Kindle & ePub?

rumplestiltskin · 12-05-2010, 12:43 PM

Relatively new member here. I'm an iPad owner and do love it except that, in daylight outdoors, it's impossible to see the screen. I'd like to buy an eReader that uses the "Pearl" e-ink screen so I guess that limits me to either the Sony or the Kindle.

As virtually all of my eBooks are non-drm'd ".epub", am I limited to the Sony?

I think (based upon my limited understanding of what's being discussed up here) that Calibre can convert non-drm'd epubs to Amazon's proprietary format. (Is that correct?)

Is there any (practical) way to alter the Kindle so that it will accept non-drm'd ".epub" books without a conversion (as mentioned in the previous paragraph)?

Thanks for your advice and thanks to the admins and members of this site for bringing this e-resource to the masses.

HarryT · 12-05-2010, 12:45 PM

Calibre generally does a pretty good job of converting ePub books to Mobipocket format (which is what the Kindle uses).

No, there's no way to make the Kindle read ePub books "natively".

daffy4u · 12-05-2010, 12:54 PM

There are a couple of Beta software hacks that will allow you to read non-DRM ePubs on your Kindle. FBreader/fbKindle which runs inside the original Kindle software. The English version of Duokan which turns your Kindle into a dual-boot reading device. Be sure to read through the threads to see which one works best for you but you can run both on your Kindle.

If you are uncomfortable with using any kind of hack, as HarryT said Calibre would be the best way to go and it can convert your entire library at one time (leaving you with an ePub and Mobi version).

wallcraft · 12-05-2010, 12:55 PM

Converting to MOBI using Calibre is likely the best approach. An alternative is FBreader & fbKindle, which installs FBReader on your Kindle. FBReader displays ePubs, and is what I use every day for my reading, but it does not fully support all features of ePub.

rumplestiltskin · 12-05-2010, 05:08 PM

Thanks to all who have replied so far. So when I have a ".mobi" file that accompanies my ".epub", that's for the Kindle?

I've read that one gets books into one's Kindle by eMailing them to one's personal kindle eMail account. Can the Kindle be USB'd to my Mac and ".mobi" files dragged into it? Or does Calibre handle the transfer in essentially this manner?

Thank you.

daffy4u · 12-05-2010, 05:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rumplestiltskin

Thanks to all who have replied so far. So when I have a ".mobi" file that accompanies my ".epub", that's for the Kindle?

I've read that one gets books into one's Kindle by eMailing them to one's personal kindle eMail account. Can the Kindle be USB'd to my Mac and ".mobi" files dragged into it? Or does Calibre handle the transfer in essentially this manner?

Thank you.

Yes, you can load your newly converted mobi books on your Kindle via USB. You can do with Calibre or Windows Explorer and the equivalent programs for Mac and Linux.

dwig · 12-05-2010, 06:07 PM

Quote:

Can the Kindle be USB'd to my Mac and ".mobi" files dragged into it?

Quote:

Originally Posted by daffy4u

Yes, you can load your newly converted mobi books on your Kindle via USB. You can do with Calibre or Windows Explorer and the equivalent programs for Mac and Linux.

That would be "Finder" on MacOS. Simply open a Finder window and navigate to the "documents" folder on the Kindle. Copy the .MOBI (or any Mobipocket format .PRC files or Adobe .PDF files) files from your Mac's hard drive to the Kindle's "documents" folder.

BTW, more often than not you see this method of moving files onto an ereader as being referred to as "side loading".

tomsem · 12-05-2010, 06:37 PM

Amazon also provides tools that convert unprotected ePub (both KindleGen and Kindle Previewer will do this):

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?docId=1000234621

Kindle Previewer in particular will show you exactly how it will actually look on a Kindle, which is kind of nice.

I haven't compared the results with calibre's in any systematic way, and calibre offers options that may be useful, but I like to have a lot of tools to choose from.

rumplestiltskin · 12-05-2010, 09:32 PM

Now this may be an unfair question considering I'm asking it in a Kindle thread but do any of you feel that using a Kindle restricts you in what you can read when compared to the Sony? Are you worried about the proprietary nature of the Kindle?

