So I guess I’m going to NECC. I’m still up in the air about it, although I was accepted to present in the Open Source Lab. I’ll have to go into debt to go, since there’s no funding help, so it’s a question of whether I should.
Either way, I got this email and I have a bit of an ethical problem with it. I recognize that the publishers want to get their books out there, but this seems sketchy. My inclination is to politely decline, but I wondered if you didn’t have an alternate viewpoint? Is there something I’m missing? Am I making a mountain out of a molehill?
Here’s the email in its entirety, published with explicit permission from the publishing company and the author of the email.
Dear Chris,
I noticed that you are presenting on Moodle at the upcoming NECC in San Antonio. I am with FTC Publishing and we publish the book Moodle Magic: Make it Happen, by Laurie Korte. If you are not familiar with this book, it is a great resource for educators looking to begin using Moodle or educators who are looking for tips and tricks for using Moodle in the classroom. I was wondering if you would be interested in receiving a few of these books to use as giveaways during your session.
We would supply you a copy of the book for your own personal use as well as the giveaways. We would also include a few coupons and catalogs for attendees of your session that are interested in learning more about the books.
If you are interested in receiving these materials please email me back with the number of people you are expecting to attend your session as well as the address of the location you would like for us to ship the items.
Thanks for your time and I look forward to hearing from you.
I think part of my issue is that I’ve not read the book. If I were a fan of the book to begin with, this would be easy, since it would be a genuine, voluntary endorsement. I haven’t read it, though, so it makes me feel like a bit of a puppet if I were to give these out.
Once before, PbWiki gave me some premium wikis to give out but I was ok with that since I was already a bit of a PbWiki evangelist. I use that software regularly and like it a bunch, so there’s my difference there.
Also, I approached PbWiki. They have a presenter pack (or did, it’s been a few years) that I emailed to get. They did not approach me.
The publisher probably searched for Moodle in the NECC planner and found me. Is that bad? Not necessarily.
I’m just not sure how to respond. What do you think?
Chris
