Where do you buy ebooks from, and why? - Page 4

Laine · 11-12-2011, 07:51 AM

The biggest influence on my ebook purchases is geographic restrictions.

I buy from: Harlequin, Smashwords, Kobo, Baen, Mills and Boon mostly.

DustyDisks · 11-12-2011, 08:57 AM

When looking for a book , I have no special or favorite place, I will buy where and what I am looking for can be found at the lowest price offered after considering the rep of the outfit selling. Not picky at all.

My biggest problem is much of what I seek seems to be out of print and not yet if ever in ebook format.

david_e · 11-12-2011, 10:02 AM

I buy all my books from iTunes book store. They get all of my media business, music, videos, and now books and magazines. I may be paying more for items but I don't care, I am making a conscious choice of convenience over price.

pdurrant · 11-12-2011, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by david_e

I buy all my books from iTunes book store. They get all of my media business, music, videos, and now books and magazines. I may be paying more for items but I don't care, I am making a conscious choice of convenience over price.

The iTunes music is now DRM-free, but the books and videos aren't. And there's currently no DRM-remover software for books from the iTunes books store.

Let's hope you don't ever want to read your books on a non-iOS device.

Personally, I won't buy DRMed ebooks where I can't immediately remove the DRM.

Elfwreck · 11-12-2011, 02:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ScalyFreak

Am I the only one in this thread who doesn't mind paying a bit more for a book if it doesn't have DRM?

I will pay for books without DRM.
I will not pay, nor download for free, books with DRM. (This is less an ethical decision than one of convenience... I bounce between three computers and two ereaders + husband's + daughter's ereaders, and the troubles of registering everything, or sorting out DRM-removal software, is more hassle than I want to deal with. If I ever run out of DRM-free ebooks I want to read, I'll reconsider this stance.)

So I suppose I'm okay with paying more for books without DRM.

VicLavigne · 11-12-2011, 03:17 PM

In no particular order: B&N, fictionwise, smashwords, baenbooks, Amazon

Vic

david_e · 11-12-2011, 04:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pdurrant

The iTunes music is now DRM-free, but the books and videos aren't. And there's currently no DRM-remover software for books from the iTunes books store.

Let's hope you don't ever want to read your books on a non-iOS device.

Personally, I won't buy DRMed ebooks where I can't immediately remove the DRM.

I appreciate and understand how others feel about DRM but, for myself, I see no negative impact. I have always been an Apple / iOS user and that won't ever change.

Halo · 11-12-2011, 05:03 PM

I buy few ebooks as there's plenty of free, legally available content for me to read. I also make my own ebooks from web pages or other documents that I want to read.

All of the ebooks that I have purchased have been computer books. I bought them from the publishers' web sites: O'Reilly Media, Manning Publications, Lulu.

xg4bx · 11-12-2011, 05:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CRussel

It's certainly very possible--I do it on every book I buy from Amazon (or anywhere else.) And why? Because then I control the book, not Amazon. And I can use my own tools however I wish to manage my books and transfer to whatever device I want.

thats about the size of it. if i should decide that i want a different model ereader in the future i'll be damned if i'm gonna spend $100s of dollars rebuying books.

Catlady · 11-12-2011, 07:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ScalyFreak

I buy from Sony, from Smashwords, from MLR Books or AllRomance, and whenever possible I buy straight from the author.

Am I the only one in this thread who doesn't mind paying a bit more for a book if it doesn't have DRM?

But there's no such option. I can't buy the books I want to read without DRM. Books are not interchangeable.

idraw22 · 11-12-2011, 10:03 PM

Wow,

I try to buy as few Amazon as possible, with the format, and them changing to another too, that's scary. The ones I frequent the most when I buy books, are Smashwords, Mobipocket, Feedbooks, and Kobo (I think). It's difficult. I wanna get as many of my pbooks converted to ebooks, but I continue.

HarleyB · 11-12-2011, 11:42 PM

I normally buy from Kobobooks as they are usually my cheapest option especially when I have a discount code to use.

I only buy from Amazon as a last resort. They must either be the only source or significantly cheaper as the question of whether I will be able to convert their books to something that I want is always there.
Just yesterday I downloaded 2 freebies from Amazon and even though I have the latest version of the Calibre plugins I am stuck with azw files that I can't convert. When it's a freebie I just delete it and move on to something else but I would be quite irritated if that happened with a paid book.

Blossom · 11-12-2011, 11:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarleyB

I normally buy from Kobobooks as they are usually my cheapest option especially when I have a discount code to use.

I only buy from Amazon as a last resort. They must either be the only source or significantly cheaper as the question of whether I will be able to convert their books to something that I want is always there.
Just yesterday I downloaded 2 freebies from Amazon and even though I have the latest version of the Calibre plugins I am stuck with azw files that I can't convert. When it's a freebie I just delete it and move on to something else but I would be quite irritated if that happened with a paid book.

Never had that issue the Calibre but if it been a paid book you have 7 days to return it for a full refund. Kindle support is great that way.

