Mobipocket Decoder Tool

[petermillard]

Hi

I'm also (trying) to use PDurrant's Applett/Droplett (for which a big thank you!) and what you say is exactly the problem I'm having:

...however, the resultant file is zero k in size, so something's not quite right ... I recognised the

'./MobiDeDRM.py:49: FutureWarning: hex/oct constants > sys.maxint will return positive values in Python 2.4 and up
crc ='

bit from the error message I keep getting when I run the decoder.

I'm on an intel Mac, python 2.5, OSX 10.4.

Any help much appreciated.

Thanks, Peter.

[JSWolf]

There are multiple versions of MobiDeDRM and you may be using the wrong one for the eBook you are trying to strip the DRM from.

[petermillard]

Thanks JSW.

I've tried both MobiDeDRM 0.01 and 0.02 scripts, on several eBooks (different sources) and always the same result - an "Unlocked_YourBook.prc" of 0 KB

Hey ho; we'll sort it eventually...

Thanks, Pete.

[garygibsonsf]

Same thing here, I tried them all, except the ereader2html script (I might try it just for the hell of it) and still got the zerok size file. And like Peter, I'd like to say thanks to Pdurrant (I think it was) for coming up with this in the first place. And like Peter, I'm sure we'll sort it out in the end.

edit. Peter - I had a look at the 'script' inside the resources folder inside the decoder Pdurrant put together. I don't understant scripting or python or whatever, but I did notice scrolling down that the numbers and letters that automatically appear in the window when you select a .prc file are set as a kind of 'default', so presumably I have to go to the site where I bought a particular file and find the mobipocket id. Unfortunately, all I've bought so far are multiformat magazines, and I don't appear therefore to have any associated id's listed on the appropriate page.

It may be that Peter or someone else has secure mobi files they can test the program on; or may already have. I could purchase a secure mobi file and run the script on that, but I'd rather wait and hear if anyone's been able to run the script on secure mobi files, as opposed to multiformat ones.

[llasram]

Originally Posted by petermillard

Hi

I'm also (trying) to use PDurrant's Applett/Droplett (for which a big thank you!) and what you say is exactly the problem I'm having:

I'm on an intel Mac, python 2.5, OSX 10.4.

Any help much appreciated.

Thanks, Peter.

The error that you're posting is reported by Python versions earlier than 2.4, so even if you do have Python version 2.5 installed, something in your system configuration is causing the script to run with an older version.

Pop open a command-line and run:

python --version

If that does report a 2.5.x version, copy the mobidedrm.py script and your mobi file to the same directory and run:

python mobidedrm.py inbook.mobi outbook.mobi PID

(substituting the arguments with the correct file names and PID).

[llasram]

Originally Posted by garygibsonsf

It may be that Peter or someone else has secure mobi files they can test the program on; or may already have. I could purchase a secure mobi file and run the script on that, but I'd rather wait and hear if anyone's been able to run the script on secure mobi files, as opposed to multiformat ones.

Well, you don't need it for "multiformat" Mobipocket books -- those are unencrypted. As for encrypted "secure" books, I can assure you it works just fine.

[petermillard]

Quick update; I've had no joy getting the scripts to run under MacOSX, but just for fun I installed activepython on XP running under Parallels on my MacBook, and that works a treat, so success in a slightly convoluted sort of way!

@ garygibson

All the files I've tried are secure mobipocket files - wouldn't be much point otherwise, right? When the script runs, there's a pop-up that lets you enter your PID. You can find your PID either from your device (under the 'advanced' menu on my Cybook) or through Mobipocket Reader if you have the software installed (PC only).

Edit: Just seen the other responses; will give the 'python --version' a try and see what happens, but at least for now I have something that works!

Thanks all!

Pete.

[garygibsonsf]

I think it might be a problem with my PID after all. I got hold of a drm-ed file, a .prc. I then borrowed a windows laptop (as opposed to my usual ibook) and downloaded and installed mobireader onto it. The book opened on it fine. I clicked on devices, and there was a ten-digit number in the mobireader program that was, or so I got the impression, the PID. I emailed that to my ibook and tried it just now using that command line and with both the .py and the prc file in the same directory; but no luck. Except this time it did tell me I had an invalid PID. So maybe I'm looking in the wrong place for it. Hm.

Edit: I had a look under 'devices' in the mobipocket reader program on a windows xp machine, and there was a ten digit figure listed there (under the details for that pc) that I believe must be the PID, but it didn't work, unfortunately. Back to the drawing board for me.

