# B&N removes ability to download to computer and then sideload



## Betsy the Quilter

http://goodereader.com/blog/e-book-news/barnes-and-noble-suspends-the-ability-to-download-nook-ebooks

Member bknyfinest1 just made a comment about this in the thread "Why a Kindle?"

I hadn't heard this and it kind of shocked and amazed me.

Betsy


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## Mike D. aka jmiked

"Appalled" would be the word I would use. I'm taking them off my Christmas card list.


Mike


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## SelenaBlake

I read their explanation and still can't figure out why they're doing that. Seems like one more case of BN shooting themselves in the foot. I keep debating if I want to get a Nook and I think this pretty much answers that question.


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## Betsy the Quilter

Mike.

I don't get why they want to make it so difficult for their members.  The member who posted about it here said it was the reason he bought a Kindle.

The other thing that worries me is the possibility that Amazon might follow B&N's lead.

Betsy


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## MariaESchneider

I read on another site (speculation) that maybe it would somehow make the Nook division more attractive to a "buyer" of the technology/Nook division.  The problem is that side loading is becoming more common and is a sought-after feature.  To take it away may impress publishers or a retailer that wants to lock you into "Their" system or "their books" but it isn't going to impress the person with the wallet--namely the customer having to use the device!

Because of this change, there is no way I'd recommend anyone buying a Nook.  I get asked now and then for advice on which device to get.  They may as well have taken the nook off the market.


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## Meemo

I'm not quite sure what this policy actually achieves - you can still download your Nook books to the Nook app for PC or Mac, and then you could pull from there and sideload.  It does seem to be in keeping with what I always thought of as B&N's Nook policy - look at a Kindle and add at least 2 steps for performing any function.  Just another B&N/Nook decision I don't understand.


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## ct85711

Well, I can say one thing for sure.  If BN actually does make it you can't side-load books on all their devices, my mother will completely get rid of all her nooks.  There's been quite a few times, that she buys books through Baen and load them on her nook because Nook's store is either more expensive or doesn't carry that book/series (the most common issue).  Right now, I believe out of the 3-4k books she has, over 80% is side-loaded.  She already got rid of her Barnes and Noble member card because it's useless with having a Nook.


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## shaunduke

Just a reminder: http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/articles/2014-06-25/barnes-and-noble-finally-ditches-the-nook-dot-now-will-the-retailer-sell-itself

B&N itself is separate from the Nook division. I don't know how they're split from one another. They may be completely different companies now with no crossover. Honestly, I haven't paid enough attention since I use Calibre for my eBook library just so I don't have to deal with this kind of stuff.

That said, I agree that the idea is utterly idiotic. It makes little sense to make using ebooks any more difficult than they already are, and any company hoping to compete with a place like Amazon simply has to provide better service on their devices/systems.

Meh.


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## luvmykindle3

Side loading is one of the main reasons I bought the nook, so I could put thee books I already had on it. Wow. I charged up my old 1st gen nook, it's still working.  I was thinking of getting the glow light nook, but I'm not so sure I want to continue investing in the nook brand. It seems to be going away.


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## shaunduke

luvmykindle3 said:


> Side loading is one of the main reasons I bought the nook, so I could put thee books I already had on it. Wow. I charged up my old 1st gen nook, it's still working. I was thinking of getting the glow light nook, but I'm not so sure I want to continue investing in the nook brand. It seems to be going away.


You can still side load books you DLed from Smashwords or whatever. I think the change concerns books you purchased via the Nook store. Not sure if that was clear this far down in the discussion, but I thought it needed repeating


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## Meemo

True. Really, the headline of the Goodreader article Betsy linked to is a bit misleading. The policy also currently only applies to downloading books that you're reading online from BN's website, Nook for Web (their version of Kindle Cloud Reader) as I read it. You can still download to your PC/Mac with the Nook apps for PC or Mac.  That's why I don't understand the point of disabling downloading from one when you can from the other.


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## shaunduke

Meemo said:


> True. Really, the headline of the Goodreader article Betsy linked to is a bit misleading. The policy also currently only applies to downloading books that you're reading online from BN's website, Nook for Web (their version of Kindle Cloud Reader) as I read it. You can still download to your PC/Mac with the Nook apps for PC or Mac. That's why I don't understand the point of disabling downloading from one when you can from the other.


For all I know, they could have one it for some totally legitimate reason that wouldn't make sense out of the corporate environment. Or they're crazy.


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## MariaESchneider

I'll go with "crazy."


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## Ann in Arlington

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Mike.
> 
> I don't get why they want to make it so difficult for their members. The member who posted about it here said it was the reason he bought a Kindle.
> 
> The other thing that worries me is the possibility that Amazon might follow B&N's lead.
> 
> Betsy


I assume that Amazon is way too interested in positive customer experience to do anything that might jeopardize that.

That said, I do all my kindle downloading wirelessly, so such a change wouldn't affect me. But it would certainly be a problem for people who _have_ to download to computer and transfer because they don't have access to reliable wifi or 3G.

It does seem like it's mostly so that they can say they have better protection against piracy. Makes no sense to me if it makes it harder for your customers to buy stuff from you.


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## Meemo

Ann in Arlington said:


> It does seem like it's mostly so that they can say they have better protection against piracy. Makes no sense to me if it makes it harder for your customers to buy stuff from you.


Except that it really doesn't, as long as you can still download to the Nook for PC/Mac apps. Although investors (if that's who they're really trying to impress) might not be tech-savvy enough to realize that.


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## Ann in Arlington

Meemo said:


> Except that it really doesn't, as long as you can still download to the Nook for PC/Mac apps. Although investors (if that's who they're really trying to impress) might not be tech-savvy enough to realize that.


It's pretty well documented that none of these things REALLY will prevent piracy -- they make it more difficult for ordinary folks to make copies -- in the sense that it now takes a couple more steps -- but those bent on nefarious doings will see it as nothing more than a bump in the road.

But there's still the perception by many that it helps. I'm relatively certain that the only reason Amazon offers DRM is because the big publishers required it of them. Which is why it's not mandatory, but an option only.


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## MariaESchneider

Meemo said:


> Except that it really doesn't, as long as you can still download to the Nook for PC/Mac apps. Although investors (if that's who they're really trying to impress) might not be tech-savvy enough to realize that.


I saw on another forum that they may be taking away support for Nook for PC/apps. So perhaps they really intend to make it impossible to sideload. Of course as long as the older versions work (which they never worked that well for me) it may not be a problem.

I do a lot of sideloading because I buy books from multiple vendors. I buy frequently from Kobo using coupons and have also been shopping at Google Play. The coupons at Kobo often provide a price break and they also run 35 off sales most weekends on various lists of books. Amazon is still easiest for me, but it isn't always the cheapest option and since I can sideload without much trouble, I shop wherever the deals are.


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