DRM Takes a Hit

[Jason Dunn]

The most-discussed news of the past week was the sudden announcement from book retailing giant Barnes &amp; Nobles <a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/index.php?topic_id=17822">that they were getting out of the eBook business</a> and customers have until December 9th to download their books. The real problem here, however, is that it likely won't be possible to reactivate the books after December 9th if customers hard reset their Pocket PCs, do a ROM upgrade, etc.<br /><br />In the words of Ed Hansberry, "If there was <i><b>ever</b></i> an acceptable argument for DRM5 encrypted eBooks, it just died." I couldn't agree more! Buying a book and then losing access to your purchase because of a few digital bits that are no longer accessible on a server is frustrating beyond words.<br /><br />Fundamentally, the real problem with DRM in its current incarnation is that it tries to tie the digital rights to a piece of <i>hardware</i> rather than to the <i>person</i> that bought it. Hardware comes and goes, but the person stays the same, so why are we tying it to hardware? All we need is an authentication system like Microsoft Passport, and once the purchased content is tied to that account, you could pick up any Pocket PC and read your eBook, sit down at any computer and listen to your own legal music, or pick up any laptop and stream your legally purchased videos. At the most basic level, the current DRM implementation is fatally flawed because it assumes that the display mechanism (the device) is unchanging. How would you feel if your documents saved on one hard drive couldn't be transferred to a new computer and opened there? <br /><br />Microsoft has expanded the number of devices that can be activated, but that only puts sugar on top of a foul-tasting mess that ultimately needs to be destroyed and built back up again from scratch. I don't begrudge content creators the ability to protect their content, but the current method takes the user out of the equation, which as demonstrated by Barnes and Noble, is a fatal step.

[Gator5000e]

I tried to download my books from B&N thinking I could store them on my computer for safe keeping. However, unlike Palm Digital, they can only be downloaded into your desktop Reader. You can not download them into a file on your computer for safe keeping. Also, 2 of the books I tried to download wouldn't even dowload into the Reader. I got a screen saying that I needed to activate my Reader. Funny thing is that my other books downloaded just fine so obviously there is no activation problems (the Reader even states it is activated). So good riddance to B&N e-books. Long live Palm Digiatl Media.

[dh]

I agree with you 100%.

I always remove the DRM from eBooks that I buy, not because I want to cheat the writer or publisher, because I want the flexibility to be able to read my book on whatever platform I choose in the future.

Who's to say that in a couple of years I will still be using PPCs as my reading devices? Linux is going to get better and even Palm with OS6 and future versions might well come up with something I want to change to. I certainly do not want to have to re-purchase books I have paid for to read on a new OS device.

MS Reader makes the whole process too dificult for many people to be able to simply purchase books, download them and read them. Look at all the problems people here had with the free ones. These are generally PPC enthusiasts who like messing around with their PPCs. Not many others are going to be bothered with all this aggravation, which must be at least part of the reason that BN.com failed.
I tried to download my books from B&N thinking I could store them on my computer for safe keeping.
You can download the files onto your hard disc. There are a few threads around with the best way to do it. Do a quick search and you should find them.

[ChristopherTD]

The DRM in MS Reader is tied to your Passport. Your copy of Reader is activated with information from your Passport.

You can read your DRM MS Reader titles on any device activated with your Passport, up to an unspecified limit of devices. The people who bought from B&N should still be able to read their books on any device that they are able to activate Reader on.

I don't like DRM myself either but I think that the withdrawal of B&N has been over-egged, even "sexed up" to use a topical phrase over here!

It is not as if MS were refusing to activate any more copies of Reader...

[SandersP]

Kill that MS reader already. It's fubar and a waste of ROM space. Same with CF .net.

[egoz]

MS Reader is an excellent case study in how to overprotect, restrict, and otherwise discourage a product's use all in the name of (caution: swear word): copyright.

Copyright Fundamentalists: TechnoTerrorists in our age

One day, just like with those ancient hardcopy magazines and books, consumers will actually be able to *easily* use the products they purchase -- and won't have to jump through a series of loops just to open a book, or "activate" a product. It will just take the erradication of Copyright Fundamentalists (RIAA is akin to alQaeda).

We're close to the end-of-the-line of copyright in the Digital Economy, having just begun to see how it is slowing down and hampering an otherwise good market (e.g., eBooks, music).

