Comments on: A Collection of Free Kindle Resources

By: pat

pat — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 08:48:02 +0000

My favorite site for free books is manybooks.net. This might be one you lumped in with the “duplicates” of Project Gutenberg, but they have both public domain and current free books available in many formats. What sets this site apart for me are the book reviews/recommendations from readers that I’ve found to be tremendously useful.

By: Mark Fitz

Mark Fitz — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 21:41:10 +0000

Instapaper!

I use instapaper regularly to “bookmark” articles I come across but don’t have time to read while at work. It will grab the text of the article and keep it indexed online for later reading.

There is a good Instapaper client for i-Devices (and, I presume, the Android market), but I find myself reading my instapaper articles more on the kindle (delivered for free) than anywhere else. Perfect for the doctor’s office, where I have a difficult time “getting into” a book, but where a short article will suffice.

I know I’m late to this game, but thought I’d weigh in after seeing it hadn’t been mentioned yet.

By: Lilly

Lilly — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 02:59:35 +0000

I love my Kindle!! My mom bought me one for my birthday/Christmas and it has been great. Within a couple days of getting it I had 70 books on it without paying a cent – all free (mostly classics) from Amazon.

By: Sara

Sara — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 21:58:28 +0000

In Trent’s defense, his wife bought the Kindle for him. What was he supposed to do, refuse to accept it? Still, I hope Sarah wasn’t disappointed that Trent just did the dishes and stuck some notes in her coat pocket throughout the year.

By: con

con — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 03:09:30 +0000

My word of the day is apparently “better.”

By: con

con — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 02:44:52 +0000

#24 Claudia…I couldn’t agree more. I guess better to read on a piece of plastic than not at all, but yikes. Of course, I’m on here commenting to a blog on the internet, so I’m no better. Still, holding a “real” book in your hands is much better in my opinion.

By: Claudia

Claudia — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 21:29:47 +0000

Oooh! curling up on the loveseat to read a piece of plastic. No, no,never-ever!

By: Janis

Janis — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 15:24:55 +0000

Thanks for the list of links! I read Cory Doctorow’s Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom years ago as a free download on a Pocket PC device. Nice to find it again.

I read ebooks all the time on my iPhone. Sure, the screen is small, but I don’t mind it. What’s really great is that there are apps that make my phone function as a Kindle, a Nook, or other type of reader, which means that I am not restricted to one format. I can use the Nook app to borrow from my local library.

When the next generation comes out, I’ll probably spring for an iPad. I realize that there is a considerable price difference between a Kindle and an iPad (or similar tablet), but the iPad is so much more than an ereader.

By: kittie

kittie — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 14:36:19 +0000

Getting a gift is not the same as buying one for your spouse. Sarah bought Trent a gift. Trent did not specify if he did or did not buy Sarah a gift. Sarah does not write the blog. Sarah can and apparently did what she wanted to do to show her love and appreciation for her husband. It is perfectly ok for Sarah and Trent to have different opinions on gift giving. I don’t think receiving a gift equals not being consistent. Go Sarah!!! I usually don’t comment, but this just bugged me.

By: Kate

Kate — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 14:07:13 +0000

Although a Kindle is a pretty extravagent (some might say ostentatious) Valentine’s Day gift, I guess that extravagence is in the eye of the beholder. I have to wonder, though, what kind of example that sets for watching children that parents exchange such expensive gifts for Valentines Day.
My experiences with a Kindle:
Being a devotee of physical books I never thought I would say that I like my Kindle so much. I got mine before Christmas and then got several Amazon gift certificates for Christmas presents.
Things I like about the Kindle:
~~the number of classic free books that Amazon offers. I have downloaded them so I will have them for vacations after I have exhausted the new books that I have put on it. the number of free books that Amazon offers is pretty extensive, although you have to search for them (google free books and Kindle–there are blogs that are devoted soley to free things for the Kindle).
~~the 3G ability because I have a very cheapo cell phone plan and now I can check my e-mail and most websites (albeit very clumsily but it is more than I had and teaches me patience).
~~the ability to download and read the newest Newbery Award winner in a raging snowstorm.
~~I can download samples of books and then make the decision to buy or to wait and check them out at the library.
~~the ability to change the font size and page orientation.
~~the free or very reasonably cheap word games
~~it goes to sleep on its own to conserve battery power.
~~turning off the wireless conserves battery power.
Things I don’t like:
~~the difficulty in gauging how long a book is. There is a status bar at the bottom of a page but my brain doesn’t use it the same way my fingers and brain together judge a book’s thickness or thinness. If I really like a book, I don’t get that same “slow down and savor the last few pages so it won’t end” kind of feeling and if I am not in absolute love with a book it feels like it will never end.
~~not being able to quickly turn back to a page and check a sentence or detail.
~~the clicking of the page turn is pretty quiet but it sometimes disturbs my husband if I am reading in bed.
~~the fear that if I fall asleep reading that it will fall and break. I have read stories where this has happened.
~~no color.
~~it sometimes freezes which is scary because I paid a lot for it. A hard reset has fixed the problem but there is still the fear aspect that isn’t there with a book.

