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jswolf:
no, of course not. I think it's a good idea though having SIM based DRM rather than being dependent on some remote DRM server.
I think of the wolf format more as something for, for example, say you had some specific content distribution application that you were buying devices for in bulk, and needed to distribute some kind of DRM content that you were developing yourself. It seems they sold most of their devices in the ukraine, and a stand alone unit can be more appealing than something dependent on some DRM server somewhere else. ...and then you can backup the files yourself, keep the sim card when/if the device breaks, and put that sim card in another device. It just seems like it could feel a little safer to hold something in my hand, rather than wondering if sony or kindle will close down their connect-store or whatever and stop letting me download books.
Someone in one of these forums commented that amazon themselves did it before, closing down a download section with books someone had spent money on. Likewise, lots of people are certainly angry about getting screwed in the past by sony drm issues.
I wouldn't buy into wolf formatted books though, because like the kindle and sony books, ... you can't read them on other devices. Mobipocket is the only format I've ever considered buying, because it can be read in cybooks, palms, computers, iliad's, phones, etc. That's how DRM should be.
In an email, jinke/hanlin told me that they have a contract to include MobiPocket support. He said the developers are working on it now, so presumably at some point I'd get a software update and thus be capable of buying mobipocket books.
If the amazon kindle was using mobipocket books, I'd would care a lot more about mobipocket support though. As it is, it doesn't concern me nearly as much. Since amazon is abandoning it's own technology, I don't have faith in ANY current drm format sticking around. I"m not going to pay for rental of books from anyone. Since I'm not willing to pay for terrible DRM, and no decent DRM exists, there's no sense basing my purchasing decision on what DRM format is supported. I still think the Mobipocket is the best available though, because like I said it's multi-platform. It's not worth buying books that aren't multi-platform.
In principle though, the hanlin is capable of supporting a decent DRM system, whereas it doesn't seem that the kindle or sony are. If a decent DRM format came out, the kindle and sony would probably want to protect their own proprietary formats. If a decent DRM format came out, it would make business sense for the cybook and hanlin v3 to attempt incorporate support for the new format, as cybook has with mobipocket, and as hanlin is in the process of doing now.
I would LIKE to be able to buy new books, but since currently (as far as I'm concerned) they're only widely available in strict proprietary rental basis, (rental because when a kindle or sony breaks, or stops being sold, you can't still read your book on another device) I'll just have to read old books. If I need a new book, maybe I'll be stuck with paper. I've been stuck with paper so far and I've survived.
Hardly anyone seems to have a good selection of new books anyways besides maybe possibly (though I still doubt I'd be happy with it, I'm more interested in text books than new york times best sellers) the kindle, and I'm surely not buying into that service scam. There are tens of thousands of freely available documents, wikipedia articles, and guttenberg books that I could spend a lifetime reading,... things that I will be very excited to fit in my pocket to carry around with my everywhere I go. I don't mind buying another device in a couple of years when it's realistic to use such a device for popular current books... though it might just be that I update my software and keep reading when the new format comes out.
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