.exe file on a Mac?

eBook DRM uses .exe, stops Mac user sales?

[JayCee]

I know almost nothing about the Mac OS. Am looking at using a Digital Rights Management (DRM) product that wraps my PDF eBook in an .exe wrapper.

Would that .exe file format stop Mac users from downloading and installing (entering their license key into) my eBook?

Thanks!

[timster]

Don't know about the particular files in question, but...

It may still be possible for Mac users to use the files -- if these are wrappers you can just drop the .exe file on Stuffit Expander and go from there.

But you'd certainly need to educate your Mac customers, many of whom (for obvious reasons) don't believe they can use .exe files, or who think of .exe files as virus risks.

[JayCee]

Thanks Timster!
Guess i'll have to get a friend with a Mac to test it out and then add Mac/Stuffit instructions to my download page - if it works.

True, .exe files for download have a (well deserved, i guess) bad reputation on both platforms.

[travelin cat]

JayCee, I would highly recommend using Stuffit to wrap your pdf's, most Mac users know of it and know that it is a Mac utility...

When I see a .exe file first thing I think of is this is a pc file and can't be used. The second thing I think of if the instructions explain that it is just a wrapper is that the file was created on a pc and could have ANYTHING in it.

Stick with the .sit and .sitx files generated by Stuffit for your Mac users...

[rjohara]

Just an immpression from a long-time Mac user: I would never download a .exe - that's a sure sign of a virus. (I know it isn't in your case, but any experienced Mac user would treat an .exe like poison.)

[JayCee]

Okay, thanks guyz - big help. Last thing i want is to scare away customers.

If i've got this right, i should have separate Windows versions and Mac versions for download and wrap the Mac version of my cross-platform .PDF eBook, which is already wrapped in the DRM .EXE file, inside an additional Stuffit .SIT file? Whew.

Guess that's possible.

And i could wrap the Windows version inside a ZIP file too.