More pointless criticism has been hurled at the name TomFolio.com, I think, than anything else: It doesn't say "books"—it sounds like "tomfoolery"—it is "too male"—and on and on. To dispel these ridiculous charges I say:

It's good that we don't have "book" in our name. At the time we were deliberating our name, 1999-2000, there were active websites or software products called bookavenue, bookcellar, bookfinder, bookgraveyard, bookhound, booklog, bookmaster, bookmate, bookminder, bookopoly, bookradar, booksearch, bookstacks, and booktrakker, not to mention abebooks, clik-books, elephantbooks, gbmbooks, justbooks, pickabook, usedbooks, virtualbooks and yourbooks. Who wants to get lost in that?

Amazon doesn't say "book" but everyone knows they sell books. Besides, a "folio" is a kind of book so the criticism is meaningless.

Yes, it sounds like "tomfoolery." So what? Why would you want to go into a shop with a dour name when you can go where the folks obviously have a sense of whimsy?

It's too male? Seriously, being represented by a memorable character can only be good for marketing. (Just think of a "silly wabbit" or a certain gecko.) Yes, he's male, but he's also a voracious reader, and he wears a top hat and a coat. Very classy!

The name "TomFolio" was unique enough to be trademarked, which the bookdealer-owners of our website did to prevent others from usurping our good name. And to make one last point, those involved in the project gained a spiffy new name for themselves: "Folians."

Sincerely yours, Gwen Foss

TomFolio "rolls off the tongue . . . It's unique, it's pertinent, it's short and sweet. And, therefore, easy to remember."— Lera Lamme