Classic free ebooks for nook

booklvr52 · 04-01-2010, 08:29 AM

I am very close to buying a nook.... I am hopeful that the public libraries will continue to expand their inventory but in checking the various free ebooks sites I find very few current fiction available...that is most of what I read...do you think this will change?

I have checked all the sites mentioned here...are there others I may be missing in my search for current fiction?

rmettier · 04-01-2010, 10:10 AM

If you search the common torrent sites for 'epub', you'll discover quite few current books being added every day.

Of course, only take this advice if downloading files for non-commercial purposes is already legal wherever you are.

booklvr52 · 04-01-2010, 10:47 AM

am new to all this...not sure what you mean by "torrent sites"...i have checked all the sites mentioned here plus others checking for books I am looking for and none seem to have them ... sorry if I am asking silly questions.

Elfwreck · 04-01-2010, 11:27 AM

There is relatively little current fiction available for free as ebooks. (Enough is available to read for a long, long time, but that's still a tiny fraction of books published.)

There's the Baen free library of science fiction books. Feedbooks has a collection of recent, rather than classic-public-domain, books submitted by their authors. Harlequin's 17 free sample romances are still available. Everything by Cory Doctorow is released under Creative Commons, in several formats. And many publishers release occasional free ebooks as promotions.

But overall, for most books in print right now, there are no legal sources of free ebook versions.

bgalbrecht · 04-01-2010, 11:31 AM

Outside of the Baen Free Library, which is SF and Fantasy, there aren't many legal and free ebook sites that have "current fiction", as in works published after 1964. You can use Inkmesh to find free book promotions.

rmettier was saying that if you want free "current fiction" outside of the limited promotional material, you'll have to resort to downloading books from the darknet, which is copyright infringement and illegal in the US.

booklvr52 · 04-01-2010, 11:32 AM

Thanks for the info....have you (or anyone) heard of Good e-Reader....they provide unlimited downloads for a flat monthly fee of around $10...

Elfwreck · 04-01-2010, 01:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by booklvr52

Thanks for the info....have you (or anyone) heard of Good e-Reader....they provide unlimited downloads for a flat monthly fee of around $10...

Looks like an interesting service, but I can't find any details on what books they have available, nor what filetypes. (They say they support everything, which is pretty much a meaningless claim.) They don't say whether they require DRM registrations, but they'd have to, to offer the books they show.

The only way I can think they'd be able to offer the books they depict is if someone buys them, strips the DRM, and "loans" them out through their subscription program--which is rather drastically illegal.

They could, presumably, re-DRM them with their own DRM, to only allow them to be used for a limited time, and loan them out like library ebooks, only with more flexibility about device compatibility. I think that's fairly unlikely.

Of course, it's possible that they don't actually offer the titles they show, and only have a few promo-freebie popular book titles, and a whole bunch of Gutenberg books.

booklvr52 · 04-01-2010, 01:54 PM

Yes, there is no way to see the list...i did join the forum (free) and asked if I could see the list as a guest...they do have a one-day trial for either $1 or $5....however, i don't even have my e-reader yet...so it is still research for me...

JSWolf · 04-01-2010, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Elfwreck

Looks like an interesting service, but I can't find any details on what books they have available, nor what filetypes. (They say they support everything, which is pretty much a meaningless claim.) They don't say whether they require DRM registrations, but they'd have to, to offer the books they show.

The only way I can think they'd be able to offer the books they depict is if someone buys them, strips the DRM, and "loans" them out through their subscription program--which is rather drastically illegal.

They could, presumably, re-DRM them with their own DRM, to only allow them to be used for a limited time, and loan them out like library ebooks, only with more flexibility about device compatibility. I think that's fairly unlikely.

Of course, it's possible that they don't actually offer the titles they show, and only have a few promo-freebie popular book titles, and a whole bunch of Gutenberg books.

I do wonder if this is a legit service. What would really help is if they allowed us to browse their selection to see if we'd want to subscribe.

booklvr52 · 04-01-2010, 02:22 PM

Yes, I agree and I did ask the question and will see what response I get...of course the $5 isn't a huge investment to find out but ... I also wonder about the firm...

booklvr52 · 04-01-2010, 10:12 PM

they confirmed that I could only see a full list by subscribing....i am suspicious...

booklvr52 · 04-01-2010, 11:07 PM

what does anyone know about diesel ebooks and books on board....not free but decent prices and lots of current fiction (esp. on books on board),,,

GraceKrispy · 04-02-2010, 04:38 PM

does it bother anyone else that they spell "hottest" as "hotest" in the heading?

bgalbrecht · 04-03-2010, 12:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by booklvr52

what does anyone know about diesel ebooks and books on board....not free but decent prices and lots of current fiction (esp. on books on board),,,

