Today only, O’Reilly is running a special on all their Pocket Reference and Pocket Guides. If you use the discount code: DD399 all Pocket References and Pocket Guides are $3.99 each.

I am a big fan of O’Reilly e-books. They are all DRM-free and you get free lifetime access, multiple file formats, free updates. What this means for me, is that I can load it on my Sony Reader for access, and also load them in Aldiko on my Droid X.

Filed in categories: eBook Readers and Gear, News

Tagged: drm-free, e-book

O’Reilly DRM-Free e-book sale originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on December 13, 2010 at 11:20 am.

As relentless as the e-reader trend has become, so to is our quest at the Gadgeteer to provide readers with even more ways to dress up their luxury literary devices. While the sleek, minimalist design of Amazon’s 2^nd generation Kindle happens to be one of it’s most alluring features, sometimes we simply feel the urge to break free from the norm.

Lucky for us, the fine folks at Speck have provided us with a couple of options to make our e-book experience functional and fashionable.

DustJacket for Kindle 2

The DustJacket model resembles that of many book-cover styles on the market, although it comes with a built-in, flip-out reading stand should you need your kindle in an upright, reading position (think train, airplane). Simply open the case, flip the front cover around the back of the device, and pull out the stand (which is attached via Velcro to the inside cover). It’s as easy as that! The device stands up quite easily, although your reading experience may depend on the type of surface your Kindle sits upon. I found that pressing the next page button needed too much force in a stationary position, causing the device to move around.

Another feature I liked about the DustJacket was the inside cover. I own Amazon’s version of the Kindle 2 case, and my one gripe is that the inside cover seems to offer minimal protection should any force be exerted on the device. Speck’s DustJacket, however,  has a thick, plush, micro-fleece lined interior that seems poised for protection.

One drawback to all that extra padding, however, is the size of the case with the Kindle installed (which, by the way, is as simple as popping the Kindle into a pre-molded slot). Considering the sleek profile of Amazon’s reader, the device is rendered into a bulky, day-planner-ish size once the case in installed.  This may appease some, though, as it felt like I was reading an actual book due to the size and weight of the case.

I suppose the verdict comes down to which you prefer more: safety or style? The case is priced at $34 and comes in two styles – Black Leatherette and Red.

Fitted for Style

Speck’s other case is the Fitted model. While the DustJacket brought both form and function to the table, the Fitted model is more about giving your Kindle a makeover.

As the photo illustrates, this case keeps the natural, slim profile of the Kindle while adding a few shots of color/design to the mix. Installation is – literally – a snap. Much like a case for a touch-screen phone, the Fitted model comes in two pieces that snap around the device, leaving all of the navigation keys and keyboard exposed to the user.

The design is simple, but easy on the eyes. Surrounding the white buttons of the Kindle itself is a black shell on the front of the device, leading into a black/white/gray houndstooth pattern on the back.

I have to admit, I’ve always been a guy that is fairly partial to leaving devices as they are. This isn’t to say I don’t want to protect my gadgets – I take good care of them – but part of the beauty, to me, is the aesthetic simplicity of the Kindle. However, after snapping on the Fitted model, seeing the white navigation buttons pop from the black background and feeling the soft, slick look of the houndstooth pattern on the back, I was a bit torn. I really like the look of this case. Perhaps I was getting tired of seeing the monochromatic tones that I once cherished about this device. This was a change – and I liked it.

The Fitted model is $39.95 and comes in three styles: Houndstooth Gray, Speakeasy Black Pinstripe, and Black and White Plaid. Both models in this review can be found on the Speck product page.

Filed in categories: eBook Readers and Gear, Reviews

Tagged: e-book, Kindle, Kindle case

Dress Up Your Kindle With Speck! originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on June 2, 2010 at 11:30 am.

Sony is replacing the 505 and 700 Readers with two new models.

The 300 is essentially a smaller version of the 505. It’s key differences are:

• 5″ screen instead of the 6″ screen of the 505.
• No memory card slots.
• No audio capabilities.
• No picture support (I assume in the books it supports pictures, but does not support individual JPG files).

The 300 is targeted at the low end, and is dubbed the Pocket Edition. It comes in 3 colors and lists for $199.

The 600 replaces the 700 with some adds and subtracts:

• No longer has a sidelight.
• Built-in Oxford American Dictionary.

It has a touch screen and slots for a Memory Stick and SD card just like the 700 and is dubbed the Touch Edition.

I have owned a Sony Reader prs-500 and now use a 700. I bought the 700 for the promise of a built-in light, and that has not been too much of a win. What has hooked me is the touch screen. I will be very interested to see if the 600 improves on the biggest drawback of the 700, the overly reflective screen.

Neither model will have wireless access (a big advantage for the Kindle) but they promise a model in the fall with Wi-Fi and are finally releasing software for the Mac. Previously Sony Library only came for Windows.

