Monday, March 22, 2010

Kindle Heaven

Ok, this post is entirely inspired by KarenG at Coming Down the Mountain and her post on e-publishing. Although I did comment, there is so much more I want to say about my Kindle. I am writing this from the point of view of a reader, not a writer seeking publication.

My favorite thing about it is that I can lie in bed under the covers and read without the book being too awkward. My kindle was broken for a short time and the return to regular books was frustrating. My arms would get cold, my finger tired of propping up the book. It also takes up much less space on my bedside table, one thin item instead of three or four books.

Wireless delivery is amazing. As soon as I remember a book that I want to read, two minutes later I have it. Even as I am writing this post I am ordering books (The Giver). It does take more self control because I don't see the money leaving my wallet like it does in a regular bookstore. I am prepared to be tempted in Borders, but having a bookstore at my fingertips is tricky.

My husband loves my Kindle because there are boxes of books he will never have to move again. They can stay at my parents house forever. He doesn't have to hear how I miss them, or find I have managed to sneak a few more into the solitary bookcase in our cramped apartment. If only Harry Potter was available.

When the Kindle goes into sleep mode a picture of an author appears on the screen, Jules Verne today. As I look at different authors, I am reminded of all the quality books, classics, and childhood favorites that I once read and am encouraged to seek books that stretch my mind.

The screen is very easy on my eyes. Unlike computers that shoot light at you, the kindle uses different technology so it is not at all like reading a monitor. It is more like reading an old paperback with faded pages. The ink is still easy to read but the paper is a little darker. Because I can make the font different sizes, there is no eye strain. I prefer tiny print because it is more like a book, but the large font is nice for when I am jogging. Some books have a text-to-speech option so I can listen to the story. Unfortunately, it isn't a nice soothing voice but a male or female computer voice. I have only used it for the Old Testament.

Using it for textbooks is less useful. Although I can highlight and make notes, it is to0 hard to search easily. The large pages of a textbook allow for easier skim reading. Front to back reading is fine but looking for something if you aren't exactly sure where is very frustrating.

The days of record players and the large artwork that covered the albums are gone. When smaller cassettes appeared people missed the ease of finding the song, having a stack of records drop automatically into place, the artwork. Ipods have changed everything again. The volume of music that can be stored and the quality of the sound outweigh any of the nostalgia over the loss of records. Records have their own feel, smell, sound, and memories, but cannot compare to the current technology. I think that books will eventually go the same way as this technology continues to improve.

8 comments:

  1. Hi

    Oh my work colleague (she with the Kindle) absolutely adores her Kindle - can't tear herself away from it and has not looked back since - even donated her entire print books to charity (and to me! LOL!)!

    She's also convinced that this is the way forward. I'm sure it is, the minute the price becomes more affordable!

    I'm old and a stuck in the mud! LOL! But I was most impressed by the Kindle application I managed to download off Amazon to read Simon Lewin's story... and yet... I missed the turning of pages, the putting of a book mark, the feel of paper. Oh really Old Kitty - get groovin with the times!! I'm just glad I can still watch my vhs videos in my ye olde vcr! LOL!

    Take care
    x

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  2. I haven't seen a Kindle yet. I was wondering what it would be like on your eyes. haha I know the 'cold arm' feeling!
    Thanks for your goose comment hehe :o)

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  3. Kitty, I have a vcr in my bedroom that I use every night. I am not looking forward to the day that everything is Blueray. Enough with the technology!! How many different ways will I have to buy You've Got Mail?

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  4. Hi there's an award for you at my blog :o)

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  5. Speaking of technology, another DVD player in our house has gone on the fritz, while the old VCRs just keep on playing. Aaaargh! Good thing I kept the tapes of my favorite movies.

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  6. Thanks for all of the great information. I've wondered about the feasiblity of using it for a textbook--the skim and search part like you mentioned.

    How do you jog with a Kindle? Please tell me it's on a treadmill or I shall feel quite uncoordinated. That might be just the ticket to making the time on a treadmill go faster.

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  7. Kate, Definately on a treadmill. I climbed stairs today at work while reading my Kindle and was so dizzy after finishing. On the treadmill I just make the font large and the time speeds by. I have actually started going to the gym when I feel like reading because it doesn't feel like working out.

    Karen, do you remember the VCP that survived the big earthquake and kept on playing? I think it finally broke after someone sat on it.

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  8. I love my Kindle - I love that when the lighting is bad you can make the font bigger to compensate; I love that you can read it while standing up on a train; I love that you can carry a library with you so that if you are near the end of a book and have to wait so long at an appointment that you finish it, you have another right there waiting to start. And, at the moment, I love that I can read it while I have one arm in a sling! (I do still have a big pile of "real" books in a to-read pile though that I try to read at night).

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