Can I have an eBook automatically sent upon payment thru PayPal?

[tabr0wn]

I have a small eBook I want to sell for $2 thru PayPal.  Can I upload it to PayPal for it to be automatically sent to the purchaser upon payment?  If not, is there another method of having the ebook automatically sent to the purchaser?

[Librum]

Yes, using BIN buttons, and a hidden location somewhere on the web.  The secret is to have the customer return to the url of the book after payment.  Look on third panel, bottom for where to enter it.  In our case, the url is to a pdf. 

[tabr0wn]

The third panel bottom?  Not sure where you are referring to.  Where is the third panel bottom of what  page?  I'm lost but am sure willing to do this.  I have a place where I can hide the ePub book on the web.  Can you please be more specific?  And thanks so much for responding.

Teri

[Librum]

BIN.  Buy It Now.

Research the online guides/faq on buttons.  During the creation, you have three panels/pull-downs.  The bottom or third panel has a place to put the url the customer is to be returned to after completion of sale.  Instead of sending them to a html page, send them to the actual file.  Example: http://www.librum.us/stacks1/afb-1949.exe instead of http://www.librum.us/stacks1/index.htm.  <-- dummy for demo. 

The file they just bought either comes up in the browser (like a pdf), or a download link activates (like an exe). 

The customer does see the link in the browser pane, so protecting the actual directory from being viewed that the file is in is required, use a dummy index.htm file in the directory to block that. 

No, you can not use a shopping cart/etc.  Also, fyi, if you have quite a few buttons, there is no way to sort them, so a bit of prior organization is sometimes needed...

[tabr0wn]

So far that sounds fairly easy.  I do, however, wonder how to set up a dummy index?  I do my own html on my own domain and this sounds like something extremely useful for this purpose.  How do I keep the domain from showing?

One last question.  It's been quite awhile since I used PayPal and the website has changed considerably.  I used to be able to go into my own account and everything I needed was on a side panel with the accounts in front.  I can't even find that page anymore.  I do not know how to get to the page to set-up the return message the customer gets when they pay so that I can actually put the download link on it for the ebook.  My Account page totally confounds me for finding anything beyond buttons and a couple of other things.  But the set-up page has eluded me.  Can you point me in the right direction so I can bookmark the page and not get lost in the confusion of this website?

Once I figure out these two problems, all will be solved and I can quit bugging you.  🐵  Thanks so much for your expert help.  

[Librum]

A 'dummy' index file is just that.  On most linux html hosts, if there is no index file in a sub directory of a web host, then the directory displays.  This forum software will not let me put an html example here.  Sorry.  There is no way, that I know of to get around this via html.  Thus the contents, to include file names, are hidden.  But the requester can try to guess at the file/directory names.  Try http://www.librum.us/gallery/media/  See how it works?  Yes, there are files there, and directories, but you can not see them.

As to the constant movements of things in PayPal, and trying to find things, well, that is one of my pet peeves.  After you get to, say, a dozen such buttons, it becomes a logistics nightmare, as PayPal refuses, despite the many requests, to put some sort of sort functions in there.  Best general tip I can give is to look under business, then buttons, then look at my existing.  We have *FOUR* pages of buttons.  We have to be constantly 'hunting'.

[tabr0wn]

Hmmm.  I did a view souce on the link you posted as an example and sure enough, nothing there except "no peeking".  If I copy the html codes from that page, and exchanged the second line link for my own downloading book link, would that work?  Or is the Public Doc line info important for that page?  I'm assuming most people don't check page source codes to see where it comes from.  I would have to add it to my domain page file, but would that work for a dummy index?

[Librum]

Good that you looked at the code.  And yes, on the public doc.  No on modification of the dummy index file, the paypal button code controls the direction to your content.  Again, look at the button code faq/etc.  Again, the dummy index file only prevents viewing of contents of the sub directory of the html server.

Now me salve my own conscious.  You are going to lose your shirt if you sell 'digital media' via paypal.  1) you have NO sellers protection.  There was a major policy change.  Now, customer files a complaint, customer automatically gets product and his full money back, and you are stuck with the paypal fees.  2) you will not be offered the digital media pricing system, for which we are grandfathered.  You are looking at a minimum fee (loss) of thirty to thirty five cents, per transaction. 

Not to scare you, but to give you some ballpark figures.  The Librum used to have a small 'by the page' page server of it's content.  It went from approximately $120 a month PROFIT to negative in about a week when paypal went 'physical only'.  False chargebacks, just to rip off the content.  .  Paypal got it's money, and pointed to the policy change. We are STILL looking for a way to 'come back'. 

Another issue that will plague you is your ebook format and content protection.   What format is your ebook in?  There are no 'universal' formats, excepting PDF.  There is no universal content protection that has not been broken, to include PDF's.  You will get ripped off, if your content is good.  There is quite a bit of our content on Google, Hathi, etc, all stolen. 

You will be painting a target on your back.  And I do not enjoy holding paint cans.  Sorry.

[tabr0wn]

I've considered selling the ebook via Amazon like all my other ebooks are, but this one is a PDF and only 20 pages.  So small and to such a neiche market.  It's called Scrabble Squabbles and it's full of cartoons and odes, subtitled Cartoons and Odes of Fun.  Only people who play scrabble online would enjoy it.  I didn't think it worthy of Amazon as it was just a fun little project between myself and my artist friend.  We did do a test run and for the $1.99 we asked for it, PayPal gave us $1.64 I believe.  I was absolutely shocked at how much they took compared to the way it used to be.  I do not, however, believe that anyone would complain and want their money back for so small a pittance.  Even if they did, it wouldn't matter much.  We certainly are not going to get rich off of it.  🐵

Tell me, is there another option out there that doesn't charge much like PayPal used to do, or would you suggest going the Amazon route where all of my other books, both hard copy and ebooks are?  So far I haven't had a problem with any of those books contents being stolen and they aren't the fun kind of books.  I would mind greatly if they were stolen.

What type of books do you write?  Do you self-publish too?

[Librum]

First, thank you for your understanding of my not liking to hold the paint can.  If you feel comfortable, then by all means...

As to other venues, I think there may be one, but I have no direct experience with it.  I was told that Amazon was building a gateway, like PayPals, with buttons.  When we enquired, they tried to leverage our printing/restoring assets, so we backed off that research.  I would think, being that they do support ebooks, that if such a portal exists, it might be more receptive to you. 

As to author, self publishing, etc.  No, not in the traditional senses, and certainly not not in a traditional for profit mode.  'Librum', translated, means 'scales'.  'Der Librum' is 'place where the scales are kept'.  A community center.  You will find such in most OOM communites and enclaves.  OOM: Old Order Mennonite.  Closed 'gated' communities.  In our case, we do and teach paper restoration, so our 'library' is quite large and oriented to restoration work.  Located near D.C., our two primary customers are the Smithsonian and the Library of Congress.  And as aluded to before, it was Librum crews who did most of the digitization you enjoy on Google, Internet Archive, Hathi, etc. 

Piece of trivia for you: ever wonder why the pdf standard is roughly 83dpi?  Back in the day of the 'big push', the scanner teams would field with Apple II+ computers with Imagewriter I printers.  The print head was replaced with the scan head, and the best you could get was about 90 dpi.  We have come a long way!