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Cynthia White

Cynthia White

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Vancouver Island, Courtenay/Comox Valley, British
Anyone out there know a lot about these?

LOML wants to get me one. I've been reading the reviews, but there are still a few things I don't understand: if you buy the Kindle or the Nook can you convert other formats into "their" proprietary format? If you buy the Kindle does that mean you can only download from Amazon? And the Nook only from Barnes and Noble?

Thanks,
Cynthia
 
Cynthia my experience with these things extend only to the Apple Ipad. When a friend of mine showed me it with a book on it became a worthwhile tool. Seems to me the Ipad is more versatile than a dedicated reader but i have not had a kindle in front of me to see its features and compare.

What is great is the ability to be able to look up words instantly by highlighting them and bookmarking or searching.

I have always been a fan of the printed word but after seeing the I pad i am converted. I still like a book for the feely touch side but there is no getting away from the benefits of the ebook especially the additional features.:thumb:
 
Cynthia White said:
So Bill, you install Calibre on the e-book reader? or on your laptop and then move the converted files to the e-book reader? Why did you pick the Kindle vs. the Nook or the Sony?
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Cynthia,

Kindle's the market leader, which means it's going to be around. I'm sure the others are fine as well... ;)

If I had the money, I'd get an I-pad. Sadly, that's out of reach. :doh:

The software goes on my PC (I can't afford a laptop!). Works fine.

As a long time book guy, I can appreciate Rob's feelings about holding a book in one's hands. On the other hand, before the kindle, I never actually read 'the decline and fall of the roman empire.' Why not? It was just physically too big to hold. But on the kindle, it's as light weight as, say, Hilaire Belloc! ;)

Not only that, but I don't read much modern stuff. All the classics, and I mean ALL of them, are available for free. Seriously. For free! ;)

Thanks,

Bill
 
The new Kindle's are smaller and easier to read.
I love books but am convinced e-readers are the future.
I plan to publish two of my novels on Kindle and set up with their print on demand aka POD service as well.
 
I've got the Kobo, from Borders, and I like it a lot. Easy to read screen, even in bright sunlight.

It uses E-Pub and Adobe formats, which are compatible with what my local library uses. Note that most libraries cannot 'loan' books to a Kimble, due to Amazon's proprietary format.

I looked at Sony, Nook and a couple others before settling on the Kobo.
 
Kindel

Wife reads like crazy. She got a Kindle for Christmas and has not put it down.

Also so far she has NOT purchased any books. She is very happy with all the free books available.

Also amazed at the wireless cabilities. She clicks on the book on our computer and just about as fast as you can look over at the Kindle it is there.

She really likes the small size and low weight and has said she is glad we did not get the $300++ larger model.

She has the $130 WiFi model and is very happy with it.
 
"Also so far she has NOT purchased any books. She is very happy with all the free books available."

Not good news for those of us who try to make a few dollars selling what we write. :(

Actually, I understand. I like 'free' stuff myself. ;)
 
I will add my own question, what do you think about these for DIY or How-To books? I have been looking at it from this perspective since I am writing one. It doesn't strike me as a good fit since I wouldn't want to take my reader to the shop. But..... :dunno:
 
Jeff Horton said:
I will add my own question, what do you think about these for DIY or How-To books? I have been looking at it from this perspective since I am writing one. It doesn't strike me as a good fit since I wouldn't want to take my reader to the shop. But..... :dunno:
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I doubt most folks would consider an e-reader to be not shop worthy. Besides, why read in the shop? :huh:
With Kindle you retain all rights. You can do a regular book publish and the Kindle e-thing also.
 
Frank Fusco said:
"Also so far she has NOT purchased any books. She is very happy with all the free books available."

Not good news for those of us who try to make a few dollars selling what we write. :(

Actually, I understand. I like 'free' stuff myself. ;)
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Frank - Do not worry she is just getting the CCard warmed up. We have many walls covered with real books. I bet my annual Kindle costs starting soon will be plenty.
 
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Frank,

I've heard they're actually selling more ebooks than dead tree books, since a few months ago. That's likely to grow. Two other interesting points: authors are likely to actually get more revenue per sale with ebooks. And, given the nature of the long tail, while there will be fewer megastars in publishing, there will be far more authors who'll be able to make a living at it.

These are strange times in the industry, but the end result may be positive...

Thanks,

Bill
 
Jeff Horton said:
I will add my own question, what do you think about these for DIY or How-To books? I have been looking at it from this perspective since I am writing one. It doesn't strike me as a good fit since I wouldn't want to take my reader to the shop. But..... :dunno:
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Jeff,

I've had my Kindle in my shop. It's not an issue: there's no fan to blow dust into the works.

As for woodworking books, check this link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref...11&h=c3b84337896685907a0bddbc695774bce2d60206

and here's home improvement: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_n...-text&field-keywords=home+improvement&x=0&y=0

Similar findings at other sites, as well...

Thanks,

Bill
 
Bill, what do you know about Kindle reading PDF. I did some googling on the subject and the information I saw may have been old, but there was talk that you may have to have your pdf "converted" by Amazon. I am noticing that the newest kindle is making a claim of "enhanced pdf reader". Reason I ask, I was thinking of saving the Fine Woodworking PDF files to the kindle and using it to read my archive editions. I could not use Fine Woodworkings interface, but that is ok. Any thoughts?
 
Bill,

There are four ways to do this.

First, you can simply load the PDF directly onto your Kindle, and read it from there. It does work, but its a little buggy.

Second, you can save the file as text from adobe acrobat reader, and then load the .txt file onto the kindle. It's better, and pretty workable. You may want to massage the file a little in notepad.

Third, you can mail the file to your @kindle.com address. Amazon converts the file for you, and sends it to your kindle for free, but the conversion costs something like ten cents per megabyte. Gives new meaning to the term "dime novel." But if someone has miscoded the PDF (happens all the time), or included lots of image files, the file size goes way up. I have my account set so that if the file is more than 20 meg, the system rejects it.

Fourth, you simply run Calibre. It converts the file for free, nice and clean, and you load it onto your kindle yourself. Takes 30 seconds. That's by far your best option, and it handles multiple formats. Easy as pie. You can even set Calibre to automatically push multiple converted files to your kindle, or to other devices (so you can read one book on your workstation, your kindle, and your laptop, etc.)

Hope this helps,

Thanks,

Bill
 
Steve Southwood said:
Really wish you guys would stop all this madness. I have been wanting one for a while. Gator wants one as well. All she does is read.
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Same here... I don't read as much as I used to... my arms are getting too short and since I always read in bed, the books are getting too heavy to hold up for a long period of time... gonna have to get over my vanity and start wearing the cheaters I guess... have to use them in the shop now...
LOML is also an avid reader and she's really in the mood for a good reader. My son chose the Nook over the Kindle, don't know why yet, but he's pretty savvy on electronics... guess need to ask him.

Dianne liked the ability to increase the font size on the Nook and I'm assuming the Kindle will do the same. She's beginning to have cataract problems, so larger font will be a plus.
 
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