E-Reader not tied to a book chain

[Arran]

Hello
Kindle, Kobo and Tolino are both chained to a book selling chain or similar and don't easily allow to buy (download) books from elsewhere.

Is there a totally independent reader on the market?

Thanks for any positive recommendation.

[JSWolf]

If you get an Android based Reader that allows you to install apps, you can install the Kindle app and an app to read ePub. That way, you have the best of both worlds.

[meeera]

Do you mean a reader that will enable you to easily buy the book directly from the device? Because it's easy to sideload books from wherever you want onto all of those devices. None of them chain you to any one store. The newest Kobo also allows you to borrow library books directly from the device, if you are so inclined and your library uses Overdrive.

Sideloading (including DRM stripping) also means you have a the books you own, for when the original bookstore goes away.

[Arran]

Thanks a lot.

@JSWolf: I do not have a smartphone and do not intend to buy one. And I do have an aversion against Kindle. My world is the OpenSource World.
If you could guide me to a concrete exemple, I might better understand what exactly you mean.

@ Meeera: «directly from the source» means for me, an Editor who produces E-Books but sells them through his own channels and not through the large ripp-off chains. DRM is OK, I don't mind it for a start. I have a Kobo Glo HD but can not find a way how to join my library, which is one of my problems. I also do not understand what «sideloading» means.

I'd like to amend many E-Books who sometimes have been catastrophically set up. I can do this with Sigil without problems. And don't believe, those errors are only in hobby e-book producers, they are quite common in expensive ones from famous editors as well. One of the worst «crime» is sillabification, another are substantial typos, who, in printed books, are just not made.

[meeera]

Originally Posted by Arran

@ Meeera: «directly from the source» means for me, an Editor who produces E-Books but sells them through his own channels and not through the large ripp-off chains. DRM is OK, I don't mind it for a start. I have a Kobo Glo HD but can not find a way how to join my library, which is one of my problems. I also do not understand what «sideloading» means.

Sideloading is simply transferring a book on your computer onto your ereader using a USB cable. Again, this can be done with any book onto any of the above devices, so long as you use a tool like Calibre to convert to the appropriate format first. You are not chained to a store.

I have plenty of books on my Kobo which I have obtained in this way from a variety of publishers, with no big bookstore involved.

I can't help you with your library without knowing what system it uses. With Overdrive (and without a Kobo Aura One), you download the .acsm file (basically a key for the lock) from a browser on your computer, and feed it to Adobe Digital Editions, which will then use it download a DRM-protected epub from the library site. You then use ADE to transfer the book to your ereader with a USB cable. Your library's website should have a link to appropriate help files if you need more detail.

I suggest you amend your profile to include your devices, since you have a Glo HD that you haven't mentioned there.

[Arran]

Ah, ok. That is now clear and I do this. Personally I have never more than about 10 Books in the Reader, my book-repository is on my computer and an external back-up harddisk. The problem with downloading from the seller when DRM is involved, is, that I use Linux and Adobe makes no app for Linux any longer. And the Editors are too stupid and not interested to force Adobe to produce one.

[meeera]

Originally Posted by Arran

Ah, ok. That is now clear and I do this. Personally I have never more than about 10 Books in the Reader, my book-repository is on my computer and an external back-up harddisk. The problem with downloading from the seller when DRM is involved, is, that I use Linux and Adobe makes no app for Linux any longer..

Not my field, but I found this if it's of use.

http://helpdeskgeek.com/how-to/insta...-ubuntu-linux/

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=251640

There are a few Linux users about the forums. Maybe post a specific thread with these narrowed-down questions in the appropriate subforum.

[spindlegirl]

I realize that above you mentioned you don't want to get a smartphone, but here is an exception that worked for me. Not trying to talk you into getting one, just sharing my own experience.

A person can buy a cheap smartphone and just not activate the simcard, and it functions like a mini handheld tablet.

My daughter did this after her umpteenth ipod broke. Plus she was still too young to need a "phone phone". Then, over wifi my daughter installed overdrive (for library books), moonreader, kindle, etc, and was able to read books both sideloaded and downloaded via the app.

In other words she didn't need to be beholden to a monthly cellular account to use the other features of the phone.

After a couple of years of having a phone that wasn't used as one, she finally got the sim card because she actually needed to use it as one.

[copyrite]

How 'bout an Android tablet? There are different reader apps available, you may find one you prefer that suits your needs. Calibre / Calibre Companion / Moon + Reader are my 'go to' choices for several Android devices I use.

[Timboli]

Hello Arran.
Honestly you are not going to get a one size fits all ebook reader, unless you go the way of a tablet and apps for the various DRM scenarios ... including Library lending.

