Very interesting post, thanks

For an unknown author like me, I can attest that a combination of free and sales is a great strategy. Making 9k isn't bad for a book. I've been doing something similar with my novel, Betrayal. I am releasing the whole book, a chapter at a time, with a link to Smashwords.com, where I have it for sale ($.99). Before I started giving the book away, I had less than 10 sales. On Smashwords, the first 20% was available for free, but I still didn't see the sales. However, once I started posting more free chapters, I've had 50 sales a week! Not sure how sales will hold up once I finish releasing the whole thing, but I am hoping for a result similar to this guys experience. With a .99 sale price, I have been getting enough reviews and sales to make it onto the sales charts at Smashwords. The main point is that without giving it away for free, no one would have ever heard of me. I would have made fewer sales by only giving away a small portion, than I am by giving away the whole book. https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/37846

"As long as the machine that plays it still operates, it's mine."

No, as long as the machine that authenticates it still operates, its mine.

The problem is that there is a high probability that some written words will no longer work on a future device, even though those words are still perfectly good and havent changed since you bought them. Not to overhype Smashwords.com, but the nice thing about their business model is that once you buy a book from them, you can download it again on different formats and no DRM if you buy directly from their site. Thats why I like publishing with them.

"Buying ePUB does not guarantee no DRM" This is a very good point. It matters where you buy. I personally publish on SmashWords.com because they explicitly do not use DRM, and they will automatically convert your story into a wide variety of formats and even list it on sites like Amazon, Barnes and Nobles, and iTunes. Note that when sold from these other sites, DRM may be added. I like not having DRM because people who buy my works can share it with whomever they please (just like a 'real' book). I have seen my book show up on piracy sites, so it is available to those who aren't going to pay for it anyway. I don't think people who pay for it should be punished by being locked down just because they chose to actually supported me. Just my 2 cents.