For a fair number of years I have been a writer for Palm Addict, one of the oldest blogs on the web, founded in 1999. With the advent of the iPhone I became their iPhone Editor, hence my badge to the left.
P.J. Arts is Palm Addict’s Smartphone and Treo Editor, and a real technophile. He has been in technology sales for many years. I mention this because Peter is not one to reject a technology lightly. Recently he had to switch from the Palm platform to Rim’s Blackberry for work reasons. He posted the following on Palm Addict today:
“I am buying no more ebooks. I was very late coming to the eBook party; and now wish I hadn’t come at all. Despite having to squint, and not having the wonderful feel, aroma and experience of paper books, I found eBooks to be a good idea for reading in bed (although that isn’t a good idea if you need sleep), or on a train/plane. In fact, I bought quite a few eBooks (and spent quite a bit of money on them) over the past 18 months. Never again! None of these books are convertible to the readers supported by Blackberry. That means I have to buy a Palm PDA if I want to read my library of eBooks. With a regular book, I can read it no matter what technology I am using at that particular time. Something as important as books MUST have a standard format, otherwise you run the risk of ending up like me: lots of great content (and money) tied up on an SD card…and no way to access it. So, tomorrow I am off to the book store, and will buy Philip Pullman’s “His Dark Materials” trilogy (if you haven’t already seen “The Golden Compass”, go treat yourself…its a cracking good movie). I will take my BOOKS into my den, turn on some Christmas tunes, and curl up in my leather recliner for a nice old-fashioned read. eBooks? Bah, humbug!”
If someone as sophisticated as Peter throws up his hands, what is the general public going to do?
I agree. My sister finally persuaded me to go on Fictionwise, and I was delighted to see a section on Star Trek books. I had read many of these as a teen, and thought I would pick one up as a nostalgia read since they were only $3-4 each. Alas, they are not available in multiformat, only in three “secure” formats none of which I have readers for—the only reader I have on my Alphasmart Dana has been specially optimized for its larger screen, so I don’t want to a) clutter up my limited disk space with other software and b) use that software to read in a tiny window when I have that whole screen available to me. So I just didn’t buy anything 🙂 Seriously, are they that worried that someone is going to pirate a seven-year-old glorified fanfic that by their own estimate isn’t worth more than the $3 they are selling it for? I just can’t believe that piracy of almost decade-old Star Trek novels is that big a problem that they’d risk losing $4 sales just to lock them up…
It’s good too see bad experiences with DRM published. Anyone reading this would be leery of buying any form of DRM-protected books… and that’s exactly what we need to send the message to publishers to put away their misguided fears and start trusting people. Personally, I think the watermarking technique Pragmatic Programmers employs is a great balanced solution.
Steve Jobs argued against DRM on the premise that there the majority of music is available DRM-free on CD. That argument doesn’t cross over to eBooks, because ripping a CD is easy, scanning a book is not. We need other arguments for why DRM is a bad idea. Though to publishers, perhaps Peter’s return to p-books is just fine with them?
Peter J. Arts said “I am buying no more ebooks.”
This is a natural reaction to the aggravating barriers erected by DRM (Digital Restrictions Management). Yet not buying e-books may be an overly broad reaction. Perhaps the writer meant that he would not buy any more DRM-encrusted e-books?
Fictionwise offers some e-books in “multiFormat” which the website describes as “unencrypted eBooks that are available in a variety of formats for handheld devices and computers”. After an e-book is purchased it is placed on a personal “bookshelf” and it can be downloaded in multiple formats. Recently I found that an e-book I purchased at Fictionwise was now available in a “Kindle Compatible” format. TeleRead just had an article about this positive development. (Unfortunately many e-books are only offered with mandatory DRM.)
Here is a list of the formats available (and sizes) for the e-book that I purchased:
It might be impossible to “future proof” any e-book obtained today, but a wide selection of DRM-free formats gives the owner a fighting chance to migrate to new formats.
How about, a simple seal, a logo free to all who provide un-DRMed ebooks, something distinct (in colour and B&W) that can be placed on covers and title pages.
Outsell the bastards!
Or he could read them on a Pocket PC/Windows Mobile device, a Symbian smart phone, a Windows desktop, or a Mac Desktop. EReader has software for these platforms as well as for the Palm.
