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July 07, 2008
More Kindling
Russell Roberts
Just finished my first book on the Kindle—The Other, by David Guterson—and thought I'd share a few more thoughts on the Kindle experience.
I really enjoyed reading an entire book. Looked forward to picking it up. Found it a pleasure to use. Loved using the search function when the author mentioned a character in passing after a 200 page absence and I couldn't remember who the character was.
So far, there are only two things I don't like about the Kindle. The first is that it's another device in my life to keep charged. The list now includes computer, phone, camera, Kindle. But if you turn off the wireless, a charge on the Kindle lasts a very long time. As I am not using the Kindle for magazines or newspapers, I keep the wireless function off almost all of the time. The second is that you don't know what page you're on. There's a "location" measure and there's a visual representation at the bottom of the screen for how far along you are in the book. But it's not quite as satisfying as a page number. As I got near the end of The Other, I found myself wanting to flip ahead to see how close I was to the end.
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Comments
These kinds of things always make me think of that scene in Rollerball where James Caan is trying to find a book, and they're all on computer, and I forget the details, but I seem to remember him being dismayed that there were no more books.
Or something like that. . .
Posted by: Ray G | Jul 7, 2008 9:22:08 PM
I love my kindle.
I think you should look a little more at reading newspapers and magazines on it. I how found i am reading more of the newspaper now, then i was pre-kindle.
I also would like page numbers. It just doesn't feel right reading without them.
My only problem with it really is the cost of the kindle itself. I find the books prices to be good, but $350 for the Kindle itself is just insane.
Posted by: cameron | Jul 7, 2008 10:36:18 PM
This is a very interesting observation. We've found with our publishing tool for kids' picture books that we have to number things two different ways: one for printed presentation and another for online presentation. With printed presentation (i.e. a printed book), page numbers make sense because there is a tactile sense of progress. If you're on page 10 and there are a lot more pages on the right than the left, you haven't made a lot of progress. If the stack of pages remaining on the right is thin, you know you're almost done. In electronic form, if you're on page 10, you have no sense of progress. So in electronic presentations, we show "10 of 32" or the like. And since we show page pair spreads, we number the page pairs online, while we number the individual pages in printed form. Needless to say, if the content needs to refer to page numbers, it's difficult. Fortunately, contents and index aren't big things in children's picture books yet!
Posted by: BoscoH | Jul 7, 2008 11:54:23 PM
To the list that includes the Buggy whip maker, the traveling knife and scissor sharpener, the carbeurator maker, the record and record player makers, the maker of cassette tape makers, we can now add the poor woe-begone maker of bookmarks.
Oh, I shall miss my book marks.
Posted by: vidyohs | Jul 8, 2008 6:11:22 AM
I wonder, does the Kindle mean that soon people will be illegally downloading books off the internet and then onto their device? (The straight answer may be no, I've never heard of the Kindle in Australia).
It certainly does strike me as odd, though. Reading a book is almost intimate, and somehow lying down in bed before sleep with what is basically a mini-computer just does not the same as with a good book. I spend far too much time as it is staring at a computer screen, and reading is meant to be a form of escapism.
Posted by: josh | Jul 8, 2008 9:40:38 AM
josh...it's a tall poppy, isn't it? :)
...don't be too quick to refer to it as a mini computer, until you actually see the e-ink display. You're not reading an lcd...eye strain really isn't an issue--certainly in no way as it is on a computer.
russ...so, are GMU textbooks for grad students going to be offered on kindle? :)
Posted by: shawn | Jul 8, 2008 2:42:33 PM
I also recently finished my first book on the Kindle (The Black Swan by Nassim Nicholas Taleb-- which I greatly enjoyed and heard about through your podcast). I also missed page numbers. It makes sense to leave them off, though. After all, the text doesn't "want" to be divided into arbitrary pages. That's a concession to a (now obsolete) technology--namely paper.
The only other thing I really miss is that I can loan my physical books. I'll eventually get over this (hardly anyone ever wants to borrow my books anyway!).
I look forward to reading The Invisible Heart kindle style.
Posted by: JamesFromPittsburgh | Jul 8, 2008 7:03:48 PM
There's a business opportunity. Devise universal chargers that can recharge several battery-operated gadgets, easily and simultaneously.
Posted by: Unit | Jul 8, 2008 11:19:39 PM
unit...it exists..it's mini-usb, and is thankfully becoming more standard. other than that, many companies have chargers where you just purchase an extra tip for this or that device. I think of ratshack's "igo" device....but they haven't quite taken off....usb-mini usb has got to be a better system.
Posted by: shawn | Jul 9, 2008 9:00:38 AM
Curious, when I own a book on a Kindle, what do I actually own? Can I make copies of a few pages for a time when I don't want to put the machine at risk? Can I make a copy of the book to another media in case the Kindle dies?
Posted by: Kent Gatewood | Jul 9, 2008 5:21:04 PM
Trick to (partially) make up for lack of page numbers: bookmark the first page of each chapter, and the end of the book. In the location status bar (one click up from the bottom with the scroll wheel) you can see where you are in the book, and with respect to bookmarks. Voila! You can now see where you are in the current chapter, and in the whole book.
Posted by: anon | Jul 10, 2008 11:37:29 AM
I suspect the page number on the kindle e-book may not be exactly same as the hard copy book + with the ability to change fonts/size and such the page numbering will change if you PageDown and yet you are on the same page (does that make sense!?). We have a similar situation for documents with multi form display devices (PCs, mobile phones, PDAs etc.) The page number is a relic of hard copy books, in electronic form a percentile might be better, as in your are 87% through a who-dunit mystery and your anticipation grows as the secret identity is about to be revealed.
playdumb
PS - I have never seen/used the Kindle yet.
Posted by: play dumb | Jul 12, 2008 10:10:11 AM
My main concern re Kindle is leaving it somewhere. My iPhone, though expensive, fits in my shirt pocket. My book bag or computer bag is too big to forget. I'd know I wasn't carrying it immediately. But I've left books at restaurants before. When I remember and return an hour later, they're usually still there, but not always. And most books I buy don't cost $399.
Posted by: RL | Jul 12, 2008 5:07:33 PM
Based on this review, I broke down a bought a Kindle. With four children, a Honda Odyssey for the wife, and a Mac computer, I have to be like Russ.
Posted by: Brent Anderson | Jul 13, 2008 2:49:19 PM
RL, do you have many drinks with your dinner? ;) I keep the Kindle in my computer bag -- one has an hour of battery life so they serve rather different purposes.
Posted by: Michael Lomker | Jul 13, 2008 7:41:28 PM
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