I hadn't heard of this book before, so I found it: "FreePascal from Square One".
http://www.copperwood.com/pub/FreePascalSquareOne--08-06-201...
http://www.copperwood.com/pub/FreePascalSquareOne--08-06-201...
Had a quick look at the book. He says:
"Yessir, the book you’re reading has been around the block a few times since I began writing it in November of 1983—which I boggle to think was over thirty years ago. It’s been through four print editions and on paper sold over 125,000 copies. It’s been translated into five languages."
I had said recently, here (in another HN thread):
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11889412
that I heard from a McGraw-Hill editor, that Scott Meyers' book Effective C++ had sold in the region of 50,000 copies. And the editor, Simon Yates, said that was a fairly high number of sales for a computer book.
And now I read (above) that Duntemann's books sold 125,000 copies.
Phew.
I do remember reading that Turbo Pascal was hugely popular in those days, being the first under $100-dollar language compiler (it was $50, IIRC, others were probably closer to $500 at the time). My guess is that it was a combination of factors that led to such good sales of the book - Duntemann's own programming and writing expertise, for sure, but also the huge popularity of Turbo Pascal, and the fact that it was a boom time for desktop software apps and companies. Let's hope that his new books also become hits.
Edit: spelling.
Available on Kindle Unlimited: his novel The Cunning Blood [0], a newer novel, Ten Gentle Opportunities [1], and his collection Souls in Silicon: Tales of AI Confronting The Infinite. [2] More to come, too, stay tuned!
(Disclaimer: I've designated myself as Jeff's "#1 fanboy.")
[0] https://www.amazon.com/Cunning-Blood-Jeff-Duntemann-ebook/dp...
[1] https://www.amazon.com/Ten-Gentle-Opportunities-Jeff-Duntema...
[2] https://www.amazon.com/Souls-Silicon-Tales-Confronting-Infin...
Not to mention: "I mention all this history because I want people to understand where FreePascal from Square One came from, emphasizing that it’s been a work in progress for thirty years. Why stop now? I don’t have to cater to publishers, paper costs, print runs, or release schedules anymore. The book can evolve with the compiler, and every so often you can download the latest update. My publishing company Copperwood Press offers a print-on-demand paper edition if you’d like one, but you can print it yourself if you prefer. That’s how technical publishing ought to be, and someday will be."
Bravo! If this was how copyright worked - that someone could make a (presumably) decent living for a few years, and the give it all away - would not have as much issues with the intellectual property lobby and Micky Mouse extensions.
Either way, I think it is fantastic to see someone liberating a project of 30 years like this!
One clarification: I have not yet posted a POD edition of the book, though once it gets a little more toward finished I'm sure I will. You can always print it locally if you want hardcopy.
Turbo Pascal's low price compared to most other compilers made it an impulse buy. $50? Why not? And word-of-mouth did a lot of the rest.