Getting Kindle books without a Kindle

[cynoclast]

Is it possible to download your kindle purchases from amazon's site or some such without physically owning a kindle?

I ask because the ability to do so is a prerequisite to me posting a want ad for a broken kindle so I can register it to my amazon account and purchase ebooks from amazon for conversion and use on my Nokia N810.

Alternatively, if some kindly kindle owner here would send me the AMZ files I would gladly paypal them the money for the books (or whatever).

I really want new/popular scifi/fantasy ebooks, and Amazon has a few I want, but I vehemently do not want a kindle. I can afford it, but I don't like the device itself and do not wish to blow $360 for the ability to buy ebooks from amazon.

[desertgrandma]

Originally Posted by cynoclast

Is it possible to download your kindle purchases from amazon's site or some such without physically owning a kindle? NO.

I ask because the ability to do so is a prerequisite to me posting a want ad for a broken kindle so I can register it to my amazon account and purchase ebooks from amazon for conversion and use on my Nokia N810.

Alternatively, if some kindly kindle owner here would send me the AMZ files I would gladly paypal them the money for the books (or whatever).

I really want new/popular scifi/fantasy ebooks, and Amazon has a few I want, but I vehemently do not want a kindle. I can afford it, but I don't like the device itself and do not wish to blow $360 for the ability to buy ebooks from amazon.

If you don't want the Kindle then don't buy it.

What you are asking people to do is , I believe, completely illegal. Also what you want to do is illegal.

Someone correct me, of course, if I'm wrong.

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by desertgrandma

If you don't want the Kindle then don't buy it.

What you are asking people to do is , I believe, completely illegal. Also what you want to do is illegal.

Someone correct me, of course, if I'm wrong.

obviously i am not a lawyer and it's possible you are correct, but as long as cynoclast is *paying* for the books i don't see why there should be a problem. it's not as if he's asking for free copies of other people's books. of course, converting them means breaking drm, however i believe that in some countries this is legal. i also find it frustrating sometimes not to have access to amazon's kindle books, so i can understand this motivation.

[RickyMaveety]

Originally Posted by cynoclast

Is it possible to download your kindle purchases from amazon's site or some such without physically owning a kindle?

I ask because the ability to do so is a prerequisite to me posting a want ad for a broken kindle so I can register it to my amazon account and purchase ebooks from amazon for conversion and use on my Nokia N810.

Alternatively, if some kindly kindle owner here would send me the AMZ files I would gladly paypal them the money for the books (or whatever).

I really want new/popular scifi/fantasy ebooks, and Amazon has a few I want, but I vehemently do not want a kindle. I can afford it, but I don't like the device itself and do not wish to blow $360 for the ability to buy ebooks from amazon.

Ummm ... no. You've got to physically own a Kindle. Any Kindle owner who sent you AMZ files, especially with the understanding that you were going to break the DRM and pay them for the books instead of Amazon, would be guilty of breaking several laws (at least here in the US).

If you don't like the device, then by all means, do not purchase one. Get something else and wait until the books you want to read are available in that format, or wait until Amazon comes out with an ebook reader you like.

Amazon has offered so many free books over the last few months, and I've saved so much money on books I have purchased from them, that I really don't feel like I've blown any of the money I've spent. However, I also happen to love my Kindle(s) ... all three of them.

Good luck finding someone who wants to enter into a life of crime just to suit your needs.

[RickyMaveety]

Originally Posted by zelda_pinwheel

obviously i am not a lawyer and it's possible you are correct, but as long as cynoclast is *paying* for the books i don't see why there should be a problem. it's not as if he's asking for free copies of other people's books. of course, converting them means breaking drm, however i believe that in some countries this is legal. i also find it frustrating sometimes not to have access to amazon's kindle books, so i can understand this motivation.

Zeep ... it's the part where he asks "some kindly Kindle owner" to send him the AZW files that gives me the willies. That is absolutely and completely illegal.

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by RickyMaveety

Zeep ... it's the part where he asks "some kindly Kindle owner" to send him the AZW files that gives me the willies. That is absolutely and completely illegal.

i didn't realize that. on the surface it seemed like a perfectly reasonable proposition to me. but as i said, i'm not a lawyer.

[cynoclast]

Originally Posted by desertgrandma

If you don't want the Kindle then don't buy it.

