Anyone use their KPW for Textbooks?

KPW2013 · 09-01-2013, 08:24 PM

Hey guys, I just started university and I just figured that it would save me money if I got a paperwhite and just got the ebook ver. of everything. My textbooks in total would cost upwards of 600.

I think most people would recommend a tablet for reading but the problem is that the LCD screens strain my eyes if I read for long periods and I've read many good reviews on the KPW.

I already found the ebook versions for the bulk of my textbooks but they're all in PDF format and from reading here, it probably won't be too comfortable for me to read; due to the lack of reflow for a smaller screen, lack of text size formatting, and the fact that I'd have to zoom everytime to be able to read the texts if the pages are too big for the screen.

I thought, "Hey, maybe I should convert them to another format!"

I tried many different ways to convert the entire ebooks to text but none of my attempts were successful. I used finereader but it didn't come out too well probably because there are too many images (they are textbooks after all). I tried unlocking the PDFs, but I still can't select anything because they're all presumably scanned images. I was thinking of hacking the KPW to be able to read epub, then convert my PDFs to epub format but I'm already having trouble converting it with OCR software.

So... My plan is to subscribe to adobe exportPDF so they can convert all the images to word format, then I can send it to my KPW once it arrives in a couple days and it will automatically convert to AZW or ePub (if I decide to hack my KPW).

Now all my textbooks in PDF format (6 books), my questions are... Has anyone done this? After I convert everything, will the files get bigger? (in AZW and ePub)?

Thanks.

Julius Caesar · 09-01-2013, 10:01 PM

I wouldn't recommend using a 6" device to read a text book, especially if the book has lots of pictures as you said. Wait for 13.3" Sony e-reader. It would be fantastic for your need.

hawhill · 09-02-2013, 03:15 AM

KPW2013: Has k2pdfopt been on the list of programs you used to try to bring the PDFs into a proper format for reading on a small screen?

JC: Based on my experiences with a KDX, I'd rather say that upwards of ~10", the device stops being portable in a useful way. It may work in an office environment, where you take it from one office to another or to the meeting room, but I wouldn't consider it practical for a university student.

HarryT · 09-02-2013, 03:44 AM

Does the company you bought your textbooks from not offer them in any more "eInk-friendly" format than PDF? It's good to hear, though, that you've been able to buy your textbooks in electronic format. Who is the publisher?

spellbanisher · 09-02-2013, 07:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

Does the company you bought your textbooks from not offer them in any more "eInk-friendly" format than PDF? It's good to hear, though, that you've been able to buy your textbooks in electronic format. Who is the publisher?

Most textbooks are in pdf format only, or in the case of kindle books, "print replica."

KPW2013 · 09-03-2013, 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hawhill

KPW2013: Has k2pdfopt been on the list of programs you used to try to bring the PDFs into a proper format for reading on a small screen?

Actually kind of. You see, my textbooks are about 1000 -1500 pages so after I let it do its thing for a day and a half, and my file size grew to about 3x I cancelled it. Even if I let the file grow, it would never all fit in the space of 1.5 GB. My textbooks are pretty big.

Altogether, it's about 600MB

KPW2013 · 09-03-2013, 10:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Julius Caesar

I wouldn't recommend using a 6" device to read a text book, especially if the book has lots of pictures as you said. Wait for 13.3" Sony e-reader. It would be fantastic for your need.

Seems nice, but we're not sure when Sony will be releasing that.

My PW arrives tomorrow, if it doesn't work out, I can always return it.

Hopefully it won't be the case.

xendula · 09-04-2013, 11:15 PM

Great to hear that you are exploring the non dead tree alternative. I'd love to hear your thoughts on going pbook free in a few weeks/months. Are ithers around you doing the same, but using tablets instead?

Though much less sexy of a device, the Kindle DX has fallen to a low price of $239, which you could also return if it doesn't work for you.
The advantage would be the larger screen.

Ectaco also makes large ereaders, even color e-ink ones that you can write on, but they are much more expensive and, from what I've heard, their software has much to be desired, but users on the Jetbook forum may be able to tell you more about it - I could just remember it wrong.

