I've never owned a Kindle. What about you?

[Chi Cygni]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

Stop pulling my leg

no problem

[Katsunami]

LOL Touché

[taosaur]

I'm shopping for an E Ink device for the first time in my 4+ years of e-reading, and being ridiculously indecisive about it. Until the current gen of HD, frontlit E Ink, I didn't see the benefit vs. a multipurpose LCD device.

In the past I've been anti-Kindle, but the "Add Narration" feature on many of their books has gotten hooks into me over the past few months. I finally set up the Tools in Calibre for both Amazon and Google Play books, so while I still object to DRM and proprietary formats in principle, in practice they're irrelevant.

At this point, I've given up on seeing an e-reader I want (open-ish Android, SD slot, 7"-ish form) come to market any time soon, so I'm torn between settling for the KPW2 or the Aura HD. The HD gets more of the big things right, but the KPW2 has a lot of small touches, not least of all the slightly improved E Ink. I might also get a little more out of my Prime account with the lending library.

Originally Posted by ProfCrash

I still chuckle at the walled garden comments on this site. If Amazon has a wall, it is about two feet tall and has massive holes cut through it not to mention tunnels. Pretty much everyone here is capable of removing DRM, I would guess just about 75% of the posters here strip DRM, so I don't buy the walled garden line.

Inexplicably, some people find it insulting to be treated like criminals while lawfully purchasing content. They may also resent the chunk of their purchase price that goes toward limiting the functionality of the product, and find the whole approach counterproductive for the future of the industry. Some may even see it as part of a larger anti-progressive trend obstructing the general advancement of human culture and technology. I know, considering your actions in a broader context than instant gratification is silly.

Chuckle.

Chuckle.

[FacebookVirus]

Please remember to close your /stallman.

While I have some degree of respect for him, and GNU, and open source in general, a totalitarian stance weakens it. Proprietary tools are there for those who choose to use them, as they should be.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by taosaur

...in practice they're irrelevant.

At this point in time. Until Amazon and/or Adobe come up with a new DRM-scheme and start to use it for all books sold as of a certain date.

Originally Posted by FacebookVirus

Please remember to close your /stallman.

While I have some degree of respect for him, and GNU, and open source in general, a totalitarian stance weakens it. Proprietary tools are there for those who choose to use them, as they should be.

Well said.

Off Topic:

Spoiler:

While I use a lot of open source software, I do use some closed source software, as there simply is no open source alternative (or not good enough), and nobody has any intentions of making one.

Stallman's stance "all software should be free, and all non-free software should be eradicated" is just idiotic. Some software CAN'T be free. A company is not going to spend hundreds of thousands, millions, or maybe even tens of millions to create software, and then give it all away for free.

The only thing I vehemently boycot is activation or subscription services. I want to be able to run a piece of software until 2078 if I'm still alive and have some way of running it, on a 50-year old computer or in an emulator.

The only software I still use that has an activation is Windows 7, and the only reason I do so is because I have no other choice to run Windows software and games. (No, WINE in Linux does not cut it.)

When Windows 7 will drop out of support in 2020, I'll be doing a clean and fully updated install on this computer and its successor, and then I'll make an image, so I can "re-install" without having to reactive. Then again, all of my software (still) runs on Windows 8.1 as well, as far as I've been able to test. Also, I expect parts such as ATX-compatible power supplies and SATA-hard disks to be around for a long time to come. Hell; I can even find stuff like Fast Page and EDO RAM if I need to.

[Terisa de morgan]

No, never. When I was looking for my first ereader (2009), after reading at my PDA, I only had a requirement: I wanted it to show the book covers in the library. Booken was the chosen one. After that one, and my next others (Opus, Sony 350, Kobo Mini and a lot of temporary ereaders), Amazon organizational skills in terms of library are too scarce for me.

And no, there's no advantage that Kindle can give me (unless I'm quite wrong).

[taosaur]

Originally Posted by FacebookVirus

Please remember to close your /stallman.

While I have some degree of respect for him, and GNU, and open source in general, a totalitarian stance weakens it. Proprietary tools are there for those who choose to use them, as they should be.

If that statement was directed at me, not even the most extreme rationale I presented for objecting to DRM and proprietary formats (presented, not promoted, mind you) fell within an order of magnitude of Stallman's stance. There are plenty of pragmatic and capitalist reasons why DRM wastes everyone's time and money.

