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Old 08-01-2010, 08:26 PM   #2
ATDrake
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Posts: 11,517
Karma: 33048258
Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: Roundworld
Device: Kindle 2 International, Sony PRS-T1, BlackBerry PlayBook, Acer Iconia
1) PDFs which are not password-protected and don't have any DRM copy-restriction can be read on the Kindle. I've only a Kindle 2, which is merely okay when reading PDFs, in my experience. DX would be a better size, especially for technical stuff with diagrams, or anything with lots of pictures.

However, the new K3 is supposed to include a lot of improvements which will make PDFs easier to read and use.

When you buy a Kindle, Amazon gives you an @kindle.com address, to which you can send PDF files for conversion to the Kindle's Mobi/PRC format. This allows you to change the text size and have it read aloud with the Text to Speech function. There is a small charge because they send the results to your Kindle wirelessly.

But if you use the variant @free.kindle.com address, which forwards the converted file to your email for you to transfer yourself, then you pay no fees.

The conversion service works best with simple PDFs which are mostly text with plain formatting and not too many pictures. You can also use the free application Calibre to convert.

2) No. What happened is that Amazon did once use the wireless sync function to delete people's George Orwell books which they mistakenly sold in the wrong region, where a different publisher held the distribution rights, and automatically credited a refund to their accounts.

However, the uproar was such that they ended up giving the affected customers bonus gift certificates and promised never to do it again.

They can't delete your non-Amazon books without seriously going out of their way to basically break into your personal Kindle and then sending something to wipe the contents of the documents folder.

If you have any concerns, just keep the wireless off most of the time. It drains the battery, anyway.

3) Yes. I have a Mac and it's as easy as plugging the Kindle in, waiting for the icon to show up on the desktop, dragging and dropping the files, and ejecting it again.

Don't do it via wireless. You can email your documents directly to the Kindle, but they charge a fee for that, and if you live outside the US, they charge even more.

Hope this helps.
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