[MaggieScratch]

I ask this because I wrote a series of articles on ebooks for an organization newsletter. (It's a literary society, so books are a pretty big deal; it's also an older population and one with a tendency toward Ludditeness and an aversion to technology in general.) I invited responses and questions, and received an e-mail from a woman who said she wanted a Kindle (which term she was using as a general catchall for "ebook reader", as in "Kleenex" or "Xerox") but she did not shop online, so where might she be able to purchase one?

I wrote back and asked, if she does not shop online, how did she intend to purchase ebooks? And informed her that for the Kindle and other connected devices, one must have an online account connected to a credit card. I am not sure if her objection to shopping online was a general moral one or if she did not have a credit card or was unwilling to use it for online purchases for fear of having her info stolen, etc.

I also asked if she planned to use the reader only for free texts from Gutenberg, etc. (a reasonable question for this population), in which case she was probably better off getting a reader such as the Sony Reader which was not connected, and which she could purchase for cash at Target.

Unfortunately she hasn't written back so I don't know what she really wanted; but it got me wondering. If she wrote back to me and agreed that an unconnected device was the best for her, and online buying/brick and mortar buying was an issue that could be worked out somehow, what was the best device to recommend for an obvious neophyte who is only interested in free public domain works?

The Sony Readers are nice, but other readers such as the Astak or Bookeen devices are better values in that they come with more "in the box." You don't have to pay extra for a cover, charger, etc. I wonder, though, if these devices are the easiest to use for the neophyte. I don't mind recommending devices, but I have no desire to support them for strangers.

Since she is starting from scratch with ebooks, format flexibility is not that important. She can just acquire ePub from the beginning and be all set (one hopes).

The Koboreader is nice, and soon will be available at Borders (I am pretty sure she is in the U.S.) presumably for cash, and I don't think will necessarily require an account; is this the case? Is it a good device for sideloading freebies? Is it still too buggy for the neophyte? What about the Aluratek device, which will also soon be available at Borders? It's cheap, if nothing else. Is it easy to use for someone completely new to ebooks and a little bit afraid of the fancy thinkin' box?