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I shop at Barnes and Noble a lot, and I even subscribe to their membership program (for an annual fee I get 10% off purchases in-store and free shipping online)

I shop at Barnes and Noble a lot, and I even subscribe to their membership program (for an annual fee I get 10% off purchases in-store and free shipping online). i dislike the way physical books take up so much space in my apartment but at the same time I can't in good faith buy e-books when they're covered in draconian DRM. I also can't get over the incident from the early 10s when Amazon deleted 1984 off of their customers' kindles. My apartment is running out of space for all these books, and maybe the solution to this is that I need to borrow from the library more often instead of buying my own books. I really wish I could have an e-reader, but again, I don't want to spend money on things that will lock me into a single vendor indefinitely and might just arbitrarily go away. I learned my lesson in the early-00s when online music purchases were DRM'd and I lost a lot of my collection due to Yahoo music shutting down. I also remember one of the problems being that purchases made in one store would not be compatible with a competitor's MP3 player, which locked you into a single vendor. Couldn't switch to iPod because it didn't work with the DRM that was designed for my Dell DJ (which was a POS that broke all the time but I had to stick with it because of my existing music collection). I'd hate to have that same problem but with books instead of music.

mclide 4y ago
Many libraries accept book donations. That way your book will be reused, possibly also providing the library with a little bit of extra funding.
- Tor3 4y ago
  To my surprise my local library doesn't accept book donations. They have to get them through their own buying program. Which is unfortunate, my wife wanted to donate Japanese books because they have so few of them, she even bought extras for that purpose, but they can't take them.
  - kcartlidge 4y ago
    It's worth considering just sneaking them onto their shelves. Sometimes they get 'adopted', and if they don't then often whoever tries to check them out (which is presumably someone who wants to read them) is allowed to just take them as they are non-stock. And at the worst, the librarians will find another home for them (they are not usually destroyed; sometimes they join the book sale which benefits the library anyway).
AndrewDucker 4y ago
I strip the DRM off of books the moment I buy them. Check that this is possible for you too, and you'll end up with a collection of DRM-free epub files that you can back up as you like.
- imtyler 4y ago
  I assume this violates the EULA of most retailers and subjects your account to possible deletion. Not saying that it's likely, but DRM restrictions seem like a matter of principle to some people. Even if you can strip the DRM you still don't legally own the product.
  - nyolfen 4y ago
    who cares, they can't take it from you
    - imtyler 4y ago
      In this scenario I think the biggest issue with losing an account is the ability to aquire future purchases. But like I said, it's more a matter of principle for some. You own a book, you don't own a digital copy of a book.
      - jonhohle 4y ago
        This is the direction NFYs should have gone (could still go). It would be great to be able to resell digital purchases, but that’s only on the consumer’s interest, so will never happen without an act of ${rule_making_body}.
        alwayslikethis 4y ago
        This fundamentally does not work, because being able to copy is such an essential feature of electronic information. Think about it - you can never really "lose access" to information in the computer world unless you purposefully delete it completely, which cannot be realistically ensured.
verisimi 4y ago
Great points. Books or music as a service, when you think you've bought them, is terrible.
Waterluvian 4y ago
Sell or donate books, too! Just because you bought something that lasts for ages, doesn’t mean that’s where you get the value. I organize by age (using a ring buffer method) and have an honest “am I going to read this again?” review of my oldest shelf every few months or so.
- dotancohen 4y ago
  For me it's not only "Am I going to read this again", but rather "Do I want to have this available for my children to read"? That makes the pool of books significantly larger.
  - _carbyau_ 4y ago
    I use "Will I consume (again) or recommend?" and apply it to most media I have.
2OEH8eoCRo0 4y ago
https://github.com/noDRM/DeDRM_tools https://github.com/noDRM/DeDRM_tools
manate96 4y ago
The city I live in’s library has a pretty extensive ebook selection that way you don’t have to buy an ebook you can just borrow it from your local library for free. And then there is always the internet archive/open library route too
scarface74 4y ago
Are you really going to read your books more than once? My wife and I are ruthless about not collecting stuff
- helloworld11 4y ago
  To each their own, but many people read their books many times over in a life. It can be extremely enjoyable, comforting in bad moments, and bring forth new, fresh views on one's own thoughts and the text they're reading.
- jonhohle 4y ago
  If you have a good library system, it can be pretty easy to have limitless access without amassing a collection. Obviously there are some books that won’t be available, but my wife and son read hundreds of novels a year (combined) they almost universally come from the library. Plus, increasing library circulation often increases funding, making it a virtuous cycle.
  - alwayslikethis 4y ago
    It also sponsors the development of ever more restrictive DRM schemes, which you might want to consider. Your money is always voting for a future, and I'd rather not help create a world encumbered by DRM.
