Steph’s Comments (group member since May 22, 2010)

Steph’s comments from the SOS: Serious Overload of Series group.

Welcome to SOS' 27th Round of BookShelf Bingo!

Please sign up here, not here. This thread is for random BSB chatter only. Many Thanks!

READY TO STAMP!
This thread is for BSB R27 stamp requests only, please and thank you.

Team Captains, please include a direct link* to your team's weekly read list. This will allow our BSB ninjas to quickly check to make sure all members have indeed read, rated, and reviewed their book.

Be sure to include:
❀ Your team's # and name
❀ Name of completed shelf or shelves needing a stamp
❀ Link to shelf reads (showing read info stated above)

Thanks! :D

‼️AS OF R26: Once we have verified your reviews and given your request the "verified & okay to stamp" approval, you may stamp your team bingo card. Be sure to share the link to your stamped card on the 'Captain's Log' thread.

* In order to include a direct link to a post, right click on the date of your post and click "copy link location," then paste the link here.
EXAMPLE: [message 1: by Steph Jan 19, 2012 12:21am]


Good luck to all & Happy Reading!

Good luck to you on your break from freebies and hope your time away is for happy, peaceful reasons.

R27 Captain's Log
‼️[New as of R26+] Captains will be stamping their teams' cards. After you have received approval to stamp (on the 'Request to Stamp' thread), stamp your team's card and share a link to the stamped card here, along with the shelf name stamped.

Example
Team Name & Number ~ Shelf Name
Link to your team's bingo card

Captains are required to track team stats within their team's thread, too. This will help keep your teammates motivated and reading toward B-I-N-G-O.

In an effort to keep this thread as organized as possible, please ask any questions you may have in our BSB R27 discussion thread. Thanks 😊

Team #1
Captain: ☘KathyD☘

Members:
☘KathyD☘
☼♎ Carmen the Bootyshaker Temptress ☼♎
Shan ~A~

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CWCDNB1W
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C7LDV99R
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BWSPC8GW
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DK7QNWJQ
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C99V3K3B
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08SKNF99S
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BSS8K74K
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CW18T3L9
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078BN3K57
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07R69DYD9
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09H3N1L6D

I had a difficult time reading them back-to-back, but didn't have the same issue with the audio. I think it was b/c I loved the narrators so much. Dunno, it's been so long since I read that series.

Yeah, it’s 🤪🤬🤯😳😤😫 all rolled into one

I’ve never understood the pricing on ebooks. Should cost less, I’d think, but no? Dunno.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DVKQB74V
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HN63TNI
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CKL5M8G2

Murderbot (16 May // Apple+)
(based on All Systems Red by Martha Wells)
A security android struggles with emotions and free will while balancing dangerous missions and desire for isolation, evading detection of its self-hacking as it finds its place.

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt30444310

I hadn't even thought about this, but makes sense printed books would be among the many things that'll cost more b/c of ___ (fill in the blank with something nicer than I'd say).

From Ilona Andrews' newsletter (https://ilona-andrews.com/blog/kindle...

The Price of Printed Books

Is it true that the price of printed books will rise?

Yes. Most of the books are printed in China or on paper imported from China. When the new tariffs go into effect, the prices will increase. It is very difficult to shift that production chain. The publishers tried during the pandemic and we had delays across the board. The Ingram Spark, print-in-demand publisher used by a lot of self-published authors, already announced the anticipated price hikes.

How much more will they cost?

We don’t know. Could be a couple of bucks, could be more. There is no way to tell yet. Nobody is happy about this situation, but that is the way it is. The cost of tariffs is passed onto the consumer, and we have to make at least $1 off each printed self-published book, or we cannot afford to continue.

Very true 😊

Amyiw wrote: "I forgot what this thread was about. So to go back to the theme.

IMWTK: Which books lived up to they hype?"

😆 Thanks, Amyiw

My Dad loved that movie. I haven't read or watched, so maybe.

Victoria wrote: "Steph wrote: "Hope all my rambles make sense, y’all. Much of it is just stream of consciousness frustrations. 💕"

Yep! I feel exactly the same!"

Thx ☺️

Valerie ~ Val Hall ~ wrote: "I looked at my “Manage your content” page. I know I collected freebies for a while because of the freebie thread in this group, since 2012, ….it’s not pretty. I need an intervention. Pretty sure I ..."

I'm right there with you!

------------------

Ilona Andrews' newsletter had this to say on the topic (https://ilona-andrews.com/blog/kindle...

Kindle USB

Let me say upfront, before there is a panic: this will not affect most people, because most of us do not bother with it. If you are wondering if this will affect you, then you probably haven’t used this feature before.

Most people either read their Amazon books on Kindle or on Kindle app. I use the Kindle app primarily, because I tend to read on my iPad or search the books for work on my computer. My books sit in my cloud library until I’m ready to download them to my device.

Some people back up their books to a USB device, meaning they download those files to a storage drive or a USB stick. A loose equivalent would be buying a movie on Amazon and burning it onto a DVD to keep.

Amazon is doing away with that ability. It goes away on February 25th.

Let me reiterate: most of the users will not be affected. You can still email the book files to your kindle, you can still download the books to your kindle, and they will still be available in app. If you haven’t downloaded books to store them somewhere else before, you will not notice.

Why is Amazon doing this?

