Troubleshooting Kindle 5th Generation - How to know when books have been read

Hammerpgh · 11-09-2018, 04:11 AM

Probably seems a strange question but basically I have had my Kindle for 6 years and over that time have read many books which I place into a 'Read Books' folder once completed. However, I have recently been having problems with the battery life and behaviour of my Kindle so reset the device to factory settings which seems to have cured the problem(s) but leaves me with all of my books now in an archive ready for me to download again.

That's great but there is no indication as to what ones I have read and what ones I have not. As you can imagine I have read many books over the 6 years since I started using my Kindle so it's like searching for a needle n a haystack trying to work out which ones are waiting to be read and which have already been read.

I did create a backup of my Kindle before resetting so assumed I would be able to simply copy that backup onto my device and it would revert everything to how it was before the reset. Unfortunately having this morning copied that onto my device I find that's not the case and the 'Read Books' folder does not contain the books previously read.

Is there any way of identifying which books have been read and which have not?

Thankyou.

patrickt · 11-09-2018, 08:44 AM

The only way I know of is to download them and look at the row of dots below the title in list view. I don't know which Kindle you have so I don't know if a percentage read shows at the end of the row of dots.

It would be nice if the dots/percentage read showed in the listing in Manage Your Kindfle.

Hammerpgh · 11-09-2018, 10:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by patrickt

The only way I know of is to download them and look at the row of dots below the title in list view. I don't know which Kindle you have so I don't know if a percentage read shows at the end of the row of dots.

It would be nice if the dots/percentage read showed in the listing in Manage Your Kindfle.

Many thanks for taking the time to respond, much appreciated. Unfortunately on my Kindle every book seems to have a row of dots displayed and even one where I have just opened it to the cover shows the dots extending halfway across the title. Mine is an earlier generation so no percentage displayed.

Many thanks again.

shalym · 11-09-2018, 11:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hammerpgh

Many thanks for taking the time to respond, much appreciated. Unfortunately on my Kindle every book seems to have a row of dots displayed and even one where I have just opened it to the cover shows the dots extending halfway across the title. Mine is an earlier generation so no percentage displayed.

Many thanks again.

On books that have been read, the dots will be darker. You can see this with a book that was only partially read--the dots are darker for the portion of the book that has been read, and lighter for the portion that has not.

Shari

Hammerpgh · 11-09-2018, 11:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shalym

On books that have been read, the dots will be darker. You can see this with a book that was only partially read--the dots are darker for the portion of the book that has been read, and lighter for the portion that has not.

Shari

That's good to know.. should help me identify those read books a bit better.

badgoodDeb · 11-12-2018, 02:52 PM

Old tech partial solution: I make a few bookmarks all through a book, so I don't lose my place if I go look at another passage. Those bookmarks cause a title & timestamp in the "My Clippings" file. I periodically go through that file, note the last bookmark date for each book, and I keep a file on my computer of what books I read, and the date I finished them.

So I can now search through that file to find the latest Rebus book I read (which number), or did I ever read XYZZY book? It answers lots of questions about my reading habits. I drop that text file into DropBox, so I can search (using my iPad) on the sofa, while I'm reading a book. (What Rebus book do I need next? for instance)

It also answers "did I finish reading" book Question; I don't put an entry in my file if I merely started a book, but didn't finish it. Oh, and I routinely delete the My Clippings file, and let it be recreated -- so it doesn't get too long.

Hammerpgh · 11-13-2018, 11:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by badgoodDeb

Old tech partial solution: I make a few bookmarks all through a book, so I don't lose my place if I go look at another passage. Those bookmarks cause a title & timestamp in the "My Clippings" file. I periodically go through that file, note the last bookmark date for each book, and I keep a file on my computer of what books I read, and the date I finished them.

So I can now search through that file to find the latest Rebus book I read (which number), or did I ever ready XYZZY book? It answers lots of questions about my reading habits. I drop that text file into DropBox, so I can search (using my iPad) on the sofa, while I'm reading a book. (What Rebus book do I need next? for instance)

It also answers "did I finish reading" book QRST; I don't put an entry in my file if I merely started a book, but didn't finish it. Oh, and I routinely delete the My Clippings file, and let it be recreated -- so it doesn't get too long.

