<p>I find it easier to search for free content from the amazon.com website (on my computer, as opposed to directly from the Kindle).</p>
<p>You can do it from the kindle, but it is a little hard to view, since you will be searching through thousands of free titles! So go to the kindle store at amazon.com, in the search box look for “free” under “kindle books”. (There is a drop down window for the different departments.)</p>
<p>There will be books that have “free” in the title. Also ones that will cost you nothing. Start browsing through - the price will be below the title. Look for those with the $0.00 underneath the title! So far, I have sent 60 free ones to my Kindle, including Machiavelli, Dante Alleghieri, HG Wells and Jane Austen, just to name a few. </p>
<p>If it says that the book doesn’t cost, and I am interested in it, I click the “one click” button to “buy it now.” Then, the book will be sent directly to my Kindle, if it is on the wireless setting. If it isn’t on, or on wireless, it will update the next time I “sync”, or turn on the wireless.</p>
<p>musicmom,
I ordered my skin from an ebay seller. I think it cost $6.00 - I just searched “kindle 2 + skin” on ebay. I found a nice sweet little lime green one. </p>
<p>I’m having fun just learning the Kindle ropes…</p>
<p>I find the Kindle screen VERY easy on my eyes. After a long day at work in the lab, mostly at a computer, I have found that the Kindle is actually easier on my old eyes than ‘real books’.</p>
<p>There was also a ton of helpful user information in this kindle book that Stephen Windwalker sells at the Kindle store. It is 99 cents, and I think illustrates how to get more functionality of it than even the Kindle guide that comes pre-installed on the thing!</p>
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<p>I agree about it being easier on the eyes, too. ;)</p>
<p>Can someone please explain why none of these e-readers have color capability? I read a lot of art books, art instruction books, quilting and knitting books, etc., all of which are pretty graphics intense. It would be so exciting to download these onto a Kindle or Nook, as many of the physical editions are oversized. I know it can’t be technologically prohibitive—heck devices using much smaller formats offer full color graphics for countless apps. I’m so frustrated, because I really do want an e-reader, but I’m holding out for color, damn it!</p>
<p>ps., yes I know you can download an e-reader app for your Iphone or Ipod, but, I need a much larger screen for sustained reading, and reading a novel on my touch just won’t cut it.</p>
<p>LGM, thanks so much for your help. I would have thanked you sooner, but I was scrolling . . . I got through page 203 of the free books before I decided I was letting myself get too much candy from the candy store. This is one cool toy.</p>
<p>Just an update on Kindle skins.
Found exactly what I was looking for on ebay for less than $9, free shipping.
It includes a screen protector thingy as well.</p>
<p>My DD has a kindle and loves it. You can share books among Kindles registered to the same email address and you can download a Kindle reader for your computer (and the Iphone I think) and share the same books.</p>
<p>I have to disagree with idad on this one. As of now, Apple is stating that it’s device won’t be a “reader” of any sort, but rather a “tablet” which may have reader capabilities. Steve Jobs understands that most Americans don’t even read one book/year (it’s scary, but true), so he’s unwilling to tie his company to something with what he considers “limited usage potential”. There is one academic paper from Stanford whose authors’ claim otherwise, but I would think that if they were sure of that, they’d be heavy investors, which would make their writing illegal!
Reading is a passion for me and RA sometimes makes it difficult for me to hold a book, so even though I’d miss actual paper and print, I’ve been a part of local library tests for e-book readers of all types. Do I like them, yes, you bet! The weight it light and even, the ability to adjust contrast, bookmark,etc is wonderful, yet I still won’t buy one as of now.I like the features on the Nook better than the Kindle and like the “feel” of the Nook better than the Kindle too. I think Sony has the best device, but then again, Beta was far superior to VHS too, but their marketing was terribly flawed. Can they do better with their e-reader? No, I don’t think so.
I had this discussion with my eldest son, an engineer at Microsoft, and he’s holding off too. I love the pretty cases and the neat ways to customize things, but for now, I’ll stick with my local library.</p>
<p>The rumors on Apple is that Apple will do deals with content providers which will provide the value added.</p>
<p>On the original iPod, Apple did a revolutionary deal for content distribution and provided the Digital Rights Management so that content providers felt protected in that distribution channel. The hardware itself was very, very good but the deals that they did with the content owners and the software platform were very important too.</p>
<p>With the iPod Touch and the iPhone, they created an applications infrastructure to supplement the very good hardware and software of the iPhone.</p>
<p>Apple complements the very good hardware of their Macs with Mac OS X, a very nice and cutting edge operating system.</p>
<p>Apple also has content deals with some movies and television shows - marrying technology with distribution and I think that their deals with publishers may give them an edge over the competition. Apple could also distribute television shows and movies over a tablet. I think that my wife would like one of these things on the kitchen counter on a stand.</p>
<p>Color could mean that textbook providers would move to this platform. What I would like with a textbook reader would be access to the book in addition to access to the electronic version. That means a student could go home for a weekend and have the textbook available without having to carry it. Or the student could go to the library or read the textbook on the bus.</p>
<p>Just finished my first book on Kindle.
Really enjoyed:
-throwing it in my purse to read while waiting for my D at school club meeting
-soft, easy to read text that you can change font size on
-‘screen savers’ that randomly appear of different authors when you put it to sleep
-having it bring me back to my last page automatically when I pick it up
-incredible light weight of it
Not so much-
-tiny keypad hard to use, luckily I don’t use it much
-Kindle case a bit slippery; silicone sleeve thing makes it feel more secure in my hands
That’s about it…I’m pretty much in love!
I’m planning on a free classic for my second book…</p>
<p>I will chime in again, since I just had my book group meetins and everyone else ( we mainly get our books from the library book group kits), professes to " not ever be able to read on a screen".</p>
<p>I find it * much* easier to read a backlight screen like my ipod ( I am quite nearsighted plus dyslexic) or even I expect like the kindle where you can control the font even though I find it difficult to read a computer monitor and will print stuff out if it is long/complex.</p>
<p>I also just found that while I already have applications that have very cheap books ( 100 books for $) that are in the public domain for my ipod, Amazon also has free books for the kindle/ipod. I just downloaded Anna Karenina, which I have never read, but now I will have to!</p>
<p>Let me put a plug in here for an eReader with a larger screen that could sit on my piano and display sheet music. I would pay $500 today if it worked well. Please, someone develop this!</p>