It appears mr. Nagaraj didn't even understand your predicament. You did not unintentionally buy the book. You very well DID buy it with the intention of reading it. It was apple who failed to effectively let you know that you could ONLY read it on an iPad which you do not own.
Good to hear you're getting a refund regardless. When my account was hacked and 100+ dollars was charged for games and apps i didn't want, they told me that all sales were final and that it was my credit card providers responsibility to refund me for the fraudulent charges. Luckily my credit card did refund me, and i got to keep all the shit on my account as well.
But seriously, apple is complete garbage. They're only useful for when i want to legitimately buy music or movies instantly. other than that, garbage.
Originally Posted by . : UrbanMonk : . I wouldn't recommend a mac over a PC, you'd get more for the price with a PC.
I can understand buying an iphone, but the rest is quite a waste.
I'm just saying that they know how to make money and you can't fault them for that.
I actually think the way Apple operate is not sustainable. For the time being, they are making a shed-load of money, basically just off the "coolness" of the brand. However, if they continue to operate the way they are now, they will seriously devalue the brand - people will no longer think of them as being cool, but as being a money-grabbing evil empire. The public as a whole, are pretty dumb, so it probably won't happen for another 5+ years, but it will happen.
I think the only good reason for choosing a Mac over a PC would be if you're in the graphic design industry (or a few others). In that case, Macs are still very much the "industry standard", so it's easier to get hired if you have experience of Macs, and if you're a business it's easier to find employees with experience of Macs. Apart from that, Apple products are just a rip-off.
Originally Posted by . : UrbanMonk : . I wouldn't recommend a mac over a PC, you'd get more for the price with a PC.
Well, there's one case where a Mac might be preferrable - if you're buying it for your kid. Macs are harder to f*** up than PCs.
I think your right there.
I got a iphone 3gs on contract a couple months back and I'm kind of regretting it now as I now know how limited the devices are. My old G1/HTC Dream android phone could do more this this thing can, don't have proper bluetooth support which I found out the hard way...
I have to say though I love the touchscreen on iphone, it's so responsive.
Apple forces you to create an AppleID account if you want to buy anything. This really pissed me off.
Next I find the book only comes in the ePub format. This pisses me off because I wanted to print it at my local library which only allows PDF printing.
Then I spend an hour trying to convert it to PDF. NO LUCK! This pisses me off.
Then I spend an hour downloading different ePub viewer programs. NONE CAN OPEN THE FILE. This pisses me off.
THEN I spend an hour reading about Apples shitty iBook eBook format. It is very boring and pisses me off.
THEN I learn that only an iPad can view my book.
No way would I every own an iPad. I am so pissed off. I hate Apple so much. I want to blow up my local Apple store. Or at least take hostage all the employees (probably kill a few to show I mean business) and fight off the police until they meet my demands: a helicopter and my $9.95 back.
1. i agree apple is pretty shit
2. i think its pretty reasonable they want you to create an appleID. i mean amazon asks for an account and so does ebay or any place where you purchase stuff so I think you cant really blame apple for that one
3. i know its really frustrating. maybe you can find a PDF version of that book and WAREZ it. overall i warez stuff because if you actually BUY their products they will fuck with you like they did in your case which is just UNFAIR to the customer. so maybe you can pirate the PDF. serves them right.
also sorry to hear all that trouble you went through. its really cruel and shit but thats the way apple operates. yet people love to say microsoft are nazis while they never behaved like apple does yet i hear no one complain about apple but you so i hope it will become more people. its just terrible service.
Originally Posted by . : UrbanMonk : . Why did you purchase something you couldn't use?
Why don't Apple start using the most prevalent industry standard than making their own proprietary formats all the time? Same with connectors, proprietary connectors piss me off no end - use standard mini/micro USB ffs!
ePub file format is the industry standard for ebooks that are readable through tablet devices, it's not just limited to Apple devices and it sure isn't their own proprietary format. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EPUB
Here's a list of devices that use the epub file format.
Apple iPad
Barnes and Noble NOOK
Sony Reader (Pocket/Daily/Touch Edition and PRS-505)
Bookeen Cybook OPUS
So yeah, they ARE using the most prevalent industry standard. PDF files have been the cause of several security flaws in the iPhone and other devices, allowing hackers to jailbreak/root the devices through running code using these flaws in PDF files. It's no wonder Apple are trying to avoid PDFs.
I'm sick of people whining about Apple products. I use both Macs and PC during my work, and they do the job they are supposed to do. There is no reason I can see, besides feeling like you need to occupy a city, that you are against Apple products when you clearly have no idea about the issues that make you so angry.
I absolutely love my iphone 4 and I never owned an apple phone before that, From the great screen to the touch controls and all the apps you can get from the app store, it is awesome, I cant wait to get my hands on the iphone 5 next year
Thumbs up to Apple
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Originally Posted by Rhys D ePub file format is the industry standard for ebooks that are readable through tablet devices, it's not just limited to Apple devices and it sure isn't their own proprietary format.
