Why DRM bites graphics
There is so much to keep track of on Twitter (I'm @miss_eli, btw), but this managed to get caught in the filter.
An infographic explaining why using pirated movie content can be preferable to authorized content (i.e. DVDs) showed up on BoingBoing last month. (Another version here.)
Now there is a similar graphic for audible books, showing why DRM doesn't work when trying to check out an audio book from the local library.
Actually, the graphic specifically cites the Cleveland Public Library. To be fair, the graphic is focused on OverDrive, which is a system used by (according to the co.) 9,000 public libraries. And I am presuming that there is a fair amount of ... exaggeration for humorous effect. I'm hoping it's not nearly as frustrating for most users most of the time to download and hear audio book files "checked ou"t from the library. (I'm not an audiobooks person, inexplicably, so I've never tried to get a library audiobook file).
But ... is there a disconnect here? When people have to go through a fair bit of rigamarole to get access to digital materials in the library ... do they blame the technological middlemen or the library? Or does the library get lumped in with the technological middlemen? Do patrons shrug it off or does it affect how they feel about their library as a whole? And should libraries do "something" about it?