MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - NVDA (NonVisual Desktop Access) and Kindle for PC 1.19

jhowell · 02-08-2017, 08:07 AM

DRM means different things to different people.

To me, the key idea of DRM is restricting the actions that can be done to the media. Whether that control is used to restrict access to a particular user or a particular ecosystem is irrelevant. Having books locked into the Amazon ecosystem means that if Amazon ever drops support for KFX those books would become unreadable.

The KFX file format is not shy about having the string 'DRM' appear multiple times in conjunction with the encrypted components of the book. So Amazon seems to believe that it is using DRM.

KFX DRM does have the ability to not restrict a book to a particular device. But the ability to actually move these books between devices and have them be readable is questionable.

I have been able to remove a KFX book from a Kindle device and later restore it. Others report being able to move some books between Kindle devices. But so far that ability has not been demonstrated with Kindle for PC.

I have tried saving and restoring a book that was downloaded by Kindle for PC in KFX format. I copied the subdirectory containing the book files within My Kindle Content and then had Kindle for PC delete the original download. When I tried opening the copy, Kindle for PC failed with the message "Error opening book". (When performing the same steps with a book in KF8 format the book opens properly.)

Perhaps a way around this will be found, but transferring encrypted KFX books to even the original installation of Kindle for PC appears problematic.

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ETA: It seems a stretch to me to claim that "...so that you can enjoy reading it on your personal devices" means "your KINDLE devices" for a book sold by Amazon and "any of your reading devices" for the same book sold at another book store. Format shifting is a legitimate use-case allowed by the publisher, but blocked by Amazon's DRM.

Personally I think that the best solution for books that the publisher intends to be DRM-free would be to have Amazon allow any purchaser to download them from their website in an unencrypted and convertible format, such as MOBI or KF8.

02-08-2017, 08:07 AM	#65
jhowell Grand Sorcerer Posts: 7,118 Karma: 92500001 Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Charlottesville, VA Device: Kindles	DRM means different things to different people. To me, the key idea of DRM is restricting the actions that can be done to the media. Whether that control is used to restrict access to a particular user or a particular ecosystem is irrelevant. Having books locked into the Amazon ecosystem means that if Amazon ever drops support for KFX those books would become unreadable. The KFX file format is not shy about having the string 'DRM' appear multiple times in conjunction with the encrypted components of the book. So Amazon seems to believe that it is using DRM. KFX DRM does have the ability to not restrict a book to a particular device. But the ability to actually move these books between devices and have them be readable is questionable. I have been able to remove a KFX book from a Kindle device and later restore it. Others report being able to move some books between Kindle devices. But so far that ability has not been demonstrated with Kindle for PC. I have tried saving and restoring a book that was downloaded by Kindle for PC in KFX format. I copied the subdirectory containing the book files within My Kindle Content and then had Kindle for PC delete the original download. When I tried opening the copy, Kindle for PC failed with the message "Error opening book". (When performing the same steps with a book in KF8 format the book opens properly.) Perhaps a way around this will be found, but transferring encrypted KFX books to even the original installation of Kindle for PC appears problematic. -- ETA: It seems a stretch to me to claim that "...so that you can enjoy reading it on your personal devices" means "your KINDLE devices" for a book sold by Amazon and "any of your reading devices" for the same book sold at another book store. Format shifting is a legitimate use-case allowed by the publisher, but blocked by Amazon's DRM. Personally I think that the best solution for books that the publisher intends to be DRM-free would be to have Amazon allow any purchaser to download them from their website in an unencrypted and convertible format, such as MOBI or KF8. Last edited by jhowell; 02-08-2017 at 09:32 AM.