Amazon Kindle & Linux… and how to remove DRM

Kindle and Linux

There are useful tools around to handle your Amazon Kindle:

  • calibre – a nice piece of software to manage your books (library) on your kindle. This tool also converts and sends books to your device. The all in one solution. It is extremely expendable with Plug-Ins (also for removing DRM)
  • ebook-convert and other commandline-tools (gets installed with calibre)
    example: ebook-convert filename.cbz filename.epub

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Removing DRM with Python tool

  1.  What you need: Python on your system – just try “python” in CLI. If Python is missing in your distro install it – e.g. in Ubuntu by “sudo apt-get install python”
  2. The MobiDeDRM Scripts – http://nyquil.org/uploads/MobiDeDRM.zip
  3. If you buy a book from Amazon you normally get a “Book.azw”-File…
  4. … the next steps:
  • python kindlepid.py XXXXXXXXXXX” where XXXXXXXXXXXX is your 16-character Serial (get your serial from your Kindle Systeminformation – Settings/Device information). The Terminal window will return something like Mobipocked PID for Kindle serial# XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX is Z1QFCDQ*74. That “Z1QFCDQ*74” string is what you need.

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  • Now all you have to do to remove the DRM from the .AZW file is:
    python mobidedrm.py Book-Title.azw Book-Title.mobi YourMobiPocketKEY
    In a minute or so you should have a DRM-free MobiPocket book you can later convert in any other format you like. If that doesn’t work, try
    python mobidedrm2.py Book-Title.azw Book-Title.mobi YourMobiPocketKEY

 

Sources and more information:

  • https://www.facebook.com/notes/unix/remove-drm-from-amazon-kindles-ebooks-using-linux/293892687293406
  • http://apprenticealf.wordpress.com/2012/09/10/drm-removal-tools-for-ebooks/
  • http://www.heise.de/open/artikel/Toolbox-E-Book-Verwaltung-mit-Calibre-2038084.html

 

Sources for free eBooks

  • http://www.gutenberg.org/
  • Torrent