> On 28. Jan 2018, at 00:47, Jeff Zeitlin <xxxxxx@freelancetraveller.com> wrote:
>
> If your Traveller-related book is available in ebook format, I'd really
> appreciate it if you could release it through an outlet that I can, in good
> conscience, purchase from:
>
> Both Amazon/Kindle and Barnes and Noble/Nook make it virtually impossible
> to actually download the book for sideloading onto another device not using
> their software. As I don't like the "User Experience" of either the Kindle
> app or the Nook app, and much prefer Aldiko on my Android tablet, this
> represents a barrier.
>
> Furthermore, even if you/your publisher tells Amazon to not restrict the
> number of devices, Amazon still applies DRM (which prevents use of a
> non-Kindle app/device - and possibly prevents use of
> Kindle-not-registered-to-you as well; this hasn't been made clear in forums
> where the topic has come up), which means that even if I find the right
> azw3 file on a device (such as my desktop PC) where I might indeed have the
> Kindle app, I can't convert it to ePub for Aldiko without having the Kindle
> app on my tablet, because Calibre (which is on my Surface Pro 3
> tabtop/laplet) can't handle the DRM without using a certain apprentice's
> tools, and those need the app installed to get the magic key to handle the
> DRM.

Actually the uploaded can tell Amazon not to add DRM. It is not mandatory (I forgot how they are marked on amazon though and they are not always marked). Then you can download it and convert it freely without de-drming it. But yes, there are shops like Gumroad which do that better.

> Because I don't use the Kindle app, my preferred formats are ePub and PDF,
> as those are the formats that Aldiko handles best (and doesn't handle
> mobi/azw at all) - and of those, ePub is preferred, as there have been
> occasional PDFs that Aldiko can't show all pages of for some reason (though
> Acrobat Reader on Android handles them just fine).

I have one plea to authors though: Please don’t publish PDF-only. PDFs are bad to read on phones and e-readers.

Niels