eBook Readers

[CielOnTap]

I learned something interesting about Adobe Digital Editions-I can look to add items to the Library if they have .pdf or .epub file extensions. Trouble is, the eBooks checked out have .etd file extensions, so when I open the appropriate file folder to try to add them, they do not show up for import to the Adobe program. Yes, the eBook source does provide a link to Adobe but the file extension situation is beyond patience for me.

Oh, I did try using Adobe Reader 8.0 but when I try to open the eBook, the program redirects me the Digital Editions webpage. Fun--not at all. I have 21 days to sort this out and read some eBooks.

[pysanky]

File extensions-like gossips, they get in way of doing something. Try search on .etd and look at results-may see solution.

[CielOnTap]

Came across some finds online. Something about Clicking on Bookstore, certify eBook, then the book content downloads.

Figured out solution: Open Adobe Reader, found my file, Opened file, Digital Editions opens and program downloads content. Hurrah.

[CielOnTap]

Two and a half novels later, I can understand why fiction novels can have a market in the eBook format. For light reading, the eBook can help while away time, software cooperating of course. The wise reader will have explored the library to ensure that all titles are safely shelved and available for reading prior to taking a journey.

I will have to download a non-fiction book to see how much ease or not exists in switching between chapters, appendices, table of contents and the index. There is something to be said for paper books--their design, paper and portability--as they can be enjoyed indoors or outdoors, tilted just so. I will feel sorry for the future readers who learn to read without paper books, for a tangible joy of reading is holding a copy of a long-awaited title, enjoying any illustrations, reading if any names are in the author's thank-you or credit notes, and then just reading at one's own pace.

[CielOnTap]

Downloaded a book in the past couple of days in Adobe Reader 8 and cannot open the acm file? Adobe Digital Editions are also saying it cannot open the file?

Guess what? You have to upgrade to Adobe Reader 9 (do this first) before you can see the update action for Adobe Digital Editions occur. Otherwise, your ebook file won't show up as a readable file. Just figured this out now and I tried to remember if I forget a sequence to saving then opening the file in Reader then opening file in Digital Editions.

Adobe's site mentions a transition away from Content Server 3 to version 4, with older Adobe Reader programs only able to read the older book files or legacy books.

[pretzels]

May 06, 2009
Kindle DX thoughts in 140 characters
Amazon.com today announced its Kindle DX e-reader, a larger version of the Kindle 2 designed for reading newspapers, periodicals and textbooks. It has a 9.7-inch screen, a built-in PDF reader, a landscape viewing mode and a substantial $489 price tag.

Yeah, there are some subsidies if you sign a subscription contract, but only with the New York Times, the Boston Globe and the Washington Post. And if you live in an area where there's home delivery of the print edition, you're not eligible for the subsidy. Given that the Times has home delivery in many big cities, that cuts a lot of folks out. DX

[CielOnTap]

Amazon.com to drop boycott of Macmillan titles but protests publisher's pricing strategy
DAVID KOENIG
AP Business Writer
6:30 a.m. CST, February 1, 2010

Amazon.com says it will give in to publishing giant Macmillan and agree to sell electronic versions of its books even at prices it considers too high.

New copies of Hilary Mantel's "Wolf Hall," Andrew Young's "The Politician" and other books published by Macmillan were unavailable Saturday on Amazon.com, after the retailer pulled the titles in a surprising reaction to the publisher's new pricing model for e-books.

Amazon wants to tamp down prices as competitors such as Barnes & Noble Inc., Sony Corp. and Apple Inc. line up to challenge its dominant position in the rapidly expanding market. But Macmillan and other publishers have criticized Amazon for charging just $9.99 for best-selling e-books on its Kindle e-reader, a price publishers say is too low and could hurt sales of higher priced hardcovers. http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/sns-ap-us-amazon-macmillan,0,6145802.story

The publisher makes a point of protecting the usual paper book format with its eBook pricing. Novels need creative minds and fingers to be composed and that means time spent writing, researching, editing, and dreaming up the plot/characters/scenery/details. One appreciates a book more if there is a price tag involved.

[CielOnTap]

Getting back to Adobe Digital Editions-for the past three weeks, I have been able to download books directly in the Digital Editions program without going through Adobe Reader first. So there is a change in how the process works. Failing that, updating software is worth a try.

Is anyone getting fatigued with having more than one handheld unit on his/her person? I'm not in that situation but have read of iPod user with laptop and cellphone. Sounds tiring.

[CielOnTap]

Price war hits e-readers
Last Updated: Monday, June 21, 2010 | 4:26 PM ET
CBC News
Amazon is the current market share leader in e-readers with its Kindle. A price war is erupting in e-readers with both Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com slashing the prices of their respective devices on Monday.

Barnes & Noble, the largest book retailer in the United States, kicked things off with an announcement that it was lowering the price of its Nook e-reader, which can download books on the fly through its 3G wireless connection, to $199 (U.S.) from $259. The book chain also announced it was adding a Wi-Fi-only Nook to its offerings for $149. Neither is available yet in Canada.

Hours after the announcement, Amazon.com lowered the price of its 3G-enabled Kindle — which is available in Canada — to $189 (U.S.). The Kindle DX, which has a larger screen and more storage space, remains priced at $489, however. Amazon is the leader in e-readers with an estimated market share of between 40 and 60 per cent.

http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2010/06/21/ereader-price-war-amazon-kindle.html
Who has the spare cash to get one of these gadgets? Are the books worth getting?