A Technical Look at D&D Insider Applications

[Michael Morris]

Poster to poster 3cat - dial back the rhetoric or go take a walk and cool down. There's no need to be rude. Making the employees of Wizards of the Coast feel uncomfortable or unwanted here is entirely antithetical to the rules and purpose of this board.

 

[Nifft]

The fact that you have to punch in a code at all is onerous to me because it feels like you don't want to charge me once for the same information - you want to charge me twice. Even if it is only another $2, you are charging me *twice* for the same information.

Think of it like this:

You're not paying for the information. You have that already. You're just paying for a convenient format.

You could legally pay Fat Sal at the copy shop to scan in your new book and give you a PDF. However, Fat Sal probably eats chocolate while he handles your books. So giving your $1 to WotC over the web is not only is more convenient than going to Fat Sal's Copy Shop, but it saves your books from alien chocolate stains.

Cheers, -- N

 

[Scott_Rouse]

Originally Posted by 3catcircus
The problem *isn't* that people are looking for something to bitch about. The problem is the well-established Hasbro corporate attitude that may end up having corporate guys require WotC low-level employees to lie to our faces about what they are going to do...
I much prefer being told the truth rather than being strung along.

Unfortunately - I don't see that happening from Hasbro and WotC.

You may think that it is garbage, but, unfortunately, perception is reality. The perception I have (and apparently, so do others) is that there is no good reason for requiring someone to buy a hardcover in order to be able to buy a pdf of the same information.

Baseless accusations of lying directed towards me is pretty lousy in my book.

Welcome to my ignore list, you are the first EN Worlder to earn that distinction.

 

[Charwoman Gene]

I DRIVE A DODGE STRATUS!

 

[Henry]

Poster to poster 3cat - dial back the rhetoric or go take a walk and cool down.

Let me second this pearl of wisdom. Accusations of people lying to others are really beginning to get on my nerves, quite frankly. Furthermore, they're heading right into the territory of "ascribing motives to other forum posters," which is the height of incivility.

If a person doesn't like a WotC policy, that's fine -- voice your opinion, we don't mind. But it can be done in a way that doesn't tick off other posters. Please everyone, think before you post.

Thanks.

 

[Hussar]

Scott - let me also chime in here to say that while some of us have the manners of a knuckle dragging troglodyte, there are others here who are really happy to have you drop in and let us know what you know.

En World is a home to a number of pretty hardcore fans, and, well, sometimes fandom gets a bit in a mood.

SO, to recap, and correct me if I have this wrong:

After you buy a book, which will come with a serial number of some sort, you access the WOTC site, give the number, pay your two bucks and get the pdf. That access can also be used in conjuction with the DDI applications.

A few questions then, if it's not too early:

1. Will the pdf be DRM'd or simply watermarked?

2. How will the serial numbers be protected in the books?

3. Will there be limitations on the number of times a serial number can be used to purchase the pdf? Or, could a group buy one book as a group, then everyone use the same serial number to download the pdf, paying 2 bucks each time? ((As a side thought, this would dovetail nicely with the resale of books - if there is no limit on the number of times a serial number can be used, you just have to pay 2 bucks each time, then resale or even people stealing serial numbers wouldn't be much of a problem))

Thanks.

 

[hong]

TBH, this reminds me just a little of EA and their fetish for micropurchases.

 

[Scott_Rouse]

SO, to recap, and correct me if I have this wrong:

After you buy a book, which will come with a serial number of some sort, you access the WOTC site, give the number, pay your two bucks and get the pdf. That access can also be used in conjuction with the DDI applications.

A few questions then, if it's not too early:

1. Will the pdf be DRM'd or simply watermarked?

2. How will the serial numbers be protected in the books?

3. Will there be limitations on the number of times a serial number can be used to purchase the pdf? Or, could a group buy one book as a group, then everyone use the same serial number to download the pdf, paying 2 bucks each time? ((As a side thought, this would dovetail nicely with the resale of books - if there is no limit on the number of times a serial number can be used, you just have to pay 2 bucks each time, then resale or even people stealing serial numbers wouldn't be much of a problem))

Thanks.

1) the PDF will have a watermark. DRM is a term thrown around a lot and it means different things to different people. In looking at file formats we have looked at some that have some DRM and others that don't. We seem to be leaning towards a .PDF file format usable with Adobe reader but we are still looking at multiple solutions so nothing is final. In general our philosophy is to trust the customer but we will likely have some level of built in "digital rights management" used in the broadest sense that people who own the document are the ones using it and there is some level of assurance that it wont be on bit torrent the next day.

2) the codes in the books will be printed in ink on a back page of the book. No shrink wrap, no scratch off, not secret decoder ring. This was the least expensive method of inserting a code (to avoid further cost increases that inevitably get passed on to you the buyer) and that avoided issues at retail with the product like: "the code on this book has been scratched
off" or "can you unwrap it so I can see it?". Obviously this solution comes with a issue that any unscrupulous individual could got to his/her FLGS and copy down the code and go home and redeem it. This is where the activation fee comes in. We generally believe our customers to be honest and we felt a method that verified your identity would go a long way to deterring and would be thieves. Obviously this solution is not infallible but we have a very good fraud prevention team at WOTC for Magic Online and they will be able to deal with the issues that do arise. A person with a code problem will be able to talk with a customer service rep and largely we are going to trust the customer. If a code is in dispute with have the ability to verify ownership when we are handling it through CS.

3) We have settled on one code activation per book. That being said if you buy a book that has had the code activated you can call CS on a toll free number, email CS, or live chat with CS and they will make sure to straighten out the problem for you (as described under #2).

In terms of e-book sharing. Although we would prefer every player owned their own books we know and understand a fair amount of sharing occurs. That being said, because we have not finalized the file format issue (and any potential DRM) I can't say if sharing will be allowed. The last solution we did look at would allow for a minimum amount of transfer between computers/users but nothing is final at this point.

 

[Kesh]

Thank you for being so up-front with us, Scott.

I have to say, the only part of this that concerns me is the "DRM" issue. I really dislike having files locked to a particular application, especially if there's an "activation limit" on the number of computers it can be used with. I've seen file formats die on the wayside, and I'd like to have a file that can last if I change operating systems or want to load it onto a future "e-book reader" portable machine. That's why I love watermarked PDFs, but am wary of PDF "manager" applications that keep them limited and proprietary to that app.

Further, DRM tends to be OS-specific. As a Mac OS and Linux user, I don't like being cornered into running a friend's Windows machine just to read a book I purchased. I've already given up on using the Digital Initiative virtual gaming extras because of this, but it'd be disappointing if the e-books we can unlock are similarly bound to one OS.

 

[ZappoHisbane]

2) the codes in the books will be printed in ink on a back page of the book.
...

3) We have settled on one code activation per book. That being said if you buy a book that has had the code activated you can call CS on a toll free number, email CS, or live chat with CS and they will make sure to straighten out the problem for you (as described under #2).

Hmm. Well, I *really* like the idea of the online versions of the books, and I'm likely to be a subscriber and all that. At the same point however, I'm wary of taking a gamble with my code, and the possibility of having to contact customer support for anything. I'm sure the WotC support department is top notch, but I'm not a gambling man. So the upshot of all this? I'll be purchasing all my books via Amazon.ca. Sorry, FLGS.