to

[paradox]

i don't like any ones chances of getting a second hand copy. only 100 (or some rediculously small run, i can't remember) were printed & that was only a few years ago, it's a collectors item & a beautiful book. perhaps the best thing to do may be to start a thread here & try to get enough people to show interest in buying new copies, if the threads a success & you can get enough people, email Snu & do your best to talk him into doing another run..

[simhanada]

Yeah, a very small run. I doubt he would have any problem selling out another run of similar size. He did mention if I remember correctly from an old thread that he was pondering a full colour version but that it may take just as long to come out as the last one. Many years in the making. I would definitely buy a copy.

[paradox]

i didn't read post #5

what he said

[Distracted]

The kickstarter thing is a pretty good idea and may gather more interest than a book of that nature normally would simply because it's on kickstarter.

Great idea... but I wouldn't buy one! I already got my copy :D

[simhanada]

ahhh, but do you have one in glorious colour!? I would love to see a kickstarter.

[terracottacactus]

ahhh, but do you have one in glorious colour!? I would love to see a kickstarter.

Maybe if you pledged enough the inside cover would come with a bunch of seed packets in it haha.

Seriously though, do you think we could get something like this going? It would be quite a feat, a good story and a book a the end. Maybe we should run the idea by Snu, have a bit of a campaign on this and other forums, drum up some enthusiasm and get it on?

Or maybe I'm just hyped up... I've been up sowing seed and going cactus crazy.

[C_T]

its hard getting publishers on side these days, and the book is from 100% recycled material, and sooooo many pages, its truely a masterpiece!

perhaps some type of digital signature so it doesn't become a pdf everyone has for free.

surely theres somewhere in the middle where the author still gets the rewards they deserve.

SNU should get in contact with Joe Rogans twitter, i bet he'd retweet a $5 download pdf if you setup an online paypal or something, similar to trout has done with his book out of print.

probably get 20,000 downloads easy. at 5$ a pop i think wouldn't degrade the actual hard print, would probably make those 100 or so copies worth more, because its the original hard copy with possibly million people wanting a copy.

[terracottacactus]

That not a bad idea at all C_T.

...But I really want a hard copy. pdfs just don't do it for me. Still, I wouldn't say no to one.

[Darklight]

You'll pry my hard copy from my cold, dead hands ;) I suspect I'm not on my own

Weren't there 500 printed originally?

[SayN]

I thought Snu still had a few copies... I bought two directly from him a couple of years ago. Best damn present I ever gave...

[Amazonian]

http://www.shaman-australis.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=37050

Edit:::: never mind, the book has been sold.

Edited December 4, 2013 by Amazonian

[Scientician]

You'll pry my hard copy from my cold, dead hands ;) I suspect I'm not on my own

Weren't there 500 printed originally?

You are definitely not on your own. I prize this book over any other in my collection. It's....My.......Precious!

[Lichen+]

I've been emailing Snu, and I thought I'd better post this here so he isn't inundated any further with emails asking the same questions.

From Snu:

I read that thread... nice to see the book is appreciated. I was puzzled by comments on the low profile to some extent, because when it came out there was a thread on those same forums full of people going on about the book and how they loved it. On other forums I have regularly seen people quoting from the book, usually falsely (ie people attribute something to my writing that I didn't actually say, and that has been misinterpeted). There has definitely been some web awareness of it over the last few years, but it didn't tick over as I'd hoped; part of the reason I didn't do anything much to publicise it is because I thought the 'community grapevine' would do that, and I didn't ever want any big glaring lamp of attention shining on it. There are good reasons to keep this info fairly low-key and underground, and I certainly don't want any fame out of it in the wider world.

Btw, there were 500 copies made, not 100, and even that small number took 3 and a half years to sell, which is one of numerous reasons I'm not in any hurry to do a reprint. Also, I had so many problems with the printers (and the binders they subcontracted) there is no way I would use them again, and it'd be hard to find any local companies with similarly green ethos to the printers I used. Also, people don't realise what a huge pain in the arse it is to publish a book of this size. It is not a matter of simply getting the money to do it!

E-book options are enticing, but I would want a proper printed book out as well if I were to do a second edition. Unfortunately, it would have to be even bigger than the first edition, straining the limitations of size and durable binding, and many colour photos would be cost-prohibitive. In the meantime I will get around to making the first edition available as a pdf; just have to figure out the mechanics behind setting up an automatic payment and download thing on the web page, and decide how little I'm prepared to charge ;-)

best wishes, Snu

Edited December 5, 2013 by Lichen+

[Darklight]

Dammit, I emailed Snu about the pdf a couple of times but he hasn't gotten back

If anyone talks to him further about it I have a good mate in SF who has the skills and experience to do this, who is 100% trustworthy and who has been fanging to get his hands on a book or a pdf for a while.

My mate is a high functioning geek, up there in the FOSS community, and would be homoured to be a part of this. He's seen copies of Snu's book when he's stayed at my place in ,au several times and has outlined to me on several occasions a risk/ benefit strategy for an electronic copy.

Snu, if you can see this and you are serious about a pdf, gimme a bell

[Darklight]

Mm, if he ever does a second edition in print, it could be timely to get the first edition out as an .azw via Amazon or some other semi-protected format. Maybe. If the new edition is in colour it could trump the old edition b/w for a coffee table book

Given Trout's unfortunate experiences with getting ppl to pay for online copies of research/ scientific etho publications, I can understand Snu's reluctance

[gtarman]

I'd love to see it in .azw - IMO pdf's have never really been a proper format for books, because next to nobody wants to sit uncomfortably and stare at a backlit computer screen for extended periods of time clicking through pages.

I can't praise my Kindle highly enough actually. The absolute best of both worlds in terms of practicality and usability. It doesn't have quite the charm and presence of a physical book, but it has everything else, and then some. Like a built-in search engine to find what you're looking for without skimming 500 pages.

And to be honest, while the images aren't quite as good when displayed in the traditional and more common black-and-white readers, they're still not bad, and always decipherable.

You can always convert from pdf to azw after the fact, but the results are often less than stellar.

[Fenris]

I got a copy off Snu at the 2009 EGA conference and stupidly neglected to get him to sign it for me. EGA that year was great, I remember one evening a bunch of us standing in a field looking through the book to the light of my head torch. Good times.

[mr b.caapi]

My copy is unique , it has been bound in its cover upside-down. Still gets me everytime i open it.

[Pie'oh'Pah]

Hey All

Just thought I would bump this necro thread.

If anyone has a copy of Snu Voogelbreinder's Garden of Eden that they could bear to part with I would be happy to pay a decent price for a copy.

Have an awesome day.