Recommendation for E-reader?

Bill Gill

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Nov 27, 2015, 9:15:48 AM11/27/15

to

I am planning to get myself a tablet to use as an E-reader
for Christmas this year. Any recommendations?

I am almost 80 years old and I expect to be living by myself
for a long time to come, but you never can tell when I will
wind up moving into some sort of assisted care facility. When
I do I won't be able to take my library with me, so I need to
get ready for the day. And I might as well get a general
purpose tablet so I can use it for other things.

Of course once I get it the expense will really start. Stocking
a thousand or more books will run the cost up.

Bill

J. Clarke

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Nov 27, 2015, 10:45:25 AM11/27/15

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In article <n39oe3$kjn$1...@dont-email.me>, bill...@cox.net says...

iPad is the default. Works well, has wide support. In the Android
world Samsung is generally considered to be the class act, but the
Google Nexus products are a very safe bet (Google owns Android).
Another option to consider, a good bit more expensive than a tablet, but
much, much more capable, would be to go with a Microsoft Surface Pro
(the "Pro" part is important--the non Pro surfaces use a different
operating system with limited support), that does everything a tablet
does and is a pretty good PC as well.

Avoid the Kindle and Nook tablets--the e-paper readers are good but the
tablets are crippled Android devices.

Cryptoengineer

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Nov 27, 2015, 10:58:52 AM11/27/15

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"J. Clarke" <j.clark...@gmail.com> wrote in
news:MPG.30c245384...@news.eternal-september.org:

Since you're after a general purpose device, I agree with the above. If
you were after a pure book reader though, I'd look very hard at the
Kindle e-ink devices - they are very light in comparison with an LED
screen, which gets important if you have to hold the device to read, and
the batteries last a very long time.

pt

J. Clarke

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Nov 27, 2015, 11:22:07 AM11/27/15

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In article <XnsA55F6FBC16...@216.166.97.131>,
treif...@gmail.com says...

Agreed, totally.

Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy

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Nov 27, 2015, 11:42:05 AM11/27/15

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If you're looking for a general purpose tablet, you can ignore e-ink
devices. iPad is, as noted, well built and easy to use, but it does
its best to lock you in to Apple's walled garden. Not entirely
successfully, but they do try. There are a variety of Android tablets
of all stripes. The Samsung Galaxy's generally get good reviews.
There are also a variety of Windows tablets at prices from $100 to
several thousand. I'm currently using a 7" HP Stream, which is a
shitty tablet (though it is the full version of Windows 8.1), but
it's an excellent reader, and can be had for under $200 (mine was
under $100). And it has a familiar user interface, if you use
Windows. And you can try out a variety of different reader programs
until you find what you like. Small screen, though. There are other
sizes available, at varying price points. Stay with the big brand
names, though, or you'll eend up with shit hardware.

You'll also want to consider how to archive your library, and whether
or not you're willing to strip off encryption to do so.

--
Terry Austin

"Terry Austin: like the polio vaccine, only with more asshole."
-- David Bilek

Jesus forgives sinners, not criminals.

Bill Gill

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Nov 27, 2015, 12:46:11 PM11/27/15

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On 11/27/2015 9:42 AM, Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy wrote:
> If you're looking for a general purpose tablet, you can ignore e-ink
> devices. iPad is, as noted, well built and easy to use, but it does
> its best to lock you in to Apple's walled garden. Not entirely
> successfully, but they do try. There are a variety of Android tablets
> of all stripes. The Samsung Galaxy's generally get good reviews.
> There are also a variety of Windows tablets at prices from $100 to
> several thousand. I'm currently using a 7" HP Stream, which is a
> shitty tablet (though it is the full version of Windows 8.1), but
> it's an excellent reader, and can be had for under $200 (mine was
> under $100). And it has a familiar user interface, if you use
> Windows. And you can try out a variety of different reader programs
> until you find what you like. Small screen, though. There are other
> sizes available, at varying price points. Stay with the big brand
> names, though, or you'll eend up with shit hardware.
>
> You'll also want to consider how to archive your library, and whether
> or not you're willing to strip off encryption to do so.
>

I have been considering the bit about archiving. I see that there
is a utility that does that.

Bill

Bill Gill

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Nov 27, 2015, 12:49:24 PM11/27/15

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I have seen some very good reviews of the Kindle devices, but I have
also heard that they are pretty much locked into Amazon. If you want
to add something from another source it can supposedly be frustrating.

Bill

leif...@dimnakorr.com

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Nov 27, 2015, 12:59:18 PM11/27/15

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If you want a tablet that you'll mainly use as an e-book reader,
I wouldn't go larger than an 8" screen or so. Larger than that,
and they can get a little unwieldly to hold with one hand for
any length of time.

I've been quite happy with my Samsung Galaxy Note 8, but it's
a three year old model now, so I don't think I would recommend
it for a new purchase unless you could find one cheap.

--
Leif Roar Moldskred

Robert Woodward

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Nov 27, 2015, 1:11:06 PM11/27/15

to

In article <n39oe3$kjn$1...@dont-email.me>, Bill Gill <bill...@cox.net>
wrote:

Depending on the books you want to save, you might be able to use
Gutenberg project (I see that they have a bunch of E.R. Burroughs
titles, though not that many after 1920) for books out of copyright. I
have also noticed some E-book specials from time to time (IIRC, about a
month ago, most of the Georgette Heyer's Regency novels were on sale at
less than 2 bucks - the sale is over).

A thousand books? I might have that many in iBooks and I think my list
of collections is too long (scrolling, scrolling ...) and the list of
books in many collections (scrolling, scrolling ...) is also too long.
Does any E-reader allows collections of collections?

Ted Nolan <tednolan>

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Nov 27, 2015, 1:15:57 PM11/27/15

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In article <n39oe3$kjn$1...@dont-email.me>, Bill Gill <bill...@cox.net> wrote:

I have been extremely happy with my Kindle Keyboard. It's older tech
at this point, but they are still available out there. It's an e-ink
device so you don't have washout issues in sunlight, and the battery
lasts longer.

However, the feature which has really changed my life is the "read out loud"
mode. It may take you a little while to latch onto the zen of the
synthized voice, but once you get used to it, it's perfectly undestandable.
I use this on long drives all the time, and if you think you may have vision
issues in the future, it would help there too.
--
------
columbiaclosings.com
What's not in Columbia anymore..

Greg Goss

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Nov 27, 2015, 1:49:01 PM11/27/15

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"J. Clarke" <j.clark...@gmail.com> wrote:

>Avoid the Kindle and Nook tablets--the e-paper readers are good but the
>tablets are crippled Android devices.

