There was a time when nobody else in the major bookstore arena could compete with Barnes & Noble as far as discount programs for books. I don’t know if that’s true anymore. I have heartily recommended Reader’s Advantage, particularly if your an IT person. For those who don’t know, IT people can easily spend US$500 to US$1,000 a year in books, depending on your field and how much independent learning you do.

It appears that Borders has caught on, but they seem to be taking a different approach. Rather than have you subscribe to a program. You sign up for their email list at no charge (they offer an opt-out for spam stuff), and you get coupons and sales via those messages. Depending upon your frequency of purchase, these coupons can come along often enough to meet your needs.

And yes, Amazon plays into the picture, too. With free shipping, even with Reader’s Advantage it is often cheaper to buy from Amazon.

So, if you are reading this, and I have recommended Reader’s Advantage to you, please be advised that the suggestion may no longer apply. This has been a public service announcement.