Teddypig Hacks An eBook: Why I Buy Microsoft LIT DRM Format
November 11, 2007
Welcome to another edition of Teddypig Hacks An eBook.
As I am sure you are all aware I detest DRM’s (Digital Rights Management) on anything I buy. Be it iTunes or eBooks I hate DRM because of the cost, because of the hassle, because of all the wasted money, and the bullshit anti-consumer reasoning behind it all.
The very idea that I am paying for the paranoia of the Publisher galls me to no end. The question of “why” do I have to purchase a whole other format of the eBook when I happen to switch eBook Readers or hardware platforms is beyond my ability to understand.
The great thing is iTunes, a solid reputable Internet Industry Leader, agrees with me and is slowly transferring their offerings into non-DRM formats for purchase.
So here on The Naughty Bits I have chosen to NOT review offerings from eBook Publishers that do not provide support for all the various file formats and more importantly, USE DRM and continue to promote these issues for the consumer. I do this for various reasons but my main argument is…
What if you are sight impaired and need the Read Aloud functionality of PDF? Did you know it costs somewhere around $4,000 to create a quality audio book? I feel Publishers that turn off that functionality in the PDF are just plainly discriminating against the sight impaired. You know, those attorneys are always looking for an angle.
BUT… Unfortunately every once in a while I will personally venture forth and purchase a DRM’d eBook and “fix it” so I do not have issues with all my various gadgets, Operating Systems, and laptops etc etc etc.
How do I get around this DRM you ask?
First a warning… This is a strictly a Microsoft Windows based solution.
Go pick up Microsoft Reader and register it.
I buy DRM eBooks usually from Fictionwise in Microsoft LIT format, if I have to purchase a DRM’d eBook that is.
Then I use this little free program.
Convert LIT takes the DRM off and converts the eBook into a folder of your choosing leaving it in HTML format. Read the instructions that come with it.
Then I use this little free program.
PrimoPDF converts the HTML into PDF for all the functions that PDF can provide the sight impaired or those people using Linux. So that’s all there is to it.
Dear concerned Publisher, I am not promoting piracy I am promoting equal access for the disabled like having to put ramps in the front of your business. You might not like having to consider the needs of the disabled but I believe our society has said you have to and I think you eventually will be forced to with probably some stiff legal fines thrown in to make the point. So chew on that for a moment there before you start complaining about Fair Use or running to tell your company to get rid of LIT file formats.
Happy eBook reading all.
Tags: eBook Tools
I WANT AN I-BOOK READER. sigh. I wonder if I can put it on my x-mas list and my hot Santa will deliver???? It sounds like a lot of friggin work, but I still want one. My ass is starting to take the shape of this here chair and that’s not the look I’m noted for.
Teddy, You make a really goood point. I’ve noticed the disabled functions when I buy books at fictionwise, but I’m sorry to say I haven’t given them much thought until now and I agree that it is discrimination. I am physically disabled and I know what it feels like to be excluded from certain activities because of an impairement that I have no control over. Hopefully the publishing companies will change. although, it probably won’t happen until after they get sued :) People need to be more aware. Thank You for discussing this issue.
You are welcome.
Not all publishers turn off the Read Aloud capabilities in their formats but enough of them do, even those not using a DRM, that I wanted to show how to get around the problem.
It is not perfect. Perfect would be for the Publishers to drop DRM and provide all the formats properly and stop worrying about allowing people to print or use Read Aloud functions. Unfortunately paranoia over piracy is more a priority than common sense and caring about the customers.
I have been told time and again that eBooks have become a godsend to the sight impaired and they seem to be very dedicated customers.
It is too bad that eBook Publishers do not think about their sight impaired customers when building their web sites and formating their eBooks.
Just a simple thing like making sure the title and alt title settings are filled out properly and clearly on the eBook images on your website would be a start to caring about these customers.
I think its great that you came up with a way around the problem and that you are sharing it with people. I agree that Ebooks are great for the sight impaired. I know that the larger print has made my life much easier. It would be nice if publishers did take their visually impaired custoners into acount but unfortunetly despite the laws that say otherwise they probably won’t.
Now we need to get Amazon.com to stop using numbers for their picture titles and instead title it with the actual product name.
What good is a linked picture if you cannot tell where the link goes???
Teddy,
Thank you so much for this. I actually discovered Convert Lit on my own, but I couldn’t agree with you more. And speaking only for myself, I know I would be less tempted by the piracy options I knew about if I could be guaranteed that a book I’m planning to spend as much as $15 for actually, you know, worked.
Right now, though, I can’t seem to register my Microsoft Reader, a fact that is not happy-making. I don’t know what settings I’ve got turned on in IE that I shouldn’t, but the active-X control that needs to install to activate the software, well, isn’t. If you’ve got any suggestions for what I could possibly do to get the stupid thing installed, I’d be grateful.
Also, I don’t use PDF at all. I’d much rather have HTML, plain text, or, in a pinch, MS Word. And if I do have to have PDF, I definitely require it to be the kind of file I can save as a text file.
No friggin clue! I have heard that Microsoft Reader will mysteriously stop working if you have too many authorized players on your account. How you check or fix it I do not know. I have problems remembering how to do that with iTunes and I have had to reset that one a couple of times.
[…] just ebooks. But IF I understand this correctly (and I checked with Teddypig to make sure I did; DRM for ebooks is one of his hot buttons), then the fact that all the downloadable audio books that I personally […]