    - scarface74 4y ago
      So do you think the money is segmented when you buy physical book from B&N?
- monsieurbanana 4y ago
  I'm like you. But boy would the world be boring if everyone was like us.
- prosaic-hacker 4y ago
  I have reread my top 200 books I like more than once. I owned well into the 2000s of books. Most bought second hand. Most gone, but not the 200. As life ebbed and flowed books got boxed and unboxed. Glee ensues when a favorite shows up again. I have a relatively good memory so I remember many details of a story. In spite of that, the flow of rereading a good story is a pleasure. We listen to music over and over why not reread.
opan 4y ago
>I really wish I could have an e-reader, but again, I don't want to spend money on things that will lock me into a single vendor indefinitely and might just arbitrarily go away. https://github.com/joeycastillo/The-Open-Book https://github.com/joeycastillo/The-Open-Book This may be up your alley.
- alwayslikethis 4y ago
  For a more realistic option, buy a Kobo ereader and install KOReader on it, never connecting it to internet or registering an account.
  - kcartlidge 4y ago
    I've had Kobos since abandoning the Kindle many years ago. I run two accounts with them. One is on the device, has never purchased any books, and is a placeholder for easy software updates etc (I quite like their UI). The other has all my purchases, but is never put on the reader. Instead I download, then use Calibre to create an open copy (for personal use only) and move it to the reader via USB sync. It usually takes about 30 seconds to do for a book, and the result is a legally-obtained curated collection. And every book is tagged with where it came from (its legal provenance) for my own peace of mind. My main motivation however is actually the metadata. Publishers/authors haven't got a clue when it comes to title, author, series, genre, covers etc., so all my books are now standardised and categorised and each has a cover of exactly the same size and aspect ratio. Maybe I'm an obsessive, but if you do it as and when you buy a book then it really does take a minute or two at the most. And the result is quite satisfying and, more importantly, as future-proofed as I can reasonably get whilst also being a very easy library to navigate.
    - alwayslikethis 4y ago
      > legally-obtained curated collection In the US and many other Western countries (mostly forced by the US), circumventing or otherwise removing DRM is illegal in and of itself, even for personal use. I like Kobo's devices for the most part, but I've only ever used KOReader on them. Kobo software seems to contain telemetry. As a side note, you can circumvent the registration requirement after wiping the reader by inserting an entry to a sqlite3 db, thus allowing your reader to be unaccounted for by Kobo or Google Analytics.
bobbylarrybobby 4y ago
You should also look into using an Ereader with your library. Many libraries can lend out ebooks. No idea how it actually works (I assume there's DRM on the lent books, but who cares, there's no pretension that you're the owner anyway) but it's definitely an option to consider.
- alwayslikethis 4y ago
  The issue with this is you are still running vendor controlled spyware on a device you own to access the DRM'd books. They have a direct interest to spy on you to ensure the terms of service are not being violated. It is better to simply download already DRM-free books from libgen or something, or if that's not an option use the library to borrow physical books.
- sircastor 4y ago
  The EBooks systems most libraries use is run by Overdrive, which manages the library’s digital collection, the loan periods, the accounts, etc. they do a pretty good job, and their phone apps (Libby) is quite good. My only real complaint about Overdrive is the premise that a copy of a book can be lent out x times. It’s a concept pushed by the publisher trying to create scarcity where none exists. Overdrive can’t do anything but capitulate. I suppose I’m also bothered by the “x copies available” concept.
dhosek 4y ago
> My apartment is running out of space for all these books, and maybe the solution to this is obviously to get a bigger apartment.
- snickerbockers 4y ago
  im saving up to hopefully own a house someday, but buying a bigger apartment isn't as easy as it might have been 20 years ago. Boomers have rigged the real-estate market to protect their "investment" by severely constricting housing supply, and this has created pressure across the entire housing market, even for renters. This is the biggest apartment I can afford.
  - Tor3 4y ago
    As someone who owns a house (after a long time of having much less space), I can state that you'll never get enough space.. not if you wish to stay married, at least. I just don't have the space for all my books, in this relatively large house. Other things constantly compete for the space. I've had to throw away a lot of books. They're hard to even give for free to used book shops, they get so many books from people like me. In other words - I wish for unlimited storage. A house, unfortunately, isn't even close. There was a book I read, once, which had a house much larger on the inside than on the outside.. I use a Kindle for a lot of books, one reason is that it's so much easier when traveling. Another reason is that my vision isn't as good as it used to, years before I got the Kindle I changed from paperbacks to the larger variants simply to get the larger font. The Kindle lets me adjust the font to something I can read comfortably in every condition. A physical book is still better in many respects though. It looks much better, it's easier to skip forth and back, and if the book contains maps or drawings (fantasy or tech books), a physical book is tons better.
    - Wojtkie 4y ago
