Is Adobe DRM epub endangered?

[dorino]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

Yes they will, or at least will have the potential. Adobe & B&N are partnered on the DRM B&N is using for ePub's (password protection). Adobe has shipped to manufacturers early this year a new SDK which incorporates both types of encryption (ID based and Password based). It's up to device manufacturers to implement it.

Ah. Thank you for clarifying.

Here's hoping for a Sony firmware update with new ePub support

[FizzyWater]

Originally Posted by simplyparticular

Frankly, I hope B&N's version of ePub DRM wins over ADEPT. ADEPT requires Adobe to maintain their servers. B&N's only requires that the buyer keep track of the credit card used.

+1

Of course, the eReader DRM has been my preferred version (if I feel I have to be stuck with one to read the books I want) since my first forays into eBooks. I hate than any of them have to ping back to someone else's servers or automatically limit my books to particular machines.

[simplyparticular]

Originally Posted by SensualPoet

-1

Absolutely not. The last thing I want is to have my credit card number embedded in the unlocking mechanism for an e-book.

Second, to date, B&N do not sell e-books outside of the US. Not one. So, if the idea is to make it the "winning standard" ... how does this serve the other 6 billion people who don't happen to reside in the US?

The credit card number isn't embedded. The last 8 digits are used for the encryption logarithm, not stored in the book. It's basically the key needed to unlock the book to make it open.

And I'm not hoping B&N the STORE wins, I'm hoping that other ADE-using ebookstores will adopt B&N's stand-alone "social" DRM, rather than relying on the ADEPT server-protected DRM.

I don't think DRM is going anywhere anytime soon (possibly never in the book industry, but that's another post). But I like books by authors who are published by large conglomerates obsessed with DRM, so I'll take one that is the most future proof.

[Dave_S]

Originally Posted by SensualPoet

Absolutely not. The last thing I want is to have my credit card number embedded in the unlocking mechanism for an e-book.

The B&N social DRM doe NOT embed your credit card number in the reader.

[dougf4]

Originally Posted by dmaul1114

Could be. If Amazon succeed in making the Kindle store the dominate book store--and they're trying like hell by putting Kindle apps on every gadget under the sun--they're format could become dominate.

But not necessarily. Apple's AAC format didn't come to dominate digital music despite iTunes being by far the dominate music store. Once DRM dies it's all moot since it's so easy to format shift when DRM isn't involved.

Perhaps Amazon will succeed in capturing a huge captive market but most likely the rebellious and down trodden eserfs (such as myself) will likely raise their virtual pitchforks in angst by continuing to loyally support their chosen formats.

Much like Mozilla has done against Microsoft with the Firefox browser and Linux continues to do against Windows, I suspect that many of the now chosen formats and readers will remain as viable. Open Source rebels will dash to the rescue to deny total victory to the Amazonians. In dribs and drabbles enough money will still be spent on non-Amazon/B&N formats to keep things moving in a northerly direction.

I think it is highly likely that the conquerors will have even more minions sitting smartly in the wireless cafes while a shrinking population of we eserfs will labor away in our curtained parlors working feverishly to maintain our own technological status quo. But we will remain and never be vanquished to the way of the Conquerors.

Here's to a hearty hoorah for the heroes who will lead the charge.

"We can't all be heroes. Some of us have to sit on the curb and clap as they go by." - Will Rogers

[MerLock]

Originally Posted by simplyparticular

The credit card number isn't embedded. The last 8 digits are used for the encryption logarithm, not stored in the book. It's basically the key needed to unlock the book to make it open.

And I'm not hoping B&N the STORE wins, I'm hoping that other ADE-using ebookstores will adopt B&N's stand-alone "social" DRM, rather than relying on the ADEPT server-protected DRM.

I don't think DRM is going anywhere anytime soon (possibly never in the book industry, but that's another post). But I like books by authors who are published by large conglomerates obsessed with DRM, so I'll take one that is the most future proof.