HarleyB · 11-13-2011, 02:04 AM

Thanks Blossom that's good to know.
Next time I need to buy something I will try to remember to check the return section. It won't allow me to return free books - I know there's no point in returning a free book but I would like to see how it works.
Do you need to give a reason for the return?
I don't think I want to tell Amazon I am returning it because I can't remove the DRM and covert it to ePub.

But I have been caught out a few times where as soon as buy from Amazon I find it cheaper elsewhere (sometimes it seems like Kobo delays releasing books until I have just purchased them!

)
Would the fact that the book is cheaper elsewhere be sufficient reason for a return?

pdurrant · 11-13-2011, 03:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xg4bx

if i should decide that i want a different model ereader in the future i'll be damned if i'm gonna spend $100s of dollars rebuying books.

$100s?

I've spent thousands* over the past ten years, and expect to spent thousands more over the next ten.

*Probably around $7000 in total. Hmm.. a $2/day habit.

Oh, and having just looked at how much I've spent, I find that I've spent most at fictionwise, closely followed by webscription.net, and then small amounts at many other places. I rather expect that over the next ten years, most of the fictionwise spending will shift to Amazon.

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11-12-2011, 07:51 AM	#46
Laine Addict Posts: 341 Karma: 1162396 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Cabramatta, Sydney, Australia Device: Aura H2O, Voyage	The biggest influence on my ebook purchases is geographic restrictions. I buy from: Harlequin, Smashwords, Kobo, Baen, Mills and Boon mostly.

11-12-2011, 08:57 AM	#47
DustyDisks Old Fart In Training Posts: 534 Karma: 2742476 Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Gladewater, Texas Device: K3+3g/KFHD 7"/Nexus 7/Nexus 7.2	When looking for a book , I have no special or favorite place, I will buy where and what I am looking for can be found at the lowest price offered after considering the rep of the outfit selling. Not picky at all. My biggest problem is much of what I seek seems to be out of print and not yet if ever in ebook format.

11-12-2011, 10:02 AM	#48
david_e Seriously? Posts: 529 Karma: 3347562 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Kobo Aura HD, Kobo Mini, iWhatever	I buy all my books from iTunes book store. They get all of my media business, music, videos, and now books and magazines. I may be paying more for items but I don't care, I am making a conscious choice of convenience over price.

11-12-2011, 03:17 PM	#51
VicLavigne e-reading since 2008 Posts: 197 Karma: 112730 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Hinesville Georgia Device: Nook STR, Sony PRS-T1	In no particular order: B&N, fictionwise, smashwords, baenbooks, Amazon Vic

11-12-2011, 05:03 PM	#53
Halo Connoisseur Posts: 96 Karma: 72130 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: San Francisco Bay Area, CA, USA Device: Sony PRS-505, Kindle DX 1st Gen, Kindle Fire 1st Gen	I buy few ebooks as there's plenty of free, legally available content for me to read. I also make my own ebooks from web pages or other documents that I want to read. All of the ebooks that I have purchased have been computer books. I bought them from the publishers' web sites: O'Reilly Media, Manning Publications, Lulu.

11-12-2011, 10:03 PM	#56
idraw22 Zealot Posts: 115 Karma: 1094380 Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: arkansas Device: Jetbook Lite, Kindle 3, jetbook mini, sony clie, sony prs-T1	Wow, I try to buy as few Amazon as possible, with the format, and them changing to another too, that's scary. The ones I frequent the most when I buy books, are Smashwords, Mobipocket, Feedbooks, and Kobo (I think). It's difficult. I wanna get as many of my pbooks converted to ebooks, but I continue.

11-12-2011, 11:42 PM	#57
HarleyB Fanatic Posts: 565 Karma: 1113286 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Sunshine Coast Australia Device: Kobo (RIP), iPad, iPhone 4, Kobo Touch x2, Kobo Glo	I normally buy from Kobobooks as they are usually my cheapest option especially when I have a discount code to use. I only buy from Amazon as a last resort. They must either be the only source or significantly cheaper as the question of whether I will be able to convert their books to something that I want is always there. Just yesterday I downloaded 2 freebies from Amazon and even though I have the latest version of the Calibre plugins I am stuck with azw files that I can't convert. When it's a freebie I just delete it and move on to something else but I would be quite irritated if that happened with a paid book.

11-13-2011, 02:04 AM	#59
HarleyB Fanatic Posts: 565 Karma: 1113286 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Sunshine Coast Australia Device: Kobo (RIP), iPad, iPhone 4, Kobo Touch x2, Kobo Glo	Thanks Blossom that's good to know. Next time I need to buy something I will try to remember to check the return section. It won't allow me to return free books - I know there's no point in returning a free book but I would like to see how it works. Do you need to give a reason for the return? I don't think I want to tell Amazon I am returning it because I can't remove the DRM and covert it to ePub. But I have been caught out a few times where as soon as buy from Amazon I find it cheaper elsewhere (sometimes it seems like Kobo delays releasing books until I have just purchased them! ) Would the fact that the book is cheaper elsewhere be sufficient reason for a return?