I'm new to all this, and I'm having a few headaches with "DRM" protected books

[MCCPC]

Hi! I'm new here (I'm also new to the world of eBooks) & I'm hoping I can get a bit of

Some background: I recently got an Android-based phone- the htc Aria. I was so thrilled to see you can read on it! Because I also recently bought a media player that can play mp3s, mp4s, audiobooks and supposedly that could read .epub and .pdf books. However, after buying two books I discovered that my little media device cannot read "DRM" books. Ack! On my laptop, the only application I can open the two books in is Adobe Digital Editions.

So now... I have several questions! One, is there an Android app out there that will alow me to read "DRM" protected eBooks on my phone? As a side note, because my service provider is AT&T, I can only shop for apps on the "Android Market"- Amazon is out. Which is a bummer because I love shopping on Amazon! Question two, are there ANY eBook stores out there that sell non-DRM books? I mean recent, best-seller books, not out-of-copyright books. Three... What is DRM stripping? I've herd mention of it... but I have no clue how to do it or if it is even a good option. Four- dose anyone know where I could buy audio books for my phone? Again, Amazon Audibles is not an option because of my AT&T service

My husband wanted to buy me an ereader such as a Kindle, Nook, ect, but I shyed away from spending so much money on a device that only dose one thing, on top of then having to re-purchace all of my fav. books which I have already purchaced hard copies of. It sounded like a money-hole to me Now I have a better understanding as to why those readers are so popular!!

[AnemicOak]

Welcome

Originally Posted by MCCPC

So now... I have several questions! One, is there an Android app out there that will alow me to read "DRM" protected eBooks on my phone?

If these are Adobe DRM'd books that you're able to read on your PC you can get Aldiko from the Android Market. When you plug your phone into your PC via USB it will show up in ADE as Aldiko and you can drag the books from ADE to the Aldiko icon. If the books are ePub's they should work great, if PDF's not so much (they'll work, but be hard to read). Other readers on the Market that read similar DRM would be Txtr and Mantano (supposed to do better with PDF). Also stores like Amazon, B&N, Kobo and Borders have their own apps.

As a side note, because my service provider is AT&T, I can only shop for apps on the "Android Market"- Amazon is out. Which is a bummer because I love shopping on Amazon!

That means you can't use Amazon's Appstore, but the Kindle and Audible apps are also available on the regular Android Market.

Question two, are there ANY eBook stores out there that sell non-DRM books? I mean recent, best-seller books, not out-of-copyright books.

You won't generally find recent bestsellers without DRM. There is plenty of room between best sellers and public domain though. A lot of smaller pubs sell directly DRM free, depends on what you like to read. For some examples see...

Webscription.net
Samhain Publishing
Carina Press
Fictionwise (look for books that say Multiformat)
Smashwords (indie/self published books and also some authors putting out their old backlists on their own)
BeWrite Books

Three... What is DRM stripping? I've herd mention of it... but I have no clue how to do it or if it is even a good option.

It's removing the DRM encryption from the books you've purchased so they aren't locked to a certain device or app system. The books can then be converted using something like Calibre to various other formats.

Four- dose anyone know where I could buy audio books for my phone? Again, Amazon Audibles is not an option because of my AT&T service

Again, the Audible app is available in the regular Android Market you don't need Amazon's Appstore. You can also check B&N, they sell some books in MP3 format.

[odiakkoh]

Why doesn't AT&T allow it? The Amazon app store doesn't state its restrictions by carrier, just that you need the Android OS on your phone. Have you looked here and tried adding the app store app to your phone? http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?docId=1000626391

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by odiakkoh

Why doesn't AT&T allow it? The Amazon app store doesn't state its restrictions by carrier, just that you need the Android OS on your phone. Have you looked here and tried adding the app store app to your phone? http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?docId=1000626391

AT&T doesn't allow one to install 3rd party apps on their phones only stuff from the official market.


Directly from the Amazon site...

AT&T Compatibility

If you have an AT&T phone or tablet, you currently can't install the Amazon Appstore or purchase apps from it. AT&T is working to allow customers to install the Amazon Appstore and purchase apps from it. To sign up to be notified by AT&T when you are able to install the Amazon Appstore on AT&T phones and tablets, visit the AT&T website. http://www.appstoreaccess.com/

[odiakkoh]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

AT&T doesn't allow one to install 3rd party apps on their phones only stuff from the official market.


Directly from the Amazon site...

Suckage. Weird how Amazon doesn't state that though. I'm sure they get at least some calls from AT&T customers complaining.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by odiakkoh

Suckage. Weird how Amazon doesn't state that though. I'm sure they get at least some calls from AT&T customers complaining.

It's right there on the Amazon site under Download Restrictions (on the right hand side of the page you linked to.

[odiakkoh]

ok, im a blind idiot lol.

[RainingLemur]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

It's right there on the Amazon site under Download Restrictions (on the right hand side of the page you linked to.

As if most people actually read that stuff in the first place.

[odiakkoh]

lol i was trying to. obviously i failed.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by MCCPC

Three... What is DRM stripping? I've herd mention of it... but I have no clue how to do it or if it is even a good option.

DRM on ebooks is a way to prevent the ebooks being read by any device or software other than the devices and software specifically authorised to read the ebooks by the site you bought the ebook from.

Specifically, the contents of the ebook are encrypted with an encryption key that is known to the device of software that you have, and it uses that key to decrypt the ebook contents before displaying it to you.

DRM is only a disadvantage for the consumer. In the short term it's mostly just inconvenient (you must usually download a fresh copy for each new device you want to read it at). In the long term, you might well lose access to your ebooks. It also stops programs like calibre converting the ebook from one ebook format to another.

DRM stripping is simply the removal of DRM by finding the encryption key and using it to create a non-encrypted version of the ebook.

Simple DRM removal tools are available for ebooks from most vendors, the main exception being ePubs from the Apple iBooks store.

I'm not allowed to give detailed advice here on how to obtain or use DRM stripping software, but I am allowed to say that in this instance Apprentice Alf and Google are your friends.