Amazon Kindle How-To Series – Convert Free E-Books to Kindle Books
Michael Piston asked:
While the Kindle wireless reading device lets you carry literally hundreds of e-books, newspapers, and magazines anywhere you go, your Kindle is actually pretty picky about the types of documents it will let you read. Free e-books, articles, white papers, and other documents you might wish to read on your Kindle are everywhere on the Internet. The problem is that they are not in a format that is “Kindle-friendly.”
The Kindle “naively” supports the following document formats -
Kindle documents (.azw)
Text documents (.txt)
Mobi Reader documents (.mobi or .prc)
But, if you have a document you wish to read on your Kindle that is in another format – for example = a free e-book that is an Adobe Reader (.pdf) file or a Microsoft Word (.doc) file then you have to convert it to the proper format for use on your Kindle. Fortunately this is not something that is hard to do.
Amazon has a service for which they charge a nominal amount allowing you to convert documents such as .pdf (Adobe Acrobat Reader) files to Kindle files. To do this you must first have an active Kindle e-mail address. You can make sure you are set-up with a Kindle e-mail address by visiting the “Manage Your Kindle” section of the Amazon web site. Typically, your Kindle e-mail address will be “yourusername@kindle.com”.
1. Make sure the document you want to convert is in one of the following formats
Microsoft Word (.doc)
HTML (.html)
Adobe Acrobat Reader (.pdf)
2. Check to be sure the file is not “protected.” This can occur with e-books you have purchased with DRM (digital rights management) restrictions. You also might have documents that include passwords or other means to restrict access. You will not be able to convert these files.
3. Create an e-mail to your Kindle e-mail address and attach the file you wish to read on your Kindle.
4. Send the e-mail – Amazon will convert the document and send it to your Kindle via the wireless connection.
5. The cost for this service is $.10 (ten cents) per document.
If you want to convert your document at no charge, or are in an area where you cannot access the Kindle’s wireless service you can do so with a slight change in the steps above.
Rather than send the e-mail with the attached document to your Kindle e-mail address send it to “yourusername@free.kindle.com”. Amazon will convert the document and send it back to the originating e-mail address. When you get the e-mail back from Amazon you can transfer the document to your Kindle using the USB cable connected to your computer.
It’s as simple as that!
A few important things to remember. First, as stated above, if the files you wish to convert have any sort of DRM (digital rights management) restrictions then the file won’t be converted. Also – this is an “experimental” service for Amazon. Documents with complex formatting, or certain .pdf files, may not convert as expected. While this may not prevent you from reading the document, it will make it a bit more difficult to navigate through and around your e-book.
Congratulations! Now you know how you can quickly convert e-books in Microsoft Word, HTML, and Adobe Acrobat Reader format to “Kindle-friendly” e-books. This process can help you add a lot of great content to your Kindle wireless reading device.
While the Kindle wireless reading device lets you carry literally hundreds of e-books, newspapers, and magazines anywhere you go, your Kindle is actually pretty picky about the types of documents it will let you read. Free e-books, articles, white papers, and other documents you might wish to read on your Kindle are everywhere on the Internet. The problem is that they are not in a format that is “Kindle-friendly.”
The Kindle “naively” supports the following document formats -
Kindle documents (.azw)
Text documents (.txt)
Mobi Reader documents (.mobi or .prc)
But, if you have a document you wish to read on your Kindle that is in another format – for example = a free e-book that is an Adobe Reader (.pdf) file or a Microsoft Word (.doc) file then you have to convert it to the proper format for use on your Kindle. Fortunately this is not something that is hard to do.
Amazon has a service for which they charge a nominal amount allowing you to convert documents such as .pdf (Adobe Acrobat Reader) files to Kindle files. To do this you must first have an active Kindle e-mail address. You can make sure you are set-up with a Kindle e-mail address by visiting the “Manage Your Kindle” section of the Amazon web site. Typically, your Kindle e-mail address will be “yourusername@kindle.com”.
1. Make sure the document you want to convert is in one of the following formats
Microsoft Word (.doc)
HTML (.html)
Adobe Acrobat Reader (.pdf)
2. Check to be sure the file is not “protected.” This can occur with e-books you have purchased with DRM (digital rights management) restrictions. You also might have documents that include passwords or other means to restrict access. You will not be able to convert these files.
3. Create an e-mail to your Kindle e-mail address and attach the file you wish to read on your Kindle.
4. Send the e-mail – Amazon will convert the document and send it to your Kindle via the wireless connection.
5. The cost for this service is $.10 (ten cents) per document.
If you want to convert your document at no charge, or are in an area where you cannot access the Kindle’s wireless service you can do so with a slight change in the steps above.
Rather than send the e-mail with the attached document to your Kindle e-mail address send it to “yourusername@free.kindle.com”. Amazon will convert the document and send it back to the originating e-mail address. When you get the e-mail back from Amazon you can transfer the document to your Kindle using the USB cable connected to your computer.
It’s as simple as that!
