Hello from Mallorca

[katania]

Hello everybody
This is a great forum, I am glad I found it.There is so much information, But it is not easy to decide if it is the right time to get the sony reader. It seems as if it is rather problematic to load books onto the device. Living in europe one also can't download books from the Connectstore, is there any way to do it, anyway??
Anne-Mai

[RWood]

Welcome to MobileRead.

Most of us have no problems loading books to the Sony Reader. The majority of problems seem concentrated in people not using WinXP with the Connect software although the recent update may have helped those using Vista. There is still no official Sony support for Apple OSX or Linux. However if you look in the MobileRead Wiki, there are tools such as libprs500 by Kovid Goyal that provide this functionality on many platforms.

As for buying books from the Connect Store, many in Europe have people in the US buy the gift cards for them. There is one around the forum that has done this a number of times. Since it seems that Sony has secured only the US rights to the books they require a US addressed credit card if you are not using a gift card.

[sic]

hi

I'd suggest you to get the iRex Iliad instead - if you can afford it - or otherwise wait.
Only get the SONY if you have sources other than the connect store to get the books you want to read e.g. if you read a lot of classics.
I think there will be new product announcements in the summer and the first generation reader will become obsolete. It's a closed platform - unlike the Iliad or StareBook - so you can only upgrade it if SONY issues something (unlikely) or someone hacks it.
For 350 USD plus tax, shipping etc. you're better off getting a cheap laptop... IMO

Then again... if you're like me and just got to try it yourself then... hell with the 350$... just buy it

[katania]

Hah! There you see, I have been looking at the iLiad as well. But the price!!!!!!!!!!
It does say on the iLiad's webpage, "anything you can print from your pc you can read on the iLiad". Is it that easy?? Is it easier than the Sony reader??

[sic]

no... unfortunately these devices are not easy to use - compared to e.g. an iPod.
Depends how geeky you are.
Even though it's possible to install printer drivers so that you can print onto the Sony Reader... in my opinion just forget it.

For the SONY Reader
RTF works well, except you won't have images
PDF works but you need custom page size to match the device's dimmensions which means if you download an average PDF (letter or A4 size) you won't be happy with it. You can use it as a way to get your documents - that you wrote - onto the Reader.

SONY Reader lacks HTML format support, I think the Iliad has it...
There are converters... despite all the hard work they're not ready for human consumption yet.

[RWood]

Originally Posted by sic

There are converters... despite all the hard work they're not ready for human consumption yet.

Last time I checked those of us who are posting books in the Sony Upload section were human, well most of the posters at least.

[sic]

no dispespect bt those books are usually classics that are available as plain text and then you guys format it so that the type setting is readable and the page breaks are at the proper place.
I have a few websites which are just HTML with images, e.g. poem collection or a bilingual Bible... now try converting those!

[katania]

Thank you all for your input. I am not a wizz at the pc, just the very basic . I just liked the idea of taking many diffrent books with you at the same time. And reading in bed,,, it can be a real pain(in the shoulder the next day)when it is even just a fat paperback (8-900pages)
Hmmmm have some thinking to do!

[Azayzel]

Originally Posted by katania

It does say on the iLiad's webpage, "anything you can print from your pc you can read on the iLiad". Is it that easy?? Is it easier than the Sony reader??

You could also say the same thing for the Reader, after all, this simply refers to printing to PDF and loading that up in the device for viewing. From what I've heard; e.g., read here, the Iliad is a nice device, and from experience, I know the Reader is an awesome device as well. Ultimately you'll have to weigh the pros & cons of each if you really want to be happy with your purchase. Small summation:

They both have incredible screens, in terms of contrast/low-to-no glare/cripsness/sharpness

Iliad > Pros: larger screen, active development environment, more usability for stuff other than reading, readily available in Europe, higher greyscale count (16?)
> Cons: Much more expensive, a bit heavier than the Reader, lower battery life, quite fragile (many broken screens/bricked units reported), and very expensive to repair

Reader > Pros: excellent battery life, lightweight, fairly durable, active community converting existing public domain (PD) books, cheaper than the Iliad
> Cons: not an open environment (though still hacked), limited greyscale (4), can only be used as a eReader, MP3 Player, and photo viewer, flat file system (tough to browse large amounts of books)

Anyway, those are just a few things to consider (I'm sure people can add more if they want). If it's getting books into it, there's a tool out there for converting almost any format for use on the Reader; the only problem area is large, paper/textbook-size PDF's, but there are tools freely available that make them quite viewable. Where there's a will, there's a way; patience is the key.

Good luck!

[katania]

Thank you for helping me out.I like the sony ,it is neat and light. But the iLiad seems to be the answer for us living in europe, but I find it rather expencive. The research is very intresting, I am learning a LOT.......
We will see what we do in the end........