Print is Dead...for Now

by Mr. Bad Guy

One of the problems facing us as a publisher is the mantra that drones out that print is dead. We hear it when we ask people about advertising, and their response is that they don't do print advertising anymore. We hear it from our friends and relatives who say, "How are you publishing a journal in print?" (Actually, it will be two journals with the release of Flex Authority). We hear it all over the place – the same mantra: Print is dead.

And we agree.

Print is dead. The web is everywhere. When you go to the bathroom, the web is there. When you are cooking, the web is there. When you're on the train, the web is there. And when you have just finished making love to your Whatever, the web is there.

You can reference anything you want on the web – much better than any book on the shelf. The information on the web is permanent; it will never change. And if it does change, it's always up-to-date. And if you're looking for older information, I'm sure you'll find it somewhere. It's the web, and the web has replaced print.

The web has said, "Print is dead."

Someone didn't tell our subscribers that.

Eighty percent of our subscribers not only buy the print version of our journal, but also buy the print back issues. Our subscriber base is not just American, but European, Asian, Australian, and places that you don't expect ColdFusion to be. And it seems that people there have not learned that print is dead.

I think I know the problem. The problem is that we're too damn good. We're ahead of the curve. Years ago, there was one ColdFusion book. Then there were a bunch of ColdFusion books. And then there was one ColdFusion book again. And now there are more print ColdFusion books coming out. So this sounds like a wave going up and down. It sounds like there are times and places where targeted materials – when books written for a targeted audience are big sellers – and times when they're not. I think we're six to twelve months ahead of the curve. I think we're just too fast for O'Reilly, SAMS, Adobe Press.

And, unfortunately, we're too fast for advertisers. Why are we going to advertise in print? Print is dead. If we advertise in your journal, people are going to see our ad forever. We can't have that...

I guess we just have to learn: Print is dead. Despite all of the evidence that says otherwsise. And I can say this, because:
"I'm everybody's Mr. Bad Guy."

Mr. Bad Guy is no one you know, becaues you do not want to know him. He is the one that says the truth you do not want to hear. He is the one that questions what we take for granted, and what we're told. He is who you want to be, and don't want to be. He is Mr. Bad Guy... Yes, he's everybody's Mr. Bad Guy.

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