B&N removed download option on all books in "My Nook" library

[ShimSham]

I have never purchased any books from B&N, but on 30th August I downloaded a few free ebooks into my NOOK UK account. I noticed then that were no download options, I could only archive or delete. I downloaded PC for Nook, and Nook Study, to try and download them to my PC. Frustratingly, the book that I really wanted, never apperaed in either application. I then gave up. I'm glad, I've never spent my money buying books from them.

[conan50]

This is definitely another nail in the nook coffin. Won't be buying any ebooks from them again.

[Difflugia]

Originally Posted by CWatkinsNash

The Play Books app seems to have improved in performance, though Google is Google in terms of intrusiveness, so that hasn't really changed.

You can also download Play books right from the site from your browser into ADE and use them with any ADE-authorized app (or Alf them if that's in your workflow). Standard ADE DRM. The download links used to be well hidden but now you just hover over the cover, click the three-squares icon and select "download epub".

Though I don't buy much there, they are actually one of my favorites in terms of usability / flexibility.

My annoyance with Google is that they reprocess the source books before selling them. They add kepub-like stuff into the epubs and their PDFs are converted to scanned images even if the publisher offers one that's actually typeset as a PDF. In that sense, though, I guess it's no worse than buying from Amazon. Other than that, though, I've never had a problem with their site usability or customer service.

[Joykins]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

The Greasemonky script for B&N can be found at userscripts-mirror.org/scripts/source/152985.user.js

FWIW I got this to work with Chrome, using Tampermonkey.

Downloaded a book successfully. Now I have to go and find all the B&N books I hadn't gotten into Calibre yet (I was behind the curve; I'd bought over 1000 books before I started backing up and had been doing it piecemeal). At least this will make it tons easier to do the archived books.

[Apache]

I have a Nook HD+ and still download my books to a computer for safe keeping.
If you have the Nook For PC you can go to settings/account settings and check automatically download recent purchases. It will automatically sync with your B&N account and download any books not already in your Nook For PC Library. I just downloaded Nook For PC to my work computer and it automatically download my books. Since it syncs with your nook library I would suggest you move the files to another folder when you have finished downloading them.
Apache

[gbm]

Originally Posted by Joykins

FWIW I got this to work with Chrome, using Tampermonkey.

Downloaded a book successfully. Now I have to go and find all the B&N books I hadn't gotten into Calibre yet (I was behind the curve; I'd bought over 1000 books before I started backing up and had been doing it piecemeal). At least this will make it tons easier to do the archived books.

Just make a new calibre library and download all your B&N ebooks to it, then move them to your main library when you have the time.

bernie

[Joykins]

Originally Posted by gbm

Just make a new calibre library and download all your B&N ebooks to it, then move them to your main library when you have the time.

bernie

I still have to do it page by page, don't I? And I don't even think it takes much longer to scan Calibre for what isn't already there. Most of the time taken up is the Calibre import process (including the plug ins that do their thing, without overloading them).

[Joykins]

Originally Posted by Apache

I have a Nook HD+ and still download my books to a computer for safe keeping.
If you have the Nook For PC you can go to settings/account settings and check automatically download recent purchases. It will automatically sync with your B&N account and download any books not already in your Nook For PC Library. I just downloaded Nook For PC to my work computer and it automatically download my books. Since it syncs with your nook library I would suggest you move the files to another folder when you have finished downloading them.
Apache

This works for older purchases too? As long as they're not already downloaded?

[library addict]

Here is part of the email I got back from them:

Dear Customer,

Greetings from Barnes and Noble!

Thank you for contacting us. I'm sorry to learn that the download option on your books are missing.

On behalf of Barnes & Noble, please accept our sincere apologies for any inconvenience this may have caused.

We’re sorry, but the ability to sideload NOOK purchased content has been discontinued. If you are attempting to unlock a sideloaded file, you will not be able to do so. We apologize for any inconvenience. However, your NOOK purchases are available for re-download from the NOOK cloud, and you may continue to sideload any other supported file format.

I hope that I was able to address your concern accordingly. It is my great honor and privilege to assist you with this concern.

So unless there is some sort of super duper never-before-seen great sale on a book I cannot get from somewhere else, I am done with B&N. (Which is a shame because there are some books only available at Amazon and B&N, it's like some authors who self-publish their backlist are not aware of any other storefronts).

It's like B&N execs got together and said what's the one thing we can do to guarantee customers go over to Amazon

I have issues with Amazon Kindle books since I like ePub. Yes I can make them work, but they add a lot of funky coding like Kobo did in the old days.

So far I have not had any kepub only books from Kobo. Fingers crossed Kobo and Google do not go this route as well.

[Purple Lady]

Originally Posted by Fbone

B&N is now like Amazon and the others. Kindle for PC, Nook for PC, ADE.

I download kindle books, but I do own a kindle - I think that's required to do a straight download and always had been. But Amazon still maintains Kindle for PC and Nook for PC isn't maintained and is not available from B&N for download. Amazon isn't stupid enough to do something like this. Does B&N honestly wonder why the Nook business isn't doing well?

[ATDrake]

Originally Posted by Joykins

This works for older purchases too? As long as they're not already downloaded?

Well, the newly-installed NOOK for PC on my ancient hand-me-down XP netbook is currently downloading 83 out of 3615 items in my library after syncing, so it would appear to work that way.

If it doesn't with a pre-existing version, then at least you can uninstall and try it from fresh?

Unfortunately, NOOK for Mac doesn't work at all on 10.8, so it looks like I'll have to clear some free space on ye olde Mac Mini before I can try there.

[CWatkinsNash]

We’re sorry, but the ability to sideload NOOK purchased content has been discontinued. If you are attempting to unlock a sideloaded file, you will not be able to do so.

Wait a minute - does this mean they've done something to actually prevent it from working even if you manage to download via Nook for PC? Or older downloaded files?

They haven't changed the actual DRM as far as I can tell (I just "safely backed up" newly DL'd copies via Nook for PC and they came through clean) but...? That statement is a bit disconcerting, because it makes this whole thing look like it might be even bigger than it appears to be.

[taustin]

Originally Posted by Purple Lady

Nook for PC isn't maintained

Hasn't been updated in nearly three years.

Originally Posted by Purple Lady

and is not available from B&N for download.

But that's simply not true. The top result from a Google search for "nook for pc" has a download link for the installer.

Originally Posted by Purple Lady

Amazon isn't stupid enough to do something like this.

Though they do plenty of other irksome things.

Originally Posted by Purple Lady

Does B&N honestly wonder why the Nook business isn't doing well?

I'm sure they wonder quite a lot. And that says more about them than it does about why they're not doing well.

[Maillemom]

Long time lurker here. So, if I have the Nook app on my iPad and download all of my books into it can I go into itunes and move the files to my computer or to Calibre?

This is a major thing for me as I have about 300.00 in B&N gift cards and sometimes like to read them on the Kindle.

Thanks for any advice.
Trice

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by Maillemom

Long time lurker here. So, if I have the Nook app on my iPad and download all of my books into it can I go into itunes and move the files to my computer or to Calibre?

This is a major thing for me as I have about 300.00 in B&N gift cards and sometimes like to read them on the Kindle.

Thanks for any advice.
Trice

Don't know about iOS but on android I could do that.
They were in the Nook\Content folder.

If you don't have any nook books yet, try picking up one of their free PD titles and download it.