Although we buy books on Amazon, our actual ownership is more similar to renting. We buy access to that book for as long as Amazon has it available. Amazon wants to make sure you continue to give it your money. If you delete your Amazon account, all of your books will disappear with it.

We have seen this model before with Audible, which is now owned by Amazon. When you buy audiobooks on Audible, you accumulate credits and if you cancel your account, you lose access to all of your purchases and credits. It’s an effective way to keep consumers tied to you. (Please see correction on this in the comments. Apparently, deleting the Audible account doesn’t prevent access.)

It does afford some flexibility. Amazon periodically pushes updates to these books. We have updated our books before because of typos or some inadvertently poor word choice or something the readers pointed out. If a publisher pulls out and takes their titles with them, Amazon wants to be able to disappear them from your library so not to be in breach of contract, etc. But mostly it’s about money and keeping you locked into the Amazon ecosystem.

Downloading these books to a storage device safeguards against that. If this is a concern, you have until February 25th to download your titles.

How?

Here is a video explaining how to do it. We have no idea if the software he recommends for bulk downloads is good, so we do not endorse it. Please do your research: Amazon’s New Kindle Rule (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hleOa...).

Thank you to Jennifer Thomas from the Facebook Fan Group for bringing it to our attention.

Please do not email to Mod R asking her how to download your books to the storage device. The gentleman explains it in the video. We love you, but we cannot serve as Amazon tech support. We are not qualified.

------------------

"Although we buy books on Amazon, our actual ownership is more similar to renting. We buy access to that book for as long as Amazon has it available. Amazon wants to make sure you continue to give it your money. If you delete your Amazon account, all of your books will disappear with it."

This ⇧ is what raises my blood pressure. I bought it, so I should own it, right? Nope. It's a loaner, essentially, and they can disappear it anytime they like, including if you leave their business. 😕

No, please don’t feel bad. It’s not you or anything anyone has said here about it. Honest. I’m glad you shared for everyone to have time to do something (or nothing) while there was time left to do so.

What’s making me sick is that I’m realizing/learning that (for however long) Amazon has been “selling” me books that I (now, at least) don’t own (WTH, seriously?!) and “taking them” (in the only ways that we’ve learned) feels wrong b/c they’ve made it like we’d be stealing. Stealing what we bought? 😵‍💫

They’d be better off being up front (🤣) and just having all books KU or some such, in a way preferably that’d be good for authors, as well, instead of making it seem like a transaction: our money for a book, which would usually mean it’s yours to do with what you will - on their reader or where-the-fuck-ever. ‘Scuse my French, y’all, but damn. What a mess.

Hope all my rambles make sense, y’all. Much of it is just stream of consciousness frustrations. 💕

Amyiw wrote: "That is an updated service agree that Amazon is trying to get around the legalities of "fair use" by saying you paid for it but your don't own it. Yea, it does feel icky."

😕

Victoria wrote: "Hmmm... I think I will be reading this series more than just one book/per month. It's just soooo gooood!"

😆
It's taking a LOT of restraint to keep from jumping in and not coming out until I've finished them all. I've had a temp fix after #11, so I think I'll put off #2 closer to the end of the month and read #3 right after 😏


~Melissa~ wrote: "Well, Amyiw got me sucked into this world from another group where she recommended as a favorite of 2024. I'm glad she did and by extension, Steph, as this must be where it all started!

Finished ..."

Yay!

Please bear with me as I share. I'm not religious, but I have always had an irrationally guilty conscience.

Amz's Kindle Store terms of use page (https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/custom...) was last updated 31 Dec 2024, so who knows what it said prior to that date. I didn't read it, but now that I have it says:

"Use of Kindle Content. Kindle Content is licensed, not sold, to you by the Content Provider."

and

"In addition, you may not attempt to bypass, modify, defeat, or otherwise circumvent any digital rights management system or other content protection or features used as part of the Service."

Although, "In the US, it's generally illegal to remove DRM from ebooks, though there are some exceptions. DRM stands for Digital Rights Management.

When it's legal
- Removing DRM for accessibility reasons
- Removing DRM for research
- Removing DRM for maintenance, repair, or security testing
- Removing DRM for personal use, as long as you don't distribute the material

I'm feeling icky over this issue, TBH y'all. I'm feeling kinda naive for not reading all of it sooner. And, I'm feeling like, if I were to download books I paid for, I'm stealing. That's making me mad at Amazon and myself for not looking into it further.

When I paid, either a fully discounted $0 or full price, for an ebook at Amazon, I thought I owned the book, not just the license to read it on their device(s). I fully understood the rules and regulations surrounding KU b/c I read them. I knew it'd be a loaner program I had to pay for annually; books would come and go, as I chose.

This isn't that, but it certainly feels like it to a much larger extent b/c I have spent much more money over the last (almost) 20 years on ebooks than I have over the last handful of years paying for KU. And yet, Amazon owns all of those books - loaners and purchases. WTF?! 😤

I bought the book. If I download it, then remove the DRM, I should be within my legal right to do so, yes? Then, why does the idea of it all make me sick to my stomach? Guilty conscience flare up just talking about it when I haven't even done it.

Ugh 😕

I don't begrudge anyone wanting to do what should be completely legal. But, please excuse me from further discussion b/c, at least at this moment, I'm feeling the need to step away from it.

Valerie shared a YouTube video speaking on this here: https://youtu.be/v8JN0V9lO8Y?si=wlelD...

Thanks for the video, Valerie. We do. Victoria started a thread here: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...