Kindle Crosswords

[gixxermenace]

I have noticed on the kindle US site that there are loads of what look like really good crossword books (NY Times Crosswords), are any available in the UK, also does anyone know when Fighting Fantasy is being released in the UK ?

[TheKindleWorm]

I emailed the developers of the Fighting Fantasy book directly and basically the response was that they really want the books to be available to the UK Market and indeed all the publication rights are in place to do so. What is holding it up is that Amazon have not yet made their apps (which is what the FF books are classified as) available outside of the US.

So until Amazon make apps available in the UK, there is nothing that can be done regarding this.

That's also why you'll find games and crossword apps in the US store and not in the UK one.

[kranu]

I read that someone (sorry don't remember who, but he/she was from here) changed their billing address to United States and downloaded a bunch of apps, then changed it back, but the apps still work fine. You might want to try that...

[snipenekkid]

Originally Posted by gixxermenace

I have noticed on the kindle US site that there are loads of what look like really good crossword books (NY Times Crosswords), are any available in the UK, also does anyone know when Fighting Fantasy is being released in the UK ?

Since I already pay for a subscription to the NYT and have downloaded the entire archive in case I ever decide I don't want the subscription anymore, these "books" for the Kindle are not that attractive for my needs. See, it's not like an app which can read the downloaded puzzles direct from the NYT archives. You have to pay for each collection of books and it comes out pretty expensive for people who already get the puzzles as part of our subscription as well as a free all to solve them on our PC's or just print them out on a paper and solve them that way.

I happen to have one remaining option, I have an old PDA running PalmOS 5.x and long ago paid $8 for BeCrossword which reads the AcrossLite format used by the NYT puzzles, save for a few PDF puzzles every year/month. If I still had my Nokia N800 I also had an app called Xword that read the NYT puzzles as well so I could use it. However I do prefer the BeCrossword app.

I tried one of the NYT's puzzle books now in the Kindle Store and because it is so dependent on the joystick to move around the screen, I gave up. And for me, the current design of the Kindles is such that the device actually gets in the way solving the puzzle. See I have a very difficult time with the joystick controller and being spoiled with either using a mouse (my PC's) or a touch screen (my old PDA) having to navigate around in a slow fashion using that joystick is just tedious.

Not trying to put anyone off this as, hey it's FINALLY a way to solve these infuriating puzzles on the Kindle, something I would have thought should have been there since day one. So for those who can manage or adapt to the way it works, it's GREAT but for people old and set in my ways with other easier to use options, it's not really all that great or interesting.

Still I have a hard time paying a subscription fee for the iOS app to solve the puzzles or to have to pay for these collections of puzzles I already have to solve on the Kindle. And yeah, the iOS software is a subscription fee above and beyond the puzzles we already pay for. Or at least that was how I read their terms. So, to date I am happier using my nearly decade old PDA over these modern and "improved" devices for my puzzles.

[jeromedevine]

/deleted by author

[kranu]

Originally Posted by jeromedevine

Way to go kranu! To circumvent copyright protection and geographical restrictions. Very well done. Very smart to put it here too for Amazon to see. Really smart.

First off, I didn't do it. I live in the U.S. Also, I'm not encouraging it; I'm only retelling a story.

Amazon already knows about it, but I doubt that they will do anything about it unless there are complaints. In fact, the story that I've repeated is already existing somewhere else on MobileRead.

Lastly, way to go yourself. You just bumped this thread so that Amazon is more likely to see it.