# Used free.kindle.com and it worked!



## RavenclawPrefect

I decided to try sending a PDF through the free.kindle.com and it worked! I was able to transfer it correctly to my Kindle...woo hoo! Tomorrow, I am going to unhack the screensaver, install the update and rehack it...hopefully.

Thank you all for posting such wonderful tips to technically challenged folks like me


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## dollcrazy

I'm glad it worked for you. I'm going to try it next time I have a book to convert. It's not as easy as whispernet but at least it's free.


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## esper_d

What is this free.kindle.com thing?

Is it to email pdfs FREE instead of the 15cents??

If so, please explain, I'm very interested! thanks

(or direct me to an appropriate thread to read all about it) thank you


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## RavenclawPrefect

esper_d said:


> What is this free.kindle.com thing?
> 
> Is it to email pdfs FREE instead of the 15cents??
> 
> If so, please explain, I'm very interested! thanks
> 
> (or direct me to an appropriate thread to read all about it) thank you


Yes, you send a PDF file to yourname @ free.kindle.com and then Amazon converts it and sends it back to the email specified on your Kindle account. Then you just move the file via USB to your Kindle.

It is very quick, simple and free. I have done it numerous times, have another free PDF book that I need to send later.


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## Ann in Arlington

Just to clarify:  it is for more than just PDF's; the idea is you can convert documents in any of a number of formats to something that will work on the Kindle.  If you send it directly to your kindle just using the @kindle.com address, Amazon will charge you for the conversion and download (15 cents per Mb).  If, instead you send it to the @free.kindle.com address, Amazon will NOT charge you but will convert it and send it back to the address associated with your account.  Then, as ravenclaw says, you can transfer it via USB.  

It is possible they're still not charging to send files direct to the Kindle if they are already in a 'no conversion needed' format like .prc -- I heard that from someone here who I think would know the difference, but haven't confirmed it myself yet.

Ann


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## Toby

I read in another group that Amazon did charge someone recently.


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## esper_d

ravenclawprefect said:


> Yes, you send a PDF file to yourname @ free.kindle.com and then Amazon converts it and sends it back to the email specified on your Kindle account. Then you just move the file via USB to your Kindle.
> 
> It is very quick, simple and free. I have done it numerous times, have another free PDF book that I need to send later.


Oh! I'm so excited. Thanks!


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## Ann in Arlington

Ann in Arlington said:


> It is possible they're still not charging to send files direct to the Kindle if they are already in a 'no conversion needed' format like .prc -- I heard that from someone here who I think would know the difference, but haven't confirmed it myself yet.
> 
> Ann


The person who hadn't thought he'd gotten charged found he did. . . .just took a couple of days to hit his card.

Ann


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## Dave

I sent a file to free.kindle.com for conversion a few minutes ago. It didn't return right away, leading me to believe that the conversion isn't automatic - perhaps a person in the loop to guide the process. Do you have any data on how long the conversion (and return) takes?

I'll let you know how long this one takes after getting the converted file.


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## RavenclawPrefect

I sent one last night at 7:57 pm and the converted file came back to me at 7:59 pm

This has been pretty typical of how quickly they come back.


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## Ann in Arlington

Dave, for the direct to Kindle conversion, you have to be using an 'approved' e-mail address to send it to your Kindle.  I'm pretty sure it's the same for the free conversion.  Check "manage my kindle" under "your account" at Amazon and make sure the e-mail address you're sending from listed.  (While you're there make sure you're sending it to the correct kindle address.)  They will send it back to the e-mail address associated with your amazon account.

I have a couple of addresses and a couple of computers.  One computer is set up to send by default from address A and the other from address B.  Why? Who knows!    Anyway, one time I tried to send something to my Kindle and it never showed up;  I realized I'd not made both addresses 'approved' at Amazon.  And one time, early on, I thought I knew the Kindle address but when the document didn't come, I went and checked and found out I'd misremembered it.

