Here are a couple of observations on Kindle DX after having been using the device for several months now. My basic impression: It's a very nice device, but would be MUCH better through only a handful of small and simple improvements:
1. PAGE NUMBERS: Notoriously, Kindle does not display the page numbers of the print version, only locations. Technically, it should not be difficult to indicate page numbers. Other electronic reading devices like the Sony reader do so. It sounds like a minor detail, but it isn't. Its major. I am a political scientists and I need to cite texts with precision. What I cannot cite properly is useless for me. Besides, it would be much easier to jump between pages than between chapters and stratospheric locations. Too, you could offer one size format that corresponds exactly to the print version.
2. FILING SYSTEM: The absence of a filing system is a continual insult to my sense of order. Its like piling up a whole library on one desk. I would be most grateful if Amazon could update the Kindle software to enable readers to store books in as many folders as they need. Something simple like Windows Explorer would suffice.
3. AVAILABILITY: The number of e-Books available from Amazon is still very small. I can find a Kindle edition of only one in 30 books I'm interested in. Availability is poorer still in other languages, like German, French or Spanish. Even for major Nobel-prize winning authors no or only very few Kindle editions are available. Not to speak of the social sciences.
Two footnotes: (a) Some Kindle books are not available outside the US, which is annoying. (b) Previously, Amazon still offered the option to indicate that one would like read certain books as Kindle books. Now, this possibility is regrettably gone.
4. FORMAT: Kindle editions look like ugly, somewhat neglected cousins of their print versions. A bit like second-rate books. Almost everything appears in one boring standard font. Unedited texts contain numerous tiny errors, like erroneous superscripts, uneven line spaces, or misplaced hyphens. Often, illustrations or photographic material cannot be displayed.
5. PRIZE: Given the lower quality of electronic editions, prizes should be at least somewhat lower than paper back editions. In my view, Kindle books that cost more, some of them even as much as hardcover editions, are over-prized. I refuse to buy them.
6. ELECTRONIC DUPLICATES: I would be nice to have electronic duplicates of many of the paper books I have bought over the years at Amazon. I dont know how far back you keep records of customer purchase, but Amazon might consider the possibility of selling Kindle books at special prices if customers have bought paper copies with you at some earlier point in time.
7. LENDING: One can't lend Kindle books to friends, and not even give them away as a gift. Like many other costumers, I deplore this. It devalues electronic books from Amazon.
8. UNDERLINING: Underlining is slightly awkward, often a bit slow and with recurrent minor malfunctions. Besides, it could be improved by additional functions, like the possibility of underlining whole sentences with one click. It also contains one small, but annoying fault: Kindle underlines not just words, but grammatical signs, which is often unwanted and looks miserable. Graphically, underlines look worse than they might. They are a bit too fat and lie a bit too low.
9. MENU: The menu should contain at least two additional options: go to endnotes (or footnotes). And: go to references. Jumping from text to notes or references and back often does not work properly.
10. BATTERY CHARGING: The cable for charging Kindle is one of its best parts. Its really cute and serves well for other electronic devices too. Still it would be nice to have Solar Kindle that charges itself by exposure to solar energy.
11. WEIGHT: Kindle DX is heavier that I had expected. Heavier than many of the books I read. If it were slightly lighter, I would appreciate it.
12. HANDLING: There are no obvious ways holding Kindle DX in ones hands. Often I find myself struggling to hold it in a way that would not interfere with the right-hand buttons. You might consider adding some gripped surfaces or small indentations that make it more comfortable holding it freely.
13. NON-RESPONSE: I sent a previous version of these observations to Kindle DX Feedback by e-mail, but except for a standard note of acknowledgment have received no specific response. Which is a pity.
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