I went to buy a book today at Bookpool and came up with this:
Bookpool is (was?) a great little site that specialized in technical books. They had a good selection, and amazingly fast shipping. They also employed me a few years back. They had been around a really long time, it’s a shame if they’re gone, hopefully it’s just a technical problem.
5/8/2009 – Credible update from the comments below, a little more information.
Just one more person who appreciated Bookpool for Photoshop books, touted it in photography forums (to great appreciation), and just went to their site to order a book and found this litany of fond farewells instead. Ah, Bookpool, I hardly knew ye…
I was an Oracle instructor a couple of years ago…
I told all of my students about Bookpool.
I always said, “I go to Barnes and Noble to look at the book and get a feel for it. Then I go to Amazon to read the reviews. Finally, if I liked it, I bought it at Bookpool.”
Actually, I skipped the first two steps several times.
I bought many books over the last 10-12 years from Bookpool.
I noticed it was gone more than a month ago… But I’ve been going back once a week just to see if by some miracle it’s back.
Yes, it is like losing an old friend.
Just another long time customer who wants express my remorse. I really don’t want to go out hunting for another technical resource. Amazon wins.
I have been a bookpool customer since 1995 and bought tons of books from them. I am shocked that they are not around anymore, wow, that really hurts.
They had a great idea and ran with it for a long time. Why are they gone so suddenly?
Brian
I liked the bookmarks. Once I asked for extra, and so I have a good supply. Another time my order qualified for a free T-shirt, and customer service called me to say the one I wanted wasn’t available and “here is what we have.” Then she read what was on each T-shirt until she came to one I liked! Bookpool knew how to do ecommerce! They proved a web site does not have to be impersonal.
My God…I have been buying from Bookpool since they first opened – I’ve been out of the country for a few years and just returned and got the same message listed above. What the hell? Leave the country and bookpool closes down? But, I’m sure the Chinese takeaway “Wok-and-Roll” in Cairo is probably closed now too that I left there!
I hope bookpool comes back in some fashion…I hate buying from Amazon and B&N!
I, too, loved shopping there. They had the lowest prices quite often on their books. How sad to see them go!
Used bookpool.com for several years but switched to nerdbooks.com and have had no problems. Their prices and service are just as good if not better than bookpool’s.
ES
NO NO NO say it isn’t so!!!!
I can’t believe this, my heart just dropped into my stomach and I think I feel sick. Years a go I used to buy my technical books at http://www.fatbrain.com until they were gobbled up by Barnes & Noble. I was disappointed with fatbrain but then I found bookpool and never looked back. Anytime someone needed technical book I sent them to bookpool. I have been using Bookpool for at least 8 or 9 years, I’m truly shocked that this has happened.
Bookpool please come back, I promise to buy books more often
Steve
Google reports quantambooks.com as first hit on “bookpool”. It looks like the placeholder at bookpool.com someone posted an image of above and bookpool.com is garbage now.
Keep your fingers crossed and eyes cast for the phoenix.
Bookpool was the best place to buy tech books. Please, please return!
I needed a new Oracle book and went right to my bookpool link. I can’t believe it’s down. I hope the owners are reading this. In this economy I bet a lot of people are ordering tech books to update their skills.
If they are gone for good, R.I.P. Bookpool. You served us well.
Bookpool, if you really are gone, you will be missed dearly.
This is a sad sad moment in geek life. It hurts when you lose THE BEST. It really does.
Another longtime Bookpool customer here. I hadn’t been to the site in several months and just went to go check out to book only to find that they were gone.
I’ve been ordering from them for at least 10 years. I’m really bummed that my order history is now gone as well. I actually used that from time to time. This sucks.
Bookpool.com was the best! I’ve been buying tech books from them for over ten years.
Its a very small margin business. Today its very hard to compete with a commodity on the internet. Amazon is a very tough competitor.
My boss just asked me to buy any Oracle book that I want. Of course the first choice was looking on bookpool.com.
Too sad bookpool is not there anymore.
Please, come back. We need you guys! The best and cheapest place to buy technical books.
I too was looking for a good Oracle resource tonight and without even thinking I put in Bookpool.Com. Doh – I forgot!
It made me think, man.. how many book retailers would kill for the kind of instant brand loyalty Bookpool seemed to have garnered? I think it’s because of the nature of being a tech professional – it’s not easy constantly pooring over tech books late into the night, dog earing those pages, highlighting sections, trying out exercises and code. In a strange way, you engage in a tech book in a way that’s quite intense and totally different from a novel. Not sure my wife would understand, but I think that may be powering the loyalty.
Keep those posts coming about the BP Phoenix..
WOW! That was a shocker. Bookpool was my only source for technical books. Their prices were the best on the net, and their service was great! Sorry to see them go. Wish I could thank them for all the book I purchased for them to achieve my MSCE. I can’t imagine there will be another internet service like them. Oh well, guess I have to start buying from Amazon. This is a sad, sad day
Wow, this is very sad. I first purchased books from Bookpool back in ‘96 via email, and have been ordering technical books from them ever since. I once received a damaged book, and they were very gracious about quickly replacing it—they will be missed.
Another MA technical book store that I frequented, Quantum Books (in Kendall Square near MIT), shut down their Cambridge store a little over a year ago. Their web site, http://www.quantumbooks.com/, also now points to a “coming soon” page. Several brick-and-mortar stores I love in the SF Bay Area have shut down in the past few years too…it’s sad that there’s so little room for excellent independent booksellers any more, virtual or not. Amazon ruthlessly marches on!
I bought most of my tech books from bookpool too. They did have great service and prices! Hope you guys can regroup and make it back.
RIP Bookpool, I just went to log in and had to triple check the URL to make sure I had typed it in right- its pointing to a netsol parking page.
Nuts!!!!
But we did it to them! Brand loyalty? How many of you(us) would price the competition and go there if cheaper? I did, now to my GREAT chagrin. FCUK!!!!!! We did not know a good thing when it staired us in the face… well, we did but we still shopped. What a great store indeed! Sorely, sorely missed. If they were back I would purchase from them solely but alas I will not get a chance so for now I will try zoomii.com.
Yes, RIP Bookpool. Have been ordering from them since 1995, will miss them. It did seem in the last year or so that their selection was down, would do a search for a particular topic and find that many of the titles were out of stock. But prior to that they did have a great selection and very good service. And I thought it was great that they had set up shop on Martha’s Vineyard, great location, must have been great for the employees who worked there!
Bookpool will be missed by yet another customer. Really sorry to hear about this. RIP Bookpool. I certainly hope that the owner will restart soon. Bookpool I salute you farewell!
So Sad, so very sad.
Bummed. Found this site looking to find out why my IT book source was gone. Any recommendations besides half.com from anyone?
What a shame the best sites buckling down! it was fatbrain before and now its bookpool. they always had what I wanted. I’ll miss bookpool
OMG! This sux. Bookpool is the only place I bought books from. Good selection, simple website, quick delivery.
I was a customer for 11 years. Bought a lot of books when I lived in Brazil. Always the best prices around. Will miss them. However a friend of mine was just screwed over in a sale (he paid for the books but never received them), which surprised me – maybe it was a sign of things to come…
Dang it! They were awesome!
Bookpool, you will be missed.