--> We need to rethink copyright, and exegete the poor ol' concept in the context of our present technology and consumers' desire for easy-use. Otherwise, trust me, the Chinese will trounce us in 10 years on a number of media fronts.

If the standards don't conform to consumer desires, the Chinese shall.
Seriously. Mark my words for 10 years hence.

.rob adams

P.S. Unionize yourselves while it's still legal.

[Jorgen]

>they can only be downloaded into your desktop Reader. You can not download them into a file on your computer for safe keeping

Eh, I have never bought any DRM5 protected ebooks but don't they end up in \My Documents\My Library as all other MS Reader files?

Jorgen

[Jason Dunn]

The DRM in MS Reader is tied to your Passport. Your copy of Reader is activated with information from your Passport.

Ok, perhaps I've misunderstood how the process works - I've never bought any DRM5-encrypted eBooks before - but you're saying that the DRM5 activation process doesn't involve B&N in any way? That as long as you download the books from B&N, you're 100% safe because when the activation process occurs on a hard-reset Pocket PC, it doesn't need to talk to the B&N server for any reason?

If that's accurate, then you're right, I misunderstood the process.

[hollis_f]

Unionize yourselves while it's still legal.
What? I didn't know they were planning on compulsory ionization! (Sorry, us chemists always have problems with that word).

[SandersP]

I like to keep all my electrons for myself thank you very much!

[KH]

My only experience in buying MSReader books from Barnes and Noble came to a screeching halt the very first day they offered the books. I bought a PPC book, but when I went to download it to my IPAQ, their system refused to do it because I did not have Reader installed and activated on my Desktop. I refused to do that, having no intention of reader a book on my desktop, and having seen no mention of that in the requirements. (That was updated fairly quickly!) After much wrangling, I did get a refund.

Given the ease and pleasure of dealing with Peanut Press/Palm Digital Media, Fictionwise and BAEN, I really saw no advantage. There are very few books of personal interest available only in MSReader .lit format. Besides, with a half dozen IPAQs of different vintages scattered around the house, and all the rough edges surrounding Passport and Activation over the last few years, I was happy to avoid the aggravation!

[danmanmayer]

I am sorry, but a system like that would be a bad invasion of my privacy. I dont want legal music with crazy DRM that makes it hard to move and listen to. Even If i purchase music i rip it to MP3 or other DRM free files. In the end if every time i read a book or listen to music or watch a movie. It check my personal account and says i have rights to that is a huge log of what i do. I don't want anyone to have or hold that much information about me. My reading habits, my music, my movies. Just think how many advertising companies would be trying to get there hands on that. You can't have any DRM that is also big brother. If i buy something give it to me and leave me alone. This DRM plan would be like buying food in a reastraunt and being followed when you take it to go. If you start to share your meal with a friend they come over and charge you an additional 2.50 for a splitting the order. If this is DRM of the future i will buy things then download the illegal easier to use version.

[Felix Torres]

The DRM in MS Reader is tied to your Passport. Your copy of Reader is activated with information from your Passport.

You can read your DRM MS Reader titles on any device activated with your Passport, up to an unspecified limit of devices. The people who bought from B&N should still be able to read their books on any device that they are able to activate Reader on.

I don't like DRM myself either but I think that the withdrawal of B&N has been over-egged, even "sexed up" to use a topical phrase over here!

It is not as if MS were refusing to activate any more copies of Reader...

A lot of misinformation is being bandied about in these posts about B&N getting out of ebooks.

A lot of folks seem to think it has *something* to do with MS or MS Reader, or even DRM.

It doesn't.

B&N is getting out because they're not making much if any money off their online sales and are looking to cut costs.
eBooks was an easy place to cut because they got into it way too early and with way too high expectations.

The fault thus lies with B&N and, to a lesser degree, the publishers whose product they were distributing, for an incomplete/inaccurate understanding of the state of the ebook business.

They will NOT be missed.

When ebooks finally take off in a big way in about two-three years, maybe B&N will get in again. How well they do then will depend on how they treated their customers this time around.
But that is a B&N problem, not an end-user problem.

Certainly not a Microsoft problem.
Or A pocket PC problem or a MSReader problem.

Anybody screaming about not being able to access their Reader books most likely hasn't actually *bought* any DRM-ed Reader books or has poorly managed their PASSPORT ebook accounts.

For the record:

1- MS READER books do not *have* to be DRM'ed. Lots of quality material is available unprotected. Witness the usual suspects, BAEN, Black Mask, etc.