I am a big fan of e-books and the Sony Readers, and will hope to get more details later. One advantage of the Sony Readers is that you will be able to check them out in a store. For more information see their press release.

Filed in categories: eBook Readers and Gear, News

Tagged: e-book, Spotlight Gadgets

Sony Announces New e-Book Readers originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on August 5, 2009 at 11:17 am.

Aldiko is a new e-book reader for Android. It is not the first reader for the Android, but it is the first one that has actually stayed on my G1. I asked the developer the origins of the name, and he indicated that it is derived loosely from the Swahili word for book andiko.

Aldiko comes with Sun Tzu’s Art of War and H. G. Well’s The Invisible Man pre-loaded. However, you can browse and load any of the books available on Feedbooks right from the application. The site contains thousands of public domain and creative commons works.

Just so you know where I am coming from, I have used a lot of tools for reading e-books going back to at least my Palm V (and maybe my PalmPilot Personal). On the Palm I used primarily iSilo and eReader (though I did use MobiPocket when it was the only option for DRM books). I have also played with Stanza a little bit on my wife’s iPod Touch. A few years back I received a Sony PRS-500 and recently upgraded to a PRS-700.

Since one of the key features is the ability to download books directly to the phone, let’s start with that. I started right off by downloading Content by Cory Doctorow, since that is what I am currently reading on my 700. It was very easy to find and download.

To download the book:

1. Tap Download Books from the main screen.
   
2. Tap Free Public Domain Books.
3. Tap Authors.
4. Tap first letter of Author’s name and scroll through list.
   
5. Tap on Author.
6. Scroll through Author’s titles.
   
7. Tap the desired title.
   The application displays a thumbnail of the cover, and you can scroll down to see a description:
   
   
8. Tap Download.

Your phone begins to download the book in the background. Once the download is complete, you will get a notice, and it appears in your bookshelf.

If a listed title has already been downloaded, it appears highlighted in green. And at any point you can jump to the home page by bringing up the menu and tapping Home.

While reading your book, You can go to the next page by swiping left across the screen (like turning the page of a book) or taping on the right side of the screen. To go to the previous page you swipe right tap on the left side of the screen, You can control the brightness by swiping up and down the left edge of the screen. You can switch around these options in a number of ways to best suite you preference, but I think most will like the defaults. A small progress bar at the bottom of the screen display how far you are in the current chapter.

From the reading screen, you can open a menu with a number of options:

• Content displays the chapters defined in the book.
  
• Bookmarks allows you to define and use bookmarks in the book.
• Show Progress displays the section you are in, a thumbnail of the cover and a bar displaying the overall progress and the progress within the chapter.
  
• Day/Night toggles between a day time theme (Dark Brown text on Tan by defualt) and a Night them (White text on Black).
  
• Settings has a number of options I will detail below.
• More displays the options for Help (list of navigation keys), Home to return to the Home screen, and Share which opens an e-mail so you can recommend the book (and Aldiko) to a friend.

Settings

• Color Theme. You can set the Font Color, Background Color and Link Color for two themes; Day and Night.
  

• Font & Layout. You can choose the Font Family including Arial, Georgia (default), Courier, Times New Roman and Verdana. You can also choose the point size and weight (Light, Normal, Bold and Bolder). You can select the Line Spacing (1-3, defaults to double-spaced which I did not like) and the horizontal and vertical margin.
  
• Navigation. You can change the navigation keys, the page turn speed and choose whether to display the progress bar.
  
• Brightness. You can set the brightness, and choose the shortcut swipe to set brightness while reading.
  

I am really impressed by this release of the application. It was announced and released June 2nd and has the feel of a very mature application. They seem genuinely interested in hearing feedback from their customers. From the home screen menu you can select Share which dispalays the option to Tell us what you think. Choosing this option sends an e-mail to the company. I sent a message and received a response in less than 2 hours. At this point I have exchanged a number of e-mail messages with the lead developer.

I did have a few issues. I do not like full justification on such a small screen. Full justification is a formatting technique that creates smooth left and right margins. In printed material this can look nice, and sophisticated publishing tools use hyphenation and put micro spaces between letters to make it less noticeable. With the small real estate, and only the ability to add space within words you get this:

Notice the large space on the fourth line of the first paragraph and the claustrophobic spacing of the second line of the second paragraph.

The Feedbooks tie in is great. It provides access to a fabulous selection of public domain and creative commons works, but you have no access to newer copyrighted works. In addition, there is currently no way to import your own ePub files. This prevents you from adding other free works like the ones you can find at the Baen Free Library. In response to my question they did say they were working on adding that. To quote the developer:

We are taking some time to carefully think through the overall user experience to make sure the import process is as intuitive and painless as possible.

Kind of hard to argue with logic like that. And, frankly, using this application it becomes quickly apparent those are not just words. It is very well designed.

Filed in categories: Android related, eBook Readers and Gear

Tagged: e-book, Reader

Aldiko for Android Review originally appeared on The Gadgeteer on June 4, 2009 at 3:00 am.