When you are locked out of your $1000 worth Amazon library.

[murraypaul]

Originally Posted by ScalyFreak

I can open the file on my 950, my phone, and either one of my three computers?

Only if you have authorised them.
And if your adobe id was locked, as this Kindle one was, you wouldn't be able to authorise any new devices? So you could never get a new device or PC.

In each case, with DRM'd content what you have bought is a limited license to use, not the actual content, and you are at the whim of the DRM provider.

[poohbear_nc]

Originally Posted by susan_cassidy

If the copy of the book was DRMed for a Kindle, and you try to open it with Kindle4PC, it will not work. DRM is device/app specific.

Not quite - if you have more than one Kindle registered to your Amazon account, or have K4PC registered to your Amazon account, you can view your purchased Amazon books on any and all of your registered devices.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by murraypaul

How is Adobe DRM any better?

That's an easy Answer. Adobe's Adept DRM is better because once you download the eBooks via ADE on the computer, you have a copy of eBooks on the computer. The only thing you'll need do is strip the DRM.

[ScalyFreak]

Originally Posted by murraypaul

Only if you have authorised them.
And if your adobe id was locked, as this Kindle one was, you wouldn't be able to authorise any new devices? So you could never get a new device or PC.

Of course I could. I'd just have to remove or crack the DRM to do it, and that's a pretty easy thing to do.

But this is why I buy DRM-free books whenever I can, to the point of even paying extra for it, if necessary. My free ebooks don't matter, they didn't cost me anything, DRM or no DRM is immaterial. But if I am going pay for a book, it needs to be DRM free.

Originally Posted by JSWolf

That's an easy Answer. Adobe's Adept DRM is better because once you download the eBooks via ADE on the computer, you have a copy of eBooks on the computer. The only thing you'll need do is strip the DRM.

Oh yeah, this too.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

That's an easy Answer. Adobe's Adept DRM is better because once you download the eBooks via ADE on the computer, you have a copy of eBooks on the computer. The only thing you'll need do is strip the DRM.

Exactly the same is true on the Kindle, Jon. You will either have a copy of the file on your PC (if you're reading it on Kindle for PC) or on your Kindle reader. In either case, the file is trivially accessible (in the "My Documents/My Kindle Content" folder in the first case, in the "documents" folder on the Kindle in the 2nd case). The only situation in which you may not have easy access to the book is if you're reading on an Apple device.

[ectoplasm]

Originally Posted by Redcard

Well..

Reading The Consumerist is like watching a biased news station. You know that some elements might be true, and that there are "omissions" of facts.. you just don't know if it's critical omissions or not.

I've been burned by finding out The Truth later on on consumerist things.. so..

Forgive me if I don't grab the pitchforks

Yes, I'm skeptical of this as well. People like to play the victim and leave out the details of what they did to make it happen. Steam will lock your account if you buy something with a credit card and then do a chargeback. Of course the "victim" then goes on the steam forums and wails about how Steam screwed them over. Sometimes they eventually admit what they did.

Maybe this guy really is just a victim, but you can never tell.

[ScalyFreak]

Originally Posted by ectoplasm

Steam will lock your account if you buy something with a credit card and then do a chargeback. Of course the "victim" then goes on the steam forums and wails about how Steam screwed them over. Sometimes they eventually admit what they did.

That's standard for pretty much any online vendor. Chargebacks are expensive for the company you do them against, so most of them take steps to ensure they won't have to deal with customers who will end up costing them that kind of extra money. Some will refuse to ever deal with that credit card again, others will refuse to deal with the person who was so angry at them that they preferred doing a charge back rather than go through the process for requesting a refund.

[abookreader]

Originally Posted by ScalyFreak

I can open the file on my 950, my phone, and either one of my three computers?

I'm going to go back up my ebook library now. Be right back.

Until if and when Adobe Digital Editions quits licensing your devices that are authorized to open DRM'd books that are locked via their system.