2- Those books that *are* protected, have the nature of the protection assigned by the publisher and/or vendor, not MS. Ranting about evil wicked MS is a waste of hot air; MS offers the tools that allow for protected and unprotected books. Scream at the publishers.

3- MS is not the only Reader developer providing for *optional* DRM, Mobipocket, Peanut Press (or whatever they're called this week), ADOBE and Mobipocket all offer their own forms of copy protection on their ebook formats. Some folks seem to like the Peanute Press approach of encoding the buyer's credit card info in the book; the same technique is possible with Reader and other formats. The publishers/vendors choose not to implement it. Their call, not MS's.

4- Anybody who expects mainstream publishers to provide dirt cheap unprotected copies of their books for a buck a pop is dreaming. If nothing else, the writers would sue them for publishing malpractice. :-)

5- The problems with ebooks are a function of the small, almost nonexistent size of the *paying* customer base and the even smaller installed base of reader devicess. The former will never be solved as long as ebooks are read mostly by techies and the latter awaits the appearance of cheap, high-quality, lightweight screens. Judging by the new Panasonic SIGMA ebook reader, we may start to see viable devices in the US sometime in late 2004. Allow two to three years for the general public to discover them and learn to love them and you're really talking 2007 before the general market ebook business will be big enough to be profitable. And that is assuming some form of DRM. Without DRM it will never happen. Period.

Until then, except for specialty niches, the ebook business is a money-losing, til-the-soil-for-future-profits kind of business; Microsoft can afford to support such a business and so can Adobe and, aparently, AMAZON; B&N, however, obviously had no stomach for three more years of this, just like GEMSTAR-TVGuide had no more stomach for the losses incurred by *their* screwed-up attempt to corner the ebook market.

On the other hand, companies with realistic expectations are staying the course; AMAZON, Mobipocket, the Peanut guys, Adobe, Microsoft, and others. They are all biding their time, positioning themselves for the day when all the pieces come together and the market takes off.

It will take time, though, because as experience has shown us, nobody makes money selling content to techies, and as long as the only viable ebook readers are computers of one kind or another (Tablet and Pcket PCs, laptops and PALM OS, devices) the bulk of the users *#will* techies and the majority of techies refuse to pay *market prices* for content.

Period.

They may rant and rave about DRM or format openess or the devil Gates, but the simple truth is that, as a group, they refuse to *pay* for content.

Even stuff that is available in open, unprotected formats at reasonable prices, like the BAEN books gets ripped off, anyway!!!

Not that it matters in the long-haul; the power of the concept is inescapable.
Ebooks *will* happen.

They will just happen despite the techies, not because of them.

That'll be two cents; now I'm going off for some quality time with my Jornada and CROWN OF SLAVES.

/Rant mode off/

[GadgetDave]

The DRM in MS Reader is tied to your Passport. Your copy of Reader is activated with information from your Passport.

Ok, perhaps I've misunderstood how the process works - I've never bought any DRM5-encrypted eBooks before - but you're saying that the DRM5 activation process doesn't involve B&N in any way? That as long as you download the books from B&N, you're 100% safe because when the activation process occurs on a hard-reset Pocket PC, it doesn't need to talk to the B&N server for any reason?

If that's accurate, then you're right, I misunderstood the process.

I believe the DRM5 is applied at the point of download - that if you take those files and back them up, then you can read them on any reader activated with that passport into the future - that the passport is the "public key" in a PK-encryption (oversimplified, I'm sure). But that's just what I thought I understood, I don't know that for sure.

So if you hard reset, and re-activate with the same passport, they'll still work. I think. :|

[T-Will]

RIP MS Reader/DRM... :byebye:

Long live Palm Reader! :clap:

[dma1965]

The DRM in MS Reader is tied to your Passport. Your copy of Reader is activated with information from your Passport.

Ok, perhaps I've misunderstood how the process works - I've never bought any DRM5-encrypted eBooks before - but you're saying that the DRM5 activation process doesn't involve B&N in any way? That as long as you download the books from B&N, you're 100% safe because when the activation process occurs on a hard-reset Pocket PC, it doesn't need to talk to the B&N server for any reason?

If that's accurate, then you're right, I misunderstood the process.

I believe the DRM5 is applied at the point of download - that if you take those files and back them up, then you can read them on any reader activated with that passport into the future - that the passport is the "public key" in a PK-encryption (oversimplified, I'm sure). But that's just what I thought I understood, I don't know that for sure.