By: Riki

Riki — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 13:04:45 +0000

I have toyed with the idea of getting an e-reader on and off for the last year. Haven’t actually done it yet, however, I’ve done some pretty exhaustive research and experimenting with the various e-readers my friends own (Kobo, Kindle, Sony, and Libre). I would buy the Sony e-reader, without question. The Kindle is the most popular and recognizable brand name, but it has too many issues with DRM in my opinion. The Sony will read more file formats.

I’ve read that some e-readers are actually allowing you to “lend” files for a certain period of time. It’s an interesting concept that makes e-readers more attractive to me.

By: Cheryl

Cheryl — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 12:27:16 +0000

Weren’t you the one that referred readers to amazon to get a free Kindle version for your computer? I did that and download several free books already.

By: Charles Cohn

Charles Cohn — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 10:35:36 +0000

I am inclined to shop for a Kindle or some other reader. I want it mainly for reading instruction manuals. These normally come as large PDF files included on a CD or DVD that is included with most pieces of tech equipment. If you print these out, you get an inch-thick stack of paper that’s impossible to bind and awkward to handle. I don’t know much about the Kindle, but I would hope that it would be capable of handling large PDF files and using input devices like CD/DVD’s and USB.

By: Availle

Availle — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 08:54:40 +0000

I’m surprised you don’t mention archive.org.

Lots of free texts (most of them very old ones in the public domain, but also some other cc licences), audiobooks… (and the largest Grateful Dead collection online).

Most of the texts have various formats to read online, as .txt or .pdf, also different formats for e-readers (like the Kindle).

Personally I don’t like e-readers, although I can see that they are handy at (travel) times. If I ever get one, it won’t be a Kindle though – not unless they solve their DRM issues…

By: Michele

Michele — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 05:03:29 +0000

I love my Kindle! My husband got me one for Christmas and it’s been wonderful!
I’ve gotten a lot of free ‘classics’ that I haven’t read yet through Gutenburg, and very reasonably priced books through Amazon.com that I wanted to read!
I love the ability to enlarge the font, and left or right handed page turning.
I love the lighted leather cover I was given as a gift for my birthday!
In short, I have now read 16 books since Christmas, and haven’t looked back. Love love love!

By: valleycat1

valleycat1 — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 03:35:41 +0000

Wait, what? I agree with #9 – the writer of this:
“For me, Valentine’s Day is another one of those days in which people cram sentiments they feel they should have throughout the year into one day. Much like Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, for example.

Instead of going out for some exorbitant dinner or tossing some sort of expensive “romantic” gift at your partner, why not do a little thing or two each day to show your partner how much you love them? Write a little note for him or her and stick it in a coat pocket. Make a batch of your partner’s favorite cookies. Do the dishes so your partner can relax after a stressful day.

A little bit of consistent love means a lot more than an ostentatious display once a year.”

is now posting about getting a Kindle as a gift for Valentine’s Day? My spouse & I subscribe to Trent’s original sentiment and therefore don’t exchange expensive gifts for V-day.

By: Nan411

Nan411 — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 03:12:38 +0000

He didn’t overpay. It was a gift and not all libraries offer e-books. Mine doesn’t, at least not yet.

By: Leah

Leah — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 03:04:06 +0000

the open tag is on “Wuthering Heights.” Hope it gets fixed soon!

By: rosa rugosa

rosa rugosa — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 01:39:49 +0000

ABQBrent: You cracked me up!
Michelle: Aren’t we all sometimes?

By: Interested Reader

Interested Reader — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 01:02:16 +0000

Trent left a tag open. Wonder how long it takes him to realize it.