Quote:
Originally Posted by Katsunami
No, popularity is not always "right". Far from it, often.
Actually, I agree with both of our 1. and 2. statements, that DRM makes sure that there is no casual copying and that it is needed for the lending mechanism. You are completely correct, and that's what DRM is originally intended for.
But... There's always a "but".
That same DRM also creates loads and loads of hassle for legal purchasers switching devices, and therefore, possibly formats. There is no *** way the Adobe Digital Editions tells you how to de-authorize a device or computer. There's no menu option! Say someone has a PC, a notebook, a reader, and a tablet. That are 4 devices. Then they get phone and authorize it too, and the notebook breaks and gets replaced.
There you are: 6 devices authorized. And then you switch readers and can't authorize the 7th. And nowhere can be found how to de-authorize an old device, an no clue is given that you even can.
You can de-authorize a computer using the non-shown CRTL+Shift+D option, but the computer has to be working (and the notebook just broke, remember)? I don't even know if you can de-authorize a broken reader without calling Adobe.
Should I call Adobe, when I cannot read my book, as it's their DRM and software? Or should I call the publisher, as they implemented the Adobe DRM? Or the store, as they sold me the book? Or maybe should I call the store where I got my reader? Confusion galore.
And this, making you dependant on the publisher / DRM-provider *forever*, and the resulting possible confusion and even loss of material if you can't solve the problem (or no one will help you to solve it for whatever reason), is what makes DRM evil.
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Well, if your point is that DRM inconveniences the innocent consumer, then you are correct. The point is that ALL security measures inconvenience the innocent consumer . Complying with TSA security measures inconveniences more people, every day, than DRM has ever inconvenienced , I reckon. Yet we put up with it because the alternative- being blown out of the sky by a suicide bomber - is much worse.
We don't even have to go that far-PASSWORDS inconvenience me because I have to keep track of umpteen impossible to remember passwords. So lets lay it out there-security measures, by their very nature , are going to inconvenience the innocent consumer .
Now, there is in principle, no reason why DRM has to be as inconvenient as it now is. You could have one universal DRM that works across all devices and formats with one portable log in that you could take with you as you migrate from one platform to another. Indeed, the much maligned Adobe DRM partially accomplishes that.
But to get to that universal login DRM you first have to at least have people acknowledge that protecting the IP rights of content creators deserve some modicum of effective protection, even if it inconveniences some consumers. Lots of folks here reject that initial proposition(while paying lip service to the idea that piracy is kinda sorta bad).
Even with a universal DRM you aren't going to get a Nirvana where NO techie consumer is ever inconvenienced. But we could do better.
How do we get to a universal DRM. D****ed if I know. I dream that the Obama Administration would order Amazon, Apple, and Adobe into a room and tell them to come up with one universal scheme or else it'll push through a law stripping all DRM protection. May be we need to OCCUPY the FCC