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That's especially unconscionable when it's subjects like basic physics, chemistry, and math. I'm staring at textbooks for next semester, Legal Ethics. Brand ne

That's especially unconscionable when it's subjects like basic physics, chemistry, and math. I'm staring at textbooks for next semester, Legal Ethics. Brand new book, 5th edition. $328. 3rd edition? $75. Boondoggle isn't even the word.

jimmywanger 9y ago
> Boondoggle isn't even the word. Boondoggles are unintentional. This is working as intended.
- iamdave 9y ago
  Elaborate? You lost me
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - jimmywanger 9y ago
    When you are performing a boondoggle, you generally had a reason or purpose in mind, and what you're doing right now is pointless towards that purpose. For instance, let's say you wanted to improve the educational quality of a university and you build a new chemistry lab that costs a lot of money. You're about 80% of the way through when you realize that the lab is never going to help education if you can't attract competent professors. Oops. That's an example of a boondoggle.
    - iamdave 9y ago
      Interesting. So what word would we use for charging 'new' costs for textbooks containing 'old' data, with the only substantive changes being an updated graphic (updated as in: a photo of a law office taken in 2017 whereas the third edition featured a photo taken in 1992), and some reworded paragraphs-where ultimately the core academic content remains the same?
      - jimmywanger 9y ago
        I'd go with "blackmail" and "price inelasticity of goods without a substitute."
- gknoy 9y ago
  When I look it up, it doesn't seem to imply an unintentional effect: > _work or activity that is wasteful or pointless but gives the appearance of having value_
  - jimmywanger 9y ago
    > _work or activity that is wasteful or pointless but gives the appearance of having value_ The verb version is "waste money or time on unnecessary or questionable projects." Basically the project is useless and unnecessary. For textbooks, things are working out very well indeed and just as intended for textbook companies and the professors who write the textbooks that are required for their own classes.

jimmywanger 9y ago

> Boondoggle isn't even the word. Boondoggles are unintentional. This is working as intended.

iamdave 9y ago
Elaborate? You lost me
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- jimmywanger 9y ago
  When you are performing a boondoggle, you generally had a reason or purpose in mind, and what you're doing right now is pointless towards that purpose. For instance, let's say you wanted to improve the educational quality of a university and you build a new chemistry lab that costs a lot of money. You're about 80% of the way through when you realize that the lab is never going to help education if you can't attract competent professors. Oops. That's an example of a boondoggle.
  - iamdave 9y ago
    Interesting. So what word would we use for charging 'new' costs for textbooks containing 'old' data, with the only substantive changes being an updated graphic (updated as in: a photo of a law office taken in 2017 whereas the third edition featured a photo taken in 1992), and some reworded paragraphs-where ultimately the core academic content remains the same?
    - jimmywanger 9y ago
      I'd go with "blackmail" and "price inelasticity of goods without a substitute."
gknoy 9y ago
When I look it up, it doesn't seem to imply an unintentional effect: > _work or activity that is wasteful or pointless but gives the appearance of having value_
- jimmywanger 9y ago
  > _work or activity that is wasteful or pointless but gives the appearance of having value_ The verb version is "waste money or time on unnecessary or questionable projects." Basically the project is useless and unnecessary. For textbooks, things are working out very well indeed and just as intended for textbook companies and the professors who write the textbooks that are required for their own classes.