The Kindle.

[Bazza]

Hi guys/gals...

My mum, (aged 80), is in the market for an Ebook reader
and likes the look of the Kindle.

Having a Linux core I`m all for it but I`m looking for
comments here from users who own one.

Price is not important.

Comments on other variants of Ebook readers would be
welcome too from present users...

TIA...

[paulm]

I don't own one (yet), but I have had a play with one of the new (£109) ones. Very nice indeed. Good clear screen, different font sizes available, quite fast changing pages.

My main concern with anything like this would be avaliablity of media. Having looked through Amazon, the range of available material looks pretty good, and prices are also good.

I've also discovered that one of my favourite publishers (Baen Books) has a great deal of material availalbe in the correct format, and again, at very reasonable costs.

From my initial look, it seems that other than the standard Kindle format, it can ony handle PDF, which is a bit of a pain, but I think I can live with that.

Seriously looking at buying one in the next month or so. My only real complaint is no Linux software for it, and variable reports of running the Windows Kindle stuff under Wine.

Paul.

[LeeNukes]

Does that app that can create ebooks not create a format that is supported on the Kindle then?


Looks like it can:

eCub is a cross-platform tool for creating EPUB and MobiPocket books. EPUB is become a popular e-book standard and is open and free for all to implement. EPUB files can be read by MobiPocket, Adobe Digital Editions, FBReader, Stanza, the Sony Reader, and many other readers and applications. MobiPocket books can be read on desktop platforms, mobile platforms and the Amazon Kindle e-book reader.

http://www.juliansmart.com/ecub

[wyliecoyoteuk]

I have a problem with the Kindle, and the iPad etc.
It is essentially the "walled garden" approach.
I am uncomfortable with the idea that a book that I have paid for , and which resides on my hardware can be retrospectively unpublished.

I am also a fairly unrepresentative customer in that I access things only once.
I have a real problem understanding people who read the same book more than once, or watch the same DVD over and over again.
In fact, I have a real issue with parents using a repeated Video as a baby sitter, basically brainwashing their kids.

From personal experience, this is such an obviously BAD IDEA, that I cannot believe that parents still do it.

[nordle]

I am also a fairly unrepresentative customer in that I access things only once.
I have a real problem understanding people who read the same book more than once, or watch the same DVD over and over again.
.

Slightly OT, but I find that 1 in 30 films hooks me and takes me on a "journey" which can be repeated. I can watch a film many times if it engages me.
If a film does not do this, ie if I watch it but am not immersed, then I wont watch it again.
Same with a book.

What about music? Do you listen to a track and then never put it on again.

As for the Kindle, looks great, but my freind bought a Sony instead, due to Kindle using Amazon software or something.

[dandnsmith]

I and my wife are both recent owners of the latest format smaller screen kindle - me because my wife was making such enthusiastic noises that I had to get my own.

I've found a plethora of free books - main difficulty being to decide what I'd like to read. The device is very easy to read, with the main drawbacks (for me) the positioning of the page advance buttons on the side (I'd prefer them a little higher up, just to get better handleability), and the smallsize of the 5-way control.

I did a trial, using the PC-based software (uses Windows, but there are several versions).

I see no problems with the unpublishing - you can store stuff on your own local storage (HDD, CD, USB-stick...), and it cannot just vanish.

Because of the e-ink technology, you need about the same amount of ambient light as you would to read a 'normal' book.

The great advantage (to us) is that you can take multiple books in a small space and weight on those long duration trips.

The device has about 3 GB available space, and a book seems to take 400kB to 1+ MB.

[wyliecoyoteuk]

What about music? Do you listen to a track and then never put it on again.

Music serves a different purpose, really, it is intended to be repeated experience, an accompaniment to life.

Books and Films are telling a story, for me the message is more important than the medium.
I might watch a different version, for example a film, or a play from a book, because then it becomes a different experience based on a different interpretation.

[M-Saunders]

I have a real problem understanding people who read the same book more than once, or watch the same DVD over and over again.

You should totally watch Jackie Chan's Project A then. I guarantee you'll want to watch it again and again just to watch the outrageous stunts. I've probably watched that at least twice a year since I was 15.

And I'm going off-topic. In the forum that I run. Shall I permanban myself?