... and Kobo.

I like my Kobo, but it's a specialized product that lets you read in
the sun. For any other location, I read books on my phone.

(Android phone, Moon Reader Pro software, fed through Dropbox.)

I have an Android tablet that was $65 two years ago. Too slow to do
anything useful, and later stopped downloading any new software. I
enjoy playing with the cheapest stuff out there (shut up about my
girlfriend) but nobody else should buy the bottom end of the Android
list.
--
We are geeks. Resistance is voltage over current.

Greg Goss

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Nov 27, 2015, 1:52:36 PM11/27/15

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t...@loft.tnolan.com (Ted Nolan <tednolan>) wrote:

>I have been extremely happy with my Kindle Keyboard. It's older tech
>at this point, but they are still available out there. It's an e-ink
>device so you don't have washout issues in sunlight, and the battery
>lasts longer.
>
>However, the feature which has really changed my life is the "read out loud"
>mode. It may take you a little while to latch onto the zen of the
>synthized voice, but once you get used to it, it's perfectly undestandable.
>I use this on long drives all the time, and if you think you may have vision
>issues in the future, it would help there too.

I think any of the general purpose tablets with software should read
out loud. I can't be read to -- my first wife was always reading
newspaper stuff to me and every time I wanted to grab the paper from
her. To promote getting along, I would live through the reading, then
ask nicely for the paper to "review" it.

Anyhow, "read text aloud" is a system-level feature in Android (and
must be in iOs) so it's absolutely trivial for a book reader to add
it. I've played stuff from moon reader through my car stereo, and
it's OK, but I can't follow what's going on any better than when
spouse reads it.

Lawrence Watt-Evans

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Nov 27, 2015, 2:06:13 PM11/27/15

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On Fri, 27 Nov 2015 08:15:52 -0600, Bill Gill <bill...@cox.net>
wrote:

>I am planning to get myself a tablet to use as an E-reader
>for Christmas this year. Any recommendations?
>
>I am almost 80 years old and I expect to be living by myself
>for a long time to come, but you never can tell when I will
>wind up moving into some sort of assisted care facility. When
>I do I won't be able to take my library with me, so I need to
>get ready for the day. And I might as well get a general
>purpose tablet so I can use it for other things.

I have a Microsoft Surface Pro 3, which is really as much a laptop as
a tablet; it runs the full version of Windows 10, but you can remove
the keyboard and use it as a tablet.

I like it a lot. The relatively large screen means it's easy to read,
and it's been much more convenient when traveling than a regular
laptop or notebook.

It was not, however, cheap.

--
My webpage is at http://www.watt-evans.com

---
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
https://www.avast.com/antivirus

Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy

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Nov 27, 2015, 2:10:46 PM11/27/15

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Bill Gill <bill...@cox.net> wrote in
news:n3a4og$6j2$1...@dont-email.me:

The premier method is a (free) program called Calibre (note the
spelling). The problem is DRM, which will keep you from making use
of archived ebooks that have it (not all do). There is a plug-in
for Calibre that will strip it automatically as you import books,
which is of questionable legality in the US, but nobody will care
if you dn't distribute the resulting DRM-free files. Calibre is
also the premier method of converting from one format to another,
which lets you buy books whereve you want, and read them in your
favorite reader program. I buy from Amazon these days (since B&N
actively hates its customers), and readi n my nook reader program
(which has the interface I'm used to).

Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy

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Nov 27, 2015, 2:13:02 PM11/27/15

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Robert Woodward <robe...@drizzle.com> wrote in
news:robertaw-76A5F2...@news.individual.net:

Calibre has a lot of tools for sorting and organizing, and is still
actively being developed.

Titus G

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Nov 27, 2015, 3:58:39 PM11/27/15

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On 28/11/2015 6:49 a.m., Bill Gill wrote:
snip

> I have seen some very good reviews of the Kindle devices, but I have
> also heard that they are pretty much locked into Amazon. If you want
> to add something from another source it can supposedly be frustrating.

I love my Kindle.
Using the free PC program "Calibre", (suggested earlier in the thread),
it is very simple to transfer books of any format on your PC/Laptop to
the Kindle so you are not locked into Amazon unless you choose to
respect DRM which I don't think you should if you have a copy on the shelf.

David Johnston

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Nov 27, 2015, 4:43:14 PM11/27/15

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Getting a Kindle _tablet_ is a bad idea. Getting a Kindle E-reader
works fine. You just have to get the mobi version of files sold by
people who aren't Amazon.

Bill Gill

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Nov 27, 2015, 6:34:13 PM11/27/15

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I had heard of Calibre and was planning to get a copy. That way I
can make an archive copy of each book and keep it on an offline
storage system. Just one copy and only for archive. Not
for distribution.

Bill

Bill Gill

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Nov 27, 2015, 6:37:07 PM11/27/15

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Thanks, that was one thing I was wondering about. There are
a number of tablets out there in the 8-9 inch range that
would probably do me nicely. They would also be big enough
to run other apps on. But not TV and that sort of thing. I
figure if I want to watch TV I can sit in the living room and
watch my big screen TV much more comfortably than holding a
tablet in my hand.

Bill

Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy

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Nov 27, 2015, 6:50:03 PM11/27/15

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Bill Gill <bill...@cox.net> wrote in

news:n3ap52$qgh$1...@dont-email.me:

If you are interested in stripping the DRM (so that you're buying
books instead of reneting them), do a search for "Apprentice Alf"
to dig up the plug-in.

Moriarty

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Nov 27, 2015, 8:22:42 PM11/27/15

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On Saturday, November 28, 2015 at 10:34:13 AM UTC+11, Bill Gill wrote:

<snip>

> I had heard of Calibre and was planning to get a copy. That way I
> can make an archive copy of each book and keep it on an offline
> storage system. Just one copy and only for archive. Not
> for distribution.

Regardless of which e-reader you go with, Calibre is a must. Keeping those DRM-free archived copies of your books is invaluable if your e-reader is ever lost/stolen/broken.

As noted by Terry, but I'll just emphasise the point, Calibre also lets you buy e-books from anywhere and convert them for use on your e-reader of choice. So you won't be stuck with purchasing solely from Amazon if you get a kindle etc.

-Moriarty

Robert Bannister

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Nov 27, 2015, 8:47:52 PM11/27/15

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On 27/11/2015 11:42 PM, Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy wrote:
> If you're looking for a general purpose tablet, you can ignore e-ink
> devices. iPad is, as noted, well built and easy to use, but it does
> its best to lock you in to Apple's walled garden.

