mention of books & extensions welcome, or...? (was Re: Scripting *of* Python)

[Paul Rubin]

Alex Martelli <aleax at aleax.it> writes:
> Is this just an isolated opinion, with most readers still welcoming
> mentions and details about Python books and extension packages; or,
> has comp.lang.python's consensus shifted so drastically, so fast, so
> that such mentions are now seen as undesirable "product
> placement"???
> 
> I would like to know, because, if the latter is indeed the case,
> then I can simply omit posting anything that mentions any Python
> book or third-party extension -- e.g. "this is covered in the
> Nutshell", "Holden's book has a good example of this",
> "twisted.internet is just right for this task", and the like.  

Certainly, mentions of free software like Twisted should always be ok.
For proprietary products including books, there's a bit more conflict;
I'd say it's best to be a bit judicious about plugging such products,
but beyond the call of duty to completely stop mentioning them.