K2 Wish list for the software

emellaich · 02-25-2009, 11:39 AM

I left the following as feedback to the Kindle folks at Amazon. However, its never clear how information actually wends its way through a corporate maze to the folks that matter, so I'm also posting these comments here.
=============================================
OK, K2 is just out, but I know there are folks deep inside the bowels of Amazon toiling away on the next release of the Kindle software. So here are some comments that I hope will find their way to them.

1) First, thanks for your good work. I am happy with my K2 as it is, but ...

2) I wish that there were more display options when reading a book. The screen savers and headers and footers show me that you can use the entire screen for display area. However, by my measurements the top and bottom margins on the screen are 1/2 inch each and the side margins are 1/4 inch each.

I do admit that your display looks quite aesthetic with all of that lovely whitespace and the nice informational headers and footers. However, as a hardcore reader I'd like to get more text on the page at once. Check my math here. The current reading area is 3x3.75 and you could expand it to 3.5x4.75 if you use the entire screen. That means you could get 47% more viewing area on one page of pure text.

I admit that all of the information in the headers and footers is interesting. However, you might want to try something your friends over at mobipocket have tried and have an optional full screen mode.

3) Check out the 'embolden' feature used by your competition at Cybook. Yes with an e-ink screen the screen is clear and easy to see. I also know I can change font-size. However, the Cybook Gen 3 has shown that it can be easier to see a smaller font if you just pump up the font-weight a bit.

4) I'm not so sure about this text size key that also has the controls for TTS. You also have a settings menu item. This is probably a nit since I'm already used to this. However, it seems that there might be a call for centralizing all settings under either the Aa key or under the menu. In general, there are a few places where the interface has some consistency issues. Consistency is good in user interfaces.

5) I hate to say this because I know you've seen this before, but: folders or reading lists.

6)When I go to the web and come back to the list of books it would be nice if I was still on the library page showing the book I just left. It always returns me to the start of the list and I have to page through to find my in-progress book. I do know about the most-recent first sorting option. However, my current book didn't show up in the most recent list until I got about 5% into the book.

7) I have many books that come from outside Amazon (mostly Baen books). These prc/mobi books work fine. However, quite a few of them don't show the author. The author does show fine in mobipocket desktop and in mobipocket reader on my palm device. I suspect that the problem lies with how the books were created; however, I will point out that the mobipocket software is able to compensate for whatever problem is occurring. I'm not sure where the author field is being stored, but it may be that there is more than one place and that you are not looking in all possible places. Unfortunately, this means that I have several hundred book titles with no way of sorting them by author.

I'm sure that I will have more comments as I become more familiar with the K2. I do love it and you have provided a great set of features. However, these are a few items I would love to see further developed.

BurBunny · 02-25-2009, 12:34 PM

Another software adjustment I'd like is the ability to change the contrast. While I have no difficulty reading even the smaller fonts, I do find the background color a tad dark and would prefer to be able to lighten it at least a bit.

NavyDad6 · 02-25-2009, 12:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BurBunny

Another software adjustment I'd like is the ability to change the contrast. While I have no difficulty reading even the smaller fonts, I do find the background color a tad dark and would prefer to be able to lighten it at least a bit.

I do not believe that it is possible to change the contrast of E-ink technology with a software change. That is a physical property of the E-ink itself.

Correct me if I am wrong.

02-25-2009, 11:39 AM	#1
emellaich Wizard Posts: 1,101 Karma: 4388403 Join Date: Oct 2007 Device: Palm>Ebookman>IPaq>Axim>Cybook>Kndl2>IPAD>Kndl3SO>Voyager>Oasis	K2 Wish list for the software I left the following as feedback to the Kindle folks at Amazon. However, its never clear how information actually wends its way through a corporate maze to the folks that matter, so I'm also posting these comments here. ============================================= OK, K2 is just out, but I know there are folks deep inside the bowels of Amazon toiling away on the next release of the Kindle software. So here are some comments that I hope will find their way to them. 1) First, thanks for your good work. I am happy with my K2 as it is, but ... 2) I wish that there were more display options when reading a book. The screen savers and headers and footers show me that you can use the entire screen for display area. However, by my measurements the top and bottom margins on the screen are 1/2 inch each and the side margins are 1/4 inch each. I do admit that your display looks quite aesthetic with all of that lovely whitespace and the nice informational headers and footers. However, as a hardcore reader I'd like to get more text on the page at once. Check my math here. The current reading area is 3x3.75 and you could expand it to 3.5x4.75 if you use the entire screen. That means you could get 47% more viewing area on one page of pure text. I admit that all of the information in the headers and footers is interesting. However, you might want to try something your friends over at mobipocket have tried and have an optional full screen mode. 3) Check out the 'embolden' feature used by your competition at Cybook. Yes with an e-ink screen the screen is clear and easy to see. I also know I can change font-size. However, the Cybook Gen 3 has shown that it can be easier to see a smaller font if you just pump up the font-weight a bit. 4) I'm not so sure about this text size key that also has the controls for TTS. You also have a settings menu item. This is probably a nit since I'm already used to this. However, it seems that there might be a call for centralizing all settings under either the Aa key or under the menu. In general, there are a few places where the interface has some consistency issues. Consistency is good in user interfaces. 5) I hate to say this because I know you've seen this before, but: folders or reading lists. 6)When I go to the web and come back to the list of books it would be nice if I was still on the library page showing the book I just left. It always returns me to the start of the list and I have to page through to find my in-progress book. I do know about the most-recent first sorting option. However, my current book didn't show up in the most recent list until I got about 5% into the book. 7) I have many books that come from outside Amazon (mostly Baen books). These prc/mobi books work fine. However, quite a few of them don't show the author. The author does show fine in mobipocket desktop and in mobipocket reader on my palm device. I suspect that the problem lies with how the books were created; however, I will point out that the mobipocket software is able to compensate for whatever problem is occurring. I'm not sure where the author field is being stored, but it may be that there is more than one place and that you are not looking in all possible places. Unfortunately, this means that I have several hundred book titles with no way of sorting them by author. I'm sure that I will have more comments as I become more familiar with the K2. I do love it and you have provided a great set of features. However, these are a few items I would love to see further developed.

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02-25-2009, 12:34 PM	#2
BurBunny Zealot Posts: 110 Karma: 392 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Denver, CO Device: Kindle 2.0 In Hand	Another software adjustment I'd like is the ability to change the contrast. While I have no difficulty reading even the smaller fonts, I do find the background color a tad dark and would prefer to be able to lighten it at least a bit.

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