EPub is the industry standard for ebooks: CORRECT
They are readable through any tablet device: WRONG
Why? Thanks to Device Rights Management. DRM is what publishers use to restrict what you can do with your ebooks. DRM controls which devices you can use to read your ebook and it will prevent you from converting from format to another.
In most cases you can remove the DRM from an eBook using various scripts or programs. The exception is with the Apple iBook eBook. Apple is the ONLY COMPANY IN THE WORLD to use their own form of DRM. It is called Fairplay DRM and to this date it is IMPOSSIBLE to remove it. This makes it IMPOSSIBLE to view an Apple ePub iBook eBook on anything but an iPad/iPhone. How shit.
I'm not a fan either. I purchased an imac a few years ago because I was convinced it would be perfect for video editing/graphics work/etc. And while it's a standard to . . . some. . . degree, unless you're working directly for a company that requires it, I've seen it do nothing my PC can't do just as well. The OS is just plain clumsy for multitasking no matter how many ways I've configured it. The mouse acceleration curve makes doing any simple task like writing a 40 page paper with your non dominant hand.
BUT, I just bought an ipod touch. I bought it specifically for developing apps using clickteam's new ios exporter. But what a great device. It's apples to oranges, but ios is far superior to osx for what it is. Apple could probably sell a rock with an apple logo on it to a million people, but with the pod/pad/phone they've actually made a genuinely good product.
Rhys D, I own an Iliad IREX (it can takes notes via a touch screen. It's a bit old but great for academia as it can open PDF's natively and I can make notes on them...). It can only open DRM free EPUB format and as Chris has stated, Apple have given the EPUB format a good old fashioned Apple styled coating of proprietary format.
If I pay my money for any form of digital content, I do not expect it be locked to that particular manufacture's devices, total bullshit and bullshit I will never support.
Come on Apple fans then, give me a reason why Apple does not use standard USB connectors on their mobile devices? Does the Apple proprietary connector help the communications link go faster than the USB 2 port it is plugged in to?
@Sketchy: Totally agree, I hope the people wake up sometime soon.
So yeah, they ARE using the most prevalent industry standard. PDF files have been the cause of several security flaws in the iPhone and other devices, allowing hackers to jailbreak/root the devices through running code using these flaws in PDF files. It's no wonder Apple are trying to avoid PDFs.
Apple devices can still read PDFs...
Originally Posted by Rikus Yea why so much hate for apple.
Well, in this case it's rather obvious, selling eBooks that are not readable in their own software (iTunes).
Now Apple has done good things. For one popularizing the AAC format (it is superior to MP3 on a technical level)
As for the bad, this is what I can think of:
- High price to capacity ratio for flash devices
- Forcing the user to use iTunes to upload music and other media (now, for the technically unproficient, this is actually an advantage...)
- Strong control over what apps can run on their devices (again an advantage for the technically unproficient as it protects them from malware, also the same can be said for other closed platforms)
- Now what bothers apple-haters the most is that despite the above, it's still popular!
- Ok, you must admit that was the most creative cussing this site have ever seen -
So yeah, they ARE using the most prevalent industry standard. PDF files have been the cause of several security flaws in the iPhone and other devices, allowing hackers to jailbreak/root the devices through running code using these flaws in PDF files. It's no wonder Apple are trying to avoid PDFs.
Apple devices can still read PDFs...
Originally Posted by Rikus Yea why so much hate for apple.
Well, in this case it's rather obvious, selling eBooks that are not readable in their own software (iTunes).
Now Apple has done good things. For one popularizing the AAC format (it is superior to MP3 on a technical level)
As for the bad, this is what I can think of:
- High price to capacity ratio for flash devices
- Forcing the user to use iTunes to upload music and other media (now, for the technically unproficient, this is actually an advantage...)
- Strong control over what apps can run on their devices (again an advantage for the technically unproficient as it protects them from malware, also the same can be said for other closed platforms)
- Now what bothers apple-haters the most is that despite the above, it's still popular!
I know they can still read PDF's, I was just saying there has been security flaws before involving PDF files and the iPhone.
Apple only have strong control over what apps get passed review because they want a standard of quality on the app store, compared to the Android Marketplace. I'll admit the standards of the apps on the App Store is getting lower as time progresses, but compared to the amount of absolute shite on the Android Marketplace and the fact that anyone can submit without review, it's miles above the rest.
Other devices force the user to use proprietary software as well, look at the Windows phones and ZUNE by Microsoft. It's about resource control. They are more likely to get less technical issues and irate customers bogging down support lines if they are all using the same software.
The DRM is added to eBooks, movies, apps etc to protect copyright and ensure the creators are getting paid. DRM can be a nuisance, but if you buy a product via a specific medium or for a specific device/software, you can't reasonably accept they would love to see you use it on a competitors device or share it round with your friends.
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