tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1678761812929125529.post2147576555572016927..comments2023-05-27T11:14:02.426-04:00Comments on Some Space to Think: The Fate of my LibraryAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14216103531396452644noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1678761812929125529.post-11413829847953757852010-01-05T10:41:08.560-05:002010-01-05T10:41:08.560-05:00@dogboi In my heart, I feel confident that when DR...@dogboi In my heart, I feel confident that when DRM goes away on books, Amazon will offer the same screw that itunes did, and give you the privileged of paying to "upgrade" your files. That prospect does not fill me with joy.<br /><br />But you're absolutely right regarding how the money/time equation works out, though in some cases it's even worse for the content providers. I know many people whose time is more valuable than their money, but who are still willing to throw drips and drabs of their time at a project (project being a euphemism for, shall we say, liberating content). Sure, they're slow, but they will eventually finish and the book will be scanned or the file cleaned up or whatever. They're part of that inevitable march forward.<br /><br />And that march is going to keep putting pressure on the DRM for books model until it snaps, like it has for music and like it will eventually for movies (and will eventually do so for everything except perhaps the broadcast of professional sports or similar things where they might be able to lay claim to the pipe rather than the content.).<br /><br />This, I admit, puts a smile on my face.<br /><br />(The open letter to content creators was badass, btw)<br /><br />-Rob D.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14216103531396452644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1678761812929125529.post-60155667385363739272010-01-04T15:45:28.434-05:002010-01-04T15:45:28.434-05:00I've been reading Free by Chris Anderson(on my...I've been reading Free by Chris Anderson(on my Kindle of course). He makes some valid points about how content companies are always competing with free, whether they want to or not. If it is possible to get something in digital format, that it has already been pirated. <br /><br />That being said, pirated material requires time. It must be cleaned up. The file might not be tagged, or it might not be in a format you can use, or it might not even be the file you thought you downloaded. That's fine if you are a teenager, because teenagers tend to have more Time than Money. Adults (most anyway) tend to value their time, so they are more likely to have more Money than Time. Given that equation, content companies can expect those with more Time to pirate, and those with more Money to buy.<br /><br />That equation falls apart, however, if my money doesn't buy me what I want. I'm willing to settle in some ways (for example, I buy Kindle books even though I hate the DRM because I am trying to reduce clutter in my life). But I'm not willing to settle in other ways (since they won't sell me DRM free movies I can play on any device, I simply rent. I'd rather spend a little to be forced to watch on DVD, than a lot to own a DRMed file or a DVD I have to spend time ripping). <br /><br />As for my Kindle, which I love, I can back up the files, but they are still, of course, DRMed and attached to that specific Kindle. There are ways of removing the DRM and producing an open Mobi format e-book, but that would probably be a violation of the DMCA (even though fair use says I can have legitimate backup copies). I'm hoping that when DRM on books goes away (as it inevitably must, just as it did with music), Amazon will allow me to convert my Kindle books to a new, un-DRMed format (I'm not holding my breath, though). <br /><br />(BTW, I was lead to this blog post by a comment on my blog, because I wrote a similar post about DRM. It's called <a href="http://blog.dogboi.info/2010/01/open-letter-to-content-creators.html" rel="nofollow">An Open Letter to Content Creators</a>JoeJohhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03456871074267603684noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1678761812929125529.post-27243206450813683612009-12-29T10:11:49.205-05:002009-12-29T10:11:49.205-05:00@kim You speak pretty clearly to a point which I a...@kim You speak pretty clearly to a point which I admit I kind of blithely passed by. It's easy to say that prices will come down and it will be economical to switch over eventually, but I admit that right this minute we are definitely *not* there (and I may be optimistic in my sense of how quickly we'll _get_ there)<br /><br />@biff I loved that speech, and pretty much spent my time reading it doing the desk jockey equivalent of pumping my fist in the air and shouting "Right on"Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14216103531396452644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1678761812929125529.post-40489045330574751092009-12-28T21:56:48.544-05:002009-12-28T21:56:48.544-05:00I think that this is close enough to the topic tha...I think that <a href="http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/12/doctorow-how-destroy-book" rel="nofollow">this</a> is close enough to the topic that you may find it interesting. Although <i>everything</i> Cory says is interesting, imho.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1678761812929125529.post-8815515255129367802009-12-28T12:03:15.586-05:002009-12-28T12:03:15.586-05:00I'm coming at this whole question from someone...I'm coming at this whole question from someone who hasn't even bought in yet. I might be able to apply some of this thought to my CD collection, which has its own DRM issues. But as for books? I still haven't felt like I can justify the cost of a Kindle in the first place, and the cost of "upgrading" the books I have in paper to electronic format sends me back in the other direction, much like the cost of replacing all my regular DVDs with BluRay is not enticing enough.