I suppose it does, but not with ebooks. I have Apple's ibook reader,
Kindle, Google Play, Stanza, Blio and I think one other that I've
forgotten. I try to keep different categories of books on one reader,
for example, I have several hundred Agatha Christies on Stanza, but
Bujold on iBook.
--
Robert Bannister
Perth, Western Australia

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Nov 27, 2015, 9:40:17 PM11/27/15

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In article <dbsg11...@mid.individual.net>, rob...@clubtelco.com
says...

>
> On 28/11/2015 7:37 AM, Bill Gill wrote:
>
> > Thanks, that was one thing I was wondering about. There are
> > a number of tablets out there in the 8-9 inch range that
> > would probably do me nicely. They would also be big enough
> > to run other apps on. But not TV and that sort of thing. I
> > figure if I want to watch TV I can sit in the living room and
> > watch my big screen TV much more comfortably than holding a
> > tablet in my hand.
>
> But can you read a book on your TV? I partly rest my iPad on my knee or
> occasionally on the table, so I'm not just holding it in one hand. I

> like the larger size ? some people allegedly watch movies on their

> phone. I don't think I could do that, and I want a decent page and font
> size to read a book comfortably.

With a modern TV connected to a computer, that actually works nicely.
Friend of mine is 96 and legally blind. He uses a document camera
connected to his computer to show book pages on a 50 inch TV screen--
that gets them big enough that he can read them.

Bill Gill

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Nov 27, 2015, 9:41:05 PM11/27/15

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Thanks for the tip.

Bill

Bill Gill

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Nov 27, 2015, 9:42:19 PM11/27/15

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Several hundred Christies? I didn't know she had written that many.
I certainly don't have that many in my paper library.

Bill

Bill Gill

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Nov 27, 2015, 9:43:59 PM11/27/15

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Well, that is the thing. I want an E-reader for books and
a TV for TV.

Bill

Brenda

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Nov 27, 2015, 10:28:33 PM11/27/15

to

On 11/27/2015 9:15 AM, Bill Gill wrote:
> I am planning to get myself a tablet to use as an E-reader
> for Christmas this year. Any recommendations?
>
> I am almost 80 years old and I expect to be living by myself
> for a long time to come, but you never can tell when I will
> wind up moving into some sort of assisted care facility. When
> I do I won't be able to take my library with me, so I need to
> get ready for the day. And I might as well get a general
> purpose tablet so I can use it for other things.
>
> Of course once I get it the expense will really start. Stocking
> a thousand or more books will run the cost up.
>
> Bill

When I had eye surgery I got an Ipad. The large screen makes it easier
to read, and of course you can pump the font until the letters are large
enough. If the weight of the thing is too much for your hand, you can
get stands and stuff to hold the thing up for you.

Brenda

Cryptoengineer

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Nov 27, 2015, 10:33:47 PM11/27/15

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Bill Gill <bill...@cox.net> wrote in news:n3b43g$o6c$1...@dont-email.me:

I'll also add that the Kindle SW is available for all major platforms.
You do NOT need a Kindle to read Kindle books, and the books you purchase
are shared between all your devices.

This is critical if you want to use Calibre to make permanent personal
backups - it runs on desktop OSs, not Kindle (I don't know about the
Apprentice Alf extensions).

pt

David Goldfarb

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Nov 28, 2015, 1:00:04 AM11/28/15

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In article <XnsA55FE58E73...@216.166.97.131>,

Cryptoengineer <treif...@gmail.com> wrote:
>I'll also add that the Kindle SW is available for all major platforms.
>You do NOT need a Kindle to read Kindle books, and the books you purchase
>are shared between all your devices.

This bit is actually a huge win for me. I put my books in the Kindle
app on my iPad, and also on my iPhone, and it doesn't just have the
book in both places, it *keeps my place* from one to the other. So
I can do most of my reading on the pad, but if I'm in some situation
where the pad is too large to handle easily (in line at the grocery
store, or on a quick break from work) I can pull out the phone and
read a few pages on it.

Yes, it means that theoretically Amazon can spy on what I'm reading.
In practice, I don't care.

--
David Goldfarb |"As an adolescent I aspired to lasting fame, I
goldf...@gmail.com | craved factual certainty, and I thirsted for a
gold...@ocf.berkeley.edu | meaningful vision of human life -- so I became
| a scientist. This is like becoming an archbishop
| so you can meet girls." -- M. Cartmill

Jerry Brown

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Nov 28, 2015, 3:41:22 AM11/28/15

to

On Fri, 27 Nov 2015 14:43:16 -0700, David Johnston <Da...@block.net>
wrote:

And as long as such non-Amazon content is emailed to the Kindle
(either a hardware one or a device running the app) rather than adding
via USB cable, it will stay synced on all devices just like an Amazon
download (e.g. the Gentleman Jole eARC from Baen syncs just fine).

Despite having Kindles for 5 years I only recently found this out (my
fault for not R'ing TFM).

--
Jerry Brown

A cat may look at a king
(but probably won't bother)

Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy

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Nov 28, 2015, 3:54:06 AM11/28/15

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Robert Bannister <rob...@clubtelco.com> wrote in
news:dbsfe5...@mid.individual.net:

They've loosened up. The question then becomes, do you trust them to
stay that way? Not that I've ever been part of their market, but I've
seen little from Apple to inspire trust.

Robert Carnegie

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Nov 28, 2015, 8:46:06 AM11/28/15

to

On Saturday, 28 November 2015 02:43:59 UTC, Bill Gill wrote:
> On 11/27/2015 7:57 PM, Robert Bannister wrote:
> > But can you read a book on your TV? I partly rest my iPad on my knee or
> > occasionally on the table, so I'm not just holding it in one hand. I

> > like the larger size -- some people allegedly watch movies on their

> > phone. I don't think I could do that, and I want a decent page and font
> > size to read a book comfortably.
>
> Well, that is the thing. I want an E-reader for books and
> a TV for TV.

Old people don't dig convergence. :-)

As Brenda said, you can get a stand. Your tablet or
your TV can even be pivoted in front of your chair,
if you wish. And may respond to spoken commands.

A difference is that a TV (which can also be
a computer display or even be a computer) may have
screw-holes on the rear, to be mounted onto a "VESA"
standard-sized permanent support. A tablet doesn't
have that, but it can be propped up in a suitable
tray, there are some ways to stick a handle onto
the rear side, which may be more comfortable to hold.

I glued a 7 inch size tablet inside an old diary book
cover. This works, but it involved at least three
different kinds of glue and tape. Also, I found that
I needed the book cover inside to be black, to not
reflect onto the tablet screen.

Young people don't have TVs, it seems. I suppose it
saves space. I hear they don't have watches, either -
because the cell phone tells time. Visually - although
"aloud" is also achievable.