[petermillard]

OK, update; I ran the "python --version' thing and it reported python 2.5.2. I copied the script and my book into the same directory, and I get an error message effectively (sorry, can't remember the exact words) saying the mobidedrm.py is not recognised.

So, the identical file works under windows through an emulator/virtual machine, but not under OSX. Weird, but I have something that works so I'm not too fussed.

Thanks for all the help.

Cheers, Peter

[llasram]

Originally Posted by petermillard

OK, update; I ran the "python --version' thing and it reported python 2.5.2. I copied the script and my book into the same directory, and I get an error message effectively (sorry, can't remember the exact words) saying the mobidedrm.py is not recognised.

Is the script file named 'mobidedrm.py'? If not then substitute the actual name of the script file.

[petermillard]

Hi

Yes, identical filenames, right down to the capitalisation. I'll have another play tomorrow as it's irritating, but to be honest as I have a solution that works (via windows/activepython) then it's not a priority. Sure, it would've been nice to stay within OSX and have drag & drop conversion with PDurrant's droplet, but what I have works well enough for now, and the command-line thing makes me feel almost nostalgic, lol!

Cheers, Peter.

[pdurrant]

Hi Everyone,

I thought I'd removed my PID from the AppleScript, but I'd forgotten that it was on two places - once for drag&drop of files, and once for running the script on its own.

I've uploaded a new version of the applescript to my original message, number 103.

To decode DRMed Mobipocket files, you must have one of the PIDs for which the file is encrypted.

All Mobipocket Reader programs have a PID, usually visible in an "About" box, and consisting of ten characters and digits.

When buying a DRMed Mobipocket book, you have to supply the PID of the device on which you're going to read it. You can supply up to four separated PIDs for the same encrypted book.

To use the Python Mobipocket decoder, you need to know once of the PIDs used when the DRMed file was downloaded. The Python script does not break the encryption from a standing start, it just uses the known key to do the decoding.

I'm on Mac OS X 10.5.4 with the XCode 3.0 developer tools installed. I don't recall having to do anything in particular to get python running correctly.

So far I haven't come across a DRMed Mobipocket eBook that my modified MobiDeDRM 0.02 script won't handle. See

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...4&postcount=76

for the modifications I use.

If anyone's had success with the Applescript it would be good to hear from them.

I do have another AppleScript for use with encrypted eReader files, using the eReader2html python script that usually accompanies the MobiDeDRM script. If anyone's interested, I'd be happy to upload that in the appropriate forum (well, without the eReader2html python script, of course.)

Paul

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

So far I haven't come across a DRMed Mobipocket eBook that my modified MobiDeDRM 0.02 script won't handle. See

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...4&postcount=76

for the modifications I use.

Actually, I've come across a couple of eBooks that your mod caused to actually break the eBooks so that it causes Mobipocket Reader to crash every time you try to view it.

I used MobiDeDRM.py version 0.01 on those eBooks without a hitch.

[garygibsonsf]

Well, I did try ... I bought a mobiformat encrypted ebook: downloaded it to my girlfriend's laptop (running XP), after registering the PID from a copy of mobipocket reader I downloaded to it; the book opened fine in mobipocket reader on the windows machine; emailed the same file to my ibook; ran pdurrant's script on it (or rather, three versions of it, each one containing a different version of mobidedrm.py); and no luck still.

Then I took jswolf's suggestion; opened terminal; put the prc ebook I bought into the same folders as each of the altered mobipocket unlocker scripts; ran the python script on it as he typed it; except that this time, it said something like 'invalid PID checksum'.

I did, by the way, notice a second file accompanying the purchased ebook, with the same name but the extension '.mbp'. I get the impression, however, this jsut tells the mobipocket software how to display the cover of the book.

Butg no luck yet so far I'm afraid, sigh ...

[llasram]

Originally Posted by garygibsonsf

Then I took jswolf's suggestion; opened terminal; put the prc ebook I bought into the same folders as each of the altered mobipocket unlocker scripts; ran the python script on it as he typed it; except that this time, it said something like 'invalid PID checksum'.

Does your PID have a '$' (dollar sign character) in it? I assume so, and that means you need to put your PID in "'" (single quotes). So you should be running something like:

python mobidedrm.py book-drmed.prc book-clean.mobi 'FAKEPID$42'

With the real filenames and PID, but with the single-quotes in-place.