This is a most excellent place for technology news and articles.
if you're not opposed to using your already existing device, I suggest an app like ReadEra which uses multiple eBook formats.
if you're uncomfortable using google play to download it, there are also fantastic libre readers on fdroid and independent sites that will also work beautifully.
i just like ReadEra cause it has so much customizability. and its one less device to take with me on long journies.
What are people's go-to for eBook buying stores? Preferably DRM free.
I try to not buy Kindle books but I usually end up back there as it's either much cheaper (not just slightly) or can only be found there.
I usually just borrow e-books from the library, download as epub and strip the DRM from the file so I can read it, and return the eBook to the library right away for the next person to borrow it.
I'm too lazy, I just borrow from the library and use them on the device. Stripping the DRM takes some level of effort, and I don't intend to keep the books anyway, so I just let the DRM do its thing and turn off the wifi so they don't disappear until I'm done w/ them.
Works fine on my SO's Kindle, and I'm considering getting a Kobo and hope it'll work there.
Article says you cannot side load books on Apple Books. That is incorrect. You just send an epub to books via the share menu on Mac or iOS and it loads it. Also syncs it via iCloud if you want it to.
Perhaps the author meant you cannot download purchased books off of Apple Books.
Article is wrong about many things, seems poorly researched or the topic not fully understood by the author
Onyx Boox, Kobo, PocketBook. Did i miss a custom content friendly company?
Btw, PocketBook is my first pick in privacy and battery runtime.
I checked my "content library" and I still have the option to download. Which is good, as I back everything up in Calibre. Maybe there are some regional factors here, or it may depend on which Kindle device(s) you own?
I like to rag on Amazon as much as the next guy here, but this article seems a tad misleading. They do still show up when you plug them in. The article even says they use MTP now instead of functioning as a direct USB mass storage drive, which means you can still plug them into your PC and transfer files though File Explorer. Android handles USB file transfers the same way, and that works fine.
………. So is there any attempt by Amazon here to limit users transferring their ebooks to their computers?
In short, no.
What's changed here is now the Kindle and PC will actively communicate with each other during file transfers with MTP instead of the Kindle "pretending" to be a USB flash drive with USB mass storage. There are some important trade-offs that come with the switch to MTP but nothing that will stop you from transferring ebooks to or from a computer.
Nice one thanks for clarifying. Sounds like a relatively minor change?
Pretty minor as long as your computer's OS supports MTP, which most do, except for MacOS. If you're a Mac user, you'll need 3rd party software like Calibre or Android File Transfer for it to show up, but if you're the kind of person who's transferring books to and from your Kindle over USB, you're probably already using Calibre anyway.
So, basically the whole article is just a complete nothing-burger.
Good call out. Clickbait article.
Many authors stipulate that their books must be sold on Amazon without DRM, so their readers can back up and use their books outside Amazon’s ecosystem. Does preventing users from accessing their files violate any conditions that were implied when people bought and sold books with that feature?
Another reason to avoid kindle like the plague.
YAR HAR FIDDLE-DEE-DEE 🎶 BEING A PIRATE IS ALRIGHT WITH ME 🎶
Of course this comes out after I just purchased 2. Fucking vultures. It's never enough.
You can just send 'em back and buy something else. Amazon will take any damn fool thing back.
Wow that is outrageous. Hopefully there are still sideloading ereaders on the market by the time my current one dies, I don't want to have to go search for one on ebay.
If I were buying an e-reader these days I'd look at something like the Boox devices that run Android. You could install the Kindle and Kobo apps and a good third-party reader app (I like ReadEra), and have pretty convenient access to ebooks from any source. They are overpriced though.