A few important things to remember. First, as stated above, if the files you wish to convert have any sort of DRM (digital rights management) restrictions then the file won’t be converted. Also – this is an “experimental” service for Amazon. Documents with complex formatting, or certain .pdf files, may not convert as expected. While this may not prevent you from reading the document, it will make it a bit more difficult to navigate through and around your e-book.
Congratulations! Now you know how you can quickly convert e-books in Microsoft Word, HTML, and Adobe Acrobat Reader format to “Kindle-friendly” e-books. This process can help you add a lot of great content to your Kindle wireless reading device.
E Reader Review Terms
iPad – How to Get a Cheap iPad
Edward McClendon asked:
iPod touch, iPhones, iMac and iPad. These are the electronics that everyone wants but can’t afford them due to how expensive they are. So how do I get a cheap ipad for under $100? Getting anything from Apple for under $100 is very hard and difficult.
However, it is possible to get these products for almost to nothing you just need to know where to go to get them. You will spend countless hours online looking for sites that offer these products very cheap, but most of them will just scam you or try ripping you off.
However there are some sites that has them for low prices. Just to name a couple of them would be:
1. Craigslist- This site you can find just about anything for half the price, but most of the time they will be used or broken in one way or another.
2. PriceGrabber- Very typical site kind of like amazon but they have a lot lower prices.
3. Ebay- The most obvious of them all. I would not recommend using craigslist because there is a high chance the seller is scamming you.
Those are just a few sites that is offering the iPad for low prices, but they are still pretty expensive and you will still be paying over a $450.
So is there any other site offering the iPod touch for under $100?
Yes, there are a few sites that are offering iPod touches for under $100 however they are very hard to spot because most people over look them as just scams. Don’t be closed minded and take a look around and research it.
Create a video blog…instantly.
iPod touch, iPhones, iMac and iPad. These are the electronics that everyone wants but can’t afford them due to how expensive they are. So how do I get a cheap ipad for under $100? Getting anything from Apple for under $100 is very hard and difficult.
However, it is possible to get these products for almost to nothing you just need to know where to go to get them. You will spend countless hours online looking for sites that offer these products very cheap, but most of them will just scam you or try ripping you off.
However there are some sites that has them for low prices. Just to name a couple of them would be:
1. Craigslist- This site you can find just about anything for half the price, but most of the time they will be used or broken in one way or another.
2. PriceGrabber- Very typical site kind of like amazon but they have a lot lower prices.
3. Ebay- The most obvious of them all. I would not recommend using craigslist because there is a high chance the seller is scamming you.
Those are just a few sites that is offering the iPad for low prices, but they are still pretty expensive and you will still be paying over a $450.
So is there any other site offering the iPod touch for under $100?
Yes, there are a few sites that are offering iPod touches for under $100 however they are very hard to spot because most people over look them as just scams. Don’t be closed minded and take a look around and research it.
Create a video blog…instantly.
E Reader Review Terms
Touch Screen Software on the iPad
Leon Zavsek asked:
While most commentators view the iPad as an oversized iPhone, it’s really a question, whether people will accept it, as a suitable replacement for netbooks (“they’re just cheap laptops”, said Steve Jobs).
I think this is really a question of software. If you compare specifications of any iPod, with competitive mp3 players in the same price range, iPod loses in all respects. But once you hold the iPod in your hands and use it, you see why this is the best seller – it’s simple and intuitive software wins the users. And without good touch screen software, iPhone and iPod Touch would never made it this far.
As Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs stated, the iPad is intended as a device between the smartphone and the laptop. The iPad copies iPhone’s basic user interface and physical design, but there are significant differences, beyond the 9.7? screen and a fast Apple-designed processor. Applications on iPad, look a lot more like computer software. It’s photo application, for example, looks more like iPhoto on a Mac than the photo app on iPhone. Most of the core iPhone applications have been rewritten and it even runs all current 140,000 iPhone apps.
While we haven’t seen the promised music and video streaming services, Jobs showed off their e-book reader app with a built-in online book store.
Visually, it looks much better than Amazon’s Kindle, but still leaves plenty to desire for. New York Times representatives showed off their digital newspaper, that seemed a lot better than Kindle’s version. And iPad’s touch screen software, allows you to flip pages with a gesture.
Compared to Kindle it lacks in functionality and has much smaller catalog. In addition a back-lit LCD screen can be tiresome for the eyes, compared to Kindle’s ilk. This shouldn’t surprise us, since Jobs is quoted as saying “no one reads anymore”. A reflection of Apple’s concern for the readers?
On the positive side:
looks awesome feels comfortable and solid to hold has all that cool software built in amazingly low-priced (for an Apple product) 10 hours of battery life it will use iPhone OS
On the negative side:
no multitasking:
While we can expect some limitations here, it’s really all about the software.
The fast processor combined with flash storage, launches and shuts down any application in a moment. This reduces the need to run applications in the background. It does bring up some concerns. For example: Will we be able to chat over Skype while browsing? And will we be able to receive Skype calls on the same device? The iPhone certainly handles
no web cam
iPad SDK 3.2 documentation mentions a camera and there are rumors about iPod Touch getting the camera in June. It would seem, Apple is planning to hold off some of the key features, forcing the buyers to reach into their pockets again later.
no Flash support
Flash is going to find itself competing heavily with HTML 5 in time. Google’s TestTube and Chrome experiments are a proof of this. Anyone familiar with Flash, can tell you it’s a dog that has not kept up with modern computers.
