Free vs paid ebooks

darthreader13 · 01-10-2011, 01:15 AM

Hello, I am new to this forum. I noticed that there are some ebooks that are free, which also have a paid version. Is there a difference in these? I got a free book and noticed that I can not go to the table of context when I want. Can you reach the table of context at any time in a purchased book?

Thank you.

bhartman36 · 01-10-2011, 01:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by darthreader13

Hello, I am new to this forum. I noticed that there are some ebooks that are free, which also have a paid version. Is there a difference in these? I got a free book and noticed that I can not go to the table of context when I want. Can you reach the table of context at any time in a purchased book?

Thank you.

(Very) Generally speaking, you'll find that more paid e-books have tables of contents than free ones. One of the things you ought to expect, in general, when you're paying for an e-book is that the formatting is decent. But as I said, that's a general rule. There are certainly free e-books with linked tables of contents.

One thing you should look for is whether or not the e-book is out of copyright in the U.S. Check Project Gutenberg (www.gutenberg.org). If you can find the e-book there, then I would venture to guess that the free copy you find on Amazon might be a Gutenberg text which was simply converted to MOBI/AZW format. Project Gutenberg texts generally aren't formatted specifically for the Kindle, so the table of contents probably won't be linked.

TheKindleWorm · 01-10-2011, 01:57 AM

Hi and welcome to mobileread

I assume you're talking about the freebie classic books at Amazon?

You will find much nicer quality free classics right here at mobileread (link at top of website to ebooks) or at places like manybooks.net and feedbooks.com. You need the mobi version

I can't promise they will have a Table of Contents because some books do and some don't - free or not. But generally speaking the freebie classics on Amaon are not a nicely formatted as some other sites.

Happy reading

JeremyR · 01-10-2011, 05:38 AM

Basically Amazon lets anyone upload books to the store.

So what people have done is essentially spam the store will all sorts of different versions of Public Domain books.

Unfortunately, apparently this is viewed as some sort of get rich scheme, taking PD books, formatting them (or not) and trying to sell them on Amazon.

In either case, there may be nicely formatted books on Amazon, but because of this spam problem (and how they don't really group reviews separately) they are almost impossible to find.

desertblues · 01-10-2011, 06:04 AM

QUOTE=JeremyR;1325873]Basically Amazon lets anyone upload books to the store.
So what people have done is essentially spam the store will all sorts of different versions of Public Domain books.
Unfortunately, apparently this is viewed as some sort of get rich scheme, taking PD books, formatting them (or not) and trying to sell them on Amazon.
In either case, there may be nicely formatted books on Amazon, but because of this spam problem (and how they don't really group reviews separately) they are almost impossible to find.[/QUOTE]

I had some bad experiences with the Public Domain books on Amazon; they got stuck in my ereader. Also they're not all free.

I would advise everyone to download the perfectly formatted free classic books of MR. It's very easy to get the catalogue on the Kindle and one can pick and choose.

Feedbooks and Manybooks also do a decent job formatting.
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=92311

neilmarr · 01-10-2011, 06:53 AM

Good to have your company, Darth. As has been said, there's a pretty wide range of classics and Public Domains at the free MobileRead Library -- and they're all beautifully prepared and uploaded by generous members. The choice of free books at Project Gutenberg is much greater, but often format and proofing leaves a lot to be desired. There are also hundreds of free contemporasry books at Smashwords.com. They don't carry DRM, so they're easily converted to Mobi format for your Kindle using library software like the free (or voluntarily donate) Calibre. Fine library software that many of us here swear by and use exclusively. Good luck and besdt wishes. Neil

darthreader13 · 01-10-2011, 11:56 PM

Hello everybody, thank you for all the information and for such a nice welcome! I absolutely love my kindle and plan on spending a bit of time here getting more familiar with it!

01-10-2011, 01:15 AM	#1
darthreader13 Junior Member Posts: 6 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Florida Device: Kindle 3	Free vs paid ebooks Hello, I am new to this forum. I noticed that there are some ebooks that are free, which also have a paid version. Is there a difference in these? I got a free book and noticed that I can not go to the table of context when I want. Can you reach the table of context at any time in a purchased book? Thank you.

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01-10-2011, 01:57 AM	#3
TheKindleWorm Guru Posts: 860 Karma: 177868 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: East Anglia UK Device: Kindle 3G, iPhone 3G, iPod 4G, PB 360, Sony 600 sold, Kindle 2i sold	Hi and welcome to mobileread I assume you're talking about the freebie classic books at Amazon? You will find much nicer quality free classics right here at mobileread (link at top of website to ebooks) or at places like manybooks.net and feedbooks.com. You need the mobi version I can't promise they will have a Table of Contents because some books do and some don't - free or not. But generally speaking the freebie classics on Amaon are not a nicely formatted as some other sites. Happy reading

01-10-2011, 05:38 AM	#4
JeremyR Guru Posts: 973 Karma: 2458402 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: St. Louis Device: Kindle Keyboard, Nook HD+	Basically Amazon lets anyone upload books to the store. So what people have done is essentially spam the store will all sorts of different versions of Public Domain books. Unfortunately, apparently this is viewed as some sort of get rich scheme, taking PD books, formatting them (or not) and trying to sell them on Amazon. In either case, there may be nicely formatted books on Amazon, but because of this spam problem (and how they don't really group reviews separately) they are almost impossible to find.

01-10-2011, 06:04 AM	#5
desertblues Home for the moment Posts: 5,127 Karma: 27718936 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: travelling Device: various	QUOTE=JeremyR;1325873]Basically Amazon lets anyone upload books to the store. So what people have done is essentially spam the store will all sorts of different versions of Public Domain books. Unfortunately, apparently this is viewed as some sort of get rich scheme, taking PD books, formatting them (or not) and trying to sell them on Amazon. In either case, there may be nicely formatted books on Amazon, but because of this spam problem (and how they don't really group reviews separately) they are almost impossible to find.[/QUOTE] I had some bad experiences with the Public Domain books on Amazon; they got stuck in my ereader. Also they're not all free. I would advise everyone to download the perfectly formatted free classic books of MR. It's very easy to get the catalogue on the Kindle and one can pick and choose. Feedbooks and Manybooks also do a decent job formatting. https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=92311

01-10-2011, 06:53 AM	#6
neilmarr neilmarr Posts: 7,215 Karma: 6000059 Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Monaco-Menton, France Device: sony	Good to have your company, Darth. As has been said, there's a pretty wide range of classics and Public Domains at the free MobileRead Library -- and they're all beautifully prepared and uploaded by generous members. The choice of free books at Project Gutenberg is much greater, but often format and proofing leaves a lot to be desired. There are also hundreds of free contemporasry books at Smashwords.com. They don't carry DRM, so they're easily converted to Mobi format for your Kindle using library software like the free (or voluntarily donate) Calibre. Fine library software that many of us here swear by and use exclusively. Good luck and besdt wishes. Neil

01-10-2011, 11:56 PM	#7
darthreader13 Junior Member Posts: 6 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Florida Device: Kindle 3	Hello everybody, thank you for all the information and for such a nice welcome! I absolutely love my kindle and plan on spending a bit of time here getting more familiar with it!

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