Cryptoengineer

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Nov 28, 2015, 10:44:04 AM11/28/15

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Robert Carnegie <rja.ca...@excite.com> wrote in
news:5ea5f53f-c37b-46ef...@googlegroups.com:

After my wife started using a large Samsung tablet, I got
her a two part gift - a lapdesk; essentially a nicely
finished kidney shaped piece of plywood which bridges
between the arms of her favorite recliner, and a tablet
stand, which sat on the desk and held the tablet at a
convenient angle.

This combo works well, the only drawback being that
getting up becomes a little complicated.

pt

Greg Goss

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Nov 28, 2015, 11:06:44 AM11/28/15

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Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy <taus...@gmail.com> wrote:

>Robert Bannister <rob...@clubtelco.com> wrote in
>news:dbsfe5...@mid.individual.net:
>
>> On 27/11/2015 11:42 PM, Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy wrote:
>>> If you're looking for a general purpose tablet, you can ignore
>>> e-ink devices. iPad is, as noted, well built and easy to use,
>>> but it does its best to lock you in to Apple's walled garden.
>>
>> I suppose it does, but not with ebooks. I have Apple's ibook
>> reader, Kindle, Google Play, Stanza, Blio and I think one other
>> that I've forgotten. I try to keep different categories of books
>> on one reader, for example, I have several hundred Agatha
>> Christies on Stanza, but Bujold on iBook.
>
>They've loosened up. The question then becomes, do you trust them to
>stay that way? Not that I've ever been part of their market, but I've
>seen little from Apple to inspire trust.

My ex-wife was using Stanza to read books from Baen. Then Apple did
some kind of upgrade that killed Stanza. Then another upgrade that
wasn't available for her elderly iPod touch. She started using my
Sony dedicated e-reader, and when that broke, my dedicated Kobo. We
later bought a bottom-end no-name (D2) Android pad that was too slow
for me even for ebook-reading, but was OK for her.

Greg Goss

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Nov 28, 2015, 11:07:44 AM11/28/15

to

Yeah, but we're talking about e-ink versus glowing displays. I know
that Apple uses power-hungry displays, but can you REALLY read one at
the beach?

Greg Goss

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Nov 28, 2015, 11:08:51 AM11/28/15

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Then get a Chromestick or equivalent and read the books on your TV?

Greg Goss

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Nov 28, 2015, 11:11:36 AM11/28/15

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"J. Clarke" <j.clark...@gmail.com> wrote:

>With a modern TV connected to a computer, that actually works nicely.
>Friend of mine is 96 and legally blind. He uses a document camera
>connected to his computer to show book pages on a 50 inch TV screen--
>that gets them big enough that he can read them.

Back in 13, I was working in an employer's basement. Her son was
temporarily living out of his vacation trailer, so she was storing his
giant TV (64 inch? 80 inch?) which was currently living behind her
living room sofa. I suggested that we set it up at the back of my
desk for the moment. I was amused at the idea of getting up to walk
to the other end of my spreadsheet.

A.G.McDowell

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Nov 28, 2015, 12:41:02 PM11/28/15

to

On 27/11/2015 17:49, Bill Gill wrote:
> On 11/27/2015 9:58 AM, Cryptoengineer wrote:
>> "J. Clarke" <j.clark...@gmail.com> wrote in
>> news:MPG.30c245384...@news.eternal-september.org:
>>
>>> In article <n39oe3$kjn$1...@dont-email.me>, bill...@cox.net says...
>>>>
>>>> I am planning to get myself a tablet to use as an E-reader
>>>> for Christmas this year. Any recommendations?
>>>>
>>>> I am almost 80 years old and I expect to be living by myself
>>>> for a long time to come, but you never can tell when I will
>>>> wind up moving into some sort of assisted care facility. When
>>>> I do I won't be able to take my library with me, so I need to
>>>> get ready for the day. And I might as well get a general
>>>> purpose tablet so I can use it for other things.
>>>>
>>>> Of course once I get it the expense will really start. Stocking
>>>> a thousand or more books will run the cost up.
>>>>
>>>> Bill
>>>
>>> iPad is the default. Works well, has wide support. In the Android
>>> world Samsung is generally considered to be the class act, but the
>>> Google Nexus products are a very safe bet (Google owns Android).
>>> Another option to consider, a good bit more expensive than a tablet,
>>> but much, much more capable, would be to go with a Microsoft Surface
>>> Pro (the "Pro" part is important--the non Pro surfaces use a different
>>> operating system with limited support), that does everything a tablet
>>> does and is a pretty good PC as well.
>>>

>>> Avoid the Kindle and Nook tablets--the e-paper readers are good but
>>> the tablets are crippled Android devices.
>>

>> Since you're after a general purpose device, I agree with the above. If
>> you were after a pure book reader though, I'd look very hard at the
>> Kindle e-ink devices - they are very light in comparison with an LED
>> screen, which gets important if you have to hold the device to read, and
>> the batteries last a very long time.
>>
>> pt
>>
> I have seen some very good reviews of the Kindle devices, but I have
> also heard that they are pretty much locked into Amazon. If you want
> to add something from another source it can supposedly be frustrating.
>
> Bill

I have the cheapest Kindle e-ink device, which I use constantly, with a
bone-headed strategy for non-Amazon files - save as .txt, and then
transfer to the device via USB. This works fine for Baen e-books, which
I download as .RTF and save to .txt, and Project Gutenberg. You lose
pictures and corrupt the odd non-Latin character, but for what I'm
buying I don't care. My only worry is that by the time the device
eventually goes the way of all good things - probably because the
battery can't take any more charge cycles - Amazon will have raised the
walls of its walled garden and I'll not be able to replace it with
something that supports the same use cases. I'd probably end up buying a
more locked Amazon device for my legacy Amazon purchases and a small
tablet for everything else.

e-ink is so nice outdoors, and the battery life is so good, and the
devices so cheap, that I'd consider buying an e-ink device just for
Gutenberg and Baen even if I wanted a tablet for email and web browsing.

Bill Gill

unread,

Nov 28, 2015, 1:06:56 PM11/28/15

to

But does a Chromestick work with just plain computer displays?
I haven't looked at them closely, but I somehow got the impression
that they only work to send streaming services from the computer
to the TV. At times I have wanted to have something that would
allow me to view my computer display on the TV, but the only
thing I found when I looked was expensive.

Bill

J. Clarke

unread,

Nov 28, 2015, 2:10:14 PM11/28/15

to

In article <n3cqbd$u0l$1...@dont-email.me>, bill...@cox.net says...

What kind of TV do you have? If it's anything of reasonably quality
that can recieve current US broadcast, all you need to connect it to a
computer is a cable.

unread,

Nov 28, 2015, 4:15:33 PM11/28/15

to

You actually can, unless you have polarised sunnies that are the wrong
orientation. But it's suboptimal, much lower contrast in that situation
than an e-ink screen. And way more likely to overheat.

Cheers - Jaimie
--
IIS is still popular in the public sector, where the two highest
priorities in IT are unfitness for purpose and high cost.
-- Tony Houghton

Jaimie Vandenbergh

unread,

Nov 28, 2015, 4:17:55 PM11/28/15

to

On Sat, 28 Nov 2015 09:06:38 -0700, Greg Goss <go...@gossg.org> wrote:

>My ex-wife was using Stanza to read books from Baen. Then Apple did
>some kind of upgrade that killed Stanza.

Stanza got bought by Amazon and the dev team dispersed. It was a great
surprise when it got updated for iOS5, but died again later.

"Marvin" is its spiritual successor, by far the best enthusiast iOS
reader at the moment.

Cheers - Jaimie
--
"Every Little Thing She Does Is Sufficiently Advanced Technology"

Jerry Brown

unread,

Nov 28, 2015, 5:27:22 PM11/28/15

to

On Sat, 28 Nov 2015 21:08:11 +0000, Jaimie Vandenbergh
<jai...@sometimes.sessile.org> wrote:

>On Sat, 28 Nov 2015 05:56:12 GMT, gold...@ocf.berkeley.edu (David
>Goldfarb) wrote:
>
>>In article <XnsA55FE58E73...@216.166.97.131>,
>>Cryptoengineer <treif...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>>I'll also add that the Kindle SW is available for all major platforms.
>>>You do NOT need a Kindle to read Kindle books, and the books you purchase
>>>are shared between all your devices.
>>
>>This bit is actually a huge win for me. I put my books in the Kindle
>>app on my iPad, and also on my iPhone, and it doesn't just have the
>>book in both places, it *keeps my place* from one to the other. So
>>I can do most of my reading on the pad, but if I'm in some situation
>>where the pad is too large to handle easily (in line at the grocery
>>store, or on a quick break from work) I can pull out the phone and
>>read a few pages on it.
>
>Does that work with self-loaded books, or only with
>Amazon-bought-and-delivered ones?

If you email it to the address set up for one of your Kindle devices
or apps, it will then be available to download onto the other devices
from "the cloud" and wil sync the position across all of them.

It works fine for my copy of the Gentleman Jole eARC.

unread,

Nov 28, 2015, 11:12:22 PM11/28/15

to

On 28/11/2015 10:42, Bill Gill wrote:

> On 11/27/2015 7:47 PM, Robert Bannister wrote:
>> On 27/11/2015 11:42 PM, Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy wrote:
>>> If you're looking for a general purpose tablet, you can ignore e-ink
>>> devices. iPad is, as noted, well built and easy to use, but it does
>>> its best to lock you in to Apple's walled garden.
>>
>> I suppose it does, but not with ebooks. I have Apple's ibook reader,
>> Kindle, Google Play, Stanza, Blio and I think one other that I've

>> forgotten. I try to keep different categories of books on one reader,
>> for example, I have several hundred Agatha Christies on Stanza, but
>> Bujold on iBook.

> Several hundred Christies? I didn't know she had written that many.
> I certainly don't have that many in my paper library.

Apologies. I have never counted them. Lists of titles with authors and
spaces in between look a lot longer than a plain list of titles.

Robert Bannister

unread,

Nov 28, 2015, 11:14:34 PM11/28/15

to

On 28/11/2015 15:54, Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy wrote:
> Robert Bannister <rob...@clubtelco.com> wrote in
> news:dbsfe5...@mid.individual.net:
>
>> On 27/11/2015 11:42 PM, Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy wrote:
>>> If you're looking for a general purpose tablet, you can ignore
>>> e-ink devices. iPad is, as noted, well built and easy to use,
>>> but it does its best to lock you in to Apple's walled garden.
>>
>> I suppose it does, but not with ebooks. I have Apple's ibook
>> reader, Kindle, Google Play, Stanza, Blio and I think one other
>> that I've forgotten. I try to keep different categories of books
>> on one reader, for example, I have several hundred Agatha
>> Christies on Stanza, but Bujold on iBook.
>
> They've loosened up. The question then becomes, do you trust them to
> stay that way? Not that I've ever been part of their market, but I've
> seen little from Apple to inspire trust.
>

Well, I don't exactly trust any computer company, but I've stuck with
Apple since 1981. I get ratty with them occasionally, but not nearly as
much as I did with Microsoft during the period of my life when I had to
use Windows at work.

Robert Bannister

unread,

Nov 28, 2015, 11:15:47 PM11/28/15

to

On 29/11/2015 05:17, Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:
> On Sat, 28 Nov 2015 09:06:38 -0700, Greg Goss <go...@gossg.org> wrote:
>
>> My ex-wife was using Stanza to read books from Baen. Then Apple did
>> some kind of upgrade that killed Stanza.
>
> Stanza got bought by Amazon and the dev team dispersed. It was a great
> surprise when it got updated for iOS5, but died again later.
>
> "Marvin" is its spiritual successor, by far the best enthusiast iOS
> reader at the moment.

I tried that, but I never managed to get it to work so I deleted it again.

Robert Bannister

unread,

Nov 28, 2015, 11:18:31 PM11/28/15

to

I have to agree about the readability of e-ink Kindles, but I'm not
going to change.

Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy

unread,

Nov 28, 2015, 11:57:27 PM11/28/15

to

Greg Goss <go...@gossg.org> wrote in

news:dbv9bs...@mid.individual.net:

Not surprising. Microsoft has never been inclined to update device
drivers for stuff they didn't make. That's the printer's
manufacture's job. And the basic driver architecture has changed
since 1994. A lot. Depending on the brand, there may be generic
driver packages that include that model, or there may not be. It's
very unlikely the manufacturer will bother with updated drivers for
Win10 on a printer that old. You could, however, try their web
site.

Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 12:00:28 AM11/29/15

to

Robert Bannister <rob...@clubtelco.com> wrote in

news:dbvcd6...@mid.individual.net:

> On 28/11/2015 15:54, Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy wrote:
>> Robert Bannister <rob...@clubtelco.com> wrote in
>> news:dbsfe5...@mid.individual.net:
>>
>>> On 27/11/2015 11:42 PM, Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy wrote:
>>>> If you're looking for a general purpose tablet, you can
>>>> ignore e-ink devices. iPad is, as noted, well built and easy
>>>> to use, but it does its best to lock you in to Apple's walled
>>>> garden.
>>>
>>> I suppose it does, but not with ebooks. I have Apple's ibook
>>> reader, Kindle, Google Play, Stanza, Blio and I think one
>>> other that I've forgotten. I try to keep different categories
>>> of books on one reader, for example, I have several hundred
>>> Agatha Christies on Stanza, but Bujold on iBook.
>>
>> They've loosened up. The question then becomes, do you trust
>> them to stay that way? Not that I've ever been part of their
>> market, but I've seen little from Apple to inspire trust.
>>
>
> Well, I don't exactly trust any computer company,

I don't either, but some I distrust far more tha nothers.

> but I've stuck
> with Apple since 1981. I get ratty with them occasionally, but
> not nearly as much as I did with Microsoft during the period of
> my life when I had to use Windows at work.
>

Apple works great so long as you a) don't want to do something they
don't think you should do, like customize the hardware, and b) are
willing to upgrade said hardware from time to time, whether it's
actually worn out or not.

Windows requires more technical skill to keep working correctly,
starting with having enough sense to not click on every link that
waves its penis at you. Many lack that skill.

Greg Goss

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 12:30:49 AM11/29/15

to

Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy <taus...@gmail.com> wrote:
>Greg Goss <go...@gossg.org> wrote in

>> with the Windows 10 free update. Windows 10 seems to be
>> incompatible either with my HP 4L printer, or with the adapter
>> that lets me use it on a parallel port.
>
>Not surprising. Microsoft has never been inclined to update device
>drivers for stuff they didn't make. That's the printer's
>manufacture's job. And the basic driver architecture has changed
>since 1994. A lot. Depending on the brand, there may be generic
>driver packages that include that model, or there may not be. It's
>very unlikely the manufacturer will bother with updated drivers for
>Win10 on a printer that old. You could, however, try their web
>site.

HP wasn't all that hot for drivers either. When I bought it, I had to
use Win 3.1's HP LJ3 drivers because the HP drivers didn't work on the
layout I was using. Win 95 fixed that problem, again by avoiding HP.
Over the years, it seemed like HP built miraculous hardware but always
struggled with software.

I'm always amused at the self-test brag sheet bragging about two
megabytes of embedded memory.

Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 4:03:40 AM11/29/15

to

Greg Goss <go...@gossg.org> wrote in

news:dbvgs2...@mid.individual.net:

> Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy <taus...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>Greg Goss <go...@gossg.org> wrote in
>
>>> with the Windows 10 free update. Windows 10 seems to be
>>> incompatible either with my HP 4L printer, or with the adapter
>>> that lets me use it on a parallel port.
>>
>>Not surprising. Microsoft has never been inclined to update
>>device drivers for stuff they didn't make. That's the printer's
>>manufacture's job. And the basic driver architecture has changed
>>since 1994. A lot. Depending on the brand, there may be generic
>>driver packages that include that model, or there may not be.
>>It's very unlikely the manufacturer will bother with updated
>>drivers for Win10 on a printer that old. You could, however, try
>>their web site.
>
> HP wasn't all that hot for drivers either.

If it's an HP, you're likely screwed. They like to write new
drivers for ever new model, so it's a scad more work to write news
ones for new operating systems.

> When I bought it, I
> had to use Win 3.1's HP LJ3 drivers because the HP drivers
> didn't work on the layout I was using. Win 95 fixed that
> problem, again by avoiding HP. Over the years, it seemed like HP
> built miraculous hardware but always struggled with software.

See above.

Have you looked at optional updates in Windows Updates? Sometimes,
printer drivers will show up there. Or, if it's an undentified
device, there might be a "check Windows Update" option under Update
Drivers in the Device Manager.

>
> I'm always amused at the self-test brag sheet bragging about two
> megabytes of embedded memory.

Heh. My watch has more than that, and no, it's not a smart watch.

Jaimie Vandenbergh

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 8:47:10 AM11/29/15

to

That's excellent, thank you both. I've been USB-loading them, not
emailing via the Amazon address. I shall change my habits!

Cheers - Jaimie
--
A mind stretched by an idea can never go back to its original dimensions.
- Conan Doyle

Jaimie Vandenbergh

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 8:48:35 AM11/29/15

to

Worth a look again for anyone unsatisfied with the font, text size,
spacing and margin options of any other iOS reader.

Cheers - Jaimie
--
"If you're not able to ask questions and deal with the answers without feeling
that someone has called your intelligence or competence into question, don't
ask questions on Usenet where the answers won't be carefully tailored to avoid
tripping your hair-trigger insecurities." - D M Procida, UCSM

Jaimie Vandenbergh

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 8:49:43 AM11/29/15

to

My 5N went incompatible with OSX 10.11, I had to go download the free
Gutenprint driver set to get it working again. To be fair, these are
very very old kit!

Cheers - Jaimie
--
"But people have always eaten people!
What else is there to eat?
If the Juju had meant us not to eat people
He wouldn't have made us of meat!" -- Flanders & Swann

Bill Gill

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 9:37:51 AM11/29/15

to

On 11/28/2015 10:07 AM, Greg Goss wrote:

> Robert Bannister <rob...@clubtelco.com> wrote:
>

>
> Yeah, but we're talking about e-ink versus glowing displays. I know
> that Apple uses power-hungry displays, but can you REALLY read one at
> the beach?
>

I personally don't go to the beach to read. There are better things
to do at the beach. I read at home. Or while I am getting a
treatment at the doctors office.

Bill

Raymond Daley

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 12:08:35 PM11/29/15

to

"Bill Gill" <bill...@cox.net> wrote in message
news:n3a4ui$6j2$2...@dont-email.me...
> I have seen some very good reviews of the Kindle devices, but I have
> also heard that they are pretty much locked into Amazon. If you want
> to add something from another source it can supposedly be frustrating.
>
> Bill

Owner of a 4yr old K3 Kindle here.

Nope, no issues with adding content from other sources unless you mean doing
it from online. They generally aren't huge fans of doing that. The older
Kindles don't like being on the internet much at all. they weren't designed
for it.

Get yourself a decent Android tablet with internet access and load Calibre
(which is free) onto it. That'll open ebooks of pretty much most formats.
You are generally only going to see EPUB, MOBI and PDF anyway.

Bookmark places like Project Gutenberg for free books.

Raymond Daley

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 12:11:00 PM11/29/15

to

"Robert Woodward" <robe...@drizzle.com> wrote in message >
> A thousand books? I might have that many in iBooks and I think my list
> of collections is too long (scrolling, scrolling ...) and the list of
> books in many collections (scrolling, scrolling ...) is also too long.
> Does any E-reader allows collections of collections?

