is there a guide for how to use an ereader in linux?

[BetterRed]

@Gregg Bell - you could get something like a refurbished HP Mini (because its small) with a kosher Windows 7 licence to do your DRMing etc. Here's a guide to sharing files between Linux and Windows ==>> How to Share Files Between Windows and Linux. And of course there's always the pain free sneakernet option.

Down here a refurbished HP-Mini can be had for ~AU$100, I would think a lot fewer US$'s over there. Yes, I am aware of your problems with a refurbished Sony Reader.

In essence I agree with JSWolf's sentiments in post #6.

Kovid Goyal makes some interesting observations in which you might be interested ==>> Linux definitely has more problems than any other OS...

As it is now, I have no idea how a non-technical person is ever going to maintain a stable and fully functional linux system.

BR

[theducks]

When you try to 'download' an EPUB Firefox will open it
You find Books with your browser (Firefox), just as normal. The only difference is if it is type EPUB it opens a new tab with the book.
If the book is inside a Zip/RAR: you extract as any other archive, the select open with Firefox

WINE is only needed to run ADE (1.7) DRM to read infested books

I ended up removing the PI as I wanted most books to SAVE initially and 'ASK' was not a configuration option.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

My advice is to use Windows. It's so much easier then Linux when it comes to eBooks and DRM removal.

How so?

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by DuckieTigger

That is only good when you already have a Windows machine. Just to get a Windows pc to manage your ebooks more easily is expensive overkill, imo.

I've been using Linux exclusively for about seven years. I would NEVER go back to Windows and its security issues. I see enough of Windows when I have to support my wife's and kid's computers.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by HarryT

It's pretty hard to buy a PC that doesn't come with a Windows licence, unless you build it yourself from components.

My computer was built in 2003 -- it's nearly 12 years old. It runs well with Linux Mint Mate 13 -- which is still completely supported and completely up to date -- and will be supported until 2017. You get a lot more out of your machine with Linux than you do with the Malware Magnet OS from Redmond.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by rcentros

How so?

I can use ADE 2.01. I can easily get the key. I can strip the DRM no problem. I don't need wine. I don't need a VM. I just install and go. It just works. I don't have dependency issues.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by Gregg Bell

Is that just as simple as having the file on the Desktop and dragging it over the eReader icon and dropping it? The file will get stored in the right place in the eReader?

And really tried to get Alf's tools to work. No luck. Very confusing. I see there's new ones out I'll give them a try.

Yep. Just drag and drop. As for Alf's Tools, it depends on which format you're using. I have De-DRM tools for both my Nook and Kindle -- so far I haven't done anything with the Sony or Kobo. The Nook books were a snap. The Kindle -- my non-touch K4 (I just funnel everything through it so I don't have to bother with two setups) -- required more work.

(I've PM'd to you the non-edited version of that last paragraph -- just as I was going to post it I realized I might have crossed the line on Alf's Tools. "Might have" -- don't know for sure, there wasn't much technical information.)

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by BetterRed

In essence I agree with JSWolf's sentiments in post #6.

Kovid Goyal makes some interesting observations in which you might be interested ==>> Linux definitely has more problems than any other OS...

I don't know. My 80-some year old Dad installed Linux Mint 13 on his own and seems to be able to maintain it pretty well -- with an occasional call to me for scanner issues, etc. Honestly I get fewer support calls from him than I do from my wife and kids -- and my extended family -- who are all using Windows.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I can use ADE 2.01. I can easily get the key. I can strip the DRM no problem. I don't need wine. I don't need a VM. I just install and go. It just works. I don't have dependency issues.

