E-Readers! Part Two :D

Need more! Pic from here.

I caved, I'm weak, I'm desperate, I'm addicted to new tech *sobs dramatically*

Meh.

My tax return came early so I bought a Kindle. It's a thing of beauty.

Now, there are a few things I'd change if I could. For one it's interface with audible it took me four attempts to get the kindle to sync with my audible account just so I could listen to the books I'd already purchased on audible.

DETOUR

Annoyance in the extreme. I'm all for digital media for a lot of the reasons in my original E-Reader post. But what pisses me off about it and holds it back - imo - are these stupid lingering DRM issues. I get that folks don't want their creative property etc hijacked and passed around for free. Really I do, it's hard enough to break even being creative without having someone filch your goodies and pass 'em out like candy. But when you make using what I've just paid for almost too frustrating to bother with then you'd better believe I'mma be ticked off. While I'm on the subjects ITunes WTF is your deal with not keeping a record of user downloads? On both the XBox and PS3 I can download a game, tv episode whatever get a new system change the registry and WHAM there's my stuff. So WTF is your deal apple? (also piracy is somewhat inevitable, piracy happened in the days of cassette tapes and VHS its just easier and faster now, I'm not condoning it just asking tptb to weigh the pros of frustrating your loyal customers to the point that we'd rather bypass you and go to a pirate then donate to our favored groups when possible)

END DETOUR

Back on topic. The interface is a little bit weird to get used to although I think the vast majority of that is due to my reflexes having been honed to work with an Iphone. So take out the touch screen and my digits get confused. I haven't had any issues downloading books via whispernet (Amazon's 3G network) in fact every download has been obscenely fast. I've read pdfs and the only issue I've had with them is with the size of the text, that said, the Kindle is pretty good at allowing you to change the screen orientation - even to the point that you can arrange the screen so that it's oriented to the opposite of the controls i.e. the keyboard etc would be upside down to your text - and you can increase the size of the font as well as darken it.

I haven't used any freeware to attempt to convert pdfs to Kindle format and I've not yet downloaded anything from the Project Gutenberg (they offer non-public domain texts for free in a number of E-Reader formats as well as html and pdf) though I plan to. I have, for the first time, been able to read a chapter and change of my digital textbook on the road without wasting a load of ink and paper or risking my laptop's existence.

I do plan to download the Kindle app for Iphone and desktop if only to see how accurately the system recalls my last page numbers etc between devices. 

I did get a case for it when I purchased it largely because I'm paranoid but also because many reviewers noted that without a case it's distractingly light and tiny. Yes, you read that correctly. I got the CrazyOnDigital Kindle 3G 3rd Generation Leather Case with Screen Protector the screen protector was a bit tricky to put on (I think it's cut a little bit off from true or there's some optical delusion stuff going down) but well worth the effort for peace of mind, it comes with a cleaning cloth and a stiff cardboard hunk to help with the application. I will admit that it was considerably easier to apply than a similar protector for my Iphone screen. The case itself is black, sturdy, leather (? if it's fake it feels solid), and best of all makes the Kindle look like a date-planner. It has an interior pocket on the left side that could probably fit a small notebook or business cards.

After a couple days using it with my weirdo bedside lamp I did break down and get a clip on lamp. I chose the Mighty Bright XtraFlex2 Clip-On Light (Kindle Version) Black. I left the lamp on for a couple hours and felt the temperature, it's room temperature which is great. I know it's LCD but still, I once got a second degree burn from one of those stupid lights when I was a kid so call me paranoid. The neck is nicely stiff so I can angle the lamp in a way to redirect glare while still being usefully bright and lamplike. The clip is solid and sturdy enough that it won't wriggle its way off the Kindle while I'm reading and pop off in a display of dramatic histrionics. It's also padded so if you don't have a case or whatnot you can clip it directly onto the Kindle without scratching it, but, again, I'd highly recommend a screen protector and/or case.

I chose both items because they had largely solid reviews and were relatively inexpensive - some were asking like $70 for a CASE.  What bad reviews they had were from roughly '09 (which, IIRC would be the original or second gen Kindle this baby is 3rd gen) or clearly operator error. Seriously if your clip on lamp is casting glare on your screen then move the lamp.

I did an update using my USB connection and didn't have any problems. I haven't been able to connect to my home Wi-Fi although I think it's because our password is way too long it's seriously like 24ish characters. It's also WPA-2 Personal and while the Kindle claims to be WPA-2 compatible I don't know enough about networks to tell the difference if any. I really don't need to connect to Wi-Fi with the 3G network anyway. If I were connected I could download audible audiobooks directly from my account but that's about it.

There is an experimental section (reached by choosing menu on the main page and scrolling down to the experimental tab) that will allow rudimentary web browsing, MP3 playback (haven't tried it yet) and text-to-speech for enabled downloads. One note on this, if a book you want has the audio rights held by another party - say for an audiobook - then this feature may not be available. Before buying a book where you want this feature be sure to read the book description carefully, or hit Ctrl+F and type speech :P.

I didn't mind the text-to-speech but I won't be using it much. The reading pace is a bit fast, the pacing is weird, sometimes it will pause at a comma as though it were a period but will ignore parenthises entirely, and while the voice isn't entirely robotic it does stumble across some things. Occasionally it will list a Roman numeral instead of initials etc. There is a similar feature you can turn on under settings that will have the Kindle read menus etc to you. Still if you have eyestrain, poor vision, etc it could be useful.

All in all I am super pleased with it, the price of new books is a bit annoying as they run between $1 - $4 less than their brand new hardcopy counterparts (again see the lead up to this post for my rant on the idiocy of that). Overall though all smiles here. I'll update when I've tested the other goodies or do a link here :)

As always thanks for reading and please feel free to comment :)

Note: Just a quick reminder there are still three CEP titles in Diamond Previews this month. Head on down to your LCS and ask 'em to order: FEB110892 Ghost Lines Primer - conspiracy thriller! FEB110893 Scorn TP - a tale of vengeance and family! FEB110894 Totem kids - an all ages book about the power and dangers of imagination! Remember without you folks CEP and other independent publishers and creators are SOL you make it happen! For which we love you dearly :D