Thanks for the tip. I think i'll have to start doing something similar to keep tabs on everything.

Tarana · 11-13-2018, 11:45 AM

That's why I have asked Amazon (repeatedly) for an archive option similar to B&N's. The only stuff I delete are books I know I will never read again or of interest to other family members. Since they have done nothing, I use Calibre now for this purpose. Downloaded every single Kindle book, removed DRM and stored in a Kindle Library. I add books to it every time I acquire another. I have a Yes/No column for when I read it. Others use a spreadsheet.

With B&N, I'm able to archive completed books and can always unarchive if I want to read again. Keeps the unread straight.

11-09-2018, 04:11 AM	#1
Hammerpgh Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2018 Device: Kindle 5th Generation	Kindle 5th Generation - How to know when books have been read Probably seems a strange question but basically I have had my Kindle for 6 years and over that time have read many books which I place into a 'Read Books' folder once completed. However, I have recently been having problems with the battery life and behaviour of my Kindle so reset the device to factory settings which seems to have cured the problem(s) but leaves me with all of my books now in an archive ready for me to download again. That's great but there is no indication as to what ones I have read and what ones I have not. As you can imagine I have read many books over the 6 years since I started using my Kindle so it's like searching for a needle n a haystack trying to work out which ones are waiting to be read and which have already been read. I did create a backup of my Kindle before resetting so assumed I would be able to simply copy that backup onto my device and it would revert everything to how it was before the reset. Unfortunately having this morning copied that onto my device I find that's not the case and the 'Read Books' folder does not contain the books previously read. Is there any way of identifying which books have been read and which have not? Thankyou.

11-12-2018, 02:52 PM	#6
badgoodDeb Grand Sorcerer Posts: 8,501 Karma: 64095689 Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Harrisburg outskirts Device: Palms, K1-4s, iPads, iPhones, KV, KO1	Old tech partial solution: I make a few bookmarks all through a book, so I don't lose my place if I go look at another passage. Those bookmarks cause a title & timestamp in the "My Clippings" file. I periodically go through that file, note the last bookmark date for each book, and I keep a file on my computer of what books I read, and the date I finished them. So I can now search through that file to find the latest Rebus book I read (which number), or did I ever read XYZZY book? It answers lots of questions about my reading habits. I drop that text file into DropBox, so I can search (using my iPad) on the sofa, while I'm reading a book. (What Rebus book do I need next? for instance) It also answers "did I finish reading" book Question; I don't put an entry in my file if I merely started a book, but didn't finish it. Oh, and I routinely delete the My Clippings file, and let it be recreated -- so it doesn't get too long. Last edited by badgoodDeb; 11-13-2018 at 02:11 PM.

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11-09-2018, 08:44 AM	#2
patrickt Wizard Posts: 1,221 Karma: 8381518 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Oaxaca, Mexico Device: Paperwhite 4 X 2	The only way I know of is to download them and look at the row of dots below the title in list view. I don't know which Kindle you have so I don't know if a percentage read shows at the end of the row of dots. It would be nice if the dots/percentage read showed in the listing in Manage Your Kindfle.

11-13-2018, 11:45 AM	#8
Tarana Wizard Posts: 3,978 Karma: 38840460 Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Minneapolis Device: PWSE, Voyage, K3, HDX, KBasic 7 & 8, Nook Glo3, Echos, Nanos	That's why I have asked Amazon (repeatedly) for an archive option similar to B&N's. The only stuff I delete are books I know I will never read again or of interest to other family members. Since they have done nothing, I use Calibre now for this purpose. Downloaded every single Kindle book, removed DRM and stored in a Kindle Library. I add books to it every time I acquire another. I have a Yes/No column for when I read it. Others use a spreadsheet. With B&N, I'm able to archive completed books and can always unarchive if I want to read again. Keeps the unread straight.