4 ms·

I'm not sure I see what's wrong with this. The author obviously invested work in this and provided a resource others may find useful. You're free not to buy boo

by eliben 10y ago

I'm not sure I see what's wrong with this. The author obviously invested work in this and provided a resource others may find useful. You're free not to buy books through their affiliate links.

ysavir 10y ago
What about this is useful? There is no breakdown of whether the mentions were upvoted or downvoted, no mention of whether they solved the problem (or were even relevant to the question), no review of the books so that readers can make an informed decision, etc. This list is not much different than making a list of the top selling programming books on amazon.
- eliben 10y ago
  I like lists like this for discovering books I haven't heard of. I don't make an immediate buy decision based on appearance in a list, and will do more research. But it's a nice way to run into something you didn't run into before for some reason. To each their own; shaming the OP on HN for adding affiliate links on their own website, on the product of their own effort, is what I'm trying to point out.
- OJFord 10y ago
  > What about this is useful? > This list is not much different than making a list of the top selling programming books on amazon. Something which Amazon does, because likewise 'others may find [it] useful'.
blurrywh 10y ago
Did I say with one word that I find OP's work wrong? Where did you read this? Why are you so negative? It's great what the OP did and I am really interested in his sales (and he already gave some insights, he's a great guy)
- jonmb 10y ago
  When you say something like "nice affiliate hack" it comes with an implication that it's wrong, because a lot of people on the Internet try to trick others into clicking their affiliate links.
  - crispyambulance 10y ago
    Its OK to use the word "hack" on "hackernews"... negative connotation is not automatic here !
    - awfgylbcxhrey 10y ago
      Your entire comment came off as negative, the use of 'hack' is only part of it.
      - nkrisc 10y ago
        I think you're reading too much into it. Taking the word choice at face value it's a pretty neutral, if not positive, statement.
    - pc86 10y ago
      The English language does not change because this is HN and everything thinks their IQ is 3 standard deviations above the mean. "Nice _______ hack" has an obvious and blatant negative connotation, particularly when it's on its own like that. The implication is that this is just a way to make a few bucks. That's not what the commenter meant, thankfully, but that's only known after further explanation.
eogas 10y ago
>You're free not to buy books through their affiliate links. You're only free to do this if you know that it's an issue. Unless you know about the affiliate program, you may be supporting this person against your own will. Even if you do know about the affiliate program, you may not know that after you click an affiliate link, the owner of the code gets a chunk of ANY Amazon purchase you make in the next 24 hours, whether or not it is related to the original link.
- mememachine 10y ago
  Agreed, disclosure seems called for.
- DigitalJack 10y ago
  I find this mindset baffling. I mean that earnestly. Can you try to explain why other people making money bothers you? It seems pretty clear that amazon thinks affiliates provide a useful service. And if you go to amazon because someone shared something that interested you enough to buy it, they've provided you with a service. What exactly is the problem?
  - amargado 10y ago
    Because it is a undisclosed conflict of interest.Imagine you go with a friend to a bookstore , and he recommends to you several books. Since you seem to trust your friend and you have the money, you buy the books. Unbenknownst to you, your friend receives a 5% commission, and he never disclosed it to you. Same principle. It is a whole different game if he mentions this to you in advance, since now you consider your friend a as an interested part and you will consider his recommendations more carefully.
    - softawre 10y ago
      Except this page discloses it...
      - amargado 10y ago
DanBC 10y ago
The UK regulator and the US regulator are pretty clear that affiliate links need to be clearly marked as such.

by eliben 10y ago

I'm not sure I see what's wrong with this. The author obviously invested work in this and provided a resource others may find useful. You're free not to buy books through their affiliate links.

ysavir 10y ago

What about this is useful? There is no breakdown of whether the mentions were upvoted or downvoted, no mention of whether they solved the problem (or were even relevant to the question), no review of the books so that readers can make an informed decision, etc. This list is not much different than making a list of the top selling programming books on amazon.

eliben 10y ago
I like lists like this for discovering books I haven't heard of. I don't make an immediate buy decision based on appearance in a list, and will do more research. But it's a nice way to run into something you didn't run into before for some reason. To each their own; shaming the OP on HN for adding affiliate links on their own website, on the product of their own effort, is what I'm trying to point out.
OJFord 10y ago
> What about this is useful? > This list is not much different than making a list of the top selling programming books on amazon. Something which Amazon does, because likewise 'others may find [it] useful'.

blurrywh 10y ago

Did I say with one word that I find OP's work wrong? Where did you read this? Why are you so negative? It's great what the OP did and I am really interested in his sales (and he already gave some insights, he's a great guy)

jonmb 10y ago
When you say something like "nice affiliate hack" it comes with an implication that it's wrong, because a lot of people on the Internet try to trick others into clicking their affiliate links.
- crispyambulance 10y ago
  Its OK to use the word "hack" on "hackernews"... negative connotation is not automatic here !
  - awfgylbcxhrey 10y ago
    Your entire comment came off as negative, the use of 'hack' is only part of it.
    - nkrisc 10y ago
      I think you're reading too much into it. Taking the word choice at face value it's a pretty neutral, if not positive, statement.
  - pc86 10y ago
    The English language does not change because this is HN and everything thinks their IQ is 3 standard deviations above the mean. "Nice _______ hack" has an obvious and blatant negative connotation, particularly when it's on its own like that. The implication is that this is just a way to make a few bucks. That's not what the commenter meant, thankfully, but that's only known after further explanation.

eogas 10y ago

>You're free not to buy books through their affiliate links. You're only free to do this if you know that it's an issue. Unless you know about the affiliate program, you may be supporting this person against your own will. Even if you do know about the affiliate program, you may not know that after you click an affiliate link, the owner of the code gets a chunk of ANY Amazon purchase you make in the next 24 hours, whether or not it is related to the original link.

mememachine 10y ago
Agreed, disclosure seems called for.
DigitalJack 10y ago
I find this mindset baffling. I mean that earnestly. Can you try to explain why other people making money bothers you? It seems pretty clear that amazon thinks affiliates provide a useful service. And if you go to amazon because someone shared something that interested you enough to buy it, they've provided you with a service. What exactly is the problem?
- amargado 10y ago
  Because it is a undisclosed conflict of interest.Imagine you go with a friend to a bookstore , and he recommends to you several books. Since you seem to trust your friend and you have the money, you buy the books. Unbenknownst to you, your friend receives a 5% commission, and he never disclosed it to you. Same principle. It is a whole different game if he mentions this to you in advance, since now you consider your friend a as an interested part and you will consider his recommendations more carefully.
  - softawre 10y ago
    Except this page discloses it...
    - amargado 10y ago

DanBC 10y ago

The UK regulator and the US regulator are pretty clear that affiliate links need to be clearly marked as such.