Amazon and DRM changes - Page 76

JSWolf · 02-09-2023, 07:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DNSB

Odd. As far as I am aware, Kobo used their proprietary DRM scheme on kepubs from day 1. It had the advantage that they did not have to pay Adobe every time a kepub was downloaded but I suspect the reason for creating their own DRM scheme was more that Adobe did not support the features of epub3 needed for the Japanese market and Kobo did not want to re-invent ADEPT.

I also seem to remember purchasing kepubs (Kobo epub) and plain epubs where either both or neither had DRM. I do not remember ever purchasing an ebook from Kobo where only the kepub or the epub had DRM.

If Kobo would update RMSDK, they could do away with KePub.

JSWolf · 02-09-2023, 07:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ma'am-I-Am

No kidding! You'd think with all of Adobe's resources they could make their reader more friendly. I sometimes read scans and there is no contrast or brightness control. POS.

Why would ADE have contrast/brightness controls? If you are reading on a computer, you can do that in the OS screen controls. If you are reading on a phone/tablet, same. If you are reading on a Reader, the Reader supports it or not.

lkmiller · 02-09-2023, 08:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ma'am-I-Am

I meant why designate an epub as particular to Kindle. Regular, generic epubs work just fine. I just think Amazon will find a way to make a proprietary version of epub.

I'm sorry I wasn't clear.

I had trouble finding an epub that worked with send-to-kindle when they first started accepting the format. I rarely use it so I haven't experimented further. I prefer to convert the file in calibre rather than let Amazon do it.

Took a quick look at the example ebooks of Alice in Wonderland at Bookfunnel. The kindle.epub had noticeably larger file sizes for images and css, but mostly the same structure. The kepub.epub seemed identical to the generic epub as far as file names and sizes, but I didn't look any closer.

lkmiller · 02-09-2023, 08:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sirtel

Paper books had considerably fewer hyphens than ereaders. And yes, I disliked them in the paper books too and would have gotten rid of them if it had been possible.

Hear! Hear! When I first saw someone mention adding hyphens to ebooks, I was completely mystified why they would want to bring that over from paper books.

haertig · 02-09-2023, 10:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lkmiller

Hear! Hear! When I first saw someone mention adding hyphens to ebooks, I was completely mystified why they would want to bring that over from paper books.

My take is that you use hyphens when you care more about full justification looking "full" than about readability.

I don't like hyphens either.

Quoth · 02-10-2023, 04:58 AM

I was trying Pocketbook on my new Oppo skinny and long phone (S/H from CEX, made last May 2022) and liked the "no hyphens" option despite the narrow width. Often hyphens broke words at the wrong place.
It is best on Android for TTS and makes the Kindle efforts seem like 1980s when I did TTS for a vending machine (Tested DXG, KK3 and external USB on PW3).

I don't mind the odd large word hyphenated properly and some of those started as two words. It's just big compound words are more common in German.
Day time, day-time, daytime. So day-
time
is OK?

ZodWallop · 02-10-2023, 02:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

The icon that shows up for any .epub files is the ADE 2.0.1 icon.

Quote:

Originally Posted by John F

The icon that shows up for any .epub files is the ADE 4.x icon.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sirtel

Calibre Viewer is the icon for all ebook formats on my system, including epub.

Guys, the icon that shows up for any .ePub is whatever program you have told Windows to use to open ePubs (in my case Sigil).

The point of my comment is that whatever you have set to open ePubs will open kepub.epub files. Because a kepub is an ePub.

ZodWallop · 02-10-2023, 02:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lkmiller

Where are those files from? The ones downloaded with Kobo devices/apps don't have extensions.

Could it be that you have told Windows to hide file extensions? I believe that is the default now.

Anyway, that screenshot was Windows Explorer looking at my Kobo with file extensions turned on.

ZodWallop · 02-10-2023, 02:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I have seen some slight formatting difference between the KePub and ePub.

My point was that saying Kobo also has a proprietary format in kepub that is no better than Amazon's .kfx isn't true.

A kepub is just an ePub with extra spans. You could drop a DRM-free kepub into any program that reads ePub with no converting and you are fine.

But a DRM-free .kfx is useless on anything but a Kindle.

