Author Topic: e-Reader Culture  (Read 81 times)

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Offline Super Colin Blow

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e-Reader Culture
« on: March 03, 2024, 09:56:37 am »
Any of you use an e-reader? I like my Amazon Kindle but they do not seem to stand by their work and I was considering getting a Kobo.

Do any of you have e-readers, either Kindles or other brands? Thoughts?
WAR IS PEACE
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Offline wilber

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Re: e-Reader Culture
« Reply #1 on: March 03, 2024, 10:15:26 am »
I have a small 6" Kobo. I think it is their cheapest model and I quite like it. Easy on the eyes and works well in bright sunlight.
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Offline Super Colin Blow

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Re: e-Reader Culture
« Reply #2 on: March 04, 2024, 12:40:17 pm »
I have a small 6" Kobo. I think it is their cheapest model and I quite like it. Easy on the eyes and works well in bright sunlight.

Cool. Can you download books from other sites not just Kobo's website? I heard there are other sites that sell eBooks, but I do not know if Kobo users could use them. I thought Google, Walmart, and others sold them for download.

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IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH

Offline wilber

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Re: e-Reader Culture
« Reply #3 on: March 04, 2024, 01:21:55 pm »
Cool. Can you download books from other sites not just Kobo's website? I heard there are other sites that sell eBooks, but I do not know if Kobo users could use them. I thought Google, Walmart, and others sold them for download.


Haven't tried it so I don't know. I think you can download books from your public library but not sure.
« Last Edit: March 04, 2024, 01:25:35 pm by wilber »
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Offline Super Colin Blow

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Re: e-Reader Culture
« Reply #4 on: March 08, 2024, 07:02:47 am »

Haven't tried it so I don't know. I think you can download books from your public library but not sure.

That is true. Amazon Kindles can get books from the public library via "Overdrive" or whatever it's called. But it requires a little legerdemain and you cannot surf your public library's e-books directly, only through the website of the library and then you "pick up" the book you rented from a link provided by Amazon on its website. Also there's a finite number of copies available, shared with the whole State of Maryland.

I must say one thing about e-Readers: they save shelf space! A ton of it!!! I have bought books for Kindle, like a whole bunch, and I would have needed another huge bookcase to accommodate them if I had bought the hard copies.

Great thing is that sometimes I do read more quicky on my Kindle than a print version, no need to hold the book open, lose your place, etc.; however if there are maps and stuff you need to backtrack to, it's not as good as having a physical copy of the book. Like the maps from The Lord of the Rings or a book I was reading on ancient Iraq which had copious maps and picture inserts.

The down side to a Kindle, is some eBooks are expensive, when I do not think they really have to be. LOTR is $18, Amazon says "Price set by publisher" whereas other books fluctuate in price. I have started to buy some hard copies at a used bookstore. I got a great copy of The First Man in Rome, in hardcover, at a used bookstore for $7; I would have had to pay $17 for the Kindle copy.
« Last Edit: March 08, 2024, 07:09:05 am by Super Colin Blow »
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Offline Super Colin Blow

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Re: e-Reader Culture
« Reply #5 on: March 08, 2024, 07:10:06 am »
Oh, sorry, which model Kobo is it, if you can tell me? I looked at the website and there's a bunch. I wasn't sure which was the one you said you have.
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Offline wilber

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Re: e-Reader Culture
« Reply #6 on: March 08, 2024, 10:16:39 am »
It's a Clara HD. It's a few years old so I don't know if they still make it.
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Offline Super Colin Blow

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Re: e-Reader Culture
« Reply #7 on: March 12, 2024, 06:31:52 am »
It's a Clara HD. It's a few years old so I don't know if they still make it.

Right. There's now a Clara 2E.

What is the difference between EPUB 2 and EPUB 3? I was told that Kindle books you don't really own, you're just leasing the digital rights to read it personally. I was also told that Kobo readers have a greater degree of actual ownership of the books they download. I wasn't sure if this was true or not.

This is my second Kindle in a row that the battery has failed---right after Amazon's warranty ran out. I am getting a little disgusted. But I do like my Kindle. I was just thinking that I might like a Kobo better so I want to find out as much as possible about the two and how they compare, advantages and disadvantages of each. (That's why I posted this thread.)

I found out now that many of the Kobo books have the same price as their Kindle counterparts. That is kind of disappointing.
« Last Edit: March 12, 2024, 06:41:16 am by Super Colin Blow »
WAR IS PEACE
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY
IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH