talkmagic.co.uk

Last Deck on the Left,

I do agree that it is a fine line we are walking on.

But I believe that disclosing potentially sensitive information is only justified if we achieve something by doing so. Several people on this thread have complained about the product in question and the information they have revealed could similarly justify the revelation of key components of many other effects. We are not paying for just a device, but also for the ideas and presentations. If we just consider the materials, almost any effect we can buy in a magic store is heavily overprized. I have mentioned the Xpert before in this thread and I believe it is a good example for a cheap, mundane gimmick. Yet, the ideas and effects it comes with make it more than worth its price.

If Brad reveals what the M5 is in order to inform potential customers about dangers associated with it it is a good thing and I wish more people would actually do this. Even Penguin reveals the device used in it's "No strings attached" effect. But this does not mean that I feel cleared to talk about about it freely just because they inform their customers that the title of the effect does not refer to the method used.

An example of bad advertisement is the "Cellular Mitosis" routine. When I saw the advertisement blurb I immediately considered this thing a rip-off since the effect would either have to be impractical or the blurb misleading. After reading opinions of people who actually bought the routine I figured it could actually be quite good. However, several people have pointed out that the advertisement had nothing to do with the actual effect.

So the problem seems to be that many advertisements are misleading or even blatantly wrong. However, some inventors are willing to disclose enough information on a product to allow me judging it's usefulness for me. Is this a bad thing? Does it give me a right to freely discuss it on an open forum and thus punish the marketer's honesty?

Just my 2 (Euro-) Cents ...

rumburak,

There's some good points there, and things for us all to think about. I see what you are saying about the M5. Only someone who is considering purchasing the item from Ellusionist, and is doing a little research into this purchase would probably come accross that information - therefore it is still quite secret. By us blatently discussing that the item is in fact a ___ , is, as you say, probably not acceptable.