I thought I'd write this so that it would be helpful to those who are new to Reading books on their cell phones so that my experience can benefit them also. I'm not a big expert on the matter (actually half of the stuff like DRM and all I've never heard of; I just download, convert & read books) but I want this to be useful to someone or anyone for that matter. I've a Nokia E71 (previously had a N73 and all that I write here applies from my personal experience of both these cells) and I read books on it using Mobipocket Reader. I didn't buy a specialised device for reading ebooks or anything because I don't have the kind of funds for it (I live in Dubai and am saving up money for a license & a car which is a tall order so no dilly dally). I love technology but I think that it should satisfy all functions without being difficult to use. And from what I can tell, it is my responsibility to tell everyone else a way around spending too much money on anything. So here goes..
If you like to read books/have anything which is a Windows PC, Blackberry, Palm, Nokia (using a Symbian system), Sony Ericsson (using a Symbian system), Psion, Microsoft Smartphon or using Windows Mobile, Symbian OS or Palm OS, then why should on earth would you specially buy a specialized device to read books?
Just use Mobipocket Reader on your device. Here's what I do.
[1] I download and install Mobipocket Reader which available for Windows XP/Vista (
http://www.mobipocket.com/en/Downloa...ailsReader.asp ) and Mobipocket Creator v4.2 Publisher Edition (
http://www.mobipocket.com/en/Downloa...oadCreator.asp ). While installing the creator, I select Publisher Edition because it supports more formats (.doc, .txt, .html, .pdf).
[2] After I've installed both, I connect my N73 to the PC (and selected Connect by PC Suite). Witchcraft happens & Mobipocket Reader detects it and asks me do I want to install Mobipocket Reader on it as well. After being happy that this is so easy, I select yes. It downloads the file appropiate to my cell, and then tells me to finish the installation on my cell which I do and Bingo! All is done.
[3] Then I fall back on planet Earth from planet stupidly happy and remember that I still haven't converted any files to read in it. After weeks of trying, reading online, reading manuals and what not, I finally scream Eureka (not naked because I dont want people to faint) because I've found a simple and easy way to do it. This is the most important part of this post (I think) because whether you are a person who buys books like a normal good person or downloads them illegally from torrents like a criminal, it'll be useful for you. It's a complicated process (**sarcastic wink**) so get ready for it.
(a) I open Mobipocket Reader.
(b) I click on my Ebooks folder which has 183 ebooks (at the moment) and drag it to the Reader window.
(c) It converts it for me into the Mobipocket format (.prc).
(d) I connect my cell, it finds which ebooks aren't there on it and asks me to send them to device or not (you can attach as many devices as you want).
[4] Then I just disconnect the cell safely and use it.
[5] I often keep the background black and the font colour green as this makes the font the easiest to read.
[6] I even have the option for landscape mode or potrait mode so that makes it easier to read.
The point I'm trying to make is very simple. You don't have to necessarily spend extra money. All you've to do is to get some knowledge.
Anyway, I thought it'd be better to share my knowledge with those who want to start reading books on their cell and those whe want to streamline their reading experience.
[also posted on my blog so more people can gain help by it..]