Would it be better if EReader had a version out there for the Blackberry or Linux as well? Sure. Is Mr. Arts’s problem a royal pain for him? Absolutely. Should the tower of eBabel fall? Yep, and the sooner the better.
But that said, Mr. Arts really isn’t in bad shape here. He’s not nearly as shafted as he would be trying to move his purchases from a Sony to a Kindle, for instance. Any Palm or PocketPC/Windows Mobile handheld will let him keep reading his books (as will his desktop PC or Mac), and he won’t have to report any extra device IDs to MobiPocket or Adobe or Microsoft. Nor will he have to spend $300 and up for the device. Even the $99 Z22 will handle his ebooks. In purchasing EReader format titles, he picked up books with the least restrictive DRM there is. Software from EReader to let him read his books on the platforms listed is free to download. His books are not lost to him because his company switched to the Blackberry.
And, um, 18 months of purchases? I’ve been buying from EReader for nearly 8 years, and reading my books on different devices, with no DRM-related problems at all. Replacing the occasional failed handheld or upgrading was hassle-free where the ebooks were concerned. But I didn’t start buying ebooks until I had a Palm handheld that belonged to me and not to my employer. Did Mr. Arts actually buy his books to read on devices that he didn’t own? If so, that’s a greater part of his current problem than DRM.
EReader’s DRM is as user-friendly as DRM is likely to get until it’s finally scrapped for good. While I understand that much of the ebook community would like DRM buried with a stake through its heart (and I wouldn’t shed any tears over its death myself), it seems to me that when DRM is done with some consideration of customer convenience as it is with the EReader format, it couldn’t hurt to acknowledge it now and then.
Bests to all,
–tr
I think he gave up to easily. There is plenty of DRM-free content out there, in multiple formats. Heck, there’s plenty of **free** DRM-free content out there in multiple formats. You may not be able to get “His Dark Materials” for the Blackberry, but Project Gutenberg (or Manbooks or Memoware or…dare I say it…Baen) probably has a few cracking good reads for him.
Let’s see…first started downloading ebooks for the Newton and still going…
But Fred I would be more than a little displeased if my books just suddenly disappeared. And it presumes a great deal of fore-knowledge to even consider that DRM should be an issue, consumers should be able to buy items that are fit for service, he has been gipped and who can blame him for walking away.
I have been collecting free material for some years, on the basis that by either printing them, or when readers developed I could read them. Aside from the few I have committed to paper, I have not read any of them, and I have several hundred. One may call that obsessional concern, it is anything but normal.
I suggest that the proposal above, of having a seal for non-DRM works would help, at least it would call attention to the difference.
I agree that giving up eBooks is an over-reaction. Sort of like giving up reading because we went from universal Latin to writing pesky books in the vernacular of the day back in Dante’s time. (Or maybe like giving up on buying software because that Mac program you bought doesn’t work when you move to a Windows machine).
Still, I think everyone here has valid points. A big problem with DRM is that it isn’t universal. Books protected for one platform are difficult to move to other platforms, meaning that your current purchase isn’t available to you in the future. David has been pushing for interoperable DRM within ePub which is a good goal. In the meantime, a no DRM logo sounds like a great idea. Anyone want to volunteer their artistic skills?
Rob Preece
Publisher, http://www.BooksForABuck.com
PJ Arts is one of the few tech people who I can trust:
http://mikecane.wordpress.com/2007/04/18/the-reviewer-i-can-trust-gets-mad-at-palm/
I think he’s being hasty. He should do what most honest ebook buyers do. Buy the DRM copy so the writer is paid. They go onto the Darknet and get the DRM-stripped copy to enable reading on different devices. (Yes, not always possible… but I’d say he has a good chance to find DRM-free replacements for much of his elibrary.)
Look, I think that most people are honest. Let us keep things real. There has to be trust. Simple as that. Don’t let the few ruin it for the rest. Point said
Joanna wrote:
“Seriously, are they that worried that someone is going to pirate a seven-year-old glorified fanfic that by their own estimate isn’t worth more than the $3 they are selling it for? I just can’t believe that piracy of almost decade-old Star Trek novels is that big a problem that they’d risk losing $4 sales just to lock them up…”
Just to make clear, it is the publisher that forces FictionWise to do this, and yes, the publisher is very worried about that.
