Obtaining .acsm link for Barnes & Noble books and magazines

dhdurgee · 08-29-2025, 01:53 PM

I have the Android Nook app on an ancient rooted phone that I still have but may not be able to even wake at this point. I retrieved the books from it when I retired it and am able to work with them using Calibre. This allowed me to convert them to read on my Kindle. I do not now and never had had a Nook.

I still have a Barnes & Noble library with these books available, but at this point it appears the only access to them is to read them in the browser. I know of no way to download them or any new purchases I may make.

What makes this relevant to me today is that at present there are some magazines available for Nook that I cannot as yet get from Amazon.

Is there a way to get the .ascm file for these magazines if I were to purchase them? Any other way to download them for conversion?

Dave

Scoob · Yesterday, 12:46 PM

I don't know if you can download magazines but if you have a windows computer OS 10 or 11 and can find and install Nook for Windows app version 1.11.0.4 (its been removed by BN from the Windows app store but should still be available from sideloading sites) you can now download your BN books to your computer. You'll then need Calibre and a special plugin for it so your downloaded BN book can be liberated so you can then convert to a format your kindle can load like AZW3.
The steps for downloading books should be the same if your magazines are downloadable. I have no idea what format magazines will be in but PDF is near universal and I think Kindles can load that.

dhdurgee · Yesterday, 07:52 PM

The only Windows I have at present is a W7 Virtualbox that I run when there is no Linux alternative available. Is there a W7 compatible Nook reader?

I dug out my ancient Android phone and to my surprise it actually works to some degree. Unfortunately it appears that its WiFi support is too old as it will not connect with my network. I have tried using USB networking as well, but it isn't working without further work on my part.

When I try to open the Nook app it crashes, likely because it is trying to "phone home" and cannot do so without a network connection.

Maybe I can get this working in some manner, or maybe it will not be necessary.

The reason I am looking into this after all these years is that B&N now has some magazines that Amazon does not yet have. Should Amazon get their act together I will be able to get the magazines there.

I already have Calibre installed and am able to download .epub books from my local library and convert them to .azw3 for use on my Kindle, so I suspect I am ready to deal with a B&N .epub provided I can actually download one.

Thank you for your suggestions and any further ones you may have.

Dave

Scoob · Yesterday, 10:57 PM

Afaik all the old Nook for PC apps (which have win7 conpatibility) won't download anything they just open a separate browser window and you read there. Nook app for Windows supposedly can run on win 8.1. If thats true you might be able to get your magazines that way and steps should be the same or similar to using the win10/11 version I have.
The phone already being rooted would make that way the easiest to retrieve the files. You might just need some router settings changed to get the phone to connect. Personally when I encounter problems with connections I ditch 5ghz and only try to use the old reliable 2.4ghz.

08-29-2025, 01:53 PM	#1
dhdurgee Guru Posts: 912 Karma: 3000002 Join Date: Jun 2010 Device: K3W, PW4	Obtaining .acsm link for Barnes & Noble books and magazines I have the Android Nook app on an ancient rooted phone that I still have but may not be able to even wake at this point. I retrieved the books from it when I retired it and am able to work with them using Calibre. This allowed me to convert them to read on my Kindle. I do not now and never had had a Nook. I still have a Barnes & Noble library with these books available, but at this point it appears the only access to them is to read them in the browser. I know of no way to download them or any new purchases I may make. What makes this relevant to me today is that at present there are some magazines available for Nook that I cannot as yet get from Amazon. Is there a way to get the .ascm file for these magazines if I were to purchase them? Any other way to download them for conversion? Dave

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Yesterday, 12:46 PM	#2
Scoob Groupie Posts: 161 Karma: 100 Join Date: Sep 2024 Location: USA Device: Voyage, K3, NST, Glow+ 2019, Glow 4, Sony Ereaders	I don't know if you can download magazines but if you have a windows computer OS 10 or 11 and can find and install Nook for Windows app version 1.11.0.4 (its been removed by BN from the Windows app store but should still be available from sideloading sites) you can now download your BN books to your computer. You'll then need Calibre and a special plugin for it so your downloaded BN book can be liberated so you can then convert to a format your kindle can load like AZW3. The steps for downloading books should be the same if your magazines are downloadable. I have no idea what format magazines will be in but PDF is near universal and I think Kindles can load that.

Yesterday, 07:52 PM	#3
dhdurgee Guru Posts: 912 Karma: 3000002 Join Date: Jun 2010 Device: K3W, PW4	The only Windows I have at present is a W7 Virtualbox that I run when there is no Linux alternative available. Is there a W7 compatible Nook reader? I dug out my ancient Android phone and to my surprise it actually works to some degree. Unfortunately it appears that its WiFi support is too old as it will not connect with my network. I have tried using USB networking as well, but it isn't working without further work on my part. When I try to open the Nook app it crashes, likely because it is trying to "phone home" and cannot do so without a network connection. Maybe I can get this working in some manner, or maybe it will not be necessary. The reason I am looking into this after all these years is that B&N now has some magazines that Amazon does not yet have. Should Amazon get their act together I will be able to get the magazines there. I already have Calibre installed and am able to download .epub books from my local library and convert them to .azw3 for use on my Kindle, so I suspect I am ready to deal with a B&N .epub provided I can actually download one. Thank you for your suggestions and any further ones you may have. Dave

Yesterday, 10:57 PM	#4
Scoob Groupie Posts: 161 Karma: 100 Join Date: Sep 2024 Location: USA Device: Voyage, K3, NST, Glow+ 2019, Glow 4, Sony Ereaders	Afaik all the old Nook for PC apps (which have win7 conpatibility) won't download anything they just open a separate browser window and you read there. Nook app for Windows supposedly can run on win 8.1. If thats true you might be able to get your magazines that way and steps should be the same or similar to using the win10/11 version I have. The phone already being rooted would make that way the easiest to retrieve the files. You might just need some router settings changed to get the phone to connect. Personally when I encounter problems with connections I ditch 5ghz and only try to use the old reliable 2.4ghz.

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