<br /><br />That said, for educational purposes, there seems to me to be an important solution here. You mentioned textbooks before and that's important. I suspect, however, that the folks who make and sell textbooks are going to find a way to make it a horrible gouge to the consumer. <br /><br />But on your point about the library, even without the factor of e-books, I think keeping only the most precious books is a good way to go, and without a kindle I hope myself to get there.Kimhttp://www.prosaicparadise.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1678761812929125529.post-46011952185440637952009-12-28T11:16:04.558-05:002009-12-28T11:16:04.558-05:00"Kindle for Travel, Books for Home" was ..."Kindle for Travel, Books for Home" was actually the thesis I started with, but I moved a little bit away from it when I realized that there's definitely a certain amount of my library (lots of the paperbacks) that I would be _delighted_ to convert to ebooks, and that muddled the idea bit.<br /><br />-Rob D.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14216103531396452644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1678761812929125529.post-64908070194032435202009-12-28T11:14:00.991-05:002009-12-28T11:14:00.991-05:00It's a good and valid point, and I mostly just...It's a good and valid point, and I mostly just handwaved in its direction because the many issues with DRM are really a post of their own (one I suspect I lack the fortitude to delve too deeply into).<br /><br />That said, I'll stand by the idea that DRM would be more (commercially) tolerable *if* it came as part of a larger value add. For example - Amazon currently backs up all the books I buy from them, and allows me to archive, re-download them and move them around devices using their network rather than through me manually pushing files around. That's neat and convenient, and while it does not offset the burden of DRM, if it were coupled with other forms of support (including the ability to loan/give) so that I am getting <b>greater</b> ease of use out of a "managed" book than I would otherwise, then suddenly you've got a model that might work.<br /><br />But it would never happen. It would require such a profound shift in the nature of DRM (from a barrier to a service) that I can't see it happening without breaking things wide open.<br /><br />And that's probably good. Helpful DRM would ultimately be more sinister than the current version, because the current version will inevitably fail because the pressure on it is too great. Helpful DRM would be under far less pressure, since only the 'fringe' would be interested in purely semantic issues like who <i>owns</i> a book.<br /><br />Put another way, DRM doesn't fail because it inconveniences me or other nerds, it fails because it inconveniences my dad. They could probably change that, but I am glad they won't.<br /><br />-Rob D.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14216103531396452644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1678761812929125529.post-61986078434466706162009-12-28T11:06:49.834-05:002009-12-28T11:06:49.834-05:00Anyway, on your original points...
I find it kind...Anyway, on your original points...<br /><br />I find it kind of neat that you almost but not quite make a point along the lines of "Kindle for travel, books for home." Which is a sentiment I can get behind. I love to settle in for a nice book while I'm in the comfort of my big chair, but I can definitely see the appeal of having a small library available anywhere I go through something like Kindle. <br /><br />Its kind of like how I generally play my Xbox or PC at home, but my DS is still probably my favorite game system.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09104159319467300428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1678761812929125529.post-2675546072894841482009-12-28T11:04:42.819-05:002009-12-28T11:04:42.819-05:00Hopefully I won't derail this lovely post by p...Hopefully I won't derail this lovely post by pointing out the elephant in the room, but I feel I must. You're complaints with DRM are exactly the reason media-piracy exists. Or to put it in a sound bite, where the market fails, the black market prevails.<br /><br />Let's say I have a choice between an e-book copy of a book, or buying the hardcover and then pirating a PDF of it. In both cases, I can assume the author has gotten paid, so I am morally absolved. From that point, the pirated version is basically superior. I'm free to loan it out if I want (though "loan" basically means "give" here, since I'm relying on the honesty of my friend to delete that PDF and buy his own copy if he likes it), I can back it up where I want and as much as I want, and my ability to make use of that data is limited only by the technology. PDF is, frankly, a crap technology for text but if we imagine I pirated maybe an HTML copy of the book then I can fully search it, format it into any layout I find convenient to read, and so on.<br /><br />Compared to the complete non-freedom of a legitimate DRMed e-book and there's no mystery why piracy is so high. It's too easy, and it's better for consumers. The only question is how to address the morality of it: how do the author's and creators get paid. The people who have been successful in internet publishing so far are the ones who are finding answers to THAT question.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09104159319467300428noreply@blogger.com