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[QUOTE=JSWolf;1505577]So why is it that Overdrive and/or Adobe is/are not getting the info about early returns out there to the public so the wait times can decrease faster?
Well, first of all, there should be more than one way to return early:
- from ADE (when ADE is used)
- on any wireless-enabled device or reading app that licenses Adobe RMSDK
- from your overdrive bookshelf
Of these only ADE and exactly one iOS reading app that I know of (Bluefire) have a 'return early' button. So even though there is a way, it is very easy to overlook, and/or to find it inconvenient to get to.
But there's no way to make it perfect, even in theory. A reading device that doesn't have a way to communicate with the server (either because wireless does not exist or is turned off), can only assume the book is still checked out, if the original lending period is still in effect. I'm sure plenty of people return early and continue reading - probably a technical violation of the license agreement, but one that is unenforceable.
So it is a nice idea, but maybe not so important in practice. The pragmatic thing is to let the borrower set their own lending period, or start with a 7 day lending period but allow a limited number of renewals, or something along those lines. The libraries I borrow ebooks from let you set it as 7, 14, or 21 days as a default, which you can change on checkout.
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