MAJOR FLAW in the Amazon Kindle

[sirmaru]

Originally Posted by igorsk

Yes, you can download and read Connect books without purchasing a Reader, and Mobi book without a Cybook or Iliad or Palm etc.

Igorsk,

I thought that to download a Mobibook one must enter a PID which can only be obtained from a Cybook Gen3. Can I just purchase and download that Mobibook and read it on the MobiBook Reader on my PC without any PID?

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by sirmaru

Igorsk,

I thought that to download a Mobibook one must enter a PID which can only be obtained from a Cybook Gen3. Can I just purchase and download that Mobibook and read it on the MobiBook Reader on my PC without any PID?

All DRM'd books from Mobi need a PID. For the PC you will supply it with the PC PID. You can register multiple PID's so you can have multiple devices.

[sirmaru]

Originally Posted by DaleDe

All DRM'd books from Mobi need a PID. For the PC you will supply it with the PC PID. You can register multiple PID's so you can have multiple devices.

Dale,

Where does one obtain one's PC PID?

[wallcraft]

Download and install Mobipocket Reader Desktop 6.1. Click on the "?" icon and select About.

Note that the Desktop Reader will provide your PIDs (Windows and handheld) automatically to some sites that support MobiPocket e-books, but others ask you to input them manually.

[sirmaru]

Originally Posted by wallcraft

Download and install Mobipocket Reader Desktop 6.1. Click on the "?" icon and select About.

Note that the Desktop Reader will provide your PIDs (Windows and handheld) automatically to some sites that support MobiPocket e-books, but others ask you to input them manually.

Thanks. That's it.

[sirmaru]

After exploring this forum I have benefitted IMMENSELY from all the information.

I was able to download eBook Library to read eBook files to fit the Sony PRS 505 plus the MobiBook Reader to read book files for the Cybook Gen3. With that I can read ON MY PC the following types of book files now: MS Reader, Adobe, Mobibooks and eBooks. This produces a wide variety of book files available to me.

Its really too bad that I cannot buy Amazon Kindle Book Files for my PC. They have shut me out entirely. I am sure I am not the only Amazon customer now unable to purchase their book files.

As far as an Eprint reader, I am convinced that the Sony PRS 505 is the best. Its battery appears to have a longer life than the Kindle. It is cheaper than the Cybook Gen3 and the Kindle. If I do decide to buy one just as another toy for myself this year, it will definitely be the Sony 505.

However, in my situation with virtually no eye strain reading all kinds of literature on monitors for 20 years and still retaining 20/20 vision it appears I will continue just reading books on my PC 24" HD Monitor. Its better than any Eprint reader at the moment. It displays black on WHITE with full color in LCD format - a lot less glare than the old CRT's. The Kindle only has 4 shades of grey and displays black on grey. At least the Sony PRS 505 has 8 shades for grey. Plus, the desktop PC does not have any battery problems. In addition, proper external lighting is essential for Eprint readers. My LCD HD Monitor creates its own PERFECT LIGHTING and does not reflect glare from sunlight or my compact fluorescent bulbs.

Since I am retired and at home almost all of the time, I really don't need a portable reader. I'd only buy one as a new toy if at all.

[hgwlackey]

Originally Posted by sirmaru

Its really too bad that I cannot buy Amazon Kindle Book Files for my PC. They have shut me out entirely. I am sure I am not the only Amazon customer now unable to purchase their book files.

Yes, this is my biggest disappointment with the roll-out of the Kindle. I'm very happy reading novels off a pocket-sized PDA, and I love the selection of books in the Kindle store - why can't I have both my hardware of choice and Amazon's huge selection and decent prices?

Hopefully Amazon will release software down the road that'll open up the Kindle store to people who don't actually want a Kindle. It can only lead to increased content sales for Amazon, right?

