Amazon to allow downloads of DRM free books - Page 27

MegDreamsofBooks · 07-17-2026, 05:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sirtel

You can still remove the DRM from Amazon books with the new Windows app.

I can, but I'd rather not. Ditto using my Kindle PW 10 (so far. . . .) It's just much easier to do a quick epub download than do the deDRM.

Plus, I prefer to vote with my dollars: authors who are Amazon exclusive and don't offer epub downloads are no longer on my purchase list. I might read them via Kindle Unlimited, but they definitely drop lower on the priority list compared to books I can get from authors via more friendly distribution. That's just my personal preference.

Sirtel · 07-17-2026, 05:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MegDreamsofBooks

I can, but I'd rather not. Ditto using my Kindle PW 10 (so far. . . .) It's just much easier to do a quick epub download than do the deDRM.

Plus, I prefer to vote with my dollars: authors who are Amazon exclusive and don't offer epub downloads are no longer on my purchase list. I might read them via Kindle Unlimited, but they definitely drop lower on the priority list compared to books I can get from authors via more friendly distribution. That's just my personal preference.

My personal preference is NOT to use Amazon epub downloads - they're not original epubs provided by the author and the quality is worse than that of regular Kindle versions. So I either remove the DRM infestation from the regular version (in case of Amazon exclusives) or buy elsewhere.

YMMV. I'm sure that Amazon epubs are fully adequate for most folks. Not for me, though.

JSWolf · 07-17-2026, 07:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sirtel

My personal preference is NOT to use Amazon epub downloads - they're not original epubs provided by the author and the quality is worse than that of regular Kindle versions. So I either remove the DRM infestation from the regular version (in case of Amazon exclusives) or buy elsewhere.

YMMV. I'm sure that Amazon epubs are fully adequate for most folks. Not for me, though.

KFX is pretty bad. The code is changed. For example, the indent is put in body via a class and not in the p class. That is odd. All bold and italics are converted to spans even if they were not originally spans. Basically if you edit code, this i where you do need to know what you are doing unless you don't mind a reading the ePub conversion.

Code:

<body class="class_s2C-0">
<p class="class_s4D-0">

Code:

.class_s2C-0 {
  margin-top: 4.8em;
  padding-left: 2%;
  padding-right: 2%;
  text-align: justify;
  text-indent: 6.719%;
}
.class_s4D-0 {
  margin-bottom: 0;
  margin-top: 0;

bizzybody · 07-18-2026, 04:14 AM

What does Calibre do to the formatting if you convert those Amazon EPUB downloads to something else, then back to EPUB?

Sirtel · 07-18-2026, 05:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bizzybody

What does Calibre do to the formatting if you convert those Amazon EPUB downloads to something else, then back to EPUB?

Depends on your conversion settings and what you convert them to. In general, multiple conversions only make the formatting worse.

JSWolf · 07-18-2026, 05:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bizzybody

What does Calibre do to the formatting if you convert those Amazon EPUB downloads to something else, then back to EPUB?

Sure convert the ePub to something else. But keep the ePub so you don't have to convert back to ePub.

DNSB · 07-18-2026, 11:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bizzybody

What does Calibre do to the formatting if you convert those Amazon EPUB downloads to something else, then back to EPUB?

My answer would be that often it makes the quality worse. I'm not sure where Amazon gets those ePubs or PDFs from. One I downloaded from an author who uses Vellum was definitely not the Vellum created ePub that they would have uploaded to Amazon. I suspect that it is a file generated at some point in their conversion pipeline with fugly CSS.

Quoth · 07-18-2026, 01:31 PM

I suspect epub upload, Amazon converts epub to KFX, Amazon converts KFX to epub.
That would mess it up.

Malicious compliance with providing DRM free because KFX always had DRM, but mobi & azw3 (KF7 & KF8) were possible to be DRM back when all ebooks had a browser download.

Also Amazon's "Send to Kindle" giving KFX from epub is not as good as Calibre epub to azw3/KF8.

Amazon also messes with embedded fonts and images.

JSWolf · 07-18-2026, 01:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quoth

I suspect epub upload, Amazon converts epub to KFX, Amazon converts KFX to epub.
That would mess it up.

