2010.11.17 E-Book Tools

I've been contemplating some form of an E-Book Reader for a number of months. I go back and forth between a Nook and a Kindle (though I suppose I could consider a Sony Digital Reader as well (Amazon Link)). I've had an iPhone for years and although I love it, I'm completely convinced that nobody should read a book on a backlight device. If you've tried, I can only imagine you've had a similar experience to mine - it sucks, and your eyes get tired (especially considering I do most of my book-reading in bed). E Ink is the way to go (which both the Kindle and Nook (the black and white one) have).

No matter what the device is, however, I have complaints with DRM (the way they don't let you copy your digital books to other devices you own). Much like music, and how I listen to it on any number of devices, or places, I don't want to be limited to where I can read or reference digital books (I won't go into the discussion about how physical books are irreplaceable). With that in mind, I wanted to find a way to remove the copy-protection from the books I buy. If I buy it on Barnes & Noble, I'd like to reference it on my iPhone, or maybe on a Kindle (which I don't own). Or, if I buy it on Amazon, I'd like to read it on a Nook or my phone. You get the point. To that end, I found a couple invaluable resources for doing doing just that, and wanted to pass them along.

• I♥Cabbages is obviously interested in (and immensely skilled at) reverse engineering, specifically the copy protection around digital books.
• Darkreverser's blog is the treasure trove for the tools needed to remove the DRM from the books you buy. Obviously not adept at blogging, he opts to post updates to the tools in the comments, so read there for the newest tools (here, as of this writing).
• The tools you download are GUI Python scripts, which you'll run on your desktop. You'll probably need some extra tools installed to be able to do that:
  • Mac users need to download a copy of Xcode
  • Windows users, they recommend ActiveState's Active Python Version 2.X (32 bit).
• Calibre is the best (free) way to convert your books from one format to another. It has far more features than I understand, but it's easy enough to figure out the basics.

I've already bought books from both stores, and these handy tools have allowed me the freedom to read them where I choose. Now, I can buy where the price is better, and read wherever I choose. Don't mistake this blog post or my intentions. Don't steal books. My interest in removing copy protection is to let me read where I choose, not to let others read what I choose.

P.S. I promise not to post something immensely geeky to my blog tomorrow… but you should subscribe to my Links feed as well.

P.P.S. Have you played Minecraft yet? It's immensely pointless and addicting. Don't miss out on Minepedia to answer your questions, and Brown & Bloom to help things look better.

Tag(s): computers