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calvin-c · 07-09-2009, 11:52 AM

I'll admit I haven't tried all the DRM formats out there, but I have yet to find one that I can't back up by treating it as a file. The difference, of course, is that to read the 'story' you need to treat it as a book-and there are some that I've been unable to read until they're restored to the original device/location.

Personally, I don't want to be tied to a particular device. It's bad enough being tied to a particular format but even worse being tied to a particular device.

I settled on the Mobipocket format (several years ago) when I found an eBook seller that maintains the books you buy from them & allows you to change the Mobipocket 'device code' (called a PID) and re-download the books. Yes, that puts me at risk, not only of Mobi going down but also the seller. But it's the best *I've* found for DRM'd books. (Like most readers, I avoid DRM whenever possible-but I'd rather put up with DRM than not read the book. So I use the least objectionable DRM I can find.)

I'm giving eReader a try again as some books I want to read I've only found in that format. I doubt if I'll continue using it except for those books that require it. The basic problem is that it uses your credit card number as the pass code. So, each time I reload a book I need to re-enter a 16-digit number. Who remembers that? Pain in the ***. I might find a way to handle this, if I keep trying. I've found several 'workarounds' for Mobipocket problems. Like resetting a book to 'unread'. It's easy in the Windows version-and makes no difference I can see in the library. But in the Palm version, which I use more often, unread books appear in bold but once you've opened a book (even if it's just to check the contents) there's no apparent way to return it to that 'unread' state.

So how do I do it? Easy-I return it to the unread state in Windows & then transfer it again. (Actually, I back up the state file while unread, then restore it. Mobipocket books are stored in 2 files-the first contains the book itself, with the extension .prc or .mobi, while the second, with extension .mbp, contains the state & other info. I suspect that includes annotations but I don't annotate my books so I'm not certain. If I need to make notes I make them in a separate file.)

Anyway, DRM is a major problem in all areas where it's used-but so is theft. From my standpoint, DRM is a bigger problem but obviously the publishers who use it think differently. For an author's viewpoint, read the 'editorials' by Eric Flint in Baen's Free Library (http://www.baen.com/library/). Except for the introduction they're called 'Prime Palaver' and to me, they're *very* interesting even if quite old. I wish more publishers would read these.

07-09-2009, 11:52 AM	#10
calvin-c Guru Posts: 787 Karma: 1575310 Join Date: Jul 2009 Device: Moon+ Pro	I'll admit I haven't tried all the DRM formats out there, but I have yet to find one that I can't back up by treating it as a file. The difference, of course, is that to read the 'story' you need to treat it as a book-and there are some that I've been unable to read until they're restored to the original device/location. Personally, I don't want to be tied to a particular device. It's bad enough being tied to a particular format but even worse being tied to a particular device. I settled on the Mobipocket format (several years ago) when I found an eBook seller that maintains the books you buy from them & allows you to change the Mobipocket 'device code' (called a PID) and re-download the books. Yes, that puts me at risk, not only of Mobi going down but also the seller. But it's the best I've found for DRM'd books. (Like most readers, I avoid DRM whenever possible-but I'd rather put up with DRM than not read the book. So I use the least objectionable DRM I can find.) I'm giving eReader a try again as some books I want to read I've only found in that format. I doubt if I'll continue using it except for those books that require it. The basic problem is that it uses your credit card number as the pass code. So, each time I reload a book I need to re-enter a 16-digit number. Who remembers that? Pain in the **. I might find a way to handle this, if I keep trying. I've found several 'workarounds' for Mobipocket problems. Like resetting a book to 'unread'. It's easy in the Windows version-and makes no difference I can see in the library. But in the Palm version, which I use more often, unread books appear in bold but once you've opened a book (even if it's just to check the contents) there's no apparent way to return it to that 'unread' state. So how do I do it? Easy-I return it to the unread state in Windows & then transfer it again. (Actually, I back up the state file while unread, then restore it. Mobipocket books are stored in 2 files-the first contains the book itself, with the extension .prc or .mobi, while the second, with extension .mbp, contains the state & other info. I suspect that includes annotations but I don't annotate my books so I'm not certain. If I need to make notes I make them in a separate file.) Anyway, DRM is a major problem in all areas where it's used-but so is theft. From my standpoint, DRM is a bigger problem but obviously the publishers who use it think differently. For an author's viewpoint, read the 'editorials' by Eric Flint in Baen's Free Library (http://www.baen.com/library/). Except for the introduction they're called 'Prime Palaver' and to me, they're very* interesting even if quite old. I wish more publishers would read these.