And Star Trek is a great example of the failure of DRM. There are plenty of places on the Internet where you can download pirated versions of every Star Trek novel ever published, completely stripped of DRM.
So the people into warez who are interested already have these. All they’re doing by DRM-ing them is pissing off people like Joanna.
BTW, something else that is very annoying — for whatever reason, occasionally there are series of books on Fictionwise that are say 1, 2, 3 where 1 and 3 are available in DRMed Mobipocket, but #2 is not!!! WTF?? First ran across this with a series of Buffy novels where the key novel was only available in DRM-ed PDF or something like that.
It is crude, any suggestions would be welcome, but here is draft logo:
http://members.iinet.net.au/~greg.schofield/ebook/example%20unchained.png
I get a ‘cannot be displayed error.’ Can you check and repost?
Rob Preece
Publisher, http://www.BooksForABuck.com
Most people would rather buy a legal copy (as they would with MP3 files) to avoid going to the illegal download sites and getting their computers infected with adware viruses or giving out email addresses to be sold on to spammers.
Better still, why not encrypt in such a way that the file is protected for the first 6 months when sales are hot, and then becomes “open access” after that time so it can be stored on a CD/DVD? (And/or converted to newer formats)
Sorry BooksForABuck I just fixed the file.
It could also incorporate the file format being used. Thus the seal would be the place to look for fundamental information, in the case of PDF – the page size as well.
The artwork is mine, so we have no problem promoting the seal, perhaps investing the copyright as a TM to some e-book organization. If people don’t like the design changes should be easy (within the limits of my ability).
“But Fred I would be more than a little displeased if my books just suddenly disappeared.”
I’m a little puzzled where you got that from my statement…but I would agree. One ePublisher that I had purchased stuff from went belly-up, so if anything ever happens to my back-ups, I’m screwed. Hence my suggestions for Baen, Manybooks, Memoware, Gutenberg. No DRM.
Of course, paper books can vanish. Or get flooded out, sigh.
My apologies Fred. I believe very strongly that the readers of e-books should not have to worry about the permanency of their purchases.
I am sure most of those buying ebooks at the moment, new to the area, will just assume that if it is working on their present device, it will on future devices. And that a vendor may change their policies, or go out of business, probably appears to them as something irrelevant to the longevity of what they have bought.
We know better, but many do not,the smoke and mirrors of what is being actually done with DRM keeps most potential customers in the dark.
Arguably DRM publishers may be leaving themselves liable, they can explain all they need to about DRM, but do they warn of the likely consequences?
The consequences are that due to no fault of the customer their books may become unreadable at any time.
Spontaneous literary combustion.
I wanted to address a few misconceptions about my
situation that were included in the above post:
1) “That my devices were provided by my company, so I shouldn’t complain”
A: All of my devices are my own, and paid for with my own funds. My move to a Blackberry is because my job duties now include occasional travel to Europe. That meant going with a platform that would utilize my preferred network (Sprint EvDO), be unlocked, and work in Europe as well. Despite many shortcomings, the Blackberry 8830 was (and is) my best option
_ _ _ _ _ _
2) “I can view my eReader content on a PC, or Palm OS or WinMo OS device.”
A: Hello? The only use I have for eBooks is that they are portable, and that I could read them on my mobile device. What kind of logic is there in either being anchored to my PC in order to read a book I purchased; or, paying for a Palm or WinMo PDA in order to read these books?
_ _ _ _ _ _
3) “There’s plenty of DRM-free content out there…”
A: Uhhh…so what? I purchased books that I wanted to add to my library. I paid for them, and now I can’t gain access to my purchases without buying hardware to do so. I read for my pleasure…and, I only purchased eBooks, for their convenience on my converged device. I simply can’t be bothered having to check what formats and platforms are/are not supported when I buy a book…that completely negates the convenience aspect, and its main value to me.
_ _ _ _ _ _
4: “He should do what most honest ebook buyers do. Buy the DRM copy so the writer is paid.”
A: I did buy the DRM copy.
_ _ _ _ _ _
BOTTOM LINE:
When buying a book, no one should have to ever consider that it is tied to a proprietary format. The expectation has been set for centuries that when you buy a book, pamphlet, magazine, etc. that it is YOUR property. I would have no beef if the eBook publisher provided allowance for the transfer of your property to another platform. However, they insist that you buy the same books a second time, in order to view them on a different OS.