      > There was a book I read, once, which had a house much larger on the inside than on the outside.. House of Leaves was such an experience to read. I really liked how they had a unique take on the medium and act of reading.
barbariangrunge 4y ago
In the past, there were used bookstores everywhere that you could sell your books to. I don’t know of any used bookstores any more except one that is really far from where I live I think used bookstores failed because they didn’t curate their selections enough. You can’t go into one expecting to find a specific book — you go there to discover new books. When the shelves are packed with books nobody wants, it removes the reason to go there
- woodruffw 4y ago
  I'm not sure how sustainable they are, but there are a couple of used bookstores near me. I think they engage in heavy curation, though -- they'll pay for your books (or even do consignment for rare/expensive ones), but only if they think they're likely to sell.
- coffeebeqn 4y ago
  There’s still at least Half Price Books which seems to be doing fine. They usually have a impressive selection at least in old sci-fi that I sometimes go hunting for
pwinnski 4y ago
I used to practically live at the Half-Price Books stores in my area, but for the last couple of years I've been a member at Barnes & Noble too. The thing that made the membership an easy decision for me was the manga section, but I've bought other books there, too, and did a good chunk of my Christmas shopping there this month.
ummonk 4y ago
"I also can't get over the incident from the early 10s when Amazon deleted 1984 off of their customers' kindles." - what an ironic book for this to happen to
- judge2020 4y ago
  https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=710506 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=710506 The story is that publishing on a Kindle has the publisher give Amazon the right to sub-license copies that are "indefinitely" licensed to the purchaser; this is in contrast to iTunes where it really feels like they're giving you a "forever" license to something, since I haven't been able to find a story about movies outright disappearing from libraries (besides via changing countries which is an iTunes quirk).
  - kcartlidge 4y ago
    I know it's not quite the same thing, but the Bruce Willis vs Apple disagreement over whether he has the rights to pass his music collection down to his heirs makes it clear that whilst the licence 'feels' more permanent with iTunes than with Amazon, the lifetime/ownership of the rights is about the same.
stoicjumbotron 4y ago
I'm with you regarding the DRM. So what I do instead is download the e book from z lib and also buy the book if I like it to support the author. So a win-win for the author as well as for me.
mycall 4y ago
Have you considered trading books with other avid readers? That freezes the need to buy new books and opens up a whole new catalog for yourself.
gsatic 4y ago
I just give the books away once the shelves are getting filled. No point using them as dust collectors.
- coffeebeqn 4y ago
  I have a handful of books that have moved with me but 99% I read once and never touch again. I also just donate most away when I run out of space
feanaro 4y ago
Buy an e-reader which doesn't require an account, like some Kobo devices (I'm most familiar with the Kobo Aura ONE which is an older device but there must be others). Then buy some books in epub format and strip their DRM, or if that's impossible, buy a copy and then pirate an epub. Then just upload those sweet DRM-free epubs to the device and enjoy your ownership.
- neilv 4y ago
  My policy is to pay a premium for non-DRM ebooks -- supply some incentive for publishers to offer that. (Rampant piracy is what got us into the DRM nightmare in the first place.) I recently got a new ereader (Pocketbook InkPad Lite) that's working well for this: https://www.neilvandyke.org/ebooks/ https://www.neilvandyke.org/ebooks/
  - feanaro 4y ago
    ebooks.com looks great, I didn't know about this! I would gladly pay a premium for non-DRM versions of all books I buy and I'll be using this as a source in the future. However, I'm very militant against DRM, so in situations where I'm unable to acquire a DRM-free book, I will de-DRM or pirate it.
- criddell 4y ago
  Is epub DRM standardized? Can I buy books from Apple or Google and read them on a Kobo?
lofaszvanitt 4y ago
I love books but reading a paper book is a no go nowadays. So what I do if I can't get a book I want in digital format that use one of those paper cutter guillotine like tools to get rid of the book's spine (yeah I know it's sacrilege) or press down the pages with a tool so it's almost flat. Then photo each page with a cheap dslr on a stand, ocr them, and voilá I have my own ebook in whatever format I want. I can make highlights, take notes etc. The process can be accelerated with two dslrs and aligning the pages in a diy wood stand. Also there are book scanners out there, but don't know the price on these.
dotancohen 4y ago
If you're actually paying for the books, de-DRM them. But pay for them. I personally read on a Barnes & Noble Nook, my fourth e-ink reader. I absolutely love it, I would go so far as to say that the current generation has a _better_ reading experience than dead trees. But I use Calibre and remove the DRM, for the same reasons that you state. I view the books not as entertainment but rather as culture. Culture worth preserving.
hotcoffeebear 4y ago
Since I was moving between cities and countries, i started to give away books that i’ve read as a present to my friends. Only fictions though, that I usually never read them again. It’s also nice way to have someone to discuss and talk about them.
twblalock 4y ago
Donate books to the library. How many of them do you read more than once? Just send them on to someone else.

