Thanks Xanthe! Meanwhile I've been Googling and it looks like B&N didn't use to require a credit card to register, but now does. I guess your old account was grandfathered.
Turns out it is possible to "skip OoBE" through a factory reset, putting the device in test mode. That's where it will stay for me until I decide whether to root it. Meanwhile if anyone can give me a reason why having a B&N identity is useful, I'm all ears.
Thanks again!
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