I hate it when stuff goes out of print

Two weeks ago, I ordered a certain title via Amazon. I would have gotten it earlier, and the next volume in the sequence, if it weren't for the horribly disparate exchange rate the publisher uses. I still wish I'd bought them last year, as at some point Amazon changed their prices to discount from the grossly inflated Canadian cover, rather than the more reasonable US equivalent.

Even so, I finally splurged on the one which was still available, because I'd heard it was getting harder to find, and I had a coupon to order it with.

But today, when I went to check on my order status, the title is now "unavailable". It hasn't been cancelled from my order, so hopefully they did manage to get a copy for me, but I'm not counting on it.

I really thought I'd have more time in which to buy them. The two volumes have only been out for less than two and a half and one and a half years, respectively, and they're by a very popular and respected author in the field. The material itself is now considered "classic", setting up several very important storylines in the publisher's ongoing series. In less than 30 months, they've sold well enough to the point where the entire print run is gone and there are no new or used copies anywhere short of eBay, where they're selling well above the original price.

So it would be a natural to reprint them, yes?

Perhaps yes, perhaps no. The publisher in question is not known for sensible decisions, business or otherwise.

In any case, I'll write and ask, pointing out the importance of the work, the prestige of the author, and the insane bidding wars on eBay. Likely the argument that all that money could be going to them instead will have more effect than anything else.

It can't hurt to try.

I also hate those "limited edition" first-release cds with bonus discs which probably discourage sales in the long run, and penalize newer listeners who'd like to have the artist's entire body of work.

When it's a separate "deluxe" edition so that people can pick and choose whether they want the regular version or pay more for one with extras, then it's okay, but I consider having the first umpteen copies contain a bonus, which you have to get when it first comes out, and then from that point forward it's the same price with fewer features, to be a cheap and unworthy trick to boost initial sales.

If I've ever missed an album like that, I don't ever bother buying it new or used afterward. I know I'd rather go to eBay for a cd+dvd than a plain old cd with no added value. Why pay more for less?

And how expensive can it be to keep printing a second disc, considering how much they charge for the things in the first place?

But that's a rant for another day.