A perfect afternoon with my kindle, under the umbrella on Maui’s Ka’anapali Beach.
The Lady gave me a great Christmas gift in 2010. It changed the way I read.
It was a Kindle 3, with the ability to download and store more books then I need.
I am a voracious reader.
Prior to December 25, 2010, when I went on a business trip, I had to carry many paperbacks with me so that I had enough books to read while I was gone. If I was going to be out for several days … I carried several books. Four books was kind of my default. If I needed more than six books, I would take six and buy the rest at airports along the way.
But there was a better way.
With the kindle, I could buy books when I wanted, load them wirelessly, and read at my leisure.
I stopped buying paper books in 2011. I was not alone: Amazon.com is now the leading book retailer, and in 2014 they had a 65% share of electronic books.
I love my kindle. And then … one day, it wouldn’t wake up. I charged it. I searched for online solutions. I took it apart. I charged it again. Nothing worked. My kindle was not dead – the screen still had the screensaver – but it would not boot.
No kindle for my next trip.
Luckily, I had recently upgraded my smartphone, and part of my new package was Samsung tablet … and I quickly found a kindle app for that. I downloaded all of my books, and I was ready for my trip. Got to LAX, checked my bag … which had my tablet in it. I realized 3 minutes too late that my perfect plan for reading on my tablet was done for.
Plan B: I could read on my smartphone. Again, I had an app for that. And, come to find out, the smartphone automatically synced my titles in the Amazon cloud, so I always had an electronic bookmark in the book I was reading, whether I was reading on my tablet or the smartphone.
Come to find out, 5 year old technology (kindle 3) is sometimes not as good as new tech. My reading experience is now MUCH better, as I seamlessly move from smartphone to tablet & back again.
It’s good to learn new things … like how to read. Can’t imagine what I’ll learn next!
Your hunger for words, I’m sure, was inherited from your Mother!! Readers are great people!! Have you tried Audio Books, I have one going in my car all the time–Love them!!
I’ve never done audio books. I don’t drive much distance these days … and back when I was commuting, my job was about running the sales department for a radio trade press publisher, so radio was a focus. A big focus!
I don’t drive all that much, however I get a page or two in daily, and it works for me. Needing to focus on the radio wouldn’t work too well for you. Yes, you definitely are a second generation reader!! 🙂
My sister recently got a tablet. It was good for reading, but not for running credit card transactions. So after researching I suggested she get an Ipad. She now has her ebooks on both devices and is able to read the series she enjoys in order. I’m so glad it worked out for her!