Anthere wrote:
Are they gonna be sold ? If they are, how much ? Why sold ? Do you consider they are only instrument of promotion, or knowledge distribution as well ? Were the 3000 dollars definitly given to support WikiReaders, or are they a help to be reinbursed while the WikiReaders are sold ?
If I read Jimbo's announcement about it correctly, the $3000 is basically a loan, intended to finance the initial print run, and Wikimedia will make a certain portion of the profits on each sale to recover the $3000. In case profits are less than $3000, Jimbo's personally guaranteed he'll make up any difference, so it's no risk to the foundation's money (I believe he did this precisely for the reasons you mentioned, that this isn't something we've yet decided the foundation should spend its money on).
-Mark