So if you hard reset, and re-activate with the same passport, they'll still work. I think. :|

That is 100% correct.

[Jerry Raia]

This all seems like an awful lot of work just to read a book. :grumble:

[Chris Spera]

That is 100% correct.

That's not entirely accurate. MS indicates that while this should work from hard reset to hard reset, there is a very REAL chance that you will use one of your quota counts during a hard reset. You have to be very careful; and there's no way for you to prevent it from happening. If the Passport server sees your device as a different gadget today than yesterday, it will decrement your quota without letting you know.

This is one of the biggest problems with Microsoft's implementation of DRM. I should be able to activate any device with my passport id and password, quotas be damned. I hate Reader quotas. I have a number of devices and may use any one at any time, and will want all of my stuff available to me, including my eBooks. The way MS has this set up, you may not have that option without asking for official dispensation (an increase to your quota count).

I've got over 50MB in Premium MS Reader eBooks. I love MS Reader on my PPC, and won't use another eBook reader. I don't think I should have to waste my RAM on another reader when one is provided to me in ROM.

Kind Regards,


Christopher Spera

[surur]

It will take time, though, because as experience has shown us, nobody makes money selling content to techies, and as long as the only viable ebook readers are computers of one kind or another (Tablet and Pocket PCs, laptops and PALM OS, devices) the bulk of the users *#will* techies and the majority of techies refuse to pay *market prices* for content.


Tell that to the Star Wars/ Star Trek Franchise. There are many industries that cater specifically to techies. Look at all the technical books (and how much they cost). The problem is not the attitude of techies, its just that they are smarter about ways to get things for free (and make is easy for everyone else). In that they are simply human, and should not be discriminated against as a group.

Ive never had the impression that people who do DRM properly, like peanut press, were suffering financially, losing money and facing foreclosure. Maybe its because, being a small outfit, they were focused, and were abe to realise the savings possible due to the technology, while still providing a wide range of tittles to the audience.

E-books will soon become much more popular when phones get bigger screens and smarter, in fact I see a big opportunity here for a smart OS maker, e-books for smartphones... time to patent the idea... :idea:

Surur

[mobileMike]

My opinion is that e-content (music, books, movies ...) should be treated as a product which can be freely used, trasferred, loaned, or sold. This could happen only if a program could pass the access right of the content to another program.

First check if second program has a locked copy of content

If yes, lock local copy and pass key to second program. Else, copy "locked" content to second program, lock local content, and pass key.

It should be easy enough to select a port (COM, IrDA) to transfer the content and/or the key.

What would be cool is if I could have an e-content data store which all my devices (stereo, tv, pda, phone, desktop, ...) were connected to.

All my fixed devices (TV, Stereo, deskop) would use the data store directly so only the keys would need to be transferred to/from the device using the content.

The data store would also have connections for my portable devices (phone, pda, music player) pushing a single button on the portable device or a button on the data source corresponding to the connection would transfer all keys to/from the portable device. The data would have to be individually selected before the key transfer since portable devices have either limited memory or functionality (music player only).

The content could only be used by one program at a time similar to a physical product.

The keys is a unique code identifying that specific copy of the content. When a program receives the key it is combined with a code specific to the program using the content so it can be written persistently local to the program using the content. When the key needs to be transferred, the code is read and the program specific code is filtered leaving just the key to the e-content. The key is tranferred between programs using normal public/private key algorithms so the connection can not be "sniffed" easily.

One more thing, the key is not tied to me. No Passcode, Credit Card number, ....

I am not a big fan of DRM, but this would be acceptable to me.

- mike
-------------------------
http://www.connecteduser.com

[PPCRules]

I got to thinking after the earlier post on this: this should be a wake up call for all of us.

Example: I often come here to look up info I have seen in the past. I don't make a copy of it when I first see it. I use this site as an online filing cabinet. I come back for the info when I come across an application (sorry, Jason, for burning up the bandwidth repeatedly).

Now, say Jason wakes up one day, has a couple of little mouths to feed by then, is sick of all the hassle of running this site, goes out and gets a real job and shuts the site down. Bam. My filing cabinet is gone, along with all the info I know was in there someplace.

So, as much as I don't like to, I should be making a local copy of anything I feel may be valuable at some time in the future. It would become a mess real quick (and never mind the copyright issues). Which leads to an off-topic question: Does anyone know a [free, of course] tool that would help organize that mess?