Spin it anyway you want…talk about finding pirated versions…park your ass in front of your PC for hours in order to read a book. That’s your choice.
I bought books, and cannot read them, unless I park myself at my PC, or buy a device that will serve no purpose other then to let me read books I already purchased. That’s wrong, and I won’t play that game anymore.
Hi
I totally understand you predicament. For our customers in a similar situation we would give them a file that is compatible with their new reader for free. The copyright is on the written word not the medium and in the case where we could verify that a customer had bought a given book in a given format, then it only seems fair that we do this. After all, technology changes so fast.
Maybe you should contact whoever you bought your ebooks from and ask them. You may be pleasantly surprised.
Good Luck.
Lyndon
Hi Greg,
Thanks for putting the logo together. When I get back to my desk, I’ll give it a try on my site and see if I get some positive responses.
I truly believe in paying for content, but I also agree that DRM, as currently implemented, has huge problems. I hope David’s wishes for an interoperable ePub standard come to fruition because the problem of piracy is serious.
Until something workable that protects the consumer is available, I don’t plan to offer DRM on my site.
Rob Preece
Publisher, http://www.BooksForABuck.com
I sort of agree about the DRM stuff, but there is no way I’m giving up on ebooks. Seriously though, before he gives up, maybe he should buy a dedicated ebook reading device? No wonder it was too small to see. You either need really good (young) eyes to read on a palm or iPhone or you need a REAL ebook reading device such as the ebookwise-1150, Sony eReader or the Kindle. If you are ready to give up ebooks after using one of THOSE ebook readers, then you obviously just weren’t an ebook adapter to begin with. 🙂
P.S. You can pry my eBookwise1150/DT-375/Sony eReader/Kindle from my cold dead hands. That’s the only way I will part with ebooks.
G’day Rob,
My logo was just a draft, I have since then made several versions, and most a lot less bulky than the first.
Seeing you are interested in such a graphic device, perhaps I can send some of the other drafts to you soon.
Write to me at greg.schofield@iinet.net.au
I too am a great believer in paying for literature, if for no other reason than providing income to good authors so they keep writing – of course the issue is bigger than that.
DRM I fear will destroy a market just starting to gain popularity and may well set things back for years as people learn they have only leased their reading, and in some places paying close to the p-book price.
All the best, let me know what you think, and what you would like to change in the logos. If it catches on it will help a bit at least.
However, the logo must be good and I am no graphic artist. But thanks for taking an interest in it, if we get something you are truly satisfied, I will hawk it about as best I can.
All the best, Greg
It’s been a long time since you’ve heard from me, Dave, because I, too, have given up ebooks. I read only ebooks for years, but then switched devices, etc., etc. Recently, we’ve converted all our computers to Linux and are even more out in the wilderness. So I’ve joined BookMooch and read pbooks, more or less for free. The ebook market will have a hard time getting me back, which is a shame: I loved my ebooks, but not the costs.
Meanwhile, you might like to know that Nick continues his campaign to get recognition for his system for protecting author’s rights while preserving fair use for the public.
>>>I simply can’t be bothered having to check what formats and platforms are/are not supported when I buy a book…that completely negates the convenience aspect, and its main value to me.
This is what Rothman has been fighting for, for years. The end of eBabel. Imagine if you had to check a book’s compatibility with your eye’s iris, retina, pigmentation, etc, before buying it.
>>>4: “He should do what most honest ebook buyers do. Buy the DRM copy so the writer is paid.”
>>>A: I did buy the DRM copy.
You do me an injustice here by shaving off what I offered as a solution. You go on to dismiss that solution later on, so be it. But at least there is an out so you don’t lose your investment entirely and permanently.
The bigger failure of DRM is that it doesn’t work. All it takes is one person to break it, then the whole thing is useless, and what you have is a) pirated copies anyway and b) legitimate customers with real concerns that you aren’t addressing. Who is inconvenienced by DRM? It is not the people going on Pirate Bay to try and download illegal copies. It is the legitimate customers going to legitimate sites to try and buy a book they want. That’s where the DRM’d copies are.
Greg: Nice logo. Someone else is thinking along your lines:
http://open.neurostechnology.com/content/unlocked-media