Troubling PCWorld Article

[drjenkins]

I just ran across this article on PCWorld

How to share your DRM-free ebooks with Calibre

The author describes how to set up caliber 3.0 server to share DRM free books. So far, so good - but there is a serious problem with the article. First, the subtitle is "Set up a public ebook lending library". Second, his procedure does not password protect the server. Third and foremost he leaves the distinct impression that DRM free equates to public domain.

The article accepts comments only on Twitter and Facebook and I am not inclined to join either just to post my comment there. If anyone here agrees and has a Facebook account perhaps you could say something.

[HarryT]

What an idiot - an open invitation to piracy. Shame he's not an MR member so we could "educate" him.

[PandathePanda]

Think I'm missing something, the author of the article clearly state that it is how to setup calibre for a home network (and he state it twice), so unless your home network isn't secure the risk of piracy is almost nonexistent.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by PandathePanda

Think I'm missing something, the author of the article clearly state that it is how to setup calibre for a home network (and he state it twice), so unless your home network isn't secure the risk of piracy is almost nonexistent.

The subtitle "Set up a public ebook lending library" seems to contradict this. The word "public" to me suggests more than simply allowing access via your own WiFi network.

[drjenkins]

Originally Posted by HarryT

The subtitle "Set up a public ebook lending library" seems to contradict this. The word "public" to me suggests more than simply allowing access via your own WiFi network.

Exactly what I hit on as well. If the subtitle had said "private" or "personal" rather than 'public" I would be more willing to accept the "home network" aspect. But even without port forwarding instructions to explicitly allow Internet access, plenty of people (unwisely) share their WiFi with others. I was left with the impression he was conflating DRM free with public domain, even if that might not have been the intention.

[Deskisamess]

With the server feature enabled, and the software running, any device with a web browser on your home network can access your ebooks.

Ian is an independent writer based in Israel who has never met a tech subject he didn't like. He primarily covers Windows, PC and gaming hardware, video and music streaming services, social networks, and browsers. When he's not covering the news he's working on how-to tips for PC users, or tuning his eGPU setup.

Most of his columns are nothing but items on sale at various places.

[BetterRed]

The author has "usually 10.100.XXX.X" in the article. That's in the address range of the reserved class A network (RFC 1918).

I would have thought calibre users are more likely to use the class C reserved address range - 192.168.xxx.xxx. Network 10 is intended for use in large private networks.

BR

[theducks]

Originally Posted by BetterRed

The author has "usually 10.100.XXX.X" in the article. That's in the address range of the reserved class A network (RFC 1918).

I would have thought calibre users are more likely to use the class C reserved address range - 192.168.xxx.xxx. Network 10 is intended for use in large private networks.

BR

Comcast, defaults their routers to 10.x.x.x
I can't remember if they use a class C mask (255.255.255.0)

[BetterRed]

Originally Posted by theducks

Comcast, defaults their routers to 10.x.x.x

They don't cast their line this far

They probably prefer it because they're easier for users to 'remember'. I've had folks transpose the digits when relaying 192.168.nnn.nnn IP addresses on the phone, or read them as a value Ψ²

BR

[AnotherCat]

Originally Posted by drjenkins

I just ran across this article on PCWorld

How to share your DRM-free ebooks with Calibre

The author describes how to set up caliber 3.0 server to share DRM free books. So far, so good - but there is a serious problem with the article. First, the subtitle is "Set up a public ebook lending library". Second, his procedure does not password protect the server. Third and foremost he leaves the distinct impression that DRM free equates to public domain...

I am not familiar with the Calibre server but frankly I saw, from a general Windows Home Network point of view, no problem with the article. First the writer makes a number of references to it being on a home network, so no confusion possible about that.

Perhaps not known to some though is that folders, etc. normally available to all devices on a Windows home network are referred to as "Public" and they remain as "Public" even if access is limited by password to only users who have accounts on the host machine. This terminology can be seen by looking at C:\Users\Public on Windows PCs; it can also be seen that these are emulated in the Windows Libraries Music, Pictures, Videos, etc. which I suspect many Windows users will know are "Public" and so are "Public Libraries".

It should be noted that not all public folders, etc. are shown in the C:\Users\Public folder.

So, after all that, if it is that the Calibre server is available to all devices on the home network (and I don't know if it is or not because I don't use it), even if access is limited to only those users that have user accounts on the host machine, then the article author's use of "Public" is correct, at least for Windows, and that is how I took his meaning to be.