mclide 4y ago

Many libraries accept book donations. That way your book will be reused, possibly also providing the library with a little bit of extra funding.

Tor3 4y ago
To my surprise my local library doesn't accept book donations. They have to get them through their own buying program. Which is unfortunate, my wife wanted to donate Japanese books because they have so few of them, she even bought extras for that purpose, but they can't take them.
- kcartlidge 4y ago
  It's worth considering just sneaking them onto their shelves. Sometimes they get 'adopted', and if they don't then often whoever tries to check them out (which is presumably someone who wants to read them) is allowed to just take them as they are non-stock. And at the worst, the librarians will find another home for them (they are not usually destroyed; sometimes they join the book sale which benefits the library anyway).

AndrewDucker 4y ago

I strip the DRM off of books the moment I buy them. Check that this is possible for you too, and you'll end up with a collection of DRM-free epub files that you can back up as you like.

imtyler 4y ago
I assume this violates the EULA of most retailers and subjects your account to possible deletion. Not saying that it's likely, but DRM restrictions seem like a matter of principle to some people. Even if you can strip the DRM you still don't legally own the product.
- nyolfen 4y ago
  who cares, they can't take it from you
  - imtyler 4y ago
    In this scenario I think the biggest issue with losing an account is the ability to aquire future purchases. But like I said, it's more a matter of principle for some. You own a book, you don't own a digital copy of a book.
    - jonhohle 4y ago
      This is the direction NFYs should have gone (could still go). It would be great to be able to resell digital purchases, but that’s only on the consumer’s interest, so will never happen without an act of ${rule_making_body}.
      - alwayslikethis 4y ago
        This fundamentally does not work, because being able to copy is such an essential feature of electronic information. Think about it - you can never really "lose access" to information in the computer world unless you purposefully delete it completely, which cannot be realistically ensured.

verisimi 4y ago

Great points. Books or music as a service, when you think you've bought them, is terrible.

