However I feel entitled of having a copy of those books in electronic format. Very slowly, I’m looking for .epub files and storing these in a hard drive.
Now, say I want to read one of them on an e-ink device. Which one is going to allow me to load these files without going through proprietary stores (I’m not going to pay twice for something I already own) or jailbreaking the device?
I simply want to spend x$ and have something which will last for a long time.
Of course you want a good way of organizing epubs pdfs mobi, and like has already been mentioned Calibre[5] is a great option.
[2] https://pocketbookstore.com/en-ca
[3] https://github.com/koreader/koreader
As others have said, Kobos support many formats (including epub) out of the box via a USB cable. Kobo has some color ereaders coming out the end of this month as well, if that's something that appeals to you. My brief experience with color eink displays is very positive, and I'm considering purchasing one as well, despite owning a Kindle already.
Really nice device and the price is good too.
I've never connected mine to the internet. I just use it as a giant USB stick with a screen.
Not that I've needed to, but you can take it apart and increase the storage too!
I'll probably get a new one, but it occurred to me, with all the current excess electronics I have now on my desk (everything from PIC18Fs, esp32s to SBCs running Linux), the only thing I am missing to make my own e-reader is a large and cheap e-ink display.
Any recommendations for a large-ish e-ink display that doesn't cost an arm and a leg?
E ink programming isn't fun. If this is about the journey, go for it, but the results won't be optimal
That's the problem I ran into the last time I looked at this - it was cheaper to buy an e-reader at retail prices than just the display at retail prices[1].
I was only wondering if the prices have fallen yet (seems like they have not). There's a bunch of low-power applications with large displays that I could do with an e-ink display.
[1] I don't really understand why the displays are as expensive as they are. It could just be that the e-readers are sold at a loss, and the manufacturer makes a profit some other way (with Amazon, they make their profit on the books, not sure about the others).
Anyway, I've heard calibre is good. I've never used it though
I really loved the experience of reading Kindle, especially Kindle Keyboard. It was amazing experience compared to physical books because I had all my books on it, I could also send blogs & articles to it. Physical page turn buttons were easier to use than turning a page but also provided satisfying tactile feedback. The real keyboard was really useful for taking notes.
And when I was tired of holding it, text to speech was good enough to listen to a few chapters. Text to speech was also great when I was reading, it kind of helped me read faster and I remembered what I read longer.
Sadly, after my Kindle Keyboard died, I end up buying new Kindle. the reading experience on it was not as great but I had spent so much money on e-books. So I kept it.
But now I have kids. I don't want them to see me on another device which to them is same as phone/ipad. Also all books are on it, there is no way to turn on child mode on Kindle before handing it to them.
So now I only buy physical books. They are easy to share, I can easily see from distance what books my kids are reading, they cannot accidentally purchase tons of books, and if one book is damaged, it is just one book.
My kindle is incredible. Wonderful screen, easy to pay money to read the books I want when I want.
I don’t get the people who fetishize printed books. I like reading, I don’t like books.
If I want the book smell, I’ll buy a scented candle lol.
I can't imagine myself holding a kindle or any other tablet-like reading device and reading books that way, unless a book I want to read is somehow prohibitively expensive (which again comes down to what I said in my first comment, money.)
Plus, I can't build a nice, physical library with a bunch of pdf and epub files. You might say that having a physical library is stroking one's ego a bit, which I agree with, but hey, it's an ability that's exclusive to physical books and not electronic files stored in some drive. And so is using books to prop stuff up, but that's mostly used with books one thinks are not of good quality and don't deserve to be read/read again.
I have a Kindle Paperwhite, but it seems like the following of what I'm going to say applied to all modern ereaders.
The screens looks fantastic. The way in which they replicate the visual appearance of paper is surprisingly good.
Reading in the dark. They have excellent backlights and warm lights that you can configure. Reading in bed was always kind of a pain for me since I needed a separate light, but an ereader is a standalone situation. It's fantastic for reading on a plane for that reason as well.
Size and weight. I read a lot of software books that are 10"x7" (I believe that's the standard size for a lot of them) and they can get bulky to hold and carry around when you're not just reading at home. This is especially true if I'm commuting on a train or traveling. When I travel, I read more than usual, so I'd always bring another book. Having two 10"x7" books that are around 400-500 pages each is a real travel burden. My ereader has _so_ many books, including my primary reading at the time, all for probably less than 200 grams.
Selection. This one is more niche, but the reason I was initially excited when I was given a Kindle was that a book that I've wanted to read for a while only had a short run of English translations and the paperback ran around $120. The ebook was $10. It ended up being a fantastic story that got me back into reading fiction.
I also read several books at the same time and carrying one Kindle is easier than carrying around a stack of books.
I usually read lying on my side and that means that every second page I have to hold half the book hovering in the air which gets tiring.
An ebook is way more convenient. I can lie in one position and it doesn't change, and I don't spend half my time changing pages and getting comfortable again.
Also they have built-in backlights so I don't have to light up the whole room to be able to read.
