Quote:
Originally Posted by petercreasey
K, I guess I don't understand why you say this.
Getting a book from Sony or other purveyors is very simple.
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Sony absolutely requires using their software. Installing it generally screws up ADE and it periodically uses up all your licenses for ADE, as it keeps re-authorizing the app. So, you have to contact Adobe each time and get your license count reset (once you track down the phone number, it isn't hard, but it is a complete PITA).
You can't buy via the web, so are out of luck if at work or on a system where your app isn't installed.
Copia is also a PITA, although you can actually ignore their app (although they don't let you know it's possible) and just download your books via ADE, by backdooring the ACSM via the purchase history.
Kobo is great - unless you actually have one of their readers, which insist on trying to download all your books when you first log in; since mine won't fit in the limited memory space available, it's a pain to get it to stop and not keep retrying. Who knows if any of their add-on social media c*** is worth the effort, since it's best to just use their readers unregistered and sideload via USB. The only problem I have with Kobo is running into the book now and then that isn't an EPUB and has to be read on a VOX or their website and nothing else will work.
Any place using ADE requires download via Adobe Digital Editions, before you can then move the EPUB to your device. Some make doing so particularly difficult, with fancy flash buttons that work only maybe 75% of the time (instead of just giving you a link for the ACSM file).
Compare to Amazon - click on pulldown to pick "transfer via USB", then one-click to buy. Save file where desired.... (assuming, of course, I don't just send it to a Kindle/app to read). I can do that from any computer capable of logging in to Amazon and any device capable of saving a file (although I might not use the file there, so long as I can move it elsewhere later, it works well).
B&N also makes it easy and has one advantage - you don't have to have a device to get a book (probably increases their phone support costs, though) or a tablet to buy an app. On the other hand, they are just as proprietary as Amazon, as far as buying a closed format (assuming, of course, that Apprentice Alf isn't your friend). They are also extremely bad about dropping support for older formats/devices (try reading those ereader books you bought on anything but an original nook or an enhanced book someone it isn't supported - Amazon really did their enhanced content formats correctly, so I can read them on every Kindle in the house, even if that Kindle doesn't support the extra content; I hope the azw3 format proves equally versatile).