Out of USA (Out of Sprint coverage)

[HawaiianLungs]

I am mostly out of the US although I live in Hawaii and come here several times a year.

I think the Kindle has much of what I need, but I am concerned with wireless downloads.

Yes I can get most of the books I want in Hawaii, but if I want a special book overseas can I do it? The forums suggest I can, but it is not clear.

Also I am a doctor. Many files I want to read are pdfs from the INTERNET. How can I put these unto the Kindle from my PC? Can the Kndle read thesde pdfs?

Lastly, I need to charge the Kindle from 240volt outlets. Can I?

[daffy4u]

Originally Posted by HawaiianLungs

I am mostly out of the US although I live in Hawaii and come here several times a year.

I think the Kindle has much of what I need, but I am concerned with wireless downloads.

Yes I can get most of the books I want in Hawaii, but if I want a special book overseas can I do it? The forums suggest I can, but it is not clear.

Also I am a doctor. Many files I want to read are pdfs from the INTERNET. How can I put these unto the Kindle from my PC? Can the Kndle read thesde pdfs?

Lastly, I need to charge the Kindle from 240volt outlets. Can I?

All you need is a computer with internet access wherever you are in the world. You'd surf over to the online version of the Kindle store. Buy your book, then go to your Media Library downloads section. download the book (or subscriptiion) to the computer. connect the Kindle to the computer and drag and drop the files onto the Kindle in the "documents" folder.

Kindle User Guide

Using Kindle with Your Computer

Converting personal documents for use on a Kindle

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by HawaiianLungs

Yes I can get most of the books I want in Hawaii, but if I want a special book overseas can I do it? The forums suggest I can, but it is not clear.

Yes, if you have a PC and internet available. You can download the file from your media library on Amazon and transfer it to your Kindle using a USB cable.

Originally Posted by HawaiianLungs

Also I am a doctor. Many files I want to read are pdfs from the INTERNET. How can I put these unto the Kindle from my PC? Can the Kndle read thesde pdfs?

Not directly. You will have to convert them to Mobipocket format. There are a couple of ways to do it. First, you can email the document to your kindle email account and the converted file will be emailed to you. Second, you can use Mobipocket or Mobicreator software on your PC (not Mac) to convert it. Now, the results may not be stellar depending on the contents of the PDF. If it is moslty or all text you will have good results. See the numerous threads here for more info on the trials and tribulations of converting/reading PDF documents.

Originally Posted by HawaiianLungs

Lastly, I need to charge the Kindle from 240volt outlets. Can I?

My kindle charger says 110-240volts... so yes.

BOb

[HawaiianLungs]

Thank you for all your quick replies. All of my questions have been answered.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by daffy4u

All you need is a computer with internet access wherever you are in the world. You'd surf over to the online version of the Kindle store. Buy your book, then go to your Media Library downloads section. download the book (or subscriptiion) to the computer. connect the Kindle to the computer and drag and drop the files onto the Kindle in the "documents" folder.

The only other caveat that's perhaps worth adding is that you must have a credit card with a US billing address in order to buy books from the Amazon eBook book store.

I would, however, question the choice of a Kindle for someone who states that reading PDFs is an important requirement, given that the Kindle cannot read this format natively. The conversion software tends not to do a very good job with PDFs with complex layout - tables, graphs, etc. A machine which has native PDF support such as the Sony Reader or CyBook Gen3 would perhaps be a better choice.

[daffy4u]

He lives in Hawaii, so it's likely he does have a U.S. credit card.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by daffy4u

He lives in Hawaii, so it's likely he does have a U.S. credit card.

OK. I'm never sure which of these various Pacific islands are bits of the US and which aren't.

[Dr. Drib]

Originally Posted by HarryT

OK. I'm never sure which of these various Pacific islands are bits of the US and which aren't.

Now, Harry , I could say the same about the United Kingdom.

Don

[HarryT]

I was serious, Don. I am honestly unsure what the legal status of places like, say, Puerto Rico is. It uses the US$ as its currency, but it's not a part of the USA, is it, so if you had a credit card from there it wouldn't be a US credit card.

(And yes, I know that Puerto Rico isn't in the Pacific ).

You're absolutely right to be unsure about the legal status of the various islands around the UK - it gets very complicated. Some are parts of the UK, some aren't. Some are in the European Union, and others aren't. Eg, the Channel Islands are a part of the UK, but not in the EU and there's no VAT there.

[Dr. Drib]

I'm just teasing you, Harry.

Actually, Hawaii is our 50th state.

(I'm quite ignorant about your history, I might add.)


Don

[daffy4u]

Originally Posted by HarryT

OK. I'm never sure which of these various Pacific islands are bits of the US and which aren't.

I'm not so good with geography, so I can appreciate the confusion.

[RickyMaveety]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I was serious, Don. I am honestly unsure what the legal status of places like, say, Puerto Rico is. It uses the US$ as its currency, but it's not a part of the USA, is it, so if you had a credit card from there it wouldn't be a US credit card.

(And yes, I know that Puerto Rico isn't in the Pacific ).

You're absolutely right to be unsure about the legal status of the various islands around the UK - it gets very complicated. Some are parts of the UK, some aren't. Some are in the European Union, and others aren't. Eg, the Channel Islands are a part of the UK, but not in the EU and there's no VAT there.

It would be interesting to find out ... about Puerto Rico, I mean. It is a territory of the US, and the people who live there are US citizens, although they cannot vote in US Federal elections. I suppose it would be up to Amazon to decide whether they considered credit cards from US territories as US credit cards or not.

[Alisa]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Not directly. You will have to convert them to Mobipocket format. There are a couple of ways to do it. First, you can email the document to your kindle email account and the converted file will be emailed to you. Second, you can use Mobipocket or Mobicreator software on your PC (not Mac) to convert it. Now, the results may not be stellar depending on the contents of the PDF. If it is moslty or all text you will have good results. See the numerous threads here for more info on the trials and tribulations of converting/reading PDF documents.

Just to spare any future confusion, the email you would use is username@free.kindle.com. The regular username@kindle.com address sends the converted files back to you wirelessly.

One downside to being outside of wireless range is that you can't get the free samples. Those are only sent via Whispernet. It's certainly easy to buy books but I did miss the samples last time I was out of the country.

[daffy4u]

Originally Posted by Alisa

Just to spare any future confusion, the email you would use is username@free.kindle.com. The regular username@kindle.com address sends the converted files back to you wirelessly.

One downside to being outside of wireless range is that you can't get the free samples. Those are only sent via Whispernet. It's certainly easy to buy books but I did miss the samples last time I was out of the country.

You can, however download free samples from the MobiPocket.com site that will work on your Kindle. Of course, MobiPocket has to sell the book you're interested in.

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by RickyMaveety

It would be interesting to find out ... about Puerto Rico, I mean. It is a territory of the US, and the people who live there are US citizens, although they cannot vote in US Federal elections. I suppose it would be up to Amazon to decide whether they considered credit cards from US territories as US credit cards or not.

Really? Guam has delegates at the convention. They have 7 votes, and voted 4 for Obama and 2 for Clinton. If they can have delegates doesn't the mean the have people voting in a primary?

BOb