Both Diesel and Books on Board are reputable sites. I'm not real fond of Book on Board's website, and I think Fictionwise used to be cheaper with their Buyer's Club and sales, but now that the big publishers are switching to Agent Model pricing, that probably won't matter any more (and you can't join the Fictionwise Buyers' Club anywmore). You might find it easier to pick the retailer whose website you like best and primarily buy from them so that it's harder to accidentally buy a duplicate.

booklvr52 · 04-03-2010, 08:55 AM

yes, well that's good news...i liked the BOB website and think between using the public library (when possible -- hopefully they will continue to stock more ebooks) for free books and BOB i should be ok...and yes, you are correct that sticking with as few sites as possible will avoid duplication.....now i just need to spring for the reader...think for my limited needs (just reading some fiction) that the nook will work fine....hopefully will make my purchase in the next week or so...

thanks to everyone for your insights and assistance...i will come back in a review once I have my nook in hand and running.

04-01-2010, 08:29 AM	#1
booklvr52 Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2010 Device: none	free ebooks for nook I am very close to buying a nook.... I am hopeful that the public libraries will continue to expand their inventory but in checking the various free ebooks sites I find very few current fiction available...that is most of what I read...do you think this will change? I have checked all the sites mentioned here...are there others I may be missing in my search for current fiction?

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04-01-2010, 10:10 AM	#2
rmettier Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2010 Device: nook	If you search the common torrent sites for 'epub', you'll discover quite few current books being added every day. Of course, only take this advice if downloading files for non-commercial purposes is already legal wherever you are.

04-01-2010, 10:47 AM	#3
booklvr52 Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2010 Device: none	am new to all this...not sure what you mean by "torrent sites"...i have checked all the sites mentioned here plus others checking for books I am looking for and none seem to have them ... sorry if I am asking silly questions.

04-01-2010, 11:27 AM	#4
Elfwreck Grand Sorcerer Posts: 5,185 Karma: 25133758 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: SF Bay Area, California, USA Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3 (Past: Kobo Mini, PEZ, PRS-505, Clié)	There is relatively little current fiction available for free as ebooks. (Enough is available to read for a long, long time, but that's still a tiny fraction of books published.) There's the Baen free library of science fiction books. Feedbooks has a collection of recent, rather than classic-public-domain, books submitted by their authors. Harlequin's 17 free sample romances are still available. Everything by Cory Doctorow is released under Creative Commons, in several formats. And many publishers release occasional free ebooks as promotions. But overall, for most books in print right now, there are no legal sources of free ebook versions.

04-01-2010, 11:31 AM	#5
bgalbrecht Wizard Posts: 1,806 Karma: 13399999 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: US Device: Nook Simple Touch, Kobo Glo HD, Kobo Clara HD, Kindle 4	Outside of the Baen Free Library, which is SF and Fantasy, there aren't many legal and free ebook sites that have "current fiction", as in works published after 1964. You can use Inkmesh to find free book promotions. rmettier was saying that if you want free "current fiction" outside of the limited promotional material, you'll have to resort to downloading books from the darknet, which is copyright infringement and illegal in the US.

04-01-2010, 11:32 AM	#6
booklvr52 Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2010 Device: none	Thanks for the info....have you (or anyone) heard of Good e-Reader....they provide unlimited downloads for a flat monthly fee of around $10...

04-01-2010, 01:54 PM	#8
booklvr52 Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2010 Device: none	Yes, there is no way to see the list...i did join the forum (free) and asked if I could see the list as a guest...they do have a one-day trial for either $1 or $5....however, i don't even have my e-reader yet...so it is still research for me...

04-01-2010, 02:22 PM	#10
booklvr52 Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2010 Device: none	Yes, I agree and I did ask the question and will see what response I get...of course the $5 isn't a huge investment to find out but ... I also wonder about the firm...

04-01-2010, 10:12 PM	#11
booklvr52 Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2010 Device: none	they confirmed that I could only see a full list by subscribing....i am suspicious...

04-01-2010, 11:07 PM	#12
booklvr52 Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2010 Device: none	what does anyone know about diesel ebooks and books on board....not free but decent prices and lots of current fiction (esp. on books on board),,,

04-02-2010, 04:38 PM	#13
GraceKrispy It's Dr. Penguin now! Posts: 3,909 Karma: 4705733 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: (USA) Device: iPad mini, Samsung Note 3, Sony PRS-650 (rarely used now)	does it bother anyone else that they spell "hottest" as "hotest" in the heading?

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04-03-2010, 08:55 AM	#15
booklvr52 Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2010 Device: none	yes, well that's good news...i liked the BOB website and think between using the public library (when possible -- hopefully they will continue to stock more ebooks) for free books and BOB i should be ok...and yes, you are correct that sticking with as few sites as possible will avoid duplication.....now i just need to spring for the reader...think for my limited needs (just reading some fiction) that the nook will work fine....hopefully will make my purchase in the next week or so... thanks to everyone for your insights and assistance...i will come back in a review once I have my nook in hand and running.