Kindles get a bit angry around the 800-900 books stored mark. They have this
weird indexing thing where the device insists on mkaing a list of all books
on it each time it's fired up. Saps the battery and will annoy you.
Collections of collections. Can't say either way, never tried this.

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 1:19:12 PM11/29/15

to

I suspect that it may be the USB to parallel adapter that's not
showing up. If I do a "find printers" search, nothing at all shows
up. But when I connect a W7 laptop, it works.

Lawrence Watt-Evans

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 1:34:39 PM11/29/15

to

On Sun, 29 Nov 2015 17:09:08 -0000, "Raymond Daley"
<raymon...@ntlworld.com> wrote:

>
>"Robert Woodward" <robe...@drizzle.com> wrote in message >
>> A thousand books? I might have that many in iBooks and I think my list
>> of collections is too long (scrolling, scrolling ...) and the list of
>> books in many collections (scrolling, scrolling ...) is also too long.
>> Does any E-reader allows collections of collections?
>
>Kindles get a bit angry around the 800-900 books stored mark.

Do they? I have maybe 600 on mine and hadn't hit that yet; thanks for
the warning.

--
My webpage is at http://www.watt-evans.com

---
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
https://www.avast.com/antivirus

Bill Gill

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 1:39:52 PM11/29/15

to

I already have Gutenberg bookmarked on my desk top. They definitely
have some of the books that I will be wanting. The Oz books, some
Murray Leinster, Daddy Long Legs, and a bunch more.

Bill

Greg Goss

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 1:42:04 PM11/29/15

to

They've got a lot of H. Beam Piper.

Mike M

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 2:22:48 PM11/29/15

to

If you can jailbreak your Kindle and get its firmware down to about 18
months ago you can use Collections Manager on it (works well with a Calibre
plugin too). The need to go back that far is that Amazon changed the way a
visibility flag works, breaking the nested collections functionality.

I love mine - four level 1 collections breaking the alphabet into sections,
level 2 collections by author, level 3 by series where appropriate and for
a couple of authors, level 4 collections of sub-series (eg Well World,
Amber etc where distinguish groupings exist in the same universe).

There's also a tool to switch off Amazon from auto updating the firmware
once you've got it down to the working level.

--
"In 900 years of time and space, I've never met anyone who wasn't
important."

Sjouke Burry

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 2:42:57 PM11/29/15

to

Why not buy a pci adapter card with a parallel port on it?
It should install the port in the bios.

Greg Goss

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 3:34:59 PM11/29/15

to

Sjouke Burry <burrynu...@ppllaanneett.nnll> wrote:

>> I suspect that it may be the USB to parallel adapter that's not
>> showing up. If I do a "find printers" search, nothing at all shows
>> up. But when I connect a W7 laptop, it works.
>>
>Why not buy a pci adapter card with a parallel port on it?
>It should install the port in the bios.

I'm using a laptop as the "server". Lower power consumption and the
fan turns off when it's not doing much, so no noise emanating from my
closet.

My WiFi router has a printer port on it, but my bedroom doesn't have
any wired internet service.

Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 3:35:50 PM11/29/15

to

Greg Goss <go...@gossg.org> wrote in

news:dc0tsr...@mid.individual.net:

It could be either, as both require drivers.

Have you looked in the device manager to see if it shows up as an
unidentified device?

Robert Bannister

unread,

Nov 29, 2015, 11:03:42 PM11/29/15

to

unread,

Nov 30, 2015, 10:12:28 PM11/30/15

to

On 2015-11-29, Greg Goss <go...@gossg.org> wrote:
> Bill Gill <bill...@cox.net> wrote:
>>On 11/29/2015 11:06 AM, Raymond Daley wrote:
>>> Bookmark places like Project Gutenberg for free books.
>>>
>>I already have Gutenberg bookmarked on my desk top. They definitely
>>have some of the books that I will be wanting. The Oz books, some
>>Murray Leinster, Daddy Long Legs, and a bunch more.
>
> They've got a lot of H. Beam Piper.

Having finished strip-mining them in May, I can say they've got a good deal of
pulp-era stuff and before, including several dozen full SF magazines from the
30s and 40s. Good stuff.

Dave, and the Kobo store has Graydon Saunders, don't forget
--
\/David DeLaney posting thru EarthLink - "It's not the pot that grows the flower
It's not the clock that slows the hour The definition's plain for anyone to see
Love is all it takes to make a family" - R&P. VISUALIZE HAPPYNET VRbeable<BLINK>
http://gatekeeper.vic.com/~dbd/ -net.legends/Magic / I WUV you in all CAPS! --K.

Dorothy J Heydt

unread,

Dec 1, 2015, 1:00:07 AM12/1/15

to

In article <3q6dnfLPmoqHjcDL...@earthlink.com>,

David DeLaney <d...@vic.com> wrote:
>
>Dave, and the Kobo store has Graydon Saunders, don't forget

So does Google Books, which is where I was able to find him.

Heck, the more places he can appear, the more readers. (But not
Kindle.)

--
Dorothy J. Heydt
Vallejo, California
djheydt at gmail dot com

Moriarty

unread,

Dec 1, 2015, 2:04:24 AM12/1/15

to

On Tuesday, December 1, 2015 at 5:00:07 PM UTC+11, Dorothy J Heydt wrote:
> In article <3q6dnfLPmoqHjcDL...@earthlink.com>,
> David DeLaney <d...@vic.com> wrote:
> >
> >Dave, and the Kobo store has Graydon Saunders, don't forget
>
> So does Google Books, which is where I was able to find him.
>
> Heck, the more places he can appear, the more readers. (But not
> Kindle.)

Oh? What's he got against Amazon?

-Moriarty

Dorothy J Heydt

unread,

Dec 1, 2015, 11:45:06 AM12/1/15

to

In article <52d49382-ff1d-407c...@googlegroups.com>,

Not sure. But he emailed me once that (paraphrasing from memory,
can't find the message at the moment) if he published with Kindle
the ghosts of all his ancestors would rise up at the foot of his
bed and haunt him.

After a magnificent Graydonism like that, who's going to ask
"Why?" Not me.

Kevrob

unread,

Dec 1, 2015, 12:04:42 PM12/1/15

to

Perhaps he's from a family of brick-and-mortar booksellers?