Waterluvian 4y ago

Sell or donate books, too! Just because you bought something that lasts for ages, doesn’t mean that’s where you get the value. I organize by age (using a ring buffer method) and have an honest “am I going to read this again?” review of my oldest shelf every few months or so.

dotancohen 4y ago
For me it's not only "Am I going to read this again", but rather "Do I want to have this available for my children to read"? That makes the pool of books significantly larger.
- _carbyau_ 4y ago
  I use "Will I consume (again) or recommend?" and apply it to most media I have.

2OEH8eoCRo0 4y ago

https://github.com/noDRM/DeDRM_tools https://github.com/noDRM/DeDRM_tools

manate96 4y ago

The city I live in’s library has a pretty extensive ebook selection that way you don’t have to buy an ebook you can just borrow it from your local library for free. And then there is always the internet archive/open library route too

scarface74 4y ago

Are you really going to read your books more than once? My wife and I are ruthless about not collecting stuff

helloworld11 4y ago
To each their own, but many people read their books many times over in a life. It can be extremely enjoyable, comforting in bad moments, and bring forth new, fresh views on one's own thoughts and the text they're reading.
jonhohle 4y ago
If you have a good library system, it can be pretty easy to have limitless access without amassing a collection. Obviously there are some books that won’t be available, but my wife and son read hundreds of novels a year (combined) they almost universally come from the library. Plus, increasing library circulation often increases funding, making it a virtuous cycle.
- alwayslikethis 4y ago
  It also sponsors the development of ever more restrictive DRM schemes, which you might want to consider. Your money is always voting for a future, and I'd rather not help create a world encumbered by DRM.
  - scarface74 4y ago
    So do you think the money is segmented when you buy physical book from B&N?
monsieurbanana 4y ago
I'm like you. But boy would the world be boring if everyone was like us.
prosaic-hacker 4y ago
I have reread my top 200 books I like more than once. I owned well into the 2000s of books. Most bought second hand. Most gone, but not the 200. As life ebbed and flowed books got boxed and unboxed. Glee ensues when a favorite shows up again. I have a relatively good memory so I remember many details of a story. In spite of that, the flow of rereading a good story is a pleasure. We listen to music over and over why not reread.

opan 4y ago

>I really wish I could have an e-reader, but again, I don't want to spend money on things that will lock me into a single vendor indefinitely and might just arbitrarily go away. https://github.com/joeycastillo/The-Open-Book https://github.com/joeycastillo/The-Open-Book This may be up your alley.

alwayslikethis 4y ago
For a more realistic option, buy a Kobo ereader and install KOReader on it, never connecting it to internet or registering an account.
- kcartlidge 4y ago
  I've had Kobos since abandoning the Kindle many years ago. I run two accounts with them. One is on the device, has never purchased any books, and is a placeholder for easy software updates etc (I quite like their UI). The other has all my purchases, but is never put on the reader. Instead I download, then use Calibre to create an open copy (for personal use only) and move it to the reader via USB sync. It usually takes about 30 seconds to do for a book, and the result is a legally-obtained curated collection. And every book is tagged with where it came from (its legal provenance) for my own peace of mind. My main motivation however is actually the metadata. Publishers/authors haven't got a clue when it comes to title, author, series, genre, covers etc., so all my books are now standardised and categorised and each has a cover of exactly the same size and aspect ratio. Maybe I'm an obsessive, but if you do it as and when you buy a book then it really does take a minute or two at the most. And the result is quite satisfying and, more importantly, as future-proofed as I can reasonably get whilst also being a very easy library to navigate.
  - alwayslikethis 4y ago
    > legally-obtained curated collection In the US and many other Western countries (mostly forced by the US), circumventing or otherwise removing DRM is illegal in and of itself, even for personal use. I like Kobo's devices for the most part, but I've only ever used KOReader on them. Kobo software seems to contain telemetry. As a side note, you can circumvent the registration requirement after wiping the reader by inserting an entry to a sqlite3 db, thus allowing your reader to be unaccounted for by Kobo or Google Analytics.

