Amazon Kindle

sorry if this has been asked before......
does anyone use a kindle for reading pdf's which contains lots of equations/images. I've a load of engineering books/documents in pdf that i want to read without having to sit at a pc/netbook.
Looks as though I may need a tablet pc?

Mark

clefty, no invites I'm afraid.

markyp, the problem I found with computer science PDFs is that ALL PDF readers treat a page as an image, so none can zoom except to zoom the whole page.

It's a problem for the Kindle as it doesn't really have zoom... it has resize font. But resize font doesn't resize images beyond the screen size, and that means that even setting the largest font won't actually zoom a PDF.

I just buy computer science hard backs or read PDFs on my laptop (IPS display makes text nice). I thought about iPad and an Android tablet, but both have really crappy PDF reader software and my laptop already has better software (keeping tabs of where I've read up to, navigation, note taking).

Example of the kind of computer science PDF I read: http://web4.cs.ucl.ac.uk/staff/D.Barber/textbook/090310.pdf - 610 pages, 12.8MB

show off

It's not actually that hard to read. Don't be put off by the notation, it's just shorthand and nothing more.

I know, I have a degree in Computer Science from a university so prestigious that mentioning its name on this forum led to a threat of physical harm from one 'Torpid Construct'.

That pdf is now on my Kindle for reading whilst doing protracted poos. Thanks.

mmmmm....my favourite bit was the analysis of coal mining disasters. The change in the law in 1890 would trigger a change in the accident rate...well, duh!!!!

:-)

M

Example of the kind of computer science PDF I read: http://web4.cs.ucl.ac.uk/staff/D.Barber/textbook/090310.pdf - 610 pages, 12.8MB

still havent got round to buying one yet, div-ing about between the cheap one and the expensive one.
I cant imagine i will use the 3g that much, but i do like the idea of text-to-talk for lazyness, but i also like the idea of £60 in my pocket.

Ho Hum, im sure i will just get the 3g and be done with it.

That pdf is now being printed to use as backup dunny paper after doing protracted poos. Thanks.

I knew it had a use.

Whether you need the 3G depends on usage - whilst most of us tend to have frequent access to a computer on which we can browse Amazon and buy the books from there (or transfer from other sources by USB/Wireless), there is no denying the pleasure of lying on a sunbed in Crete, as I did last year, and deciding to see whether the 3G would work (it defaults to EDGE in non 3G areas), by buying the next book in a series directly from the Kindle (there was no wireless or any internet access where we were staying).

My mum absolutely loves it as well, her Kindle is linked to my account as she does not have a computer or internet, and in between when I load her up with a load of books via USB, she has now worked out how to buy books directly via the Kindle. Which was initially a shock as I got an email thanking me for my order ..... ;) now she just bungs me £20 every so often to cover her purchases - and we have similar taste in books so I get to read them later anyway.

Going to be using my kindle a lot more in the coming year I feel. Normally read before bed but since I'll be getting the bus to work I'll be using it much more.

Working my way through a lot of books at the moment too!

I was reading 2-3 books a week before i got my kindles - now up to 4 a week! I resisted getting one for ages as i love collecting hardcopies, but an irate Mrs and running out of space prompted the switch (i have 2000+ books).

Love it, though i need to stop drunk purchasing books

her Kindle is linked to my account as she does not have a computer or internet,

Two kindles on one account? Interesting...

Two kindles on one account? Interesting...

You can have up to 5, be it actual kindle or phone, pc etc...

Great if you all read similar books as they will all get a copy

I dont' think 5 is a hard limit unless it's for physical kindles. I have 12 apps registered to my account as well as two kindles.

Is your real name Argus?

One problem with 3G / Wifi Kindle is that they do not automatically switch from wifi to 3g when the configured wifi is not available.

This was a problem as I was in an area with no wifi at all, and would be a problem if there was only protected wifi.

To get round this you need to override the default setting of 'automatic' for selecting which wifi connection to use and manually select the correct 3G one.

This can take several time consuming iterations. But instructions are here.

Luckily I found what to do on my blackberry as that was the only internet connection i had available.

Yep, if you have a wifi only Kindle (which the new, smaller one is) and your phone is able to create a mobile wifi hotspot, then I can confirm that this does work for downloading. The files are quite small as well so not like it is going to whack your data plan (unless you are roaming abroad).

Is it possible to set the wireless to switch off after a period of inactivity? I can't find a way to, but want to protect my battery life.

Would love to have that, bit annoyed to turn on my Kindle and find out the battery is now something like 10% left...

You can't find a spare moment over the month to plug it in for a quick charge?

Remember your old Nokia phone that last for eons?

I got into the habit of no longer worrying about the battery life depleting quickly like those smartphone, that I forget to keep an eyes out on the battery till it's knocking on death's door.

Turned my kindle on yesterday must have left it on for a while in my laptop bag as it was on reserve power :(

Read a little then charged it in bed as I was reading from it. Your right It's not that hard at all to remember.

If you switch off 3G/wireless, the battery last for much longer. Only connect when downloading.

Yep, but remembering to turn it off again when I have a new book to read is sometimes a fail.