The IDPF could help by encouraging experimentation with social DRM, as well as by releasing an “Intel Inside”-style logo for nonDRMed .epub books and programs and sites that could handle them. An all-inclusive logo covering DRMed books, too, once there was an encryption standard, would follow. Of course, the best solution to DRM incompatibilities, by far, is no DRM. Without Adobe DRM involved, there is no Adobe .epub—it’s truly a nonpoprietary format to the best of my knowledge, even if it is hardly perfect.

Meanwhile can you tell us more about Vista and Win Mobile 6.xx and Microsoft Reader. What are the problems and solutions (feel free to link)?

Big thanks,
David

Thank you for your continued advocacy of an improved digital reading experience. At BooksOnBoard, we offer email support seven days a week night and day because the ebook experience remains by no means seamless. We try very hard to make the entry of new users into the world of eBooks as painless as possible.

Often this succeeds, but it is also frequently a very daunting task. Our support team sees a broad range of issues readers face in getting access to their ebooks. We also see the confusion created by efforts at proprietary standards like Amazon’s Kindle and Sony’s BBeB.

Moreover, Microsoft has essentially abandoned the loyal long-term users of Microsoft Reader, another large company’s earlier attempt at proprietary standards. Microsoft has – as far as can be observed since there has been very little communication – done little or no interoperability testing on Microsoft Reader in well over a year, meaning that users who adopt new operating systems such as Vista and Windows Mobile 6.xx are left to fend for themselves. BooksOnBoard tries to help the users that get caught in these situations, testing solutions and patchwork fixes that seem to vary by device in the mobile world with MS Reader.

The BooksOnBoard Support team is very encouraged by the new Adobe epub format and the evolving interface of Adobe Digital Editions. We also like the improvements being made by Mobipocket. We hope both developers continue their improving focus on understanding our readers real requirements and desires.

Until something like Social DRM achieves acceptance by the publishing community – particularly the major publishers who control most of the revenue stream – the issues associated with DRM and proprietary standards are not likely to go away completely. But keeping a spotlight on the questions surrounding DRM and ease of use is critical to ultimately result in a much more satisfying and productive ebook reading experience.

Thanks again, David.

Bob LiVolsi
BooksOnBoard

That really, really sucks. Of course, we never heard a thing about it on the news at all. Why couldn’t the eejit have waited til *after* you spoke?! Or given up the stupid idea altogether!

Place to see people do e-reading in NYC is on the subway!