Why are DRM and ADE so complicated?

Cluey · 05-05-2017, 04:52 AM

Hi everyone, I've been reading things and couldn't find an answer so I've signed up.

I've been reading about DRM and ADE for a few hours now, it seems to be overly complicated but required if you want to borrow books from a Library.
Firstly is that correct?

I noticed in, in my searches, that you can remove the DRM from books so anyone unscrupulous enough to not buy/borrow books can and it's all a lot simpler. Although you'd need a computer, patience and a bit of extra knowledge about things than a basic user would have.

Which brings me to why I've signed up.
A friend has just got an eReader, she doesn't have a computer or good computer skills. None of my Google searches have come up with a way of authorising her eReader without a computer.
Is that possible?

I think she needs to as she's on a pension so will probably borrow library books more than your usual eReader user. Currently she's lugging the physical books to and from the library, the old school way! However she's getting more frail and I showed her my H2O and how you can change the font size etc and how light it is.
I went looking at new eReaders and found a great video about the Kobo Aura One and how you can get library books digitally without having to go to the library! Mind blow, we were sold on that convenience. Then there was no stock. :-(

So I picked up a Kobo H2O from eBay, it was a good deal so I moved on it quickly.
I was expecting that to work with a firmware update, however that hasn't happened and I've done more reading since which indicates that it's unlikely to ever happen and isn't included in the latest reader.

So now she's got an eReader but I'm not sure where to go from here.
I didn't bother with the digital editions with mine, I only found out about it when I looked into the library borrowing options.
It sounds like if I do it on my computer I won't be able to use it for myself, unless we shared an ID but that sounds like a bad idea and shouldn't be done. I suspect if I read the fine print it's not allowed anyway.

It all seems overly complicated.

JSWolf · 05-05-2017, 05:30 AM

Here a link to Kobo's Help that will tell you how to authorize the H2O.

https://www.kobo.com/help/en-US/arti...gital-editions

meeera · 05-05-2017, 05:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cluey

I think she needs to as she's on a pension so will probably borrow library books more than your usual eReader user. Currently she's lugging the physical books to and from the library, the old school way! However she's getting more frail and I showed her my H2O and how you can change the font size etc and how light it is.

Just as a complete aside: which library service? If the problem is more the lugging and less the font size: a lot (most?) Australian public libraries have a free Books on Wheels service which will deliver and pick up people's library books for them.

Back onto the technical side: I've not done it personally; but I believe that if you can get your hands on someone else's Aura One temporarily, you may be able to link your friend's Kobo account to their Overdrive account. She will then be able to borrow books directly on her Kobo.

JSWolf · 05-05-2017, 05:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by meeera

Just as a complete aside: which library service? If the problem is more the lugging and less the font size: a lot (most?) Australian public libraries have a free Books on Wheels service which will deliver and pick up people's library books for them.

If lugging is a problem, most library books are going to be heavier.

meeera · 05-05-2017, 05:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

If lugging is a problem, a lot of library books are going to be heavier.

I'm sorry, I don't understand what you're rebutting.

JSWolf · 05-05-2017, 06:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by meeera

I'm sorry, I don't understand what you're rebutting.

lugging i.e., weight.

meeera · 05-05-2017, 06:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

lugging i.e., weight.

Well, yes. Which is why I mentioned the book delivery service as an alternative to lugging books back and forth.

Cluey · 05-05-2017, 07:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by meeera

Just as a complete aside: which library service? If the problem is more the lugging and less the font size: a lot (most?) Australian public libraries have a free Books on Wheels service which will deliver and pick up people's library books for them.

Back onto the technical side: I've not done it personally; but I believe that if you can get your hands on someone else's Aura One temporarily, you may be able to link your friend's Kobo account to their Overdrive account. She will then be able to borrow books directly on her Kobo.

Whitehorse and/or Manningham is her area, she's since told me that getting out is good for her so going to the library is still on. I guess I misunderstood that bit.

I don't know anyone with the Aura One so I can't do that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Here a link to Kobo's Help that will tell you how to authorize the H2O.

https://www.kobo.com/help/en-US/arti...gital-editions

I've found that already, you seemed to miss the part about her not having a computer. I was afraid that making the first post so long might mean it not being read properly.

