Oh Amazon

[alanajoli]

When Amazon first said that the Kindle was going to work with Overdrive back in April, I was excited. As a former library staffer, I thought this could only be a win for library users and libraries in general. Good for libraries how, you say? Circulation statistics help libraries get funding, whether those circs are from print books or e-books.

Comments

Overdrive usage

[ext_910186]

I've checked out some Kindle books through the library. I don't read them on a Kindle, but on my Kindle for iPad app. I'm not really sure how security could be a concern, given how it's set up. Here's how I've had it work:

On the Overdrive website, there's the option to select some ebooks in the format of either a Kindle ebook or in Adobe Digital Edition. When my hold for the Kindle ebook is ready, I go to the Overdrive website and check it out. There is then a link to Amazon.com. On this page, I select which device I want the ebook delivered to, click Deliver, and the book shows up on my device. When the time is up, the file is removed from the Kindle app. From what I can tell, the file is just as secure as it would be for a regular Kindle ebook, and I personally prefer the delivery being handled through the Amazon website instead of having to hassle with downloading and then transferring. It's way more convenient and, from what I can tell, perfectly secure.

I can't really compare this to Adobe Digital Editions, because I've frankly never figured out how to get Adobe Digital Editions onto my iPad, so I've never actually used it.

However, I will point out one security note: When you check out a Kindle ebook, then any highlights and notes made in the book are retained on the kindle.amazon.com website, even after the checkout period is over and you can no longer access the book itself. This makes it very useful for research purposes, in my opinion ... perhaps more useful than the publishers would like.