bobbylarrybobby 4y ago

You should also look into using an Ereader with your library. Many libraries can lend out ebooks. No idea how it actually works (I assume there's DRM on the lent books, but who cares, there's no pretension that you're the owner anyway) but it's definitely an option to consider.

alwayslikethis 4y ago
The issue with this is you are still running vendor controlled spyware on a device you own to access the DRM'd books. They have a direct interest to spy on you to ensure the terms of service are not being violated. It is better to simply download already DRM-free books from libgen or something, or if that's not an option use the library to borrow physical books.
sircastor 4y ago
The EBooks systems most libraries use is run by Overdrive, which manages the library’s digital collection, the loan periods, the accounts, etc. they do a pretty good job, and their phone apps (Libby) is quite good. My only real complaint about Overdrive is the premise that a copy of a book can be lent out x times. It’s a concept pushed by the publisher trying to create scarcity where none exists. Overdrive can’t do anything but capitulate. I suppose I’m also bothered by the “x copies available” concept.

dhosek 4y ago

> My apartment is running out of space for all these books, and maybe the solution to this is obviously to get a bigger apartment.

snickerbockers 4y ago
im saving up to hopefully own a house someday, but buying a bigger apartment isn't as easy as it might have been 20 years ago. Boomers have rigged the real-estate market to protect their "investment" by severely constricting housing supply, and this has created pressure across the entire housing market, even for renters. This is the biggest apartment I can afford.
- Tor3 4y ago
  As someone who owns a house (after a long time of having much less space), I can state that you'll never get enough space.. not if you wish to stay married, at least. I just don't have the space for all my books, in this relatively large house. Other things constantly compete for the space. I've had to throw away a lot of books. They're hard to even give for free to used book shops, they get so many books from people like me. In other words - I wish for unlimited storage. A house, unfortunately, isn't even close. There was a book I read, once, which had a house much larger on the inside than on the outside.. I use a Kindle for a lot of books, one reason is that it's so much easier when traveling. Another reason is that my vision isn't as good as it used to, years before I got the Kindle I changed from paperbacks to the larger variants simply to get the larger font. The Kindle lets me adjust the font to something I can read comfortably in every condition. A physical book is still better in many respects though. It looks much better, it's easier to skip forth and back, and if the book contains maps or drawings (fantasy or tech books), a physical book is tons better.
  - Wojtkie 4y ago
    > There was a book I read, once, which had a house much larger on the inside than on the outside.. House of Leaves was such an experience to read. I really liked how they had a unique take on the medium and act of reading.

barbariangrunge 4y ago

In the past, there were used bookstores everywhere that you could sell your books to. I don’t know of any used bookstores any more except one that is really far from where I live I think used bookstores failed because they didn’t curate their selections enough. You can’t go into one expecting to find a specific book — you go there to discover new books. When the shelves are packed with books nobody wants, it removes the reason to go there

woodruffw 4y ago
I'm not sure how sustainable they are, but there are a couple of used bookstores near me. I think they engage in heavy curation, though -- they'll pay for your books (or even do consignment for rare/expensive ones), but only if they think they're likely to sell.
coffeebeqn 4y ago
There’s still at least Half Price Books which seems to be doing fine. They usually have a impressive selection at least in old sci-fi that I sometimes go hunting for

pwinnski 4y ago

I used to practically live at the Half-Price Books stores in my area, but for the last couple of years I've been a member at Barnes & Noble too. The thing that made the membership an easy decision for me was the manga section, but I've bought other books there, too, and did a good chunk of my Christmas shopping there this month.