[Jereboam]

I love MS Reader on my PPC

I'm sorry, but in my opinion MS Reader is a cobbled together marketing ploy, originally offered as a "my look what you can do with your Pocket PC" kind of thing.

For one thing, it is clearly not optimised for use on a small screen - the blank margins around the text are enormous and ill-suited to maximise the potential of a small device.

The logic of having a landscape mode is inescapable and yet, it is not present in MS Reader.

The logic of having a full screen mode is equally obvious, yet again it is not present.

MS Reader has not been updated in ANY meaningful way since inception.

And yet they expect use to put up with frankly quite inconvenent DRM implementation and limit the use of the premium books that we have all put a lot of money into.

I am completely unsurprised that ebooks have not gained more widespread acceptance.

On a slightly different tack, I personally think that biometrics must come to play their role in DRM processes. After all, bar some sort of accident, my thumb's always going to be around, right? Unlike Hotmail accounts, credit card numbers and PIDs.

J

[gorkon280]

That is 100% correct.

That's not entirely accurate. MS indicates that while this should work from hard reset to hard reset, there is a very REAL chance that you will use one of your quota counts during a hard reset. You have to be very careful; and there's no way for you to prevent it from happening. If the Passport server sees your device as a different gadget today than yesterday, it will decrement your quota without letting you know.

This is one of the biggest problems with Microsoft's implementation of DRM. I should be able to activate any device with my passport id and password, quotas be damned. I hate Reader quotas. I have a number of devices and may use any one at any time, and will want all of my stuff available to me, including my eBooks. The way MS has this set up, you may not have that option without asking for official dispensation (an increase to your quota count).

I've got over 50MB in Premium MS Reader eBooks. I love MS Reader on my PPC, and won't use another eBook reader. I don't think I should have to waste my RAM on another reader when one is provided to me in ROM.

Kind Regards,


Christopher Spera

Hmm....lessee...on my old Toshiba before I gave it up, I had to have done at least 4-5 Hard Resets. NEVER had an issue activating ANY MS Reader. And if you do, you can probably discuss it with Microsoft. Also, the code the use for iding your device resides IN ROM(or in another non writeable space). This can't change unless Microsoft or your device manufacturer does the change. How can it POSSIBLY be identified differently?

MS Reader being bashed is just BS. Sure, DRM makes things a PITA sometimes, but I think that Microsoft has done the right things in this case and I have never had an issue reactivating existing devices, PC's or laptops. Activation has worked everytime. This is just like people bitching about WPA (Windows Product Activation). I have never had a problem with it either through 2-3 PC's, many software products and a couple laptops. Only one of these machines used a non-WPA version of XP.

B&N is not selling ebooks because they have not made money on it. Plain and simple. This has more to do with a business decision then it does with DRM.

[michie]

After using 3 readers with DRM (PDM, MS Reader and Mobipocket), I've come to the conclusion that Mobipocket has the most restrictive DRM, even more so than MS Reader. Mobipocket ebooks are tied to a Personal ID (PID) that is unique to a device. If you want to read your ebooks on a new device, you need to check your device's PID, go to the site where your books are stored, enter your PID, and redownload your books. This means that if B&N had carried Mobipocket ebooks, your ebooks would only be usable on your current devices once B&N closed it's ebook division. MS Reader ebooks are tied to your Passport, so as long as you have access to your Passport, you can read your ebooks.

Here are my opinions on the 3 readers:
1) Mobipocket - Most attractive interface. I use this for my non-secure ebooks from Fictionwise.com. It can do full-screen, optional margins, customizable fonts, background, etc. Also supports the most platforms. However, I'll never buy a secure Mobipocket ebook because of the reasons above.

2) MS Reader - Clunky interface and slow. I've downloaded all the free ebooks in MS's promotion but haven't finished one because the reading experience compares so badly to other readers. DRM is only slightly better than Mobipocket's. New users have the most difficulty as shown by all the activation problems with each weekly release of free ebooks from MS. I had activation problems myself (download wouldn't appear in library) but eventually found a solution. Many users will give up on ebooks before then. Also, I don't like that I'm limited to 8 devices or that I can't use my ebooks on a Palm if I bought one someday.

