Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Kindle



I've always been a bit behind the curve when it comes to adapting new technology.  For about a year now I have been thinking about the Kindle ebook reader.  I had not seen one of these things in real life until the other day when I came upon the display in an office supply store.  As I played with the simple controls of the display unit I was impressed with the user-friendliness of the device and clarity of the screen.  As luck would have it the store was offering a sale and I walked with my new Kindle for twenty dollars less than the advertised price.

The curmudgeon in me used to say I like paper books I don't need another infernal electronic gadget.  In my first week I have finished two books and have three others started.  I can unequivocally say that I love this thing.  Being able to change the font and size of the type is an incredible feature.  One-handed operation is a breeze allowing me to eat popcorn or smoke my pipe while reading.  And believe it or not I don't know everything so I find the on board dictionary and ability to quickly look up the definition of a word a godsend.  In the summertime I do a lot of reading on the patio and I used to hate when the wind turned the pages of an old-timey paper book before I was done reading.  A problem no more!

All of these things have quickly won me over and stole the wind from the crusty curmudgeon's sails.  I purchased the Kindle with the hopes that it's convenience would encourage me to read more and it certainly has.  With the features offered by the Kindle and a good book downloaded it seems easier than ever to lose myself in the movie in my head as the virtual pages effortlessly click by.

       



4 comments:

  1. I'm right behind you. I have seen the benefits, but haven't quite been able to sell the Mrs. on it yet.

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  2. Hi Nate, You will love it! Here's the pitch: The old books -anything published before 1933 are in the public domain so many of the classics like Dickens, Mark Twain, etc. are available for free download. Even if you went to the dollar store or the bargain bins at the bookstore and paid 3$ a piece for the paper versions you would still have to store them. Once you've downloaded enough free stuff you have pretty much recouped your monies spent on the thing.

    And Amazon keeps a virtual copy of every title you buy from them so if you lose your device or it breaks you still have access to your books.

    Win-win as I see it.

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  3. Hey, Mike. Yep, I think I'm getting close. The selling point for my wife I think is the space issue. No more of my old books lying around. I've already been collecting a bunch of ebooks waiting for the day that I get the green light.

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  4. In the same category of the bicycle, duct tape, and velcro. A great invention!

    I find myself reading more now than ever before...

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