"Under the Dome" and the "Apollo 13" workaround challenge!

Croker · 11-22-2009, 10:29 AM

Hello!

Sorry for the clunky thread title, but I've got a bit of a unusual issue here, and I'm turning to YOU, good men and women of Mobileread, for help. Allow me to explain:

Remember "Apollo 13"? There's a great scene where both the astronauts and NASA staff on the ground realise that they need to bring down the nearly dangerous levels of Carbon Dioxide in the capsule, and so the NASA boffins produce all the items available to the astronauts on a big table (including socks, duct tape, etc), and eventually work out a way of fitting a square peg into a round hole, thus saving the astronauts' lives.

Why do I mention this? Well, I'm off to Southeast Asia for 6 weeks from 16/12/09, and my Sony PRS-505 will be going with me. However, as a keen Stephen King fan, I've been looking forward to buying the ebook version of his new novel, "Under the Dome" to read whilst I'm there (it'll give me something to do on long bus/plane journeys, for a start). You can imagine my dismay when I found out that the ebook edition will only go on sale from 24/12/09, at which point I will be on an island just off the coast of Vietnam.

You can probably guess what's coming next - I propose a challenge, similar (but thankfully not as life-threatening!) to the one that confronted NASA and Apollo 13. Can anyone work out how I can legally buy a copy of the "Under the Dome" ebook, and get it on to my Reader in Vietnam on 24/12/09?

To assist you in your endeavours, I can say this - I will have my Reader with me, and I should also have access to the internet whilst on Whale Island (through a PC at the resort where I'm staying). I will also have the relevant USB cables for connecting the Reader to a PC. I cannot, however, be certain that I would be able to install any other programs to this PC, such as ADE or Calibre. It's possible that I would be able to do so unnoticed, and uninstall them afterwards, but I can't be certain of this - they may have the PC set up in such a way as to make installation of new programs by any random guest difficult (if not impossible).

So, how can this be achieved?

I look forward to hearing from you!

rcuadro · 11-22-2009, 10:32 AM

I dont have a Sony anymore but you need the eBook software to purchase and download the book. If you can install the software on the computer that you will be using (and can purchase it on your country of registry) then you should be good to go.

desertgrandma · 11-22-2009, 10:48 AM

You have a choice.

Legal or illegal.

If you want legal, there is no way to get it before the 24th, when its released.

If you want "illegal"........I'm told there are copies out there decently formatted.

Apollo 13 did what had to be done with the tools they had.

I'm just sayin'..............

Croker · 11-22-2009, 10:49 AM

Ah, I should have said, I'd prefer to buy the book in ePub format, too...although, are Sony going all ePub now? I think I read that they were.

On balance, though, I'd probably prefer to use an independent ebook retailer (BooksOnBoard, maybe?) to buy it, if possible, rather than having to use proprietary software to even purchase the book.

Out of interest, is it possible to "drag-and-drop" an ebook on to a PRS-505? In other words, can I open my Reader through Windows Explorer, and copy and paste the ebook into it directly?

Also, I'd be specifically interested in hearing what technical obstacles might stand in my way as regards security - for example, I suspect I'd need to use INEPT to remove the DRM from an ePub version before putting it on my Reader. This is what I usually do with my purchased ebooks, to be fair; however, this may not be possible on a PC that isn't mine (and that I may not have particularly lengthy access to)!

rcuadro · 11-22-2009, 10:53 AM

I didnt think about other placed to buy book other than the Sony Store...

If you purchase the book from BoB (or some pther place) you can just plug in the 505 to the computer and it should come up as a removable drive on the computer... then all you have to do is drag it to your reader and it will be there.
The only thing is that I am not familiar with ePub DRP and the 505 so I font know how that would be handled.
I had a 505 before my Kindle but all the books I used were either DRM free or straight from Sony

Croker · 11-22-2009, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by desertgrandma

You have a choice.

Legal or illegal.

If you want legal, there is no way to get it before the 24th, when its released.

If you want "illegal"........I'm told there are copies out there decently formatted.

Apollo 13 did what had to be done with the tools they had.

I'm just sayin'..............

I know of the illegal versions (and, hand on heart, I'm not going to say I've entirely ruled this route out) but this is just a discussion of how a solution might be reached legally - or at most via some "grey areas"

I wouldn't necessarily want the book before 24/12/09, I'm just wondering if I can get it on that day, if I'm in Vietnam, and by doing so in a legal fashion.

Dulin's Books · 11-22-2009, 10:59 AM

you could bring the needed software(ade/calibre) with you on a usb flash drive and run it from that drive.

kacir · 11-22-2009, 11:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Croker

To assist you in your endeavours, I can say this - I will have my Reader with me, and I should also have access to the internet whilst on Whale Island (through a PC at the resort where I'm staying). I will also have the relevant USB cables for connecting the Reader to a PC. I cannot, however, be certain that I would be able to install any other programs to this PC, such as ADE or Calibre. It's possible that I would be able to do so unnoticed, and uninstall them afterwards, but I can't be certain of this - they may have the PC set up in such a way as to make installation of new programs by any random guest difficult (if not impossible).

