Kindle Users! We want your input!

This is a forum to discuss specific questions, thoughts and issues raised in the books (paper and electronic) that are part of The Collected Works of Joseph Campbell.

Moderator: David_Kudler

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How do your read Kindle files?

On a Kindle/Kindle DX
12
55%
On a smart phone or iPod
2
9%
On an iPad
5
23%
On my computer
3
14%
Kindle? We don't have to show you no stinking Kindle!
0
No votes
 
Total votes: 22

David_Kudler
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Kindle Users! We want your input!

Post by David_Kudler »

We are very excited with the response that our ebooks have received, both here on JCF.org as well as on commercial vendors, including Amazon's Kindle Store.

One of the things that we didn't anticipate in uploading our books to Amazon was that they would charge a "transport fee" for each download of US$0.15 per megabyte. Now, some of our ebooks are heavily illustrated; these fees can take a healthy bite (or byte) out of the revenue that we're able to collect for selling online in order to pay for converting further works to ebook form.

The Kindle itself displays only 16 shades of grey, though Kindle apps for computers and other devices display color. This matters because our color images display much more--and therefore take up much more room, which costs us.

Here's our question: if you read ebooks downloaded from Amazon, how do you read them? And if you don't mind, answer this question below: do color images make any difference for you?

ETA: I just wanted to point out that any action we take will not affect the ePub files that we distribute to the iBookstore, Nook Store, Google Ebooks, or any other vendor, nor will it affect the .mobi files that we offer through our contributions area. Just the .mobi files that are sold from the Kindle Store.
Last edited by David_Kudler on Mon Aug 29, 2011 2:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
David Kudler<br>Publications<br>Joseph Campbell Foundation<br>publications at jcf dot org

catswithguns
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Post by catswithguns »

I have a Kindle gathering dust around here somewhere. iPad 2 is my favorite reader. I think both iBooks and the Kindle app are great. Please keep the color images and switch to ePub format if it saves JCF revenue.

Thanks for all your efforts!

David_Kudler
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Post by David_Kudler »

catswithguns wrote:I have a Kindle gathering dust around here somewhere. iPad 2 is my favorite reader. I think both iBooks and the Kindle app are great. Please keep the color images and switch to ePub format if it saves JCF revenue.

Thanks for all your efforts!
Thanks!

We already sell ePub files--both here and on every other vendor where we offer our ebooks... except Amazon. They are the only vendor that exclusively uses the mobi file format that was created for PalmPilots over a decade ago: it's okay for text (though it doesn't handle any text formatting beyond what was available on WordStar back in the pre-Macintosh day) and can't do color images at all.

For your iPad, definitely ePubs are the way to go! They can be read in a number of ereader apps--including Apple's iBooks, which I quite like.

mchuge
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Post by mchuge »

I recently picked up a Barnes and Noble Nook which is geared for epub. Have you all looked at selling through B&N and/or the Apple Store?
Associate Editor on The Historical Atlas of World Mythology

David_Kudler
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Post by David_Kudler »

mchuge wrote:I recently picked up a Barnes and Noble Nook which is geared for epub. Have you all looked at selling through B&N and/or the Apple Store?
Thanks! Indeed, we already sell the ePub versions of our ebooks on iBookstore, B&N's Nook Store, the Google Ebook Store, and the Kobo Bookstore; the Sony Reader Store is coming soon!

Or, of course, you can donate here, and download the ebooks directly. ;)
David Kudler<br>Publications<br>Joseph Campbell Foundation<br>publications at jcf dot org

CarmelaBear
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Post by CarmelaBear »

Where hard copies had been available, I had already read the books in that form before I started to read the digital versions. When I was first introduced to the material and I was reading text on paper, illustrations and photos were crucial for understanding the text. However, when I read his lectures or the new material, the illustrations are less necessary for understanding, partly because I already have some background.

