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When Microsoft's eBook store closes, your books disappear too

bbc.co.uk

231–240 of 297 posts

Re: When Microsoft's eBook store closes, your books disappear too

#231
post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I assume "humble indie bundle".

aren't those still mainly activated on steam?

Every game in a Humble _Indie_ Bundle has always been available DRM free. Titles in their "Humble Trove" (a monthly subscriber perk) are also DRM free. Other bundles Humble Bundle sells are often Steam only.

Re: When Microsoft's eBook store closes, your books disappear too

#232
A thing I don't get about eBook sites is why they aren't easier to browse. Simply being able to scroll through a screen equivalent of a library shelf (Dewey Decimal or LOC system) would be nice.

Obviously, using libgen tends to avoid this DRM problem.

No doubt as the surveillance economy ramps up, getting every last penny for copyright will ramp up also.

Re: When Microsoft's eBook store closes, your books disappear too

#233
post #156

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Traced back for what purpose? What's the punishment? Any answer, other than "none", would be insane.

If your watermarked version appears online it is an indication that you might have uploaded (or not properly protected) it. This might not be enough to prove this in a court, but enough for the publisher's lawyers to annoy you. But hardly any uploader would keep watermarks in, which makes them more of a way for faithful users to not give the book I.e. to friends since there is a visible reminder about being your pers…

Its still a legal environment where it is illegal to share or transfer ownership of books

Re: When Microsoft's eBook store closes, your books disappear too

#234
post #207

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All your points are dead on. I'll throw in these cons as well: 5. visibility (as noted by angrygoat) and browseability is terrible. 6. Flipping through an ebook looking for something is impossible. 7. Illustrations or drawings are rendered terribly. The list of pros of ebooks: 1. It's just a better experience. Ebooks are lighter than their equivalent books, easy to use one-handed, fonts can be adjusted, you can carry…

> It's just a better experience. That's rather subjective which is why I left most of this stuff out. Some people really like reading on a kindle or iPad, I don't particularly (the Kindle is "OK"). > Ebooks are lighter than their equivalent books It depends on the book TBH. A lot will be heavier, many won't. The book I'm currently reading ("Medium Raw" by Anthony Bourdain) is 49g heavier than a kindle (the cheapest i…

For better experience I don't know if I can convince you -- the Kindle Oasis is just ridiculously ergonomic. I'm a voracious reader. Reading a paperback without breaking the spine is an annoyance that I'm glad to have put behind me. Reading a full-size hardcover is just not doable one-handed or lying on your side in bed. The front light is easy on the eyes at night and doesn't disturb other sleepers in your bed. I've tried to go back especially to re-read treasured classics, like Hitchiker's Guide, and just went ahead and bought the e-book version.

> I am a relatively strong man, throwing a book or two into my bag doesn't make a difference to me.

I've put a lot of work and streamlining into not carrying a bag at all. Carrying my kindle in my back pocket or jacket pocket is easy enough. Similarly carrying a book depends on the book.

> > easy to use one-handed

> Never had a problem with this.

How do you turn pages? I used to have to do the awkward reverse flip - half close - move finger - let hang - flip up, or just free up my other hand for a second. On a crowded train neither of these work particularly well.

Re: When Microsoft's eBook store closes, your books disappear too

#235

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's actually quite a few eBook stores out there with DRM-free options, you just have to know where to look, and they're usually publisher-specific. Humble Bundle does a weekly Book Bundle. Wiley, O'Reilly, No Starch, and several other publishers all regularly participate with tech books, geek books, comic books, and manga. No Starch itself deserves a separate mention just because they're awesome. On their own sit…

Thanks for mentioning Manning; they are great, love buying from them - including their Early Access versions such as Jon Skeet's C# in Depth.

I try not to forget any once I know they are DRM-free! When music switched to DRM-free, it was pretty much just "Apple says all songs are DRM-free now, but books has been a much longer, harder fight. I think it's important we recognize, promote, and patronize DRM-free retailers and publishers.

Re: When Microsoft's eBook store closes, your books disappear too

#236
post #165

I don't buy ebooks, and this is just one reason. This is the complete list: 1. For some reason they cost a similar amount to print books Sometimes a bit less, sometimes the same, sometimes more. Distributing a physical book means you have to print, handle, store, transport, store again, handle again and transport again (using a simplified model of the journey a book takes to the end user). That costs money, and it co…

All your points are dead on. I'll throw in these cons as well: 5. visibility (as noted by angrygoat) and browseability is terrible. 6. Flipping through an ebook looking for something is impossible. 7. Illustrations or drawings are rendered terribly. The list of pros of ebooks: 1. It's just a better experience. Ebooks are lighter than their equivalent books, easy to use one-handed, fonts can be adjusted, you can carry…

I read a lot of textbooks in DRM free eBook format lately, strictly for the weight. However, some of my books have licenses on them stating its a crime to even create a copy and worded so poorly that even personal backups are illegal, and I certainly am not allowed to share them with family members, resell, or let somebody inherit it. Same for almost all of my DRM free audiobooks. I don't find this acceptable when it comes up.

Re: When Microsoft's eBook store closes, your books disappear too

#237
post #165

I don't buy ebooks, and this is just one reason. This is the complete list: 1. For some reason they cost a similar amount to print books Sometimes a bit less, sometimes the same, sometimes more. Distributing a physical book means you have to print, handle, store, transport, store again, handle again and transport again (using a simplified model of the journey a book takes to the end user). That costs money, and it co…

To me, ebooks are an alternative to amassing huge quantities of paperback sci fi novels that I'll likely never read again. I also get to read them on my phone which often means the difference between me reading them at all or not. For any book I'll likely want to refer to again, art book, graphic novel, etc. then print is far better for the reasons you say. The general question I ask is, "Would I buy this in hardcover?" If the answer is no, then I'll get the ebook.

Re: When Microsoft's eBook store closes, your books disappear too

#238

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's actually quite a few eBook stores out there with DRM-free options, you just have to know where to look, and they're usually publisher-specific. Humble Bundle does a weekly Book Bundle. Wiley, O'Reilly, No Starch, and several other publishers all regularly participate with tech books, geek books, comic books, and manga. No Starch itself deserves a separate mention just because they're awesome. On their own sit…

Baen is also 100% DRM free. They're kind of a niche publisher but I've bought a few things from them.

Hadn't heard of them before! Thanks for letting me know!

Re: When Microsoft's eBook store closes, your books disappear too

#239

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because it's trivial to turn one ebook into a billion pirated copies, not so much with a physical book. It's a huge difference in logistics.

It's actually not that easy for most books, because most books aren't popular enough to sustain a torrent. A PDF of a book is usually tens or hundreds of megabytes, which is too big to get through most mail servers. Mass-sharing an ebook takes just enough work that it won't happen for anything that's not a best-seller.

What are you talking about? Ebooks are tiny. It's just text.

Re: When Microsoft's eBook store closes, your books disappear too

#240
post #155
post #11

They refund them. Why is this an issue?

This is a bit like that scene in the Godfather where the mafia smash some reporters' cameras, then chuck some money on the ground for them. Yeah, it's a bit classier than common theft, but it's not exactly kosher either.

The concept of ownership is not necessarily the same for digital content. Streaming services for example extended this idea and I don’t believe this is a bad thing. It gives us access to more content for less money. Yes, someone can take it away from you again but there are many advantages to this type of distribution that you could not enjoy if there was a guarantee for lifetime ownership.
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