It looks like I'll have to install ADE on my computer just for her. I guess when I've got it installed I can look around it and see if it supports multiple users. That's the bit I haven't worked out as if I install it and set it up for her but that stops me using my computer for me it's rather crap.

I think the most irritating part of all this is that if we had no regard for the authors it would be much simpler. Just sideload everything DRM free from whatever dodgy source you got it from.
So the DRM system hinders the legitimate users.

I've been reading through the, eight page, thread on setting up a Kobo without registering it. It seems familiar, so it's probably what I did when I got mine. I don't like being a statistic used for tracking.
I'd have done that for her if it wasn't for the library books.

John F · 05-05-2017, 09:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cluey

...

It looks like I'll have to install ADE on my computer just for her. I guess when I've got it installed I can look around it and see if it supports multiple users. That's the bit I haven't worked out as if I install it and set it up for her but that stops me using my computer for me it's rather crap.

...

I don't believe it supports multiple users directly within Digital Editions. There is a limited number of activations (you would need to contact Adobe to get more activations).

Maybe you could create a separate Windows user account on your computer, and have your activation for your user account and her activation under her user account? Just a WAG.

Good luck.

Cluey · 05-05-2017, 12:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John F

I don't believe it supports multiple users directly within Digital Editions. There is a limited number of activations (you would need to contact Adobe to get more activations).

Maybe you could create a separate Windows user account on your computer, and have your activation for your user account and her activation under her user account? Just a WAG.

Good luck.

Since that post I've installed it to have a look, you're correct that it doesn't support multiple users. I'd already considered a separate user account on my PC but I'd prefer not to, I've got a terrible habit of poking it too often and having to reinstall it.
Thinking about it that hasn't happened as much since Win10, it's quite well behaved, the biggest problem with it is all the tracking it does.

I've had a look at the Android app but I'm not sure if that will do more than authorise itself, it isn't clear from the description.
Also the ratings and reviews are far from good. :-(

It baffles me how they stay so dominant given how inflexible they are and how poorly the software works, at least according to the latest ratings on the Google Play Store.

Thanks for the suggestions John.
I think it's time to sleep on it and have a chat with her about the options next time I see her.

Mims · 05-05-2017, 01:49 PM

Not sure if this will work but worth a try.
Does she have an email account? If not get her one. Have her get an adobe ID and then authorize her kobo. You can help her set up her Overdrive account and when she checks out a book, download it to your computer downloads folder (do not open in ADE) and transfer directly to her kobo.

I use ADE but I think this method works. Not having a computer or tablet to browse Overdrive for new reads is to me as big a problem as lugging books. If eyesight is not a big issue, a tablet might be a better solution. She could be more independent in her reading as long as convenient access to wifi is available.

HarryT · 05-05-2017, 02:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mims

Not sure if this will work but worth a try.
Does she have an email account? If not get her one. Have her get an adobe ID and then authorize her kobo. You can help her set up her Overdrive account and when she checks out a book, download it to your computer downloads folder (do not open in ADE) and transfer directly to her kobo.

It's not very practical to have to rely on someone else every time you want to read a book, it seems to me. It would have been far better to get a device on which the entire process could be done on the device.

barryem · 05-05-2017, 06:06 PM

If all you want to do is manage ebooks getting a computer can be pretty cheap, at least here in the USA. I found a used desktop with monitor on Amazon for $68 for one of my neighbors a few months ago. I had it sent to her and I set it up and it works just fine. It's a fairly useless computer for most purposes, slow and with very little storage, but for that purpose it would be just fine.

Barry

piperclassique · 05-06-2017, 03:18 AM

I'd go with the second user account. Once that's done and the reader set up I don't think you would need to keep it, long as she can then get WiFi somewhere. Maybe even the library? The staff might be able to help her, too.

Katsunami · 05-06-2017, 01:13 PM

In my opinion, it would be best to get a cheap computer. Anything that runs Windows 7 or newer will do. Over here in the Netherlands, computers built around the time of Windows 7 (2009-2012) are often on sale for less than €50, and if you've got a friend who has one, he might even give it away for free. Any internet connection will do. Even dial-up, if need be, but in that case, downloading a book could take 10 minutes.

A reader with a library service built in (Amazon, in the USA, and some other countries, newer Kobo's in some European countries) would be an option, but even then you'd need internet, or go to a free Wifi service/hotspot.

