New kid on the block

[Stitchawl]

I'd just like to introduce myself to this forum. I'm an American living in Kyoto, Japan, and read 2-3 books a week, usually at the same time. I like to read one science book (Natural,) one philosophy or history, and one fiction (mystery, thriller, Sci-Fi,) which together seem to balance out my brain. I'm just as happy reading trash fiction as classic.

Buying English language books in Japan can get prohibitively expensive (a new pocket novel will run about $15-$20 USD ) so the idea of e-books here might well be a viable alternative.

I'll be receiving a Sony e-book reader in a few days (assuming the mails work correctly,) and have been furiously working to learn some of the ins and outs of e-book conversions and downloads. So far I seem to have downloaded enough books to last me several lifetimes, so I think I've made a good beginning. I hope to learn a lot more here, especially about formatting books for my reader, alternative sources for free downloads, and the e-book culture in general. I am looking forward to 'meeting' you all. Thanks!

Stitchawl

[dragonbone]

Welcome from another Sony Reader user in Japan! I have just recently received my Sony PRS-700 and I'm very happy!!
Yes, books almost made me bankrupt AND homeless, since the books take up more space than anything else and there was hardly room left for me. Japanese houses are meant for little Japanese books, not HUGE gaijin ones .
I am so happy NOT to be filling the coffers of Amazon.com anymore as that is where I bought most of my books from in the past!

[MickeyC]

Hi Stitchaw and welcome to MobileRead. I've had a 505 for over a year now and really like it. And your reading habits mean you'll fit right in around here. We're all a bunch of eBook junkies

[Stitchawl]

Thank you both for the kind welcome! Dragonbone... I wonder how many books it takes to fill up a 3LDK? Back in the old days I had a 4 1/2 mat walk-up that was pretty much filled. Maruzen closed their largest store in Kyoto, and Kinokuniya reduced their Osaka branch's English section to one rack of shelves. I think e-books will be a life saver!

Cassidym, I'm happy to hear your vote of confidence in the 505. I was sitting on the fence trying to decide between that and the Kindle2. I tried to order the 505 from Amazon but they sell from Sony USA and can't ship it to Japan. I tried to buy from Sony Japan but they don't make the English language version! It almost swung the vote to Kindle. Thankfully another company was willing to send the English version of the Sony 505 to me here.

Can either of you offer any suggestions for good, easy-to-use software? I've already downloaded Calibre, Book Designer, ABC Amber, and a few others but haven't loaded them yet. I'm sure everyone has their own personal favorite. What do you folks suggest?

Stitchawl

[MickeyC]

I've only used Calibre and have been pleased with the results. You might pose your question in the eBook Software section

[desertgrandma]

Welcome to MobileRead, stitchawl.

You'll find whatever help you need here, and enough free books to download to keep even you happy.

Enjoy the forums.

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by cassidym

I've only used Calibre and have been pleased with the results. You might pose your question in the eBook Software section

I've just scratched the surface of that forum. I want to read as much of it as possible before I begin my questions. I have a feeling that others probably have already discussed what I need to know.

Unfortunately, a lot of what I've read already goes right over my head. I know nothing about writing code, creating or modifying programs, or working with command lines. I'm hoping to find some really simple to use software. I don't need to make my books look like presentation works with covers or links. I just need readability. Perhaps in the future I might want those features, but for now, I'll be happy with taking baby steps.

This is a whole new world for me and I need to learn how to live in it. That, I think, is going to take a lot of learning!

Stitchawl

[dreams]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

Can either of you offer any suggestions for good, easy-to-use software? I've already downloaded Calibre, Book Designer, ABC Amber, and a few others but haven't loaded them yet. I'm sure everyone has their own personal favorite. What do you folks suggest? Stitchawl

Welcome to MobileRead, Stitchawl.

What kind of software do you want? I think Dragonbone has been trying to figure out the same thing? (using Calibre and / or Sony Library) https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...t=calibre+sony

I have a *BLUE* Sony 505 and live in the USA. I use the Sony Library right now for loading my Sony free books to the Reader. Later, I plan on using Calibre.

I keep my other downloads in folders on my computer then just transfer to the Reader. Right now, I have found everything that I want in the lrf, epub, and PDF (formats that the Sony uses) ... Later, I will venture into converting other formats into those used by my Reader. (Calibre will do conversions)

Ask questions and someone will jump in to answer or point you to the thread where you can learn.

[GraceKrispy]

Welcome!! I adore my 505. I often fall asleep with it (unintentionally). Welcome to the forum!

[Stitchawl]

Originally Posted by dreams

Welcome to MobileRead, Stitchawl.

What kind of software do you want? I think Dragonbone has been trying to figure out the same thing? (using Calibre and / or Sony Library)

I've now got both of them loaded, and have been playing around with them, trying to convert various formats. So far, they both are far beyond me...

I have a *BLUE* Sony 505 and live in the USA.

I had to order the Silver 505. The Blue one clashed with my hair. Besides, everyone knows that you can read a silver one faster than a blue one. The Lone Ranger didn't use blue bullets, did he?

I keep my other downloads in folders on my computer then just transfer to the Reader. Right now, I have found everything that I want in the lrf, epub, and PDF (formats that the Sony uses) ... Later, I will venture into converting other formats into those used by my Reader. (Calibre will do conversions)

I've made a separate drive just for my book downloads. So far, I have 92.8 gigabytes of book files. That translates into 63,981 different books.
That should hold me for a few weeks... especially since I haven't received my reader yet. I expect it to be delivered this week. I'm really getting excited!

Ask questions and someone will jump in to answer or point you to the thread where you can learn.

Thanks! This does seem to be a very friendly and helpful forum! A quick question; which formats (besides the native lrf,) does Sony handle without conversion, and which formats will convert with the most accuracy? I've been downloading all of the various ones figuring I can always delete them later if they don't work.

Stitchawl

[dreams]

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

I've now got both of them loaded, and have been playing around with them, trying to convert various formats. So far, they both are far beyond me...

I haven't ventured into Calibre yet, although everyone says it is very easy. I just use Sony Library to load my books.

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

I had to order the Silver 505. The Blue one clashed with my hair. Besides, everyone knows that you can read a silver one faster than a blue one. The Lone Ranger didn't use blue bullets, did he?

Ah, but the *BLUE* one does make you smarter... I know a few people around here have told me so

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

I've made a separate drive just for my book downloads. So far, I have 92.8 gigabytes of book files. That translates into 63,981 different books.
That should hold me for a few weeks... especially since I haven't received my reader yet. I expect it to be delivered this week. I'm really getting excited!

You'll never have to buy a book We also have a few authors on the site. Just check out the writers' Corner..

Originally Posted by Stitchawl

Thanks! This does seem to be a very friendly and helpful forum! A quick question; which formats (besides the native lrf,) does Sony handle without conversion, and which formats will convert with the most accuracy? I've been downloading all of the various ones figuring I can always delete them later if they don't work.

Stitchawl

Formats: lrf, lrx (Sony DRM'd version of lrf), epub, and PDF. Some sites have you click on Sony and an Adobe pdf is what is downloaded.

Easiest to convert (I think I saw this on a Calibre thread but don't remember where) I think lit format was listed as first. Check out the threads and / or do a search to get a better answer.