What you are asking people to do is , I believe, completely illegal. Also what you want to do is illegal.

Someone correct me, of course, if I'm wrong.

If you could point me to an alternate source for amazon's ebooks, I'd very gladly simply buy them there instead.

I'd rather not contribute money to a company that uses such draconian lock-in tactics.

But at the same time I believe in subsidizing the ebook industry because it's starving and I, for one, am sick of moving two bookshelves of books every time I relocate, when all of those books would fit on a card weighing 1.4 grams.

[vivaldirules]

Still, there is a legitimate reason for wanting to know if there is a way to buy ebooks from Amazon without having to own a Kindle to do it. Despite what some people have said, there are lots of ebooks that only Amazon sells. Even though they are in Mobipocket format, you can't buy them from Books on Board, Fictionwise, or Mobipocket. But if you have a device that will read Mobipocket books, it would be very nice to legitimately pay for them and read them without having to buy a Kindle.

[cynoclast]

Originally Posted by RickyMaveety

Zeep ... it's the part where he asks "some kindly Kindle owner" to send him the AZW files that gives me the willies. That is absolutely and completely illegal.

Format shifting is legal in many countries, actually.

That's a large part of the reason why movies, cds, and software are vastly cheaper in other countries.

[pshrynk]

Cynoclast:

The answer to your original question is, no, there is not a legal way of buying Amazon e-books without having a registered Kindle. Having someone e-mail you the books that they buy to de-DRM them would be illegal. As far as I know, int the US, buying DRM's books and de-DRMing them is not illegal. So, your best bet would be to go with your plan B: Buy a broken Kindle, register it, and then get the books you want for de-DRMing.

[Diogene]

Originally Posted by RickyMaveety

Zeep ... it's the part where he asks "some kindly Kindle owner" to send him the AZW files that gives me the willies. That is absolutely and completely illegal.

Wanting to read books the way one wants is illegal?
Then those insane laws should be broken and fought until victory.
A society that has too many laws is a society that has been corrupted and polluted by hordes of parasitic lawyers.
They deserve to be broken too.

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by cynoclast

If you could point me to an alternate source for amazon's ebooks, I'd very gladly simply buy them there instead.

I'd rather not contribute money to a company that uses such draconian lock-in tactics.

But at the same time I believe in subsidizing the ebook industry because it's starving and I, for one, am sick of moving two bookshelves of books every time I relocate, when all of those books would fit on a card weighing 1.4 grams.

yes, i completely agree with you...

Originally Posted by vivaldirules

Still, there is a legitimate reason for wanting to know if there is a way to buy ebooks from Amazon without having to own a Kindle to do it. Despite what some people have said, there are lots of ebooks that only Amazon sells. Even though they are in Mobipocket format, you can't buy them from Books on Board, Fictionwise, or Mobipocket. But if you have a device that will read Mobipocket books, it would be very nice to legitimately pay for them and read them without having to buy a Kindle.

...and with you.

well, i suppose there is still the option of buying the broken kindle... although it seems rather silly to have to jump through all these hoops just to be able to buy books, doesn't it ?

[vivaldirules]

Originally Posted by zelda_pinwheel

well, i suppose there is still the option of buying the broken kindle... although it seems rather silly to have to jump through all these hoops just to be able to buy books, doesn't it ?

Yes, it does, ZP. My plan is to simply wait until the value of relieving my own frustration has reached about $400 and then I will break down and buy a Kindle to go with my Sony Reader. Incredibly senseless, but I forsee it happening next year.

[RickyMaveety]

Originally Posted by Diogene

Wanting to read books the way one wants is illegal?
Then those insane laws should be broken and fought until victory.
A society that has too many laws is a society that has been corrupted and polluted by hordes of parasitic lawyers.
They deserve to be broken too.

Paying someone for something that they do not have the right to send you is illegal. Yes.

I would think that, since you are a genius and all, you'd be able to figure that out all by yourself.

And, speaking as one of those "parasitic lawyers" you seem to dislike so much, please do let me know how well you fare in your country's court system with no lawyer to defend you.

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by vivaldirules

Yes, it does, ZP. My plan is to simply wait until the value of relieving my own frustration has reached about $400 and then I will break down and buy a Kindle to go with my Sony Reader. Incredibly senseless, but I forsee it happening next year.

maybe a bunch of frustrated sony owners should set up a pool and buy one kindle to share among them.