[FacebookVirus]

Originally Posted by taosaur

If that statement was directed at me, not even the most extreme rationale I presented for objecting to DRM and proprietary formats (presented, not promoted, mind you) fell within an order of magnitude of Stallman's stance. There are plenty of pragmatic and capitalist reasons why DRM wastes everyone's time and money.

Lawfully purchasing content means you agree to be bound by the agreement. I'm a DRM-hating Apprentice, too, but if Amazon pulls content off my reader I won't be terribly surprised. I've purchased a license, and I know that.

If I'm terribly attached to the conventions surrounding a p book, I won't agree to be bound by a license for an ebook and then become indignant when the two aren't the same. I'll deal only in p books.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by FacebookVirus

Lawfully purchasing content means you agree to be bound by the agreement. I'm a DRM-hating Apprentice, too, but if Amazon pulls content off my reader I won't be terribly surprised. I've purchased a license, and I know that.

They can't remove content from the reader. First, the one time they did it caused an uproar. Second, there is no way for them to know if you may have side-loaded content you created yourself or obtained somewhere else legally, and then converted (if necessary).

If they'd try to FORCE you to use Amazon-only content and FORCE you to rely on the cloud, they'd create a Kindle without a USB-port, with just enough storage to hold maybe 10 books or so, and without a "send to Kindle" option.

Also, Amazon doesn't even know if my reader is on, or not. It's always in Aeroplane mode. Even if that mode was taken out, I'd just block it using my Wifi router. More probable would be me jumping ship to another reader.

[sharphamster]

I was given a second-hand K4NT a month or so ago, so now I have my first Kindle. Not something I would have bought new though - I'm eying that Aura HD pretty regularly right now.

The K4NT is a nice enough device - good size and weight in my hand, I like the page-turn buttons and line spacing options, but the UI is awkward to me and there's no memory expansion. I just don't find myself reaching for it though, rather than one of my Sony readers, so it'll get passed along to a friend.

[speakingtohe]

Originally Posted by taosaur

Inexplicably, some people find it insulting to be treated like criminals while lawfully purchasing content. They may also resent the chunk of their purchase price that goes toward limiting the functionality of the product, and find the whole approach counterproductive for the future of the industry. Some may even see it as part of a larger anti-progressive trend obstructing the general advancement of human culture and technology. I know, considering your actions in a broader context than instant gratification is silly.

Chuckle.

Chuckle.

Any store with an anti-theft device is treating you like a possible criminal. A scanner, a mirror, security personnel etc. By locking my door I am implying that there are criminals out there and one of them could be you.

The world would be a better place if there were no locks or criminals, but would you expect the world to leave their doors unlocked just because you wouldn't do anything criminal?

Helen

[Andy_T]

I have about 10 devices registered to my Amazon account, Kindle Keyboard 3G and WIFI versions, Kindle Fire, Kindle Paperwhite, some Kindle Non-Touchs for my kids, and a number of Kindle apps on my iPads, iPod, iPhone, Windows 7 and Windows 8 devices.

So I guess I like them and would suggest them to other people to get.

Best regards,
Andy

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by LovesMacs

Satisfied Kindle owner here. I just wanted to point out that while the Kindle is pretty dominant in the US, it has much smaller market shares in other countries, from what I read.

Amazon have a much higher percentage of the UK market than the US market, because we have no reasonably strong second-place player, as B&N are in the US. I don't know what Amazon's share of the UK market is, but it's got to be 80%+. I know numerous people now with reading devices; every one of these people either has a Kindle, or uses the Kindle App on a phone or tablet.

[Crusader]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Amazon have a much higher percentage of the UK market than the US market, because we have no reasonably strong second-place player, as B&N are in the US. I don't know what Amazon's share of the UK market is, but it's got to be 80%+. I know numerous people now with reading devices; every one of these people either has a Kindle, or uses the Kindle App on a phone or tablet.

I thought Kobo had around 30% share in the UK. Can't for the life of me remember where I read it though.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Crusader

I thought Kobo had around 30% share in the UK. Can't for the life of me remember where I read it though.

I'd be extremely surprised if that were the case. I've never seen a Kobo device here.