Ann


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## Jill75

Ann in Arlington said:


> Just to clarify: it is for more than just PDF's; the idea is you can convert documents in any of a number of formats to something that will work on the Kindle. If you send it directly to your kindle just using the @kindle.com address, Amazon will charge you for the conversion and download (15 cents per Mb). If, instead you send it to the @free.kindle.com address, Amazon will NOT charge you but will convert it and send it back to the address associated with your account. Then, as ravenclaw says, you can transfer it via USB.
> 
> It is possible they're still not charging to send files direct to the Kindle if they are already in a 'no conversion needed' format like .prc -- I heard that from someone here who I think would know the difference, but haven't confirmed it myself yet.
> 
> Ann


Thanks for this clarification and what is the right way to do it. I will soon try it and see how fast it will convert.


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## Dave

Ann in Arlington said:


> ...Check "manage my kindle" under "your account" at Amazon and make sure the e-mail address you're sending from listed. ... I realized I'd not made both addresses 'approved' at Amazon.
> 
> Ann


Thank you, Ann.

Very interesting!!

I have different e-mail accounts for different purposes (primarily to keep junk mail away from my personal e-mail and business e-mail) and had sent the file using an address that hadn't yet been listed as approved. So it is now on the approved list.

BUT, when I sent the file from either of those approved addresses, I received a quick reply from Amazon saying that there was no attachment on the message. My "Sent" file showed it present in both messages. Hmmmm ... ;-(( Since the file was an .htm that I'd downloaded from Gutenberg, I assumed my system had choked on the format for some reason. So I enclosed the .htm file in a .zip file and sent it to Amazon. It worked!

Another interesting facet of this experience is that the author of the new "book" is now listed on the home page as my e-mail address and the title is the one I gave it as the file name.

So to recap:
Send all notes to free.kindle.com FROM an approved e-mail address
Enclose .htm file attachments in a .zip file, and Amazon will unzip them automatically
You can name the Book title by using the file name.
The process is very quick - almost immediate response.

NICE!


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## Ann in Arlington

One other mistake I made once:  someone had sent me a fairly long e-mail. . .I wanted to forward it so I could read it later on the Kindle, so I did.  But, because it was an e-mail, not an attached file of a recognized type, my Kindle couldn't get it.  That time I did get an e-mail back from Amazon saying it wouldn't go through.  I had to copy the e-mail and paste it into a text file and then send it.  (Basically every time it didn't work as I expected I found the error between the chair and the keyboard.  )

If you want to actually have an author name on the book when it shows up on your Kindle, you can use MobiPocket Creator or Calibre to edit the 'metadata' so that it will show properly.  That's useful if it's a book and you want it to show the author on your Kindle because, as you've discovered, it will otherwise automatically show your e-mail address as the author.   

Ann


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## Dave

Ann in Arlington said:


> If you want to actually have an author name on the book when it shows up on your Kindle, you can use MobiPocket Creator or Calibre to edit the 'metadata' so that it will show properly. That's useful if it's a book and you want it to show the author on your Kindle because, as you've discovered, it will otherwise automatically show your e-mail address as the author.
> 
> Ann


Thanks, Ann.

I downloaded MobiPocket Creator, but haven't been able to access the metadata of the .azw file from Amazon - Creator didn't recognize the file type. I could, of course, create a new e-book with Creator, using the original .htm file; but I'd like to see how to modify the .azw file title or author, if possible.

~Dave


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## Ann in Arlington

Oh. . .yeah. . .that's another thing.  When you convert a file, one step in the process lets you edit metadata.  But once you build it, well, it is what it is.

There is something else called mobi2mobi which is a scripting program, which I've never played with.  But if you need to edit author/title etc. on something that's already a Kindle document, I believe that's what you use.  Might be something in Calibre can do it as well. . .again, don't know any more about that program.  I'm sure someone else can chime in though.