[Alisa]

My guess is they're trying to get as many people into the Kindle right now as they can because the biggest money-maker for them is probably periodicals and blogs. The blogs are cheap but you bet they're probably almost all profit. The only value-add they have for this stuff is the convenience of automatic delivery which hinges on their Whispernet. The books are probably not making much money at all. In fact many of the most popular titles are likely being sold at a loss.

I'm hoping once they feel the Kindle has a strong hold, they'll try to get people that just aren't going to buy the Kindle by offering books (probably for a higher price) to non-Kindle-owners. I'm guessing we may not see this until they get to the point they can drop the price on the Kindle hardware. This is all pure speculation on my part, though.

[tsgreer]

Originally Posted by Alisa

My guess is they're trying to get as many people into the Kindle right now as they can because the biggest money-maker for them is probably periodicals and blogs. The blogs are cheap but you bet they're probably almost all profit. The only value-add they have for this stuff is the convenience of automatic delivery which hinges on their Whispernet. The books are probably not making much money at all. In fact many of the most popular titles are likely being sold at a loss.

I'm hoping once they feel the Kindle has a strong hold, they'll try to get people that just aren't going to buy the Kindle by offering books (probably for a higher price) to non-Kindle-owners. I'm guessing we may not see this until they get to the point they can drop the price on the Kindle hardware. This is all pure speculation on my part, though.

Good speculation on your part though!

I hope this is what they do.

[Alisa]

Thanks. I wouldn't bet money on it but I think it could work out well for them as well as a lot of ebook fans.

[jasonkchapman]

Originally Posted by Alisa

I'm hoping once they feel the Kindle has a strong hold, they'll try to get people that just aren't going to buy the Kindle by offering books (probably for a higher price) to non-Kindle-owners.

I just don't see how they would do that without resolving the Mobipocket issue first. As soon as they offer Kindle books to non-Kindle owners, the Mobipocket dealers would have a very real complaint about unfair trade practices. I don't know what the solution would be, but it's too big a question to just ignore.

As long as we're speculating, though: Am I the only one who thinks Sony should just buy a majority stake in Borders and take a head-on run at Amazon?

[Alisa]

I think if they do it, they'll release them as Mobipocket titles.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Alisa

My guess is they're trying to get as many people into the Kindle right now

This is demonstrably false. Had Amazon wanted to get as many people as possible into the Kindle, they would not have designed it with EVDO, an (effectively) US-only technology. Sorry to harp on about this, but I really do think it was a disastrous design decision on Amazon's part .

[Alisa]

I think they're starting with the US and picking something widespread in the US for now. If they're smart, they'll come out with a WiFi version and then work on some international partnerships. I think it would be insane to try to take this thing global for now and it's not like it's a huge change to swap the networking hardware. Having EVDO doesn't mean that's the only network connection they'll ever have.

[alphasun]

Originally Posted by sirmaru

I never take breaks from my PC. I used it all day when I worked and use it even more now since retirement. It causes NO eye strain for me...........
I have a hunch there are quite a few folks around in this COMPUTER AGE who are exactly like me.

I agree, though I have not retired yet, and wear bifocals. I use computers both at work and at home and am convinced that there is no inherent cause of eyestrain in the fact that a monitor is backlit etc. The secret is to have the screen at or below eye level and well away from your eyes (at least 80 cm) to avoid your eyes having to look upowards and accommodate (i.e. so that you are focused on infinity and your eye's lens does not have to contract). I suspect that short rests, which one tends to take anyway in order to get a cup of coffee etc., are also helpful. I find that eye strain happens when I just push the envelope too far in terms of staying up late, and I could be watching TV, reading a treaditional book etc, just as easily as working on the computer.
Another tendency I reject is the idea that you need to put a filter screen in front of the monitor. This is a recipe for eyestrain if anything, as it makes the screen dimmer. Many people who complain of eyestrain from bright sources do not realise how very much brighter ordinary daylight is than most artificial light sources, and make do with poor lighting.