I really enjoy using the Kindle. I may be shopping for a tablet this year, but I'm putting it off for the moment while I adjust to this new way of reading.

With the Kindle, it would be nice to have a no-illustration version available to avoid the extra bytes. Because it is a review for me, I don't need the graphics as much any more.

Also, what's ePub? Hard to keep up with all the new terms.

Excellent work, as always.

:)
Once in a while a door opens, and let's in the future. --- Graham Greene

Ercan2121
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Post by Ercan2121 »

CarmelaBear wrote:Where hard copies had been available, I had already read the books in that form before I started to read the digital versions.
read, reread and kept in a safe place for future reference :)

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Post by CarmelaBear »

Ercan2121 wrote: read, reread and kept in a safe place for future reference :)
will do

:!:
Once in a while a door opens, and let's in the future. --- Graham Greene

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Post by Ercan2121 »

I tried Android for long months. Great applications, faster surfing, faster
downloads and so on. But I cannot say that books on electronic media
can become attractive for bookworms who like to spend hours in a library or
in old bookshops :?

CarmelaBear
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Post by CarmelaBear »

Ercan2121 wrote:I tried Android for long months. Great applications, faster surfing, faster
downloads and so on. But I cannot say that books on electronic media
can become attractive for bookworms who like to spend hours in a library or
in old bookshops :?
The world is big enough for all the technologies.
Once in a while a door opens, and let's in the future. --- Graham Greene

Ercan2121
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Post by Ercan2121 »

Electronic books don’t grow old, they don’t smell like ‘grass, with a tang of acidity and a hint of vanilla’ (old book aroma as depicted by scientists) and they’re not connected to 'Wood’ (Mù) in terms of Taoist philosophy. This makes them truly virtual, a little like
virtual gâteaux :!: :(

JoeGatto
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Post by JoeGatto »

You could make a less expensive plain text version for all the books, and even convert the PDFs into eBooks for Kindle in plain text. Then, sell a more expensive version w/ high quality photos for Apple iBooks

CarmelaBear
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Post by CarmelaBear »

Try everything, David. Choose when and how you release the work according to the intitial response you get. The less expensive experiments can tell you what to expect. If the no-frills digital ones did well, the fancy kind should have some traction.

The problem is trying out one title with all the bells and whistles as a market test. I know one can't risk the farm, but by giving it a go, you might anticipate the demand for the more expensive versions. That's what I'm planning with my own e-book. Even when you can get it on the air, the promotions are a real challenge.

We already know that the PBS Power of Myth series was a rousing success. It would be great to see someone on the latest Moyers program who could provide an update on the Joe Campbell magic.

:arrow:
Once in a while a door opens, and let's in the future. --- Graham Greene

Persephonespring
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Post by Persephonespring »

I use my iPad to read. I've downloaded all the JC books on Amazon while I've been away from my books.

For those of us who are book-a-holics (Hi, my name is Jan), digital reading becomes a necessity with traveling, and being charged extra for too much weight, imo.

I have figured out how to cut and paste the books now.....I love it, my quotes can be accurate!

Jan
Might be a drop in a bucket, but, as I like to say, no drops, no ocean. :-) Clemsy

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Post by SunSinger »

I dislike reading books on the screen. However, as one ages, the type faces in printed books are often too small or too light on the page for older eyes. Price is another part of the equation for those of us in our retirement years.

I use the free Kindle for PC to read books I could not otherwise afford and/or which have hard-to-read print type fonts and/or that are of such transitory interest that seeing what they're about at a lower price is the only way I'll take a look.

With this in mind, I was a bit disappointed when Campbell's short fiction wasn't released on Kindle. Yes, I would prefer to have the book on my shelf, but for a retired person the cost (plus lack of any more bookshelf space in the house) are considerations.

Presumably this book is primarily text and shouldn't incur extra costs on Amazon for the use of space-hogging graphics.

Malcolm
When the eagle flies, I'll be home.

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