Epub readers

[PeterT]

I'm seeing more & more self or re-published digital books in .epub (electronic publication) format available through Library, on internet, purchasable through Amazon or whatever. My question is any of you guys have .epub reader recommendations for PC? I don't know much about this topic but looks like Adobe Digital Additions seems to be the big one. Chrome has (or had?) Readium but I'm not sure if it still supported. Then there seem to be host of others in varying quality. btw I'm on Win-10 PC, no interest in mobile app

 

[Dabbler]

my favourite is Sumatra. It will read almost any format, and is comfortable to use, and it works on anything from Win7 and up.

 

[Johnwa]

I use calibre to convert ePub to mobi for my kindle.

 

[PeterT]

Thanks. This might be more of a Library specific question, but do you happen to know - when you do the electronic/epub equivalent of borrowing a physical paper book for 2 weeks or whatever, is that completely separate from the epub reading app itself? I get the impression (maybe wrong) that say in the case of setting up Adobe digital Additions, you provide minimal credentials in order to install & maybe that is what the the Library references as who the borrower is? Or is the download somehow date stamped & you can use whatever reader you want? In which case how does Library know its beyond the allotted borrow time & somehow switch off readability?

I've discovered there is a whole world of digital books, magazines, all kinds of resources available through (in my case) Calgary Public Library.

 

[Janger]

I imagine the file has a timer in it to self destruct. I think it would be configured when you download the file - this wouldn't be a simple file download - the server must manage the DRM (digital rights management) on the file when you request it. I wonder what they have done to prevent clock tampering on your computer.

 

[PeterT]

I called Library today & that's essentially what (low tech) library support person said to me the (even lower tech) customer. It knows when time is approaching, sends a heads up email couple days before renewal. Otherwise when the loan period is up it magically makes it no longer available. Now what kind of bird droppings it leaves on my PC to manage all this is another discussion. I wanted to inquire if Adobe was the only app that worked or just what they were recommending but didn't get that far. It looks like a useful resource.