Amazon is a bit different in that it locks every file to a specific device and ADE just locks files to an account - but in each case it is a lock - and when the keyholder decides to quit letting you in, then you are locked out.

It's hard to comment on any of these cases without knowing why Amazon shut down his account. We do see these stories pop up a couple of times a year though.

[ProfCrash]

You can save Amazon books with the DRM on your computer. You can even store them in Calibre. You cannot open them but they are there.

[taustin]

Originally Posted by JoeD

Problem is, he'd need to break the law in order to meaningfully backup his books to use in the future.

Except for the part of the DMCA that explicitly allows it.

[CRussel]

Frankly, given the source, I have NO expectation that we have anywhere near the full story. That being said, I have well over 600 eBooks, most bought from Amazon, a few from Kobo, and the rest from DRM-free sources such as Baen. And I have every single one backed up and DRM stripped. And copies of those back ups on two different laptops, and my Windows Storage Server 2008 R2 Essentials server. Which is, itself, backed up to a USB3 drive.

[Barbara1955]

Originally Posted by HarryT

The same way that you back up any other file. Copy it to some storage medium.

Then mines most likely backed-up on my EX-HD.....

I wish I could Read them on other eReaders...Not be ties to Kindle!
Dont get me wrong I like my Kindle But lets face it IF Amazon Ever go out of business We the consumer would Loose! Kinda like the OP!

Atricle says they are Disputing 10 months of Amazon purchases on their Credit Card.... Until thats cleared up I can see WHY amazon locked them out! One reason I Only use Gift Cards!
When I got my 1st eReader was Nook! B&N Requires Cr Cards on the Account! Well they were TONS of people in their forums Complaining about the Credit Cards being charged even tho they had Gift Cards on the accounts!!!!

[Redcard]

Originally Posted by taustin

Except for the part of the DMCA that explicitly allows it.

Actually, I don't know where you got that idea.. but breaking DRM is against the DMCA. There are exceptions for test cases and exceptions for when the technology that controls or uses the DRM is no longer feasible.. but you have to be in that "no longer feasible" state in order for that to apply.

Another close one is for removing DRM from ebooks when all versions of the ebook (and all types) have text to speech disabled or are incapable of being read via a screen reader.

Currently, removing DRM is considered circumvention, and thus is illegal.

[Ken Maltby]

Originally Posted by susan_cassidy

If the copy of the book was DRMed for a Kindle, and you try to open it with Kindle4PC, it will not work. DRM is device/app specific.

Not all DRM scams are, the "Secure eReader" for .pdb ebook files and the
version of it that Barns & Noble uses on their .epub files, use a "Social" DRM
that creates a hash number from the name and creditcard number you used
for the purchase, to unlock the ebook file. It has no dependence on a server
or tie to any specific device. You can check with "Inkmesh" for some of the
sites that are offering ebooks using the "Secure eReader" DRM as it's not
just B&N.

Luck;
Ken

[JoeD]

Originally Posted by Katie1

Then mines most likely backed-up on my EX-HD.....

I wish I could Read them on other eReaders...Not be ties to Kindle!
Dont get me wrong I like my Kindle But lets face it IF Amazon Ever go out of business We the consumer would Loose! Kinda like the OP!

Atricle says they are Disputing 10 months of Amazon purchases on their Credit Card.... Until thats cleared up I can see WHY amazon locked them out! One reason I Only use Gift Cards!
When I got my 1st eReader was Nook! B&N Requires Cr Cards on the Account! Well they were TONS of people in their forums Complaining about the Credit Cards being charged even tho they had Gift Cards on the accounts!!!!

Read the article again, it says they were locked out of their amazon account and after contacting amazon have been unable to be given a reason why. In response to this he has disputed all the book purchases and has about 10 months of purchases that he's still trying to dispute.

I'm not surprised they've disputed the transactions if amazon are refusing to provide any kind of reason for why they've been locked out nor if/when it may be resolved.