Screw Amazon, Use Powells

I spend a lot of money on books. No, really, I mean a whole lot. But since there aren't any independent bookstores in Dallas left that carry many of the technical books I need, or, for that matter, any bookstores in Dallas that carry the academic and political stuff I read, I resorted to using Amazon.com heavily about 3 years ago.

But now Amazon has gone patent-crazy, and I hate software patents, so I can't use Amazon in good conscience any more, which is rather a bummer. I trundled over to Borders thinking they'd make a nice substitute, but then I remembered how nasty Borders is to employees who try to organize, which is probably worse than Amazon's patent grab.

But then I remembered using Powells a few years back, and so I checked them out. They have really improved their Web site and their range of offerings, so now I'm a Powells man. It's an independent bookstore in Portland, has a store of some 68,000 square feet (), and they pay a higher commission on "associate" sales than either Amazon or Borders.

If you buy books off the Internet, make sure to buy some at your local independent bookstore too; but if you don't have a good local -- and most of us don't, alas -- consider Powells. Yeah, they are a bit more expensive than the chains, but I think it's worth the extra cost. Plus on orders over $50 Powells doesn't charge for shipping.

Highly recommended.