ummonk 4y ago

"I also can't get over the incident from the early 10s when Amazon deleted 1984 off of their customers' kindles." - what an ironic book for this to happen to

judge2020 4y ago
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=710506 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=710506 The story is that publishing on a Kindle has the publisher give Amazon the right to sub-license copies that are "indefinitely" licensed to the purchaser; this is in contrast to iTunes where it really feels like they're giving you a "forever" license to something, since I haven't been able to find a story about movies outright disappearing from libraries (besides via changing countries which is an iTunes quirk).
- kcartlidge 4y ago
  I know it's not quite the same thing, but the Bruce Willis vs Apple disagreement over whether he has the rights to pass his music collection down to his heirs makes it clear that whilst the licence 'feels' more permanent with iTunes than with Amazon, the lifetime/ownership of the rights is about the same.

stoicjumbotron 4y ago

I'm with you regarding the DRM. So what I do instead is download the e book from z lib and also buy the book if I like it to support the author. So a win-win for the author as well as for me.

mycall 4y ago

Have you considered trading books with other avid readers? That freezes the need to buy new books and opens up a whole new catalog for yourself.

gsatic 4y ago

I just give the books away once the shelves are getting filled. No point using them as dust collectors.

coffeebeqn 4y ago
I have a handful of books that have moved with me but 99% I read once and never touch again. I also just donate most away when I run out of space

feanaro 4y ago

Buy an e-reader which doesn't require an account, like some Kobo devices (I'm most familiar with the Kobo Aura ONE which is an older device but there must be others). Then buy some books in epub format and strip their DRM, or if that's impossible, buy a copy and then pirate an epub. Then just upload those sweet DRM-free epubs to the device and enjoy your ownership.

neilv 4y ago
My policy is to pay a premium for non-DRM ebooks -- supply some incentive for publishers to offer that. (Rampant piracy is what got us into the DRM nightmare in the first place.) I recently got a new ereader (Pocketbook InkPad Lite) that's working well for this: https://www.neilvandyke.org/ebooks/ https://www.neilvandyke.org/ebooks/
- feanaro 4y ago
  ebooks.com looks great, I didn't know about this! I would gladly pay a premium for non-DRM versions of all books I buy and I'll be using this as a source in the future. However, I'm very militant against DRM, so in situations where I'm unable to acquire a DRM-free book, I will de-DRM or pirate it.
criddell 4y ago
Is epub DRM standardized? Can I buy books from Apple or Google and read them on a Kobo?

lofaszvanitt 4y ago

I love books but reading a paper book is a no go nowadays. So what I do if I can't get a book I want in digital format that use one of those paper cutter guillotine like tools to get rid of the book's spine (yeah I know it's sacrilege) or press down the pages with a tool so it's almost flat. Then photo each page with a cheap dslr on a stand, ocr them, and voilá I have my own ebook in whatever format I want. I can make highlights, take notes etc. The process can be accelerated with two dslrs and aligning the pages in a diy wood stand. Also there are book scanners out there, but don't know the price on these.

dotancohen 4y ago

If you're actually paying for the books, de-DRM them. But pay for them. I personally read on a Barnes & Noble Nook, my fourth e-ink reader. I absolutely love it, I would go so far as to say that the current generation has a _better_ reading experience than dead trees. But I use Calibre and remove the DRM, for the same reasons that you state. I view the books not as entertainment but rather as culture. Culture worth preserving.

hotcoffeebear 4y ago

Since I was moving between cities and countries, i started to give away books that i’ve read as a present to my friends. Only fictions though, that I usually never read them again. It’s also nice way to have someone to discuss and talk about them.

twblalock 4y ago

Donate books to the library. How many of them do you read more than once? Just send them on to someone else.