M

[Rhakios]

I have read Aldous Huxley's "Point Counterpoint" twice, so far. And were it not for the fact that the plot was essentially the same both times, I could well have been reading a different book on each occasion. In the 15 years between readings, my point of view and knowledge about life (and indeed Huxley's life) had changed considerably and this made the book a substantially different read.
I look forward to repeating the exercise in another 5 years.

It's probably the most extreme example of a book seeming different on a second reading that I've experienced, but I almost always get something extra from a second or third reading.

[paulm]

Does that app that can create ebooks not create a format that is supported on the Kindle then?


Looks like it can:

eCub is a cross-platform tool for creating EPUB and MobiPocket books. EPUB is become a popular e-book standard and is open and free for all to implement. EPUB files can be read by MobiPocket, Adobe Digital Editions, FBReader, Stanza, the Sony Reader, and many other readers and applications. MobiPocket books can be read on desktop platforms, mobile platforms and the Amazon Kindle e-book reader.

http://www.juliansmart.com/ecub

I've since discovered that there is a service that allows your own material (don't know how wide a field that covers) to be emailed and converted. There is a fee if it is then sent direct to the Kindle, but it can be downloaded free.

One other question which would certainly affect my use is its ability to render PDFs. I do use quite a few of them (much though I dislike the format), especially for technical things, and there seem to be some questions about how well it will handle PDF files. I didn't get a chance to try any PDFs when I was looking at one a little while ago.

Other than that, it still looks very interesting, especially since I can get pretty well the entire Baen science fiction catalogue in Kindle format....

Paul.

[wyliecoyoteuk]

I have read Aldous Huxley's "Point Counterpoint" twice, so far. And were it not for the fact that the plot was essentially the same both times, I could well have been reading a different book on each occasion. In the 15 years between readings, my point of view and knowledge about life (and indeed Huxley's life) had changed considerably and this made the book a substantially different read.
.

Well, with a decent interval, perhaps.
When I was much younger, I would read a novel more than once sometimes.
However, I tend to get deja vu reading a new novel these days, I suppose it is due to having read so much.

And it is the same with films or TV.
I just can't be bothered, really.
Even the most stunning stunts or special effects are only worth one look.
There are exceptions, but they are few. Jaques Tati films, for example have so many understated, tiny observances of life, that you cannot see everything first time.

[towy71]

I just watched Some Like it Hot again for the umpteenth time still laughed out loud lots of times
On the other hand I watched Pride and Glory at the weekend and will never watch it again

[nelz]

I've had a Kindle for a few weeks and it is much better than the Sony I had previously. The screen is brighter and clearer and page turns are an order of magnitude faster.

As far as Amazon "unpublishing" material, when you buy a book you can have it sent direct to the Kindle, or you can download it to your hard drive and install manually later. While it is possible to unpublish the former, the latter cannot be removed. Or you could use Calibre to backup up the book once it is on the Kindle. So if it is a walled garden, there are at least two gates, and probably a couple of stiles too.

The email conversion service is good and is free if you use WiFi, I use it to transfer books bought from other sites, like O'Reilly, and also so send daily downloads from news sites from Calibre. The only time Amazon charge is to send you your own material via 3G, which seems reasonable to me. I have the WiFi version as I don't think I'd use the 3G that much, or maybe I'd use it too much and spend a fortune on books I'd never have time to read.

The ability to browse the Kindle store and buy books directly fro the device is handy, but using a browser is easier. A boot bought from Amazon can be sent to as many devices as you have registered with them. the bookmarks stay in sync, so I can read a book on my Kindle and then pick up where I left off on my phone.

As for the comment about prefering the Sony software, that crashed every time I tried to run it on Windows, I was never able to buy a book with it. On the other hand, the Kindle doesn't need any special software, just a web browser and a mailer. The only software from Amazon is the reader, which works with WINE and is only needed if you want to read your ebooks on the computer.

[Bazza]

Hi all...

To those who replied with relevant info, many thanks.

Nelz, your reply was particularly useful, thanks also.

I will let my mum know about it now and it is up to her
to do the final decision.

Once again thanks to all who replied with relevant info.

[nelz]

If it helps, I am considering getting one for my mum for Christmas... but then I'll have to get her a wireless router too