 how do I as a user decide whether to download such books? Rather than my typical 4 paragraph posts, since people have told me I kept getting whooshed on this thread, I'll leave it as the rhetorical but honest question.

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Re:First Chapter

by TaoPhoenix (980487) <TaoPhoenix@yahoo.com> on Tuesday March 22 2011, @04:14AM (#35569624)

The first chapter is rarely enough for me to determine if I like something. I much prefer scanning a book at a store because I am good at getting the overall flow of a text by flipping through it. The good stuff in most books starts about chapter 3.

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Re:Reviews 

by TaoPhoenix (980487) <TaoPhoenix@yahoo.com> on Tuesday March 22 2011, @11:37PM (#35582498)

Fair reply, but perhaps it doesn't work the same way across all categories. You would be right for fiction novels. However for nonfiction texts, I buy according to what I am or one day want to research. Unless the review is a warning against a badly produced book, reviews for nonfiction are actually irrelevant.

Easy example. I have a strong interest in Buddhism. Seung Sahn in Compass of Zen worked out or re