On the other hand, we are not there yet and Flash today is just too popular, to be ignored like that. This will heavily cripple the browsing experience, not to mention all the cool Flash games, we’ll be missing.
no usb ports, no sd slot the carrier for the iPad’s 3G plan in the US is the heavily unpopular AT&T it will use iPhone OS
The iPad is quite more than just a big iPod Touch or iPhone, even though it looks like one. But the question remains, will that be enough to get the buyers to embrace it and make it part of their daily lives?
This device will find some niche uses. If you are looking for productivity, you better stick with your touch screen laptop. But if you are a casual user, looking for active or passive entertainment on the go, the iPad might be just for you. Surfing the web on the couch, watching videos on public transport and viewing e-recipes in the kitchen, are some of the uses that come to mind.
Like with any other Apple’s product, there will certainly be no shortage of people lining up to buy it.
While iPhone’s brought us revolutionary touch screen software, this gadget still needs something cooler than a nice cover, to justify calling it “magical” or “revolutionary”. But until I get our hands on one and see it in action, it’s too early to judge.
However, one thing we can all be certain of:
This will be the most awesome toilet web browsing gadget. Ever.
Create a video blog…instantly.
While most commentators view the iPad as an oversized iPhone, it’s really a question, whether people will accept it, as a suitable replacement for netbooks (“they’re just cheap laptops”, said Steve Jobs).
I think this is really a question of software. If you compare specifications of any iPod, with competitive mp3 players in the same price range, iPod loses in all respects. But once you hold the iPod in your hands and use it, you see why this is the best seller – it’s simple and intuitive software wins the users. And without good touch screen software, iPhone and iPod Touch would never made it this far.
As Apple’s CEO Steve Jobs stated, the iPad is intended as a device between the smartphone and the laptop. The iPad copies iPhone’s basic user interface and physical design, but there are significant differences, beyond the 9.7? screen and a fast Apple-designed processor. Applications on iPad, look a lot more like computer software. It’s photo application, for example, looks more like iPhoto on a Mac than the photo app on iPhone. Most of the core iPhone applications have been rewritten and it even runs all current 140,000 iPhone apps.
While we haven’t seen the promised music and video streaming services, Jobs showed off their e-book reader app with a built-in online book store.
Visually, it looks much better than Amazon’s Kindle, but still leaves plenty to desire for. New York Times representatives showed off their digital newspaper, that seemed a lot better than Kindle’s version. And iPad’s touch screen software, allows you to flip pages with a gesture.
Compared to Kindle it lacks in functionality and has much smaller catalog. In addition a back-lit LCD screen can be tiresome for the eyes, compared to Kindle’s ilk. This shouldn’t surprise us, since Jobs is quoted as saying “no one reads anymore”. A reflection of Apple’s concern for the readers?
On the positive side:
looks awesome feels comfortable and solid to hold has all that cool software built in amazingly low-priced (for an Apple product) 10 hours of battery life it will use iPhone OS
On the negative side:
no multitasking:
While we can expect some limitations here, it’s really all about the software.
The fast processor combined with flash storage, launches and shuts down any application in a moment. This reduces the need to run applications in the background. It does bring up some concerns. For example: Will we be able to chat over Skype while browsing? And will we be able to receive Skype calls on the same device? The iPhone certainly handles
no web cam
iPad SDK 3.2 documentation mentions a camera and there are rumors about iPod Touch getting the camera in June. It would seem, Apple is planning to hold off some of the key features, forcing the buyers to reach into their pockets again later.
no Flash support
Flash is going to find itself competing heavily with HTML 5 in time. Google’s TestTube and Chrome experiments are a proof of this. Anyone familiar with Flash, can tell you it’s a dog that has not kept up with modern computers.
On the other hand, we are not there yet and Flash today is just too popular, to be ignored like that. This will heavily cripple the browsing experience, not to mention all the cool Flash games, we’ll be missing.
no usb ports, no sd slot the carrier for the iPad’s 3G plan in the US is the heavily unpopular AT&T it will use iPhone OS
The iPad is quite more than just a big iPod Touch or iPhone, even though it looks like one. But the question remains, will that be enough to get the buyers to embrace it and make it part of their daily lives?
This device will find some niche uses. If you are looking for productivity, you better stick with your touch screen laptop. But if you are a casual user, looking for active or passive entertainment on the go, the iPad might be just for you. Surfing the web on the couch, watching videos on public transport and viewing e-recipes in the kitchen, are some of the uses that come to mind.
Like with any other Apple’s product, there will certainly be no shortage of people lining up to buy it.
While iPhone’s brought us revolutionary touch screen software, this gadget still needs something cooler than a nice cover, to justify calling it “magical” or “revolutionary”. But until I get our hands on one and see it in action, it’s too early to judge.
However, one thing we can all be certain of:
This will be the most awesome toilet web browsing gadget. Ever.
Create a video blog…instantly.
What are people saying?