JSWolf · 02-10-2023, 04:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lkmiller

Hear! Hear! When I first saw someone mention adding hyphens to ebooks, I was completely mystified why they would want to bring that over from paper books.

It's to prevent large gaps between words when using full justify. Plus, full justify looks better then left justify.

JSWolf · 02-10-2023, 04:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

Could it be that you have told Windows to hide file extensions? I believe that is the default now.

Anyway, that screenshot was Windows Explorer looking at my Kobo with file extensions turned on.

Hiding file extensions for registered file extensions has been the default since Windows 95.

JSWolf · 02-10-2023, 04:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

My point was that saying Kobo also has a proprietary format in kepub that is no better than Amazon's .kfx isn't true.

A kepub is just an ePub with extra spans. You could drop a DRM-free kepub into any program that reads ePub with no converting and you are fine.

But a DRM-free .kfx is useless on anything but a Kindle.

True that. And another issue is that even if the publisher requests no DRM, KFX has DRM. I would like to see the publishers who don't use DRM demand that KFX be truly DRM free. Tor and it's parent company (Macmillan) would be the best one to do this.

DNSB · 02-10-2023, 06:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

Could it be that you have told Windows to hide file extensions? I believe that is the default now.

Anyway, that screenshot was Windows Explorer looking at my Kobo with file extensions turned on.

I think what is being referred to is what you will see in the kepub directory in the Kobo Desktop Edition directory on a PC or MAC or in the kepub directory in the .kobo directory on a Kobo ereader. The filenames there show no extensions and look similar to a UID with 8-4-4-4-12 hex characters as the filename. i.e. 762a4ff6-2d7c-4c7f-860f-9afba121523f is one currently on my Kobo.

ZodWallop · 02-10-2023, 07:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DNSB

I think what is being referred to is what you will see in the kepub directory in the Kobo Desktop Edition directory on a PC or MAC or in the kepub directory in the .kobo directory on a Kobo ereader. The filenames there show no extensions and look similar to a UID with 8-4-4-4-12 hex characters as the filename. i.e. 762a4ff6-2d7c-4c7f-860f-9afba121523f is one currently on my Kobo.

What happens if you plug your Kobo in to your PC and look at that file with file extensions turned on?

bookfrog44 · 02-10-2023, 07:16 PM

Well this sucks... I use an Android tablet with Moonreader Pro and have for years. I have no interest in E-ink devices and as such have used kindle for PC to download books and then convert to EPUB and copy to my device.

Now it looks like that option is gone for the forseeable future.

Question though, I have a kobo account and can purchase ebooks through it. I have never done so as Amazon books tend to be cheaper for the same titles. Will Calibre work to convert books purchased through the kobo app into DRM free EPUB's?

Might not be what I want to do but if that works, I can at least continue to read in the way I choose.

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02-10-2023, 04:58 AM	#1131
Quoth Still reading Posts: 14,231 Karma: 105299897 Join Date: Jun 2017 Location: Ireland Device: All 4 Kinds: epub eink, Kindle, android eink, NxtPaper	I was trying Pocketbook on my new Oppo skinny and long phone (S/H from CEX, made last May 2022) and liked the "no hyphens" option despite the narrow width. Often hyphens broke words at the wrong place. It is best on Android for TTS and makes the Kindle efforts seem like 1980s when I did TTS for a vending machine (Tested DXG, KK3 and external USB on PW3). I don't mind the odd large word hyphenated properly and some of those started as two words. It's just big compound words are more common in German. Day time, day-time, daytime. So day- time is OK?

02-10-2023, 07:16 PM	#1140
bookfrog44 Junior Member Posts: 7 Karma: 10 Join Date: Aug 2012 Device: Android Tablet	Well this sucks... I use an Android tablet with Moonreader Pro and have for years. I have no interest in E-ink devices and as such have used kindle for PC to download books and then convert to EPUB and copy to my device. Now it looks like that option is gone for the forseeable future. Question though, I have a kobo account and can purchase ebooks through it. I have never done so as Amazon books tend to be cheaper for the same titles. Will Calibre work to convert books purchased through the kobo app into DRM free EPUB's? Might not be what I want to do but if that works, I can at least continue to read in the way I choose.