The Jetbook color 2 is a steep $500 but may pay for itself over time if you use it every semester. It seems perfect for textbooks, since you can hand annotate and have color. See all their readers here.

09-01-2013, 08:24 PM	#1
KPW2013 Junior Member Posts: 3 Karma: 10 Join Date: Sep 2013 Device: Paperwhite	Anyone use their KPW for Textbooks? Hey guys, I just started university and I just figured that it would save me money if I got a paperwhite and just got the ebook ver. of everything. My textbooks in total would cost upwards of 600. I think most people would recommend a tablet for reading but the problem is that the LCD screens strain my eyes if I read for long periods and I've read many good reviews on the KPW. I already found the ebook versions for the bulk of my textbooks but they're all in PDF format and from reading here, it probably won't be too comfortable for me to read; due to the lack of reflow for a smaller screen, lack of text size formatting, and the fact that I'd have to zoom everytime to be able to read the texts if the pages are too big for the screen. I thought, "Hey, maybe I should convert them to another format!" I tried many different ways to convert the entire ebooks to text but none of my attempts were successful. I used finereader but it didn't come out too well probably because there are too many images (they are textbooks after all). I tried unlocking the PDFs, but I still can't select anything because they're all presumably scanned images. I was thinking of hacking the KPW to be able to read epub, then convert my PDFs to epub format but I'm already having trouble converting it with OCR software. So... My plan is to subscribe to adobe exportPDF so they can convert all the images to word format, then I can send it to my KPW once it arrives in a couple days and it will automatically convert to AZW or ePub (if I decide to hack my KPW). Now all my textbooks in PDF format (6 books), my questions are... Has anyone done this? After I convert everything, will the files get bigger? (in AZW and ePub)? Thanks. Last edited by KPW2013; 09-03-2013 at 10:16 PM.

09-01-2013, 10:01 PM	#2
Julius Caesar Addict Posts: 341 Karma: 1244808 Join Date: Oct 2012 Device: Kindle Paperwhite	I wouldn't recommend using a 6" device to read a text book, especially if the book has lots of pictures as you said. Wait for 13.3" Sony e-reader. It would be fantastic for your need. Last edited by Julius Caesar; 09-01-2013 at 10:18 PM.

09-04-2013, 11:15 PM	#8
xendula eBookworm Posts: 2,300 Karma: 4525746 Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: East Coast brrrrr Device: Kindle 4B/K ~ Nexus 7 ~ Kindle Paperwhite 1&2 ~ iPad Air	Great to hear that you are exploring the non dead tree alternative. I'd love to hear your thoughts on going pbook free in a few weeks/months. Are ithers around you doing the same, but using tablets instead? Though much less sexy of a device, the Kindle DX has fallen to a low price of $239, which you could also return if it doesn't work for you. The advantage would be the larger screen. Ectaco also makes large ereaders, even color e-ink ones that you can write on, but they are much more expensive and, from what I've heard, their software has much to be desired, but users on the Jetbook forum may be able to tell you more about it - I could just remember it wrong. The Jetbook color 2 is a steep $500 but may pay for itself over time if you use it every semester. It seems perfect for textbooks, since you can hand annotate and have color. See all their readers here. Last edited by xendula; 09-04-2013 at 11:28 PM.

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09-02-2013, 03:15 AM	#3
hawhill Wizard Posts: 1,379 Karma: 2155307 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Goettingen, Germany Device: Kindle Paperwhite, Kobo Mini	KPW2013: Has k2pdfopt been on the list of programs you used to try to bring the PDFs into a proper format for reading on a small screen? JC: Based on my experiences with a KDX, I'd rather say that upwards of ~10", the device stops being portable in a useful way. It may work in an office environment, where you take it from one office to another or to the meeting room, but I wouldn't consider it practical for a university student.

09-02-2013, 03:44 AM	#4
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	Does the company you bought your textbooks from not offer them in any more "eInk-friendly" format than PDF? It's good to hear, though, that you've been able to buy your textbooks in electronic format. Who is the publisher?

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