Kevin R

Ted Nolan <tednolan>

unread,

Dec 1, 2015, 12:10:39 PM12/1/15

to

In article <b4a6685d-559a-4afc...@googlegroups.com>,

<bullwinkle>Makes it kinda hard to turn the pages!</bullwinkle>
--
------
columbiaclosings.com
What's not in Columbia anymore..

pete...@gmail.com

unread,

Dec 1, 2015, 1:53:39 PM12/1/15

to

Need help? (SFW)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQHX-SjgQvQ

pt

Mark Bestley

unread,

Dec 3, 2015, 5:31:14 AM12/3/15

to

Moriarty <blu...@ivillage.com> wrote:

> On Saturday, November 28, 2015 at 10:34:13 AM UTC+11, Bill Gill wrote:
>
> <snip>
>
> > I had heard of Calibre and was planning to get a copy. That way I
> > can make an archive copy of each book and keep it on an offline
> > storage system. Just one copy and only for archive. Not
> > for distribution.
>
> Regardless of which e-reader you go with, Calibre is a must. Keeping
those DRM-free archived copies of your books is invaluable if your
e-reader is ever lost/stolen/broken.
>

However calibre does not run on a tablet - you need a computer for thet
- could be any though PC, Mac, Linux including cheap Raspberry PI etc

> As noted by Terry, but I'll just emphasise the point, Calibre also lets
> you buy e-books from anywhere and convert them for use on your e-reader of
> choice. So you won't be stuck with purchasing solely from Amazon if you
> get a kindle etc.
>
> -Moriarty

--
Mark

Greg Goss

unread,

Dec 3, 2015, 5:57:03 AM12/3/15

to

news{@bestley.co.uk (Mark Bestley) wrote:

>Moriarty <blu...@ivillage.com> wrote:

>> Regardless of which e-reader you go with, Calibre is a must. Keeping
>those DRM-free archived copies of your books is invaluable if your
>e-reader is ever lost/stolen/broken.
>>
>
>However calibre does not run on a tablet - you need a computer for thet
>- could be any though PC, Mac, Linux including cheap Raspberry PI etc

Hmmm. Why not on a tablet? Android sits on top of Linux, doesn't it?
I haven't done much "computerish" type stuff on my phone or
mini-tablet, but I don't see why it shouldn't work.

Mark Bestley

unread,

Dec 3, 2015, 7:36:26 AM12/3/15

to

Jaimie Vandenbergh <jai...@sometimes.sessile.org> wrote:

> On Sat, 28 Nov 2015 09:06:38 -0700, Greg Goss <go...@gossg.org> wrote:
>
> >My ex-wife was using Stanza to read books from Baen. Then Apple did
> >some kind of upgrade that killed Stanza.
>
> Stanza got bought by Amazon and the dev team dispersed. It was a great
> surprise when it got updated for iOS5, but died again later.
>

Stanza still mostly works on the latest iOS - however Amazon removed it
from the AppStore to not compete with Kindle. (The bits that don't work
are pdfs and for large screen iPhones it only ises part of the screen -
so I suspect not too good ikn iPad but good on my iPhone4S)

> "Marvin" is its spiritual successor, by far the best enthusiast iOS
> reader at the moment.

However even on the latest phone pagfes can bee seen to be drawn and its
font control is not the same as Stanza (Stanza allows you toi set for
all bnooks Marvin differs from book to book so requiring me to make more
changes)

--
Mark

Scott Lurndal

unread,

Dec 3, 2015, 9:11:55 AM12/3/15

to

Calibre is a python application, so all you would need is a
python implementation on android. Such as:

https://github.com/kivy/python-for-android

It appears that this project allows one to create an APK (android package kit)
for a python application such as calibre.

But, it may be sufficient to use something like this, which
downloads from your calibre library on a PC:

http://www.wikihow.com/Get-Calibre-for-Android

Bill Gill

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Dec 3, 2015, 9:17:10 AM12/3/15

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On 11/27/2015 8:15 AM, Bill Gill wrote:
> I am planning to get myself a tablet to use as an E-reader
> for Christmas this year. Any recommendations?
>
> I am almost 80 years old and I expect to be living by myself
> for a long time to come, but you never can tell when I will
> wind up moving into some sort of assisted care facility. When
> I do I won't be able to take my library with me, so I need to
> get ready for the day. And I might as well get a general
> purpose tablet so I can use it for other things.
>
> Of course once I get it the expense will really start. Stocking
> a thousand or more books will run the cost up.
>
> Bill
Ok, after reading everything on here and a bunch of reviews I
went out and bought a Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 8 inch 32Mb tablet
yesterday. Then I came home and downloaded Calibre to my desktop.
So I am just about ready. Now all I have to do is work through
the mating process and start filling the tablet. The filling is
going to take time (and money). Even getting all the free books I
can find there will be a lot of newer books that I will have to
buy.

I'm a little worried about storage on the tablet. Right now I
only have 25 GB available.<G> Of course I can add another 128 GB
with a memory card. And that is another minor problem. The
tablet came with a tool to open the memory drawer. It is a small
tool with a thin tip that is used as a key to open the drawer.
Just insert the tip and it will unlock and come open. How many
times do I expect to use it and where will it be when I do need
to use it? I might be able to use a paper clip, although a paper
clip might be too large. I did file the tool in a safe place where
I can always find it. Shuuure, you can always remember where you put
that sort of thing and go right to it!

Bill

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Dec 3, 2015, 6:08:31 PM12/3/15

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In article <XnsA565949B7A8...@69.16.179.43>,

Gutless Umbrella Carrying Sissy <taus...@gmail.com> wrote:

>news{@bestley.co.uk (Mark Bestley) wrote in
>news:1meunjj.7f5tt9mqhgqaN%news{@bestley.co.uk:
>
>> Moriarty <blu...@ivillage.com> wrote:
>>
>>> On Saturday, November 28, 2015 at 10:34:13 AM UTC+11, Bill Gill
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>> <snip>
>>>
>>> > I had heard of Calibre and was planning to get a copy. That
>>> > way I can make an archive copy of each book and keep it on an
>>> > offline storage system. Just one copy and only for archive.
>>> > Not for distribution.
>>>
>>> Regardless of which e-reader you go with, Calibre is a must.
>>> Keeping
>> those DRM-free archived copies of your books is invaluable if
>> your e-reader is ever lost/stolen/broken.
>>>
>>
>> However calibre does not run on a tablet - you need a computer
>> for thet - could be any though PC, Mac, Linux including cheap
>> Raspberry PI etc
>
>Calibre runs just fine on my tablet. It's a Windows table, mind you,
>but it's a tablet, and Calibre is perfectly happy with it. I expect
>it would run fine on a tablet that runs on Linux rather than Android,
>too.
>

One thing to note is that the DRM killers by Apprentice Alf use some
C level code that gets loaded into Python, or did last time I installed
them. I had to compile it myself on FreeBSD since that's not a supported
platform despite having a full Python installation.