Kindle for Mac now available

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by tlrowley

I certainly wasn't trying to pick on crop/top, I just found his/her post ironic. Sony's lack of Mac support a few years ago completely crippled the Sony reader for Mac users - you couldn't even buy books from the Sony store. I know calibre allowed users to work around other limitations, but there was still no way to buy from the authorized store - that's a huge miss. I think lack of support for PPC, which Apple themselves has deprecated (Snow Leopard) is minor in comparison.

I totally agree. Even though I didn't have a Mac at the time when I bought my Sony 500 I never bought anything from the Sony ebook store.

BOb

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by FlorenceArt

Thanks, I've been waiting for this so that I can buy ebooks from Amazon and (hopefully) liberate them for use on my Cybook. I'll have to test this.

You'll have to wait until the clever encryption analysis chaps have found a way to get the PID of Kindle for Mac. If it have a unique one - it might be like Kindle for PC and use a different PID for every book.

But I think that's probably as much de-drm discussion as is allowed here...

[FlorenceArt]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

You'll have to wait until the clever encryption analysis chaps have found a way to get the PID of Kindle for Mac. If it have a unique one - it might be like Kindle for PC and use a different PID for every book.

But I think that's probably as much de-drm discussion as is allowed here...

Ah. Thank you. It's probably better that I don't buy from Amazon then, since I really don't like their restrictive policy on DRM and related issues. Not buying is the only way I can tell them that, even if they probably don't care much

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by FlorenceArt

Ah. Thank you. It's probably better that I don't buy from Amazon then, since I really don't like their restrictive policy on DRM and related issues. Not buying is the only way I can tell them that, even if they probably don't care much

Restrictive... you can now buy and read Amazon Kindle books on a Kindle 1, Kindle 2, Kindle DX, Kindle for PC, Kindle for Mac, Kindle for iPhone/iPod, Kindle for Blackberry and soon Kindle for iPad.

BTW: The reader software is free for all the non Kindle devices.

I'm not sure I see that as very restrictive.

BOb

[FlorenceArt]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Restrictive... you can now buy and read Amazon Kindle books on a Kindle 1, Kindle 2, Kindle DX, Kindle for PC, Kindle for Mac, Kindle for iPhone/iPod, Kindle for Blackberry and soon Kindle for iPad.

BTW: The reader software is free for all the non Kindle devices.

I'm not sure I see that as very restrictive.

BOb

Errr... are you joking? I have a Cybook

[EowynCarter]

Epub, even DRM infected can be read on way more device. Too much to list....

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by FlorenceArt

Errr... are you joking? I have a Cybook

I'm lost... why do you think I'm joking and what does having a CyBook have to do with it?

BOb

[FlorenceArt]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

I'm lost... why do you think I'm joking and what does having a CyBook have to do with it?

BOb

I guess I wasn't very clear. I was referring to the following facts:

- Amazon won't sell me e-books because I don't have a Kindle
- Supposing I manage to buy one of their e-books, I can't legally read it on my CyBook
- On my CyBook, I have to choose between being able to read e-pubs or mobi books (ALL mobi books, not just Amazon DRMed ones), because of the restrictive policy Amazon sets on use of their SDK

So maybe I was wrong to refer to DRM, because it's not the only issue here. The issue, I guess, is that I liked the Mobi format and Amazon has ruined it for me while trying to corner the market.

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by FlorenceArt

- Amazon won't sell me e-books because I don't have a Kindle

Yes they will, just d/l Kindle for PC or MAC or iPhone or iPod Touch or Blackberry.

Originally Posted by FlorenceArt

- Supposing I manage to buy one of their e-books, I can't legally read it on my CyBook

Agreed. But I can't legally read a book from the Sony store on my Kindle. Isn't that restrictive?

BTW: Apple will be more restrictive than Amazon. Although I am assuming you can read the eBooks you buy from the iBook store on your Mac or PC... but no one knows yet.

The truth is DRM of any kind is restrictive. you have to have the right software or hard ware which supports said DRM.

It is actually the Publishers you should be mad at here... not Amazon.

BOb

[FlorenceArt]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Yes they will, just d/l Kindle for PC or MAC or iPhone or iPod Touch or Blackberry.

Well yes, but combined with the second point those are useless to me. I don't read books on my Mac.

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Agreed. But I can't legally read a book from the Sony store on my Kindle. Isn't that restrictive?

Yes it is, but doesn't the responsibility for that restriction lie mainly with Amazon? Or at least half of it anyway. I understand they have made it very clear that they don't want you to read paid content on the Kindle unless it was bought from them. But maybe that has changed?

Originally Posted by pilotbob

BTW: Apple will be more restrictive than Amazon. Although I am assuming you can read the eBooks you buy from the iBook store on your Mac or PC... but no one knows yet.

I agree Apple will be at least as restrictive. I don't know about more, I don't know the details. And I don't like it from Apple either, though I don't care much because I don't read books on my iTouch, or plan to buy an iPad. But yes, it's just as bad coming from Apple as from Amazon.

Originally Posted by pilotbob

The truth is DRM of any kind is restrictive. you have to have the right software or hard ware which supports said DRM.

True!

Originally Posted by pilotbob

It is actually the Publishers you should be mad at here... not Amazon.

Why? Because of DRM? OK, I am.

What I'm angry at Amazon for, specifically, is as I said, trying very hard to make the mobi format unavailable to anybody who (1) doesn't have a Kindle and (2) doesn't buy the books from them.

[ATimson]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

It is actually the Publishers you should be mad at here... not Amazon.

You mean the Amazon who refused to sell Baen's titles on Kindle without DRM?

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by FlorenceArt

What I'm angry at Amazon for, specifically, is as I said, trying very hard to make the mobi format unavailable to anybody who (1) doesn't have a Kindle and (2) doesn't buy the books from them.

I can understand that. And I expect this is why bookeen and iRex have moved to using Adobe DRM and most of the stores have moved to it.

So, if you do want the most choice of where to buy your ebooks selecting a device that supports Adobe DRM seems the best choice. then again, as a Kindle user I have never seen a reason to buy and ebook from Fictionwise or BooksOnBoard rather than from the kindle store. So it hasn't really restricted me. (Oh, and I can deDRM (99% of ) the Kindle books.)

I just wish it wasn't a choice we had to make. "I have a dream..."

Anyway.... we got quite a bit this thread is really about the Kindle for Mac beta release.

BOb

[rcuadro]

Originally Posted by FlorenceArt

Yes it is, but doesn't the responsibility for that restriction lie mainly with Amazon? Or at least half of it anyway. I understand they have made it very clear that they don't want you to read paid content on the Kindle unless it was bought from them. But maybe that has changed?

They will tell you that they do not support paid content from other vendors but they are telling you how to get free books for your Kindle right on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/b/ref=amb_link...d_i=1286228011

Initially they gave you the Kindle's PID right on your account page and you could use it to but books elsewhere but they took that down just before the Kindle 2 was released

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by rcuadro

They will tell you that they do not support paid content from other vendors but they are telling you how to get free books for your Kindle right on Amazon

http://www.amazon.com/b/ref=amb_link...d_i=1286228011

Initially they gave you the Kindle's PID right on your account page and you could use it to but books elsewhere but they took that down just before the Kindle 2 was released

They need to add feedbooks and Mobileread to that page.

BOb

[fugazied]

Originally Posted by rcuadro

Finally!!!!!!!

Yes it did take a while.
If Amazon does intend to move from an online store to a company that makes hardware, they need to get these things done faster.