No problem.
Somebody at home purchases the book from a PC with Sony Library system in lrf format. They just need to log into your account. They send the book by email to your gmail account, or upload it somewhere. You load the book directly to the reader without use of Sony software. The only disadvantage is that your reader will have to repaginate the book before the first opening.

This will be possible if Sony still sells this particular e-book in lrf format.

Croker · 11-22-2009, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dulin's Books

you could bring the needed software(ade/calibre) with you on a usb flash drive and run it from that drive.

True, but would they need to be installed on to the flash drive? i.e., would I run the set-up program as normal but use the flash drive as the place to install it to? Or are you advocating copying the program installers to the flash drive, and then installing them to the hotel PC's drive from there?

Secondly, how would ADE's authorisation process work in this instance? Can my Reader be authorised to work with two PCs? I don't want to jeopardise my own library here at home!

Kacir - how long would the repaginating take? This is quite a good suggestion, though! I see you're recommending buying it in lrf format from my own Sony account - I assume to sidestep DRM issues. However, if someone were to buy the ePub version and remove the DRM using INEPT (the ADEPT DRM removal tool), and then email it to me, then surely this would work, too? And without having to let anyone else log in to my account?

I suppose the only point I need clarifying would be to find out if Sony Readers recognise ePub files if they are just drag and dropped on to their internal memory. I'm sure they can, but can anyone confirm?

Moejoe · 11-22-2009, 11:18 AM

Get someone to buy it in .epub when it's released, have them strip the stupid DRM and send it to you in an Email

Croker · 11-22-2009, 11:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moejoe

Get someone to buy it in .epub when it's released, have them strip the stupid DRM and send it to you in an Email

...and I suspect, Moejoe, you're the winner of the challenge with this suggestions, as it's surely the most-straightforward way to achieve it. Well done you!

Dulin's Books · 11-22-2009, 02:07 PM

yes i meant install it to the drive so it runs from the drive

Croker · 11-22-2009, 02:10 PM

Ah, okay. Thanks.

I'm still open to suggestions regarding how to do this if I can't rely on someone else to buy the book, strip out the DRM and mail it to me, though - most of the people I know aren't technically-minded enough to bring that off.

I'm also still unsure of how the authorisation process etc will work if I'm using my Reader away from my "usual" PC.

Mobile Mason · 11-22-2009, 02:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Croker

I know of the illegal versions (and, hand on heart, I'm not going to say I've entirely ruled this route out) but this is just a discussion of how a solution might be reached legally - or at most via some "grey areas"

I wouldn't necessarily want the book before 24/12/09, I'm just wondering if I can get it on that day, if I'm in Vietnam, and by doing so in a legal fashion.

You could also pirate it now, then buy it later.

ardeegee · 11-22-2009, 02:39 PM

Okay, you want a crazy kludge ala the Apollo 13 solution?

Buy the audio book.

http://www.audible.com/adbl/site/ent...BK_SANS_001901

Buy a speech-to-text program (they are advertising Dragon Naturally Speaking on TV now-- hopefully the technology has improved since I played around with (and rejected) Dragon Dictate in the early 1990s.)

There should be a way (either with a cable or software) to trick the speech-to-text program to use the playing of the audio book being read as input for converting to text. Play the whole book while covering your ears and going "la-la-la-la" (or just not being near the computer.) Put the resulting text file on your Reader.

11-22-2009, 10:29 AM	#1
Croker Connoisseur Posts: 92 Karma: 630 Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Melbourne, Australia Device: Kindle Voyage, obv.	"Under the Dome" and the "Apollo 13" workaround challenge! Hello! Sorry for the clunky thread title, but I've got a bit of a unusual issue here, and I'm turning to YOU, good men and women of Mobileread, for help. Allow me to explain: Remember "Apollo 13"? There's a great scene where both the astronauts and NASA staff on the ground realise that they need to bring down the nearly dangerous levels of Carbon Dioxide in the capsule, and so the NASA boffins produce all the items available to the astronauts on a big table (including socks, duct tape, etc), and eventually work out a way of fitting a square peg into a round hole, thus saving the astronauts' lives. Why do I mention this? Well, I'm off to Southeast Asia for 6 weeks from 16/12/09, and my Sony PRS-505 will be going with me. However, as a keen Stephen King fan, I've been looking forward to buying the ebook version of his new novel, "Under the Dome" to read whilst I'm there (it'll give me something to do on long bus/plane journeys, for a start). You can imagine my dismay when I found out that the ebook edition will only go on sale from 24/12/09, at which point I will be on an island just off the coast of Vietnam. You can probably guess what's coming next - I propose a challenge, similar (but thankfully not as life-threatening!) to the one that confronted NASA and Apollo 13. Can anyone work out how I can legally buy a copy of the "Under the Dome" ebook, and get it on to my Reader in Vietnam on 24/12/09? To assist you in your endeavours, I can say this - I will have my Reader with me, and I should also have access to the internet whilst on Whale Island (through a PC at the resort where I'm staying). I will also have the relevant USB cables for connecting the Reader to a PC. I cannot, however, be certain that I would be able to install any other programs to this PC, such as ADE or Calibre. It's possible that I would be able to do so unnoticed, and uninstall them afterwards, but I can't be certain of this - they may have the PC set up in such a way as to make installation of new programs by any random guest difficult (if not impossible). So, how can this be achieved? I look forward to hearing from you!