Or you might use the search function here and see if you can find any old threads that discuss it.  I'm sure this isn't the first time it's come up!

Good Luck!


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## Dave

Thank. I'll check them out.


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## DawnOfChaos

anyone know what the maximum file size is for free.kindle.com?  I know its less than 11MB   I got a virtual hand slap from Amazon saying 'DATA size exceeds maximum permitted'.

ETA:  Nevermind, its my email provider that is throwing up on it.


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## Anne

Ann in Arlington said:


> Just to clarify: it is for more than just PDF's; the idea is you can convert documents in any of a number of formats to something that will work on the Kindle. If you send it directly to your kindle just using the @kindle.com address, Amazon will charge you for the conversion and download (15 cents per Mb). If, instead you send it to the @free.kindle.com address, Amazon will NOT charge you but will convert it and send it back to the address associated with your account. Then, as ravenclaw says, you can transfer it via USB.
> 
> It is possible they're still not charging to send files direct to the Kindle if they are already in a 'no conversion needed' format like .prc -- I heard that from someone here who I think would know the difference, but haven't confirmed it myself yet.
> 
> Ann


If you send it to freekindle.com do they send it back to your email address and then do you send it to your kindle email address?


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## Ann in Arlington

Anne said:


> If you send it to freekindle.com do they send it back to your email address and then do you send it to your kindle email address?


If you don't want it to cost anything, send it to your @free.kindle.com address. Amazon sends it back to the e-mail address associated with your Amazon account and you move it to your Kindle via USB.

My understanding is that anytime you send something directly to your kindle using the @kindle.com address, Amazon can charge the 15 cents per Mb charge whether it needs to be converted to a Kindle compatible format or not.


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## Anne

Ann in Arlington said:


> If you don't want it to cost anything, send it to your @free.kindle.com address. Amazon sends it back to the e-mail address associated with your Amazon account and you move it to your Kindle via USB.
> 
> My understanding is that anytime you send something directly to your kindle using the @kindle.com address, Amazon can charge the 15 cents per Mb charge whether it needs to be converted to a Kindle compatible format or not.


Anne sorry another question. Can I just send the PDF directly to my Kindle address and will Amazon covert it before they send it to the kindle


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## Silver

Ann in Arlington said:


> If you don't want it to cost anything, send it to your @free.kindle.com address. Amazon sends it back to the e-mail address associated with your Amazon account and you move it to your Kindle via USB.


Okay, since others are having great results I just tried it, and (to echo the title of this thread and ravenclawprefect) it worked! I'm just a coward and procrastinator when it comes to trying new things. I've transferred via USB lots of downloaded stuff which was already properly formatted, but this free.kindle.com thing is new. Thanks folks for the info. Now I wish I had more pdfs that needed help.


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## Anne

Silver said:


> Okay, since others are having great results I just tried it, and (to echo the title of this thread and ravenclawprefect) it worked! I'm just a coward and procrastinator when it comes to trying new things. I've transferred via USB lots of downloaded stuff which was already properly formatted, but this free.kindle.com thing is new. Thanks folks for the info. Now I wish I had more pdfs that needed help.


I have never transferred via USB can you tell me how to do it?


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## Ann in Arlington

Anne said:


> Anne sorry another question. Can I just send the PDF directly to my Kindle address and will Amazon covert it before they send it to the kindle


A PDF sent directly to the @kindle.cm address will be converted and loaded onto your Kindle for a small charge. Note that if it is a text heavy PDF it will probably convert just fine but if it has unusual layout or lots of pictures the results may not be so great.

Oh and steps for USB transfer are in the Users guide. . . .I don't use it often and would have to look it up myself if I wanted to. . . .


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## Anne

Ann in Arlington said:


> If you don't want it to cost anything, send it to your @free.kindle.com address. Amazon sends it back to the e-mail address associated with your Amazon account and you move it to your Kindle via USB.
> 
> My understanding is that anytime you send something directly to your kindle using the @kindle