3) Palm Reader - My main reader for secure ebooks. Not as attractive as Mobipocket, but getting there. The latest release of the PocketPC version showed many improvements, so I'm pretty optimistic. I only hope that PDM will add support for other platforms, such as Symbian. The only reason they support Pocket PC is because they did so when they were still PeanutPress. PDM's DRM is the most consumer-friendly by far. As long as long as I have an ebook, my credit card number and a Palm Reader install file, I can read my ebook. No dependence on Passport activation or PID activation and redownloading of ebooks. The fact that I can update my card number online if I choose to is only a plus. And I don't even need to enter my card number each time I open a new book; as long as a book with the same card number is open when you open your new book, you won't be asked for your card number again.

To summarize, Mobipocket's advantages are usability and multi-platform support. PDM's is consumer-friendly DRM. MS Reader's is...uhm, that they can be cracked and turned into non-secure ebooks. In the end, I purchase secure Palm Reader ebooks because usability and multi-platform support can be changed and improved, but you're stuck with DRM permanently.

And on being able to crack MS Reader's books, I choose not to buy them because I'd rather give my money to someone I think is doing something right than someone I can take advantage of because he's making a mess of things.

[ctmagnus]

On a slightly different tack, I personally think that biometrics must come to play their role in DRM processes. After all, bar some sort of accident, my thumb's always going to be around, right? Unlike Hotmail accounts, credit card numbers and PIDs.

J

Unfortunately, the digits are quite often the first to go missing (and the most likely, in my experience) if something bad happens.

[Jonathan1]

Fundamentally, the real problem with DRM in its current incarnation is that it tries to tie the digital rights to a piece of hardware rather than to the person that bought it. Hardware comes and goes, but the person stays the same, so why are we tying it to hardware? All we need is an authentication system like Microsoft Passport, and once the purchased content is tied to that account, you could pick up any Pocket PC and read your eBook, sit down at any computer and listen to your own legal music, or pick up any laptop and stream your legally purchased videos.



Lets keep this straight. (No offense to your post Jason’s it’s a good one.) This is Microsoft’s Digital Rights Management that is the problem. There are plenty of other solutions out there that don’t depend on calling home to mama, that work perfectly fine. iTunes, PeanutPress, etc. Someone please enlighten me as to what overwhelmingly compelling reason there is for Passport and authentication on MS’s servers. Forget ease of use. PeanutPress has show us that you can do ease of use without needing a Passportish method of authentication. The only reason I can think of is to keep Microsoft as a relevant factor in the future. Tie everything into Passport and what do you have? Dependency.
Its MS draconian methodology that blows gale force. And to be harshly honest the way Microsoft is with discarding technology when something shiny and new is thought up would make me highly question if DRM of today would even work in 3 years. This is why dependency sucks. My Palm reader books. The company could, god forbid, fold tomorrow. They could take all their server down. Any mention of Peanutpress could be wiped from the face of the net and I can still install all be e-books on my desktop, my 2 laptops, and my Pocket PC. Repeat after me. Dependency is a BAD thing.

[Marc Zimmermann]

The real problem here, however, is that it likely won't be possible to reactivate the books after December 9th if customers hard reset their Pocket PCs, do a ROM upgrade, etc.
You DON'T need to (re)activate books. They're readable unchanged on any device activated with the Passport ID that was used to buy them.

You get a new activation grant automatically every 180 days, which should account for phasing in and out of devices by normal customers. When you still need another activation earlier, you gan get it easily by requesting it with an explanation of replacing hardware.

The major problem with DRM5 LIT books is actually the longevity of the LIT format.

[Marc Zimmermann]

That's not entirely accurate. MS indicates that while this should work from hard reset to hard reset, there is a very REAL chance that you will use one of your quota counts during a hard reset. You have to be very careful; and there's no way for you to prevent it from happening. If the Passport server sees your device as a different gadget today than yesterday, it will decrement your quota without letting you know.
I've done so many hard resets across various ROM versions without any problem, I don't believe this. The unique device ID doesn't change unless you replace the mainboard.

[Elad Yakobowicz]

I made an ebook purchase a few days before their announcement.

I hate you, Barnes and Noble.

[jsjxyz]

1. Palm Format has the best reasonable protection for ebook, even there is no crack available, I will not be worried that the store closed its shop. The Palm ebook will never (knock on wood) become absolut.
2. MS Reader is easily crackable, all the ebooks that I purchased, I took off the protections with Convert Lit 1.4, so I will not be worried in the future if the store that I purchased the ebooks from, is Barned like UnNoble Store.
3. Then using my free 30MB Yahoo Briefcase, I upload all my favorite cracked MS ebooks and Palm ebooks there, so I will always have the ebooks backup available online. If you run out of the space open a new Yahoo! account.
"remember, do not pass the cracked ebooks, use them responsibly for your right as an honest buyer."