05-05-2017, 04:52 AM	#1
Cluey Member Posts: 12 Karma: 2103844 Join Date: May 2017 Location: Melbourne Device: Kobo H2O	Why are DRM and ADE so complicated? Hi everyone, I've been reading things and couldn't find an answer so I've signed up. I've been reading about DRM and ADE for a few hours now, it seems to be overly complicated but required if you want to borrow books from a Library. Firstly is that correct? I noticed in, in my searches, that you can remove the DRM from books so anyone unscrupulous enough to not buy/borrow books can and it's all a lot simpler. Although you'd need a computer, patience and a bit of extra knowledge about things than a basic user would have. Which brings me to why I've signed up. A friend has just got an eReader, she doesn't have a computer or good computer skills. None of my Google searches have come up with a way of authorising her eReader without a computer. Is that possible? I think she needs to as she's on a pension so will probably borrow library books more than your usual eReader user. Currently she's lugging the physical books to and from the library, the old school way! However she's getting more frail and I showed her my H2O and how you can change the font size etc and how light it is. I went looking at new eReaders and found a great video about the Kobo Aura One and how you can get library books digitally without having to go to the library! Mind blow, we were sold on that convenience. Then there was no stock. :-( So I picked up a Kobo H2O from eBay, it was a good deal so I moved on it quickly. I was expecting that to work with a firmware update, however that hasn't happened and I've done more reading since which indicates that it's unlikely to ever happen and isn't included in the latest reader. So now she's got an eReader but I'm not sure where to go from here. I didn't bother with the digital editions with mine, I only found out about it when I looked into the library borrowing options. It sounds like if I do it on my computer I won't be able to use it for myself, unless we shared an ID but that sounds like a bad idea and shouldn't be done. I suspect if I read the fine print it's not allowed anyway. It all seems overly complicated.

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05-05-2017, 05:30 AM	#2
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 79,619 Karma: 145864263 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	Here a link to Kobo's Help that will tell you how to authorize the H2O. https://www.kobo.com/help/en-US/arti...gital-editions

05-05-2017, 01:49 PM	#11
Mims Addict Posts: 228 Karma: 3774169 Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Space Coast Device: K4NT, iPads,IPhone,Aura H2O,PW3	Not sure if this will work but worth a try. Does she have an email account? If not get her one. Have her get an adobe ID and then authorize her kobo. You can help her set up her Overdrive account and when she checks out a book, download it to your computer downloads folder (do not open in ADE) and transfer directly to her kobo. I use ADE but I think this method works. Not having a computer or tablet to browse Overdrive for new reads is to me as big a problem as lugging books. If eyesight is not a big issue, a tablet might be a better solution. She could be more independent in her reading as long as convenient access to wifi is available.

05-05-2017, 06:06 PM	#13
barryem Wizard Posts: 2,459 Karma: 68781975 Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Arkansas Device: Paperwhite 4	If all you want to do is manage ebooks getting a computer can be pretty cheap, at least here in the USA. I found a used desktop with monitor on Amazon for $68 for one of my neighbors a few months ago. I had it sent to her and I set it up and it works just fine. It's a fairly useless computer for most purposes, slow and with very little storage, but for that purpose it would be just fine. Barry

05-06-2017, 03:18 AM	#14
piperclassique A garbling groftpot Posts: 991 Karma: 9234667 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: France Device: Oasis, Voyage, Kobo mini, Samsung tablet, phones, whatever.	I'd go with the second user account. Once that's done and the reader set up I don't think you would need to keep it, long as she can then get WiFi somewhere. Maybe even the library? The staff might be able to help her, too.

05-06-2017, 01:13 PM	#15
Katsunami Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,111 Karma: 34000001 Join Date: Mar 2008 Device: KPW1, KA1	In my opinion, it would be best to get a cheap computer. Anything that runs Windows 7 or newer will do. Over here in the Netherlands, computers built around the time of Windows 7 (2009-2012) are often on sale for less than €50, and if you've got a friend who has one, he might even give it away for free. Any internet connection will do. Even dial-up, if need be, but in that case, downloading a book could take 10 minutes. A reader with a library service built in (Amazon, in the USA, and some other countries, newer Kobo's in some European countries) would be an option, but even then you'd need internet, or go to a free Wifi service/hotspot.

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