Odds & Ends Frank Ross on 06 Oct 2006 06:50 pm
Adobe DRM Too Restrictive?
Earlier this year, I purchase Robert Kyosaki’s Rich Dad Poor Dad and his corresponding Cash Flow Quadrant books. They were digital download in PDF format. I loved the books! Of course these are books that every entreprenuer in the room has already read so I felt I really needed to knuckle down and read them. I read RDPD in whole, and had just started on CFQ when I got sidetracked by various issues.
One of them was a computer issue which forced me to reload Windows and restore all my files. Apparently there are now new procedures to be followed when backing files up for restore that have to do with DRM (digital rights management).
I reached the point last night where I thought - hey! I need to get back to that book. But I got a rude surprise when I tried to open CFQ which I had just started. The DRM kicked in and told me I would have to re-claim the digital download. When I did that, the Adobe DRM then informed me that until I released it from the “other computer”, I could not use it.
I can only assume the ‘other computer’ was the computer prior to the rebuild. I assume there must have been a registry entry which controlled that or some hidden file. Adobe’s official instructions are:
1. On the other computer, run Acrobat or Adobe Reader and use the menus to navigate to the Adobe DRM Activator site as follows:
If you are using Adobe Reader Version 6, select Tools > eBook Web Services > Adobe DRM Activator.
If you are using Adobe Reader Version 7, select File > Digital Editions > Authorize Devices.
If you are using Acrobat Version 6, select Advanced > eBook Web Services > Adobe DRM Activator.
If you are using Acrobat Version 7, select Advanced > Digital Editions > Authorize Devices.
2. On the Sign In page, sign in using the same Microsoft .NET Passport or Adobe ID that you used to activate Adobe Reader or Acrobat on this computer. Note: If you have forgotten your Passport or Adobe ID password, both systems offer a password recovery option.
3. After you sign in, activate Adobe Reader or Acrobat by clicking the Activate button.
Arrgh! Forget it I said. It was only $20 and I’ll spend probably much more than that trying to get someone at Adobe customer service to give me another way to retrieve the books. So I just bought them again - this time in physical form! Moral of the story: DRM (at least how Adobe has it implemented) may not be ready for prime time.
– Frank Ross