[Jorgen]

>1. Palm Format has the best reasonable protection for ebook, even there is no crack available, I will not be worried that the store closed its shop. The Palm ebook will never (knock on wood) become absolut.

Jerry, this is only true if you stick to platforms supported by Palm Digital Media. They will of course only support popular platforms. You must like I have plenty of pbooks 20+ years old; don't you want to be able to read your ebooks 20 years from now, no matter which platform *you* fancy?

Jorgen

[Ed Hansberry]

>1. Palm Format has the best reasonable protection for ebook, even there is no crack available, I will not be worried that the store closed its shop. The Palm ebook will never (knock on wood) become absolut.

Jerry, this is only true if you stick to platforms supported by Palm Digital Media. They will of course only support popular platforms. You must like I have plenty of pbooks 20+ years old; don't you want to be able to read your ebooks 20 years from now, no matter which platform *you* fancy?

Jorgen
I don't know that that is reasonable. 20 years ago, it was DOS, CP/M and the Apple II. 20 years from now? Who knows.

[davidspalding]

I tried to download my books from B&N thinking I could store them on my computer for safe keeping. However, unlike Palm Digital, they can only be downloaded into your desktop Reader. You can not download them into a file on your computer for safe keeping. Also, 2 of the books I tried to download wouldn't even dowload into the Reader. I got a screen saying that I needed to activate my Reader. Funny thing is that my other books downloaded just fine so obviously there is no activation problems (the Reader even states it is activated). So good riddance to B&N e-books. Long live Palm Digiatl Media.

A utility called Convert LIT (illegal in the U.S.A. due to DMCA) takes care of this for secure Reader files. And publishers wonder why there's anyone even interested in such a cracking tool. Jason's initial article succinctly answers that question.

[davidspalding]

That is 100% correct.
I've got over 50MB in Premium MS Reader eBooks. I love MS Reader on my PPC, and won't use another eBook reader. I don't think I should have to waste my RAM on another reader when one is provided to me in ROM.Installing a better reader in RAM is about as hard as rolling out of bed. Just about every other ebook reader improves on MS Reader's limited set of features.

Alas, Mobipocket limits you to two PIDs per secure title, which is why I buy very few secure .PRC titles. ... Only when they're really cheap.

[davidspalding]

After using 3 readers with DRM (PDM, MS Reader and Mobipocket), I've come to the conclusion that Mobipocket has the most restrictive DRM, even more so than MS Reader. Mobipocket ebooks are tied to a Personal ID (PID) that is unique to a device. If you want to read your ebooks on a new device, you need to check your device's PID, go to the site where your books are stored, enter your PID, and redownload your books. This means that if B&N had carried Mobipocket ebooks, your ebooks would only be usable on your current devices once B&N closed it's ebook division. MS Reader ebooks are tied to your Passport, so as long as you have access to your Passport, you can read your ebooks.Here, here. I'm really miffed that I can't read my $50 worth of Oxford Press references on my home PC, work PC and PDA. Not too much to ask for. Clearly a grotesque oversight on the Mobipocket crew, and why I won't buy any more of their software.

Another gripe: version 1.0 of their Office plug-ins wouldn't uninstall. I asked how to complete uninstallation. The answer was a rude shrug and, "Yeah, we know of the problem, next version will fix." Um, yeah, okay, thanks for polluting my computer, best of luck selling your next version, buttheads. >:(

[davidspalding]

1. Palm Format has the best reasonable protection for ebook, even there is no crack available, I will not be worried that the store closed its shop. The Palm ebook will never (knock on wood) become absolut.
2. MS Reader is easily crackable, all the ebooks that I purchased, I took off the protections with Convert Lit 1.4, so I will not be worried in the future if the store that I purchased the ebooks from, is Barned like UnNoble Store.
3. Then using my free 30MB Yahoo Briefcase, I upload all my favorite cracked MS ebooks and Palm ebooks there, so I will always have the ebooks backup available online. If you run out of the space open a new Yahoo! account.
"remember, do not pass the cracked ebooks, use them responsibly for your right as an honest buyer."

Arrr, me maties, here be a consumer who is using eBooks to his advantage!