PDFs on FFE CDROM vs DriveThru

[zensunni]

I was about to pick up the T4 Starships PDF from DriveThru at $15, but for just a little more than twice that (plus shipping) I see I can get all the T4 PDFs on CDROM...!?

Are these the same PDFs? If not, is there a difference in scan/ocr quality? Why such a discrepancy in price?

 

[robject]

I was about to pick up the T4 Starships PDF from DriveThru at $15, but for just a little more than twice that (plus shipping) I see I can get all the T4 PDFs on CDROM...!?

Are these the same PDFs? If not, is there a difference in scan/ocr quality? Why such a discrepancy in price?

Probably the same -- I doubt there was more than one official scan/OCR done. The price difference is probably just an incentive to get the whole shebang, whereas on the other hand, if you have everything else in electronic format, you at least don't have to pay for everything.

 

[zensunni]

Probably the same -- I doubt there was more than one official scan/OCR done. The price difference is probably just an incentive to get the whole shebang, whereas on the other hand, if you have everything else in electronic format, you at least don't have to pay for everything.

That's what I'd think, too, but I'd like to know whether anyone knows for sure. The deal just seems too good to be true, like there must be a catch. A quick and rough estimate in my head says it costs over $200 to get the PDFs on DriveThru, and even that's with a discount for most of them. To get them all on CD for just $35 plus shipping... Wow!

 

[Dragoner]

FFE does give really good deals on it's CD's, if you go for the 443 deal, such as with the four CT disks (CT, JTAS, AP1 & 2) you get an insane amount of material, most people on major sites agree.

I want the T4 disk myself, if you get it, tell us how it is!

 

[atpollard]

I can't speak for every DTRPG PDF, but the one PDF I got from DTRPG (TNE FF&S) was identical in quality to the PDF on the FFE TNE CD (note that DTRPG PDFs come with a watermark, the FFE CD does not).

With respect to the many other FFE CDs that I have gotten, some of the early CT CD scans had resolution issues which were fixed on the updated CT CD that FFE sent as a replacement ($7 for a replacement CD, but free when ordered with another product) and is now the standard FFE CT CD.

I can unhesitatingly recommend the FFE CDs as a great deal and a useful product. Even if some DTRPG PDFs turn out to be of better quality than the FFE CDs (which is very unlikely) any difference in quality will be minimal and not be worth the difference in price.

This is like deciding to buy a car one piece at a time and assemble it yourself vs buying a car pre-assembled. If you only need a small block chevy motor, then go to DTRPG, but if you plan on getting a whole car, then go to the FFE CD.

 

[zensunni]

I can't speak for every DTRPG PDF, but the one PDF I got from DTRPG (TNE FF&S) was identical in quality to the PDF on the FFE TNE CD (note that DTRPG PDFs come with a watermark, the FFE CD does not).

...

I can unhesitatingly recommend the FFE CDs as a great deal and a useful product. Even if some DTRPG PDFs turn out to be of better quality than the FFE CDs (which is very unlikely) any difference in quality will be minimal and not be worth the difference in price.

Thanks, you've sold me!

No watermark was a big plus for me, I really hate seeing it on the books I've bought from DTRPG. But I wanted some assurance over the quality of those on the CD, which I think you've covered well.

 

[SpaceBadger]

I just received my 2300AD CD from FFE and that is a mind-boggling lot of stuff to read. The CD has Traveller 2300, 2300AD, all of the various published adventures and supplements, plus all of the 2300 articles published in Challenge magazine - all for $35!

 

[Uriel]

I have been slowly making my way through my T4 pdfs from the cd and am very pleased with the scan quality and the books themselves.

 

[Spaceresearcher]

It's probably a bit late for this thread but I just thought I'd highlight the following key points.

DRIVE THRU RPG - PDF's
ADVANTAGES:
* It's quick and easy.
* You can be reading your gaming books in moments.
* Available to download from anywhere in the world.
DISADVANTAGES:
*The PDF's vary in quality.
*The PDF's are watermarked with your order details.
*Only a percentage of the payment cost goes to the owner of the original material.

FFE CD-ROM
ADVANTAGES:
*You get a permanently recorded CDROM or DVDROM(if you purchase the Challenge Magazine articles).
*You get a whole collection all at once.
*You get all the books nicely organised and ready to roll saving you time organising them yourself.
*NO Watermarking of the books, making them more like grabbing the book from the gaming store.
*Direct support to the original copyright owner and designer.
*Supports Marc
*The price is far less than purchasing the books file by file from DTR.
*There may be an option in the future to obtain your books on Thumbdrive as an option. (T5 had a purchase option for supplying on Thumbdrive for example).

DISADVANTAGES:
*You'll have to wait to receive your media in the mail.
*No cloud storage of the books.

In conclusion the directly available CDROM's are an absolute bargain and each one is literally exploding at the edges with collections of books to backup your paper collection or to read for the first time or even just to give you a handy searchable reference and avoid carting around those precious collectible books.

 

[Vargas]

DriveThru makes more sense if you're looking for a PDF or two to round out your existing collection or simply don't want the complete set. People's tastes vary . . .