My preference is to have an e-ink device (or 2) and a large (i.e 10") Android based tablet, to cover all bases. To that end I personally have two Kindles and a Samsung tablet. That way you get e-ink for kindness to your eyes and most reading/portability and a tablet for color and large ebooks (magazines, graphic), file support, etc. At a pinch, an android phone is a poor man's ereader, similar to a tablet.

I prefer Kindle for two reasons, ebook price and large library of available ebooks. If I can only get an epub from elsewhere, then that, with the appropriate free app, is also what the tablet/phone are good for.

There are ways around DRM if your need is great (i.e. bad ebook formatting, PDF issues, etc). Sigil is good for editing epubs and Calibre is a good place to start for cataloging, conversion and device support with your PC, etc. Calibre is a quick & easy way to get ebooks onto your Kindle for instance.

[spindlegirl]

Originally Posted by copyrite

How 'bout an Android tablet? There are different reader apps available, you may find one you prefer that suits your needs. Calibre / Calibre Companion / Moon + Reader are my 'go to' choices for several Android devices I use.

I agree with that (or any android device which allows for access to the "google Play" store).

My first e-reader was Kobo, which I have not used for many years now. Yet the Kobo app still enables me to access my library, as does the Kindle app for my Amazon purchses. Thirdly, I have the Overdrive app for library loans. For every thing else (sideloaded content from my Calibre on my pc), I have Moon Reader Pro. I have all of those apps in a folder called "reading" or what have you.

I have all of those installed on my Lenovo Tablet It allows me to comparison shop between stores for books I want.

[JSWolf]

I have an H2O and I've never used it to buy an eBook via Kobo. I've bought from Kobo, Google, and other stores as well as using Overdrive. So even if the Reader you do get has the ability to buy from a specific store, you don't have to do so.

[Sirtel]

I have gotten my books all over the place. From Amazon, from Kobo and various e-pub stores (many now defunct), directly from smaller publishers, from Smashword, from Gutenberg etc. I put them all into Calibre and sideload them onto my Kindles, converting when necessary. I've never felt that I'm tied to anything, thanks to Calibre and Alf.

I cannot read fiction on a tablet or a phone, so apps are not an option for me. And I would hate having to use several different apps to read my books. Fortunately, I don't need to.

[barryem]

I buy nearly all my books from Amazon. I read a lot of them on a Kindle but I also read them on a Kobo and a Nook and a phone using Moon+. I do prefer the Kindle but not by a lot. The fact that the books come from Amazon makes it a bit nicer but that isn't why I use the Kindle most. I just like it better.

I do buy a book while browsing the Kindle store from the Kindle at times but the vast majority of the books I've bought using my laptop.

I agree with the sentiments in the topic of this thread. I wish ereaders weren't sold by book sellers and tied to stores. They'd be more expensive then but the variety and feature selection would be far better and there'd be more models. That would make for a better environment, in my opinion.

But it's not a bad situation now. We have good devices. Just not as good as we might have if a bunch of makers were competing and each of those devices could access all the stores or access Calibre easily and access things like Dropbox.

Barry

[Timboli]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

..... I cannot read fiction on a tablet or a phone, so apps are not an option for me. And I would hate having to use several different apps to read my books. Fortunately, I don't need to.

Well sometimes you have to use a tablet, I find.

My preference by far is an e-ink device, which I have found on long use is much kinder to the eyes ... which is now being reported far and wide, especially amongst older readers, who have been experiencing eye issues from extended use of tablets/ipads, with their computer based screens.

Sometimes though, if you want to read an ebook properly, then the only way currently to do so, is via a tablet/ipad. Especially if you have color images to look at and want to see them in a resolution that does justice (talking about a large tablet/ipad here ... 10").

Novels I nearly always read on either of my two e-ink Kindles, while (music, etc) biographies and encylopedia and graphic novels, I read on my Samsung Tablet, to do them justice ... and help my eyes in another way ... not having to squint at too small images.

Each type of device has their place.

Multi-column PDF's are also better read sideways on a large tablet. Likewise magazines and newspapers ... and even web pages if you are gonna browse the web with your device. If you have a child or four, then their colorful ebooks are woeful on an e-ink device.

Sure, you can spend time converting and editing many (out-of-the-box) unsuitable publications so that they are some form of readable on your e-ink reader, but honestly, the effort & time is rarely worth it. Even some epubs don't convert well to mobi ... not without an awful lot of fiddly editing ... DRM being the least of your worries.

P.S. I generally only use two apps on my Tablet ... Kindle and Cool Reader. I do also have a few PDF readers for the odd difficult PDF ... picking the best one for the job.