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Kindle 3 WIFI only worth it for a College Student
Today | Me

Posted on 03/27/2011 7:58:21 PM PDT by Black_Shark

Hey all,

Topic of thread pretty much sums it up. I am a 21 year old college student with an avid love of Economics and reading. I am trying to decide whether to buy the new Kindle for $130 after my 15% discount at Target ( I work there and I have the debit card) or continue buying new books or going to the library. I would love to be able to use it to get old economics textbooks and other genres for cheap!

The WIFI internet also will help me get through Calculus without dying of boredom.

Any Kindle owners that can help me out?

- Black_Shark


TOPICS: Books/Literature; Computers/Internet; Education; History
KEYWORDS:
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To: Ciexyz
The kindle freebies are not limited to old stuff. I always try to keep some of my fantasy novels on amazon for free. It is a good way to introduce readers to your works.

Another plus for ereaders is the ability to search through whatever you are reading, and it is easy to bookmark passages you might want to return to.

Also, although this will probably not pertain to the young, my old eyes find it easier to read text on an ereader than a book. Plus you can change the font if your eyes are getting tired.

21 posted on 03/27/2011 8:42:59 PM PDT by Marak (I don't deal with reality.)
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To: Black_Shark

Get a Nook Color and root it. You’ll get a reader and a tablet all in one. It really is a deal too good to pass up. They go on sale on the B&N eBay store every now and then for $200 + shipping.


22 posted on 03/27/2011 8:52:13 PM PDT by SengirV
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To: Black_Shark

First off, I have the Kindle 2, not the 3. The size of the readable area on the Kindle 2 is relatively small compared with your average textbook. Plus any sort of pictures or diagrams are illegible. Plus, check and see what books are available for it, as many books are not.


23 posted on 03/27/2011 8:53:37 PM PDT by Scutter
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To: DeFault User

I would love to borrow one but I don’t know anyone who has one. I guess I could try the local library or my school’s library.

If I could try one out for a few days, that would help ease my mind over spending $130 which, for a college student, is quite a bit of money for one purchase. It also doesn’t help that I am quite anal about spending money as it is.


24 posted on 03/27/2011 8:54:01 PM PDT by Black_Shark
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To: Marak

Fantasy? What type of fantasy? If it’s anything remotely similar to Dragonlance, you may have a new reader! :]


25 posted on 03/27/2011 8:55:42 PM PDT by Black_Shark
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To: Weirdad

Your correct in that $130 is cheaper than most of my textbooks (Sociology comes to mind...) but I am done with the General Education requirements section of my degree and am now taking solely math/econ courses.

Are there many economics based books for free on the Kindle? I am assuming that Wealth of Nations is free and the book that you mentioned sounds fascinating.


26 posted on 03/27/2011 9:00:30 PM PDT by Black_Shark
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To: Black_Shark

It’s epic fantasy. Look for Young Lord of Khadora at amazon, B&N or almost anywhere. It’s free right now so you can give it a spin and see if it is for you. If you like Dragonlance, I think you will enjoy it.


27 posted on 03/27/2011 9:03:53 PM PDT by Marak (I don't deal with reality.)
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To: MississippiMan
It displays one PDF page at a time, which makes for some tiny text.

This is true, but it's possible to zoom into an area of a PDF page. It's also easy to convert a PDF to MOBI, resolving this problem.

For textbooks with diagrams, equations and illustrations, it might be a good idea to get the larger Kindle - the Kindle DX or whatever.
28 posted on 03/27/2011 9:09:33 PM PDT by AnotherUnixGeek
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To: Black_Shark
For the heck of it. I am posting this reply with the Kindle. The keys are small. But it can be done.
29 posted on 03/27/2011 9:29:13 PM PDT by DeFault User
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To: Black_Shark

I tried the PC Kindle version (free) before I bought one. Here is the link to download:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_pc_mkt_lnd?docId=1000426311


30 posted on 03/27/2011 9:45:05 PM PDT by DeFault User
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To: Weirdad
I have the Kindle DX.

I have been (slowly) raiding the Mises, Hayek, and Rothbard libraries published by the Von Mises Institute.

At the moment, I'm rereading Theory And History, having given my hardback to a friend around twenty years ago.

31 posted on 03/27/2011 9:51:46 PM PDT by Erasmus (I love "The Raven," but then what do I know? I'm just a poetaster.)
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To: Black_Shark

See my #31, above.


32 posted on 03/27/2011 9:53:41 PM PDT by Erasmus (I love "The Raven," but then what do I know? I'm just a poetaster.)
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To: SengirV

The Nook Color is a terrific device, especially for the price.


33 posted on 03/27/2011 9:59:38 PM PDT by Wallop the Cat
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To: Weirdad
Thanks. I, too, snagged a free PDF of Tiger by the Tail.
34 posted on 03/27/2011 10:02:29 PM PDT by AZLiberty (Yes, Mr. Lennon, I do want a revolution.)
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To: Black_Shark

Buy the book color and root it. You get a 250 dollar android tablet. Love mine and a great reader.


35 posted on 03/27/2011 10:04:54 PM PDT by Centurion2000 (Any economy based on Keynesian principles and practices are always ponzi/pyramid schemes.)
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To: Black_Shark

Buy the Kindle. You’ll love it.


36 posted on 03/27/2011 10:10:07 PM PDT by elhombrelibre ("I'd rather be ruled by the Tea Party than the Democratic Party." Norman Podhoretz)
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To: Black_Shark

For what you are looking to use it, I’d save up for an iPad or get a laptop. You can use Kindle For PC to download any Kindle book and have all the other eReaders, too with a laptop.

As one other comment said, diagrams suck on the Kindle, you can’t ever get them big enough to read.

I also use my Kindle only for pleasure reading, my current events and history books are tree pulp that I can mark up.

The browsing capability is not that great.

Bottom line, Kindle for pleasure reading, laptop for all those other activities.


37 posted on 03/27/2011 10:12:44 PM PDT by FrogMom (There is no such thing as an honest democrat!)
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To: AnotherUnixGeek

I was given a Kindle 3 wifi yesterday. Docs say it does not read ePub format. Uncovenverted pdfs are marginal


38 posted on 03/27/2011 10:30:53 PM PDT by sionnsar (IranAzadi|5yst3m 0wn3d-it's N0t Y0ur5:SONY|http://pure-gas.org|Must be a day for changing taglines)
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To: Wallop the Cat

Kindle 3 is the best e-reader device out there. I did a comparison against the Nook and it wins hands-down.


39 posted on 03/27/2011 10:55:33 PM PDT by Extremely Extreme Extremist (Luke ScottWalker - The Force Is With You)
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To: Black_Shark

I learned alot about the Kindle by reading user reviews of the devices on Amazon.com. Generally, the reviewers said PDF’s have to be read landscape orientation in order for the text to be visible in size (you cant adjust the text size of a PDF). Diagrams in books or PDF’s would be generally difficult to see.
You can look up specific economic’s book titles on Amazon and see if a kindle version is available. Look at the prices of kindle books versus used etc.
I have only had the kindle for a few days and right now, I love it. I find I take it out and read it when I have just 10 minutes or less for a coffee break. I downloaded free books (public domain) on Amazon so you may want to see what’s available there free to see if it has titles you like. I have read Amazon reviews that say the browser is clunky. But you don’t have to have a Kindle device to read kindle books if you have an ITouch, iPad, Blackberry or computer because Amazon makes free Kindle apps for those devices. I’ve used the free Amazon Kindle software on my PC so if you want to look at technical books or diagrams - you are more likely to have enough screen size if you buy a netbook or notebook. Kindle’s strong suit is for people who like to read everywhere and anywhere and want the best ‘paper’ to read from - other devices are harder on the eyes because of the backlight shiny screen. The kindle has the best looking characters on the page that are easier on the eyes. The Nook is in color but again you have that shiny screen. Good luck.


40 posted on 03/27/2011 11:12:09 PM PDT by ransomnote
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