Malicious compliance with providing DRM free because KFX always had DRM, but mobi & azw3 (KF7 & KF8) were possible to be DRM back when all ebooks had a browser download.

Also Amazon's "Send to Kindle" giving KFX from epub is not as good as Calibre epub to azw3/KF8.

Amazon also messes with embedded fonts and images.

Is KFX from ePub via Amazon better or worse then KFX from calibre using the KFX Output plugin?

I know ePub is worse from KFX then it is from KF8.

Sirtel · 07-18-2026, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quoth

I suspect epub upload, Amazon converts epub to KFX, Amazon converts KFX to epub.
That would mess it up.

Not really. I convert kfx files to epubs all the time. Nothing gets messed up.

Embedded fonts have been removed from Amazon epubs, while they're present in the books I've purchased from Amazon and converted. So there's something else going on than just a conversion.

Sirtel · 07-18-2026, 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Is KFX from ePub via Amazon better or worse then KFX from calibre using the KFX Output plugin?

I know ePub is worse from KFX then it is from KF8.

Amazon epubs don't have any embedded fonts, for example, even if they're in the original book. Calibre conversion retains the fonts.

JSWolf · 07-18-2026, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sirtel

Not really. I convert kfx files to epubs all the time. Nothing gets messed up.

Embedded fonts have been removed from Amazon epubs, while they're present in the books I've purchased from Amazon and converted. So there's something else going on than just a conversion.

The author name(s) get lost in Amazon ePub. But images retain their proper resolution.

Darqref · 07-18-2026, 05:18 PM

Hypothetical case:

Author has Epub download enabled. The Author then updates book, (for formatting or typos or whatever) which tells your content library that an update is available.

Does the epub download reflect this automatically? Would it only include the update if you authorize the update in your content library first?

Anyone notice what happens?

Quoth · 07-18-2026, 06:12 PM

It was never automatic when Amazon previously offered downloads. Only new sales got it automatically. The publisher/author had to contact Amazon and claim nothing really changed, only fixing. Then Amazon would approve or not.

jhowell · 07-18-2026, 09:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Darqref

Does the epub download reflect this automatically? Would it only include the update if you authorize the update in your content library first?

I posted the answer earlier in this thread.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jhowell

A surprising thing to me was that the EPUB I downloaded was identical both before and after accepting the update and matched the newer version of the book.

07-18-2026, 05:18 PM	#403
Darqref space cadet Posts: 340 Karma: 2999999 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Seattle area Device: Rocket PRO, gen3, Pocketbook360	Do Author's book updates affect the Epub Download. Hypothetical case: Author has Epub download enabled. The Author then updates book, (for formatting or typos or whatever) which tells your content library that an update is available. Does the epub download reflect this automatically? Would it only include the update if you authorize the update in your content library first? Anyone notice what happens?

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07-18-2026, 04:14 AM	#394
bizzybody Addict Posts: 310 Karma: 8317682 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Idaho, USA Device: Various PalmOS PDAs, Android Phones, Sharper Image Literati	What does Calibre do to the formatting if you convert those Amazon EPUB downloads to something else, then back to EPUB?

07-18-2026, 01:31 PM	#398
Quoth Still reading Posts: 15,584 Karma: 114630515 Join Date: Jun 2017 Location: Ireland Device: All 4 Kinds: epub eink, Kindle, android eink, NxtPaper	I suspect epub upload, Amazon converts epub to KFX, Amazon converts KFX to epub. That would mess it up. Malicious compliance with providing DRM free because KFX always had DRM, but mobi & azw3 (KF7 & KF8) were possible to be DRM back when all ebooks had a browser download. Also Amazon's "Send to Kindle" giving KFX from epub is not as good as Calibre epub to azw3/KF8. Amazon also messes with embedded fonts and images.

07-18-2026, 06:12 PM	#404
Quoth Still reading Posts: 15,584 Karma: 114630515 Join Date: Jun 2017 Location: Ireland Device: All 4 Kinds: epub eink, Kindle, android eink, NxtPaper	It was never automatic when Amazon previously offered downloads. Only new sales got it automatically. The publisher/author had to contact Amazon and claim nothing really changed, only fixing. Then Amazon would approve or not.