11-22-2009, 10:49 AM	#4
Croker Connoisseur Posts: 92 Karma: 630 Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Melbourne, Australia Device: Kindle Voyage, obv.	Ah, I should have said, I'd prefer to buy the book in ePub format, too...although, are Sony going all ePub now? I think I read that they were. On balance, though, I'd probably prefer to use an independent ebook retailer (BooksOnBoard, maybe?) to buy it, if possible, rather than having to use proprietary software to even purchase the book. Out of interest, is it possible to "drag-and-drop" an ebook on to a PRS-505? In other words, can I open my Reader through Windows Explorer, and copy and paste the ebook into it directly? Also, I'd be specifically interested in hearing what technical obstacles might stand in my way as regards security - for example, I suspect I'd need to use INEPT to remove the DRM from an ePub version before putting it on my Reader. This is what I usually do with my purchased ebooks, to be fair; however, this may not be possible on a PC that isn't mine (and that I may not have particularly lengthy access to)! Last edited by Croker; 11-22-2009 at 11:11 AM.

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11-22-2009, 10:32 AM	#2
rcuadro Wizard Posts: 1,686 Karma: 874275 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Virginia Beach, VA Device: Kindle DX	I dont have a Sony anymore but you need the eBook software to purchase and download the book. If you can install the software on the computer that you will be using (and can purchase it on your country of registry) then you should be good to go.

11-22-2009, 10:48 AM	#3
desertgrandma Enjoying the show.... Posts: 14,270 Karma: 10462841 Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Arizona Device: A K1, Kindle Paperwhite, an Ipod, IPad2, Iphone, an Ipad Mini & macAir	You have a choice. Legal or illegal. If you want legal, there is no way to get it before the 24th, when its released. If you want "illegal"........I'm told there are copies out there decently formatted. Apollo 13 did what had to be done with the tools they had. I'm just sayin'..............

11-22-2009, 10:53 AM	#5
rcuadro Wizard Posts: 1,686 Karma: 874275 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Virginia Beach, VA Device: Kindle DX	I didnt think about other placed to buy book other than the Sony Store... If you purchase the book from BoB (or some pther place) you can just plug in the 505 to the computer and it should come up as a removable drive on the computer... then all you have to do is drag it to your reader and it will be there. The only thing is that I am not familiar with ePub DRP and the 505 so I font know how that would be handled. I had a 505 before my Kindle but all the books I used were either DRM free or straight from Sony

11-22-2009, 10:59 AM	#7
Dulin's Books Wizard Posts: 2,806 Karma: 13500000 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Portland, OR Device: Boox PB360 etc etc etc	you could bring the needed software(ade/calibre) with you on a usb flash drive and run it from that drive.

11-22-2009, 11:18 AM	#10
Moejoe Banned Posts: 5,100 Karma: 72193 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: South of the Border Device: Coffin	Get someone to buy it in .epub when it's released, have them strip the stupid DRM and send it to you in an Email

11-22-2009, 02:07 PM	#12
Dulin's Books Wizard Posts: 2,806 Karma: 13500000 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Portland, OR Device: Boox PB360 etc etc etc	yes i meant install it to the drive so it runs from the drive

11-22-2009, 02:10 PM	#13
Croker Connoisseur Posts: 92 Karma: 630 Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Melbourne, Australia Device: Kindle Voyage, obv.	Ah, okay. Thanks. I'm still open to suggestions regarding how to do this if I can't rely on someone else to buy the book, strip out the DRM and mail it to me, though - most of the people I know aren't technically-minded enough to bring that off. I'm also still unsure of how the authorisation process etc will work if I'm using my Reader away from my "usual" PC.

11-22-2009, 02:39 PM	#15
ardeegee Maratus speciosus butt Posts: 3,292 Karma: 1162698 Join Date: Sep 2009 Device: PRS-350	Okay, you want a crazy kludge ala the Apollo 13 solution? Buy the audio book. http://www.audible.com/adbl/site/ent...BK_SANS_001901 Buy a speech-to-text program (they are advertising Dragon Naturally Speaking on TV now-- hopefully the technology has improved since I played around with (and rejected) Dragon Dictate in the early 1990s.) There should be a way (either with a cable or software) to trick the speech-to-text program to use the playing of the audio book being read as input for converting to text. Play the whole book while covering your ears and going "la-la-la-la" (or just not being near the computer.) Put the resulting text file on your Reader.

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