Nor do I have dependency issues. I just use Linux Mint's repository. Non-problem solved as synaptic takes care of all dependencies. I remember when my Windows days were near an end, when I found a little text editor (a few hundred bytes) and I thought, "Wow, something this simple ... in Windows?" Alas the "dependency" was an 80 Meg Windows library that had to be downloaded before my 500k, (or so) application could run. I've also had the fun of installing new programs, which needed their own DLLs, which caused old programs to quit working. But the worst problem with Windows is drive-by malware or even nuisance-ware -- stuff that takes over your browser and changes your search engines and won't let you change them back (without effort). My kids, who like to run flash games, are constantly leaving me messes to clean up because they agree to whatever the application maker foists on them to get to the game. I hate Windows. I hate supporting it. I absolutely refuse to use it on my own computer. Fortunately the folks at "Bleeping Computer dot Com" help with a lot of these problems you encounter when using the Malware Magnet OS.

[JSWolf]

According to Kovid, he gets more support requests from Linux users then he does from Windows users and Linux users are a lot smaller group then Windows users. So that there says that Windows is easier to use.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I can use ADE 2.01. I can easily get the key. I can strip the DRM no problem. I don't need wine. I don't need a VM. I just install and go. It just works. I don't have dependency issues.

Sorry, I went on a tangent in my last response to this message.

What's the big difference between running ADE 1.7.x in Wine under Linux or ADE 2.01 natively under Windows? Once Wine is installed, it's just a matter of installing a Windows program under Wine just as you would under Windows. And it just works. Personally I avoid ADE like the plague. My Nooks and Sony take care of it on the devices for me. Calibre with Alf plugins, take care of it for me on my Linux computer. So far I haven't set up the Kobo or Sony de-drm plugin -- I don't know if they're going to be around long enough to make it worth the while. Besides, most DRM books that I buy or borrow are from Amazon -- directly or via Overdrive. My ePub books are almost always non-DRM.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

According to Kovid, he gets more support requests from Linux users then he does from Windows users and Linux users are a lot smaller group then Windows users. So that there says that Windows is easier to use.

Probably because there are several hundred Linux distributions with several package management systems -- and many Linux repositories that carry older versions of Calibre. So, instead of going directly to the source and cutting and pasting in the code necessary to install Calibre, they try to make do with the old package in their repository. I had that issue also until someone -- someone here, I think -- advised just going to Calibre. All issues went away -- and periodic upgrades are a snap. Cut and paste into a terminal and run. Voila' new version installed -- old problems gone.

[theducks]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

According to Kovid, he gets more support requests from Linux users then he does from Windows users and Linux users are a lot smaller group then Windows users. So that there says that Windows is easier to use.

I think the issue is the HUGE amount of variations between Linux distributions.
(Folk here use some I never heard of )

With Windows or Apple, Corporate sets the variation limits. It seems that 3rd party stuff is what causes most issues.

[Shades]

Originally Posted by theducks

I think the issue is the HUGE amount of variations between Linux distributions.
(Folk here use some I never heard of )

With Windows or Apple, Corporate sets the variation limits. It seems that 3rd party stuff is what causes most issues.

Yup. The thing is, Linux distributions are more like different operating systems than just one fragmented OS.

Remember folks, Linux is a kernel, not an operating system.

Personally I think variation is a good thing. People can choose the OS that they want instead of choosing one that someone else decided was perfect for everyone.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by Shades

Personally I think variation is a good thing. People can choose the OS that they want instead of choosing one that someone else decided was perfect for everyone.

I agree also. The fact that there are so many different Linux distributions and several different package systems and many different repositories, makes it hard to write malware for Linux. It's a bonus of "fragmentation."

As an aside, there is a learning curve with Linux. But what people seem to forget is that there was a learning curve with DOS and Windows also. They just don't remember that. If you write right-handed it's become automatic by now. If you break your right arm, and have to write with your left-hand for a while, it's frustrating because you know what you have to do and what it should look like, but your left-hand has to be trained (just like your right hand was trained for handwriting long ago). I kind of look at Linux like this. It "looks" like it should work like Windows, but it doesn't. So there is some learning necessary. The problem is it doesn't come soon enough for most folks. They want to be up and running without learning anything. When I realized that I finally quit going back to Windows every time Linux became too much of a challenge. Only when you work through the challenges do you actually learn Linux. And it really doesn't take that long, you just have to stick with it. It's now automatic for me and Windows now seems convoluted and stilted.