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

[mrscoach]

Originally Posted by Katie1

Removing DRM is NOT easy! Esp for us Non-Techy it down right Impossible!

Actually, it IS easy. I'm a non-techy, too, and I have used three methods to strip my books. I lost the first two when I had to wipe my hard drive and reinstall everything and ended up finding the plug-in for Calibre that do it for me automatically. If I can do it just about anyone can.

And I, too, can guarantee there is more to the original story. How do I know? Easy, we haven't heard Amazon's side. They either have a completely different version, or could verify everything the OP said. Either way, their side would complete the story.

[Barbara1955]

I cant even get my Amazon eBooks onto Calibre! I tried Evey Plugin people have suggest! Dont tell me its easy!

[TechnoCat]

Originally Posted by AlexBell

And your evidence is...?

Guarantee is a pretty big word.

I don't have a dog in the race and this is my first post on the topic, but seriously? You were actually petty enough to post this?

Geez, Alex, go read the Consumerist posting. The guy only posted his side and not all of that. So when the previous poster "guarantees" there's more to it, your reaction should have been "duh!", not "as if!". Of course there's more to it. For example, Amazon doesn't have a random account disabler, so something flagged and created a problem. We all, except apparently you, know there's more to it.

[Barbara1955]

I havent seen anything like this in the Amazon Forums.... Wonder what would happen IF the story link was posted there...... Nope Not that Brave But you think if this WAS a problem someone would have posted something!

[monkeygirl351]

Exact reason that I crack each book I purchase. I know that I supposedly am only paying for a license, but it still is my money and if I can't access that book because of some screwup on their part, I would still be out the money. Another reason DRM is bad and pointless. Doesn't stop piracy, just honest people from accessing their legitimate purchases. I have three back ups of every purchase that are DRM free.

[Ken Maltby]

Everyone is afraid of the pack of lawyers that support the DRM industry and that were
able to buy enough legislators to have laws like the DMCA enacted. This makes talking
about removing the ridiculous annoyance that is preventing people from getting the full
value of their purchase, something that must be avoided.

There is also the effect on things like Google searches where simply googling
"DRM removal" leads you to mostly scam sites for software to remove the DRM
from music and movie files. I wouldn't deal with any such. If you were to google;
"apprentice alf", you would be on the right track.

Luck;
Ken

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Katie1

I cant even get my Amazon eBooks onto Calibre! I tried Evey Plugin people have suggest! Dont tell me its easy!

All that means is that you currently don't know how to do it; it doesn't mean that you're incapable of learning how to do it, just as many other people have done.

[murraypaul]

Originally Posted by pwalker8

I would point out that technically, Amazon isn't denying the person access to items bought and paid for. What they are denying him is continued the ability to use the Amazon servers for backup. I would assume that when he first purchased the books in question they were delivered to his kindle. One can easily back up the books on their computer. Plus Amazon gives one the ability to download books after purchase. If he didn't do any of the above, is that Amazon's fault?

Amazon are selling an ongoing service, not just a book purchase:

Free Cloud Backup
We automatically back up your library in the cloud, so you never need to worry about losing your books. Re-download wirelessly anytime for free.

[pwalker8]

So, it doesn't make what I said untrue.

[Fayth]

This is exactly why I crack the DRM on my purchases and back up my books in several locations.

[MrsJoseph]

I noticed that a lot of people assume that he did something to get his account locked...but Amazon did offer/give him an Amazon gift card to re-purchase items and they encouraged him to open a new account.

That sounds to me as if they felt that someone else hacked his account and they closed it.

[Kali Yuga]

Originally Posted by MrsJoseph

I noticed that a lot of people assume that he did something to get his account locked...but Amazon did offer/give him an Amazon gift card to re-purchase items and they encouraged him to open a new account. That sounds to me as if they felt that someone else hacked his account and they closed it.

That also seems likely. But the key problem is that the person who listed the complaint was very likely omitting lots of relevant data. Odds are pretty slim that Amazon randomly locked an account, and categorically refused to clean it up.

Even with that caveat, this is a general problem facing all sorts of digital content. DRM aggravates the issue but is not the exclusive cause. E.g. if I am in Second Life and choose to spend hard currency for in-game content, there is always the risk that my account could be compromised, the game could be hacked, I could invest in digital goods that lose their value, that the game economics could go haywire and ruin my investment, or that Second Lift itself could shut down.

We aren't accustomed to this because we're so used to treating books as durable physical objects, and basically want all the advantages of both physical and electronic mediums -- at a cost lower than what is economically viable.

[Barbara1955]

Originally Posted by HarryT

All that means is that you currently don't know how to do it; it doesn't mean that you're incapable of learning how to do it, just as many other people have done.

I think I could Learn IF some one were to walk me thru it Without all the techy stuff.... I got 1/2 way thru Ap Al then tells me to click on things NOT on my screen! Cripe All I want is to DRM free eBooks I have purchsed so I can pick what ever eReader ot Tablet I want Not be obligated to what they want me to buy!



Happy Hollidays!

[ScalyFreak]

Originally Posted by Katie1

I think I could Learn IF some one were to walk me thru it Without all the techy stuff....

The drawback of digital content stored on a computer is that there is no way to avoid the "techy stuff".

And at the risk of sounding a bit condescending here, but one of the first things I learned in my tech support job is that anyone can learn, if they're just willing to do it. The biggest problem 95% of my customers have is that they're so convinced they can't learn, because "computers are difficult!" that they are actually stopping themselves from learning. Most of the time, it's because they're so scared of screwing up they get paralyzed at the thought of taking the side off the computer and looking inside. Removing a part and replacing it? Unthinkable. Panic!

Of course, it does become easier to learn with a good teacher nearby, but approaching it with a "I'm smart, I can figure this out"-attitude definitely helps.

[MrsJoseph]

Originally Posted by Kali Yuga

That also seems likely. But the key problem is that the person who listed the complaint was very likely omitting lots of relevant data. Odds are pretty slim that Amazon randomly locked an account, and categorically refused to clean it up.

Even with that caveat, this is a general problem facing all sorts of digital content. DRM aggravates the issue but is not the exclusive cause. E.g. if I am in Second Life and choose to spend hard currency for in-game content, there is always the risk that my account could be compromised, the game could be hacked, I could invest in digital goods that lose their value, that the game economics could go haywire and ruin my investment, or that Second Lift itself could shut down.

We aren't accustomed to this because we're so used to treating books as durable physical objects, and basically want all the advantages of both physical and electronic mediums -- at a cost lower than what is economically viable.

I agree, odds that Amazon would lock an account and not fix it are low but it could happen. But you're right DRM really aggravates the issue. I'm sure that more and more the issue will come up as instances like this happen more often.