Not much of a tech person here but was just wondreing if it would be possible to get a hold of the unlock key and figure out the last 8 digits of someone's cc # with it? Kind of like reverse engeineering. Not that knowing the last 8 digits would do any good, but just curious.

[Dave_S]

Originally Posted by MerLock

Not much of a tech person here but was just wondreing if it would be possible to get a hold of the unlock key and figure out the last 8 digits of someone's cc # with it? Kind of like reverse engeineering. Not that knowing the last 8 digits would do any good, but just curious.

No, it is a one way hash, so there is no "feasible" way to work backwards from the digest (code stored with the e-book) to the original name and credit card number used to create the digest.

[=X=]

Originally Posted by dougf4

....

Much like Mozilla has done against Microsoft with the Firefox browser and Linux continues to do against Windows, I suspect that many of the now chosen formats and readers will remain as viable. Open Source rebels will dash to the rescue to deny total victory to the Amazonians. In dribs and drabbles enough money will still be spent on non-Amazon/B&N formats to keep things moving in a northerly direction.

.....

I wonder if you see the irony here, both Amazon and B&N built their proprietary eReaders on Open Source Linux/Android. B&N even built the book format on an open standard. Yet both are closed systems because of their DRM.

=X=

[cfrizz]

Originally Posted by dougf4

Perhaps Amazon will succeed in capturing a huge captive market but most likely the rebellious and down trodden eserfs (such as myself) will likely raise their virtual pitchforks in angst by continuing to loyally support their chosen formats.

Much like Mozilla has done against Microsoft with the Firefox browser and Linux continues to do against Windows, I suspect that many of the now chosen formats and readers will remain as viable. Open Source rebels will dash to the rescue to deny total victory to the Amazonians. In dribs and drabbles enough money will still be spent on non-Amazon/B&N formats to keep things moving in a northerly direction.

I think it is highly likely that the conquerors will have even more minions sitting smartly in the wireless cafes while a shrinking population of we eserfs will labor away in our curtained parlors working feverishly to maintain our own technological status quo. But we will remain and never be vanquished to the way of the Conquerors.

Here's to a hearty hoorah for the heroes who will lead the charge.

"We can't all be heroes. Some of us have to sit on the curb and clap as they go by." - Will Rogers

You might never be vanquished, but your numbers will be so small that you simply will remain an insignificant nonfactor not worth bothering about!

I care more about reading then I do about DRM. Most around here just seem to be worked up about not being able to do EVERYTHING that they may or may not have done with paper books.

While it's nice to have principles, they are pretty meaningless if upholding them means suffering for no good reason. So long as you don't lock yourself into just one store like Amazon & B&N you can survive future changes & still have options.

Right now the options are fewer & some of you make sure you have even fewer options by refusing to buy DRM restricted books.

50% of my books are DRM'd but they are authors & genre's that I love to read. I'm not about to start reading genre's or books I don't like just because they aren't restricted. That just doesn't make any sense.

So long as YOU the purchasers are able to read the books that YOU have purchased, that is all that is truly important. If one of my friends want to read the book, GO BUY IT YOURSELF.

I think that eventually there will just be 1 ereader format aka Epubs. Once that happens, all this will be moot.

Cutting off your nose to spite your face just hurts you no one else.

[EricDP]

Originally Posted by cfrizz

So long as YOU the purchasers are able to read the books that YOU have purchased, that is all that is truly important. If one of my friends want to read the book, GO BUY IT YOURSELF.

I think the concern is that YOU the purchaser, even if you GO BUY IT YOURSELF, may not be able to read the book again in five or ten years.

I have a lot of books I like so much I've read two or three times, and I want that option for any book that I "buy". But just try reading an old LRX file on a new reader... ooops, can't authorize it anymore. And the ten-year-old reader I bought it with is dead - like any piece of electronics.

The point is that you're not really buying DRM books you're just renting them. For the equivalent cost of a full price purchase of the pbook. And that's just wrong.