Amazon Blocks Arch Linux Handbook from Kindle Store

This is "getting it wrong" in so many ways at once...

This is just a "minor" pain. The common user needs to be subjected to much more pain, before they see that Kindle's are convenient, gilded cages where they are allowed to spend their money and be glad they get to read anything before Amazon decides to delete it again.

I've though about getting an e-reader before, but after Amazon's epic deletion of "1984", I knew the only safe way to get access to a work is to get it on good, old-fashioned paper. Deleting a physical book is a bit more laborious than hitting a delete button. If push comes to shove, paper books can be hidden, can be "illegally" copied and propagated.

Laying your cultural eggs in a for profit, DRM basket is asking to be subjected to censorship.

As a counter-point, I have one of the really cheap Kindles. Almost all of the books I have on it have cost me zero dollars. I dounloaded most from feedbooks and e-mailed them to my kindle e-mail address. I also have some $0.00 books obtained from Amazon.

Of my money paid for books, the most expensive was Euro 8.04 from Amazon. I also have my library backed up to my Calibre software and it can't be auto-deleted from there.

To me paying excessive amounts of money for a printed book just isn't worth it. And I'm not in any cage that I can see.

Quoting:before they see that Kindle's are convenient, gilded cages

Unless they Install Ice Cream Sandwich on their Kindle Fire http://www.pcworld.com/article/258452-3/how_to_install_ice_c...

> Laying your cultural eggs in a for profit, DRM basket is asking to be subjected to censorship.

Assuming you keep them in that DRM basket, yes.

But jdixon,... anything else may be considered ILLEGAL in some jurisdictions, ... (sarcasm meter off the scale).

I looked into e-books, and settled on the BeBook Neo if I ever feel the need to get one.

Kindle simply uses the electronic version of Fahrenheit 451.

> ...anything else may be considered ILLEGAL in some jurisdictions...

That it could, JaseP. That it could. However, the saying "A word to the wise is sufficient" comes to mind.

Sounds like a low level moron somewhere in the Amazon system. If they sell the book themselves as a hardcopy why not have it on a kindle? Morons. Just download the mobi version and screw them.

There's a seemingly sensible explanation for this block over on slashdot, posted by icebike (68054):

http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=3107487&threshold=1&comm...

Quoting: Exactly. He at most, packaged the wiki, no doubt cleaning some things up a bit along the way.

B&N has a similar self-publish program called Pubit. When it was first introduced it was flooded with ebooks that were merely a couple paragraphs of wrapper around public domain books. I saw one such pubit book that still has the Project Gutenberg trailers attached.

B&N, and I suspect Amazon, has since modified the TOS to require that the "authors" at least hold the copyright to the vast majority of the submitted work.

The article is currently at the top of the digest page at alterslash.org and this posting in full is shown.

> Unless they Install Ice Cream Sandwich on their Kindle Fire

Having zero idea of what an "Ice Cream Sandwich" is --other than a foodstuff-- I looked it up.

"It builds on the things people love most about Android — easy multitasking, rich notifications, customizable home screens, resizable widgets, and deep interactivity — and adds powerful new ways of communicating and sharing."

I hadda read that a few times to let it sink in. Rich notifications? Customizable home screens? Deep interactivity? Geez, I had no idea I was missing so much. And so putting all these rich notifications and deep interactivity's on a Kindle will get me what? An ebook reader that acts like a smart phone that you can't phone home on, and Amazon can erase it at any minute? Boy! ...am I ever out in the rain. ;)

Quoting:and Amazon can erase it at any minute?

No they can't because it overwrites the version of the OS that Amazon installs, by reflashing the ROM, thereby removing Amazons ability to remove it.

Quoting: Boy! ...am I ever out in the rain.

Yes indeed

While I was away in Houston, Diane found a pretty good deal on a Kindle and bought one without mentioning it to me. When it arrived, and after my apoplexy, it was sent back with a demand for a refund. They even refunded shipping costs on the return. Reason? Their DRM sucks and we will not buy a product that has the ability to reach into MY device and erase it. The return email is as received verbatim:

"We are sorry that you did not find our product useful. Please keep us in mind for your next electronic purchase."

Yeah, right.

Sure I could have rooted it and installed a different ROM but why would I do that when a Nook delivers the same quality product just a bit cheaper without the drama and @sshatery of Amazon censorship.

Ska-rooo that Clinton...the Nook works nicely, thank you. Diane loves hers.

And a quick question. Does "@sshatery" have two t's or one?

Not sure, but you appear to be quite the headliner on the @ss part. ;)

@notbob:

You have a one-track mind. It's making you predictable.

@helios:

Is the root "hat" or "hate"? If the former, two T's. If the latter, one T. (Even if "latter" is spelt with two T's, and "spelt" is written with one T, and "written" contains two T's, and "contains" has one T, and "has" has no T, since it isn't four o'clock yet.)

Quoting:since it isn't four o'clock yet.

So what? It's always after 4p somewhere.