Thanks.

daffy4u · 12-05-2010, 09:49 PM

Nope. As you can see I have 3 Kindles, I also traded in my Sony 505 for 650 today. The only restriction I can think of is that the Kindle does not work natively with library books. Other than that, I have not had the need to outside Amazon for content because they have a HUGE selection. I will take advantage of sales from other sources and convert them for use on my Kindle.

I tried the library borrowing via my 505 but for me, I hated waiting to get a book I wanted to read and I hated having to read a book in a certain amount of time. It was really bad when I would be in the queue for several books and they would all become available at nearly the same time.

I'm a book buyer and Amazon has the books I like and they make it very easy to purchase and just read.

ProfCrash · 12-05-2010, 10:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rumplestiltskin

Now this may be an unfair question considering I'm asking it in a Kindle thread but do any of you feel that using a Kindle restricts you in what you can read when compared to the Sony? Are you worried about the proprietary nature of the Kindle?

Thanks.

I have only bought books from Amazon so I might be the wrong person to ask. The selection at the book store is great and the prices are reasonable. I like having the books available in my Archive so I can remove books and then load them back on using the 3G connection.

I do know that there are other stores available for me to buy books from and I know that I can strip DRM and convert from E-Pub to Mobi pretty easily. So the lack of E-Pub support does not bother me.

rumplestiltskin · 12-05-2010, 11:18 PM

Okay! I think my questions have, indeed, been answered completely. Thanks to all who have taken the time and made the effort to reply.

Looks like all I have to do now is order. I was reading another thread in the Sony section and found mention of a $75 "eCoupon" from Sony when you trade in another eBook reader. I submitted my paperwork but sent off an eMail to them for clarification; I was intending to trade in a Palm Z22 (color) but this unit is not specifically mentioned on the trade-in page. We'll see whether they confirm the $75 voucher or something less. If it's less, I'll probably just go with the Kindle as the price is considerably less than the Sony.

I did try the ePub>mobi Preview app from Amazon and the conversion is virtually perfect so all of my existing ePubs should be fine for the Kindle.

Thanks again!

Josieb1 · 12-06-2010, 11:53 AM

No one seems to have clarified this to you but you cannot convert epubs to Mobi if they have DRM unless you remove the DRM first.

daffy4u · 12-06-2010, 12:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Josieb1

No one seems to have clarified this to you but you cannot convert epubs to Mobi if they have DRM unless you remove the DRM first.

He mentions that his ePubs are non-DRM in the original post, so I think we all responded based on that. It's good you mentioned about not being able to convert DRM'd formats for anyone passing by who may not have been aware.

rumplestiltskin · 12-06-2010, 12:53 PM

Yes, I based my questions on the non-DRM'd assumption but Josieb1's comment reminded me to ask about DRM removal. I assume I must ask the Gooracle about this.

12-05-2010, 12:43 PM	#1
rumplestiltskin Zealot Posts: 105 Karma: 1435120 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: West of the Pecos Device: FireHD8, iPad	Kindle & ePub? Relatively new member here. I'm an iPad owner and do love it except that, in daylight outdoors, it's impossible to see the screen. I'd like to buy an eReader that uses the "Pearl" e-ink screen so I guess that limits me to either the Sony or the Kindle. As virtually all of my eBooks are non-drm'd ".epub", am I limited to the Sony? I think (based upon my limited understanding of what's being discussed up here) that Calibre can convert non-drm'd epubs to Amazon's proprietary format. (Is that correct?) Is there any (practical) way to alter the Kindle so that it will accept non-drm'd ".epub" books without a conversion (as mentioned in the previous paragraph)? Thanks for your advice and thanks to the admins and members of this site for bringing this e-resource to the masses.

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12-05-2010, 12:45 PM	#2
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383099 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	Calibre generally does a pretty good job of converting ePub books to Mobipocket format (which is what the Kindle uses). No, there's no way to make the Kindle read ePub books "natively".

12-05-2010, 12:54 PM	#3
daffy4u I'm Super Kindle-icious Posts: 6,734 Karma: 2434103 Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Long Drive, Calinadia Candafornia Device: KDXG, KT, Oasis	There are a couple of Beta software hacks that will allow you to read non-DRM ePubs on your Kindle. FBreader/fbKindle which runs inside the original Kindle software. The English version of Duokan which turns your Kindle into a dual-boot reading device. Be sure to read through the threads to see which one works best for you but you can run both on your Kindle. If you are uncomfortable with using any kind of hack, as HarryT said Calibre would be the best way to go and it can convert your entire library at one time (leaving you with an ePub and Mobi version).

12-05-2010, 12:55 PM	#4
wallcraft reader Posts: 6,977 Karma: 5183568 Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Mississippi, USA Device: Kindle 3, Kobo Glo HD	Converting to MOBI using Calibre is likely the best approach. An alternative is FBreader & fbKindle, which installs FBReader on your Kindle. FBReader displays ePubs, and is what I use every day for my reading, but it does not fully support all features of ePub.

12-05-2010, 05:08 PM	#5
rumplestiltskin Zealot Posts: 105 Karma: 1435120 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: West of the Pecos Device: FireHD8, iPad	Thanks to all who have replied so far. So when I have a ".mobi" file that accompanies my ".epub", that's for the Kindle? I've read that one gets books into one's Kindle by eMailing them to one's personal kindle eMail account. Can the Kindle be USB'd to my Mac and ".mobi" files dragged into it? Or does Calibre handle the transfer in essentially this manner? Thank you.

12-05-2010, 06:37 PM	#8
tomsem Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,939 Karma: 27060151 Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: USA Device: iPhone 15PM, Kindle Scribe, iPad mini 6, PocketBook InkPad Color 3	Amazon also provides tools that convert unprotected ePub (both KindleGen and Kindle Previewer will do this): http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?docId=1000234621 Kindle Previewer in particular will show you exactly how it will actually look on a Kindle, which is kind of nice. I haven't compared the results with calibre's in any systematic way, and calibre offers options that may be useful, but I like to have a lot of tools to choose from.

12-05-2010, 09:32 PM	#9
rumplestiltskin Zealot Posts: 105 Karma: 1435120 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: West of the Pecos Device: FireHD8, iPad	Now this may be an unfair question considering I'm asking it in a Kindle thread but do any of you feel that using a Kindle restricts you in what you can read when compared to the Sony? Are you worried about the proprietary nature of the Kindle? Thanks.

12-05-2010, 09:49 PM	#10
daffy4u I'm Super Kindle-icious Posts: 6,734 Karma: 2434103 Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Long Drive, Calinadia Candafornia Device: KDXG, KT, Oasis	Nope. As you can see I have 3 Kindles, I also traded in my Sony 505 for 650 today. The only restriction I can think of is that the Kindle does not work natively with library books. Other than that, I have not had the need to outside Amazon for content because they have a HUGE selection. I will take advantage of sales from other sources and convert them for use on my Kindle. I tried the library borrowing via my 505 but for me, I hated waiting to get a book I wanted to read and I hated having to read a book in a certain amount of time. It was really bad when I would be in the queue for several books and they would all become available at nearly the same time. I'm a book buyer and Amazon has the books I like and they make it very easy to purchase and just read.

12-05-2010, 11:18 PM	#12
rumplestiltskin Zealot Posts: 105 Karma: 1435120 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: West of the Pecos Device: FireHD8, iPad	Okay! I think my questions have, indeed, been answered completely. Thanks to all who have taken the time and made the effort to reply. Looks like all I have to do now is order. I was reading another thread in the Sony section and found mention of a $75 "eCoupon" from Sony when you trade in another eBook reader. I submitted my paperwork but sent off an eMail to them for clarification; I was intending to trade in a Palm Z22 (color) but this unit is not specifically mentioned on the trade-in page. We'll see whether they confirm the $75 voucher or something less. If it's less, I'll probably just go with the Kindle as the price is considerably less than the Sony. I did try the ePub>mobi Preview app from Amazon and the conversion is virtually perfect so all of my existing ePubs should be fine for the Kindle. Thanks again!

12-06-2010, 11:53 AM	#13
Josieb1 Grand Sorcerer Posts: 5,086 Karma: 18051062 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: UK Device: Kindle Scribe, Coloursoft, PW SE, Kindle 6, Kobo Libra 2	No one seems to have clarified this to you but you cannot convert epubs to Mobi if they have DRM unless you remove the DRM first.

12-06-2010, 12:53 PM	#15
rumplestiltskin Zealot Posts: 105 Karma: 1435120 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: West of the Pecos Device: FireHD8, iPad	Yes, I based my questions on the non-DRM'd assumption but Josieb1's comment reminded me to ask about DRM removal. I assume I must ask the Gooracle about this.

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