Kindle

I must admit that I am not a gadgets man. I imagine that this is because I am (at times) a computer programmer and so am more interested in programmable devices than those that are set up to provide one function. Also, my close eyesight is slowly getting worse, meaning that I can't see these small devices properly in order to operate them.

Despite the above, I have decided to buy an Amazon Kindle. Introducing the new 'Fire' model has caused the simpler models to be reduced in price, so much so that the basic, international Kindle edition now costs 'only' $109 (Americans can buy an even cheaper version which displays adverts). I priced this model being sent to Israel; shipping and taxes cause the price to double which seems to be extremely uneconomic. But it so happens that a relative of a friend will shortly be coming to Israel, and said relative is amenable to bringing the Kindle with her.

A colleague told me that his daughter in law, who lives in Israel, has a Kindle, so I phoned her and asked what it is like using the device in Israel. I was worried that the download mechanism (via wifi) wouldn't work, or that there would be some restriction because I would be using an American bought device in Israel (so does she). It turns out that my fears were unfounded.

The pricing of Kindle books seems to be slightly erratic, but even if a book costs 10-12 dollars,  this might be cheaper than buying from the Book Depository. For example, I am considering buying 'Blink' by Malcolm Gladwell. The Kindle version costs $11.29, whereas the same book at the Book Depository would cost only $8.75 (there are several editions available, but that is the cheapest). On the other hand, 'What the dog saw' by the same author costs $13.84 at the Book Depository but $11.99 for the Kindle.

Buying e-books means that my shelves will cease to be overloaded with books, and also means less trees will be destroyed (although I imagine that books will still be printed and my minor contribution will be meaningless).

One is not limited to the Kindle store; there are other sources of PDF files, mainly free, which can be mined (the Kindle can read PDFs). There is Project Gutenberg, which has classic books available for free, but I have read that many people download the classics then never read them. I am also hoping that my MBA course materials will be available in PDF form, so that I can read them anywhere, but this seems to be unlikely.

There seems to be a bug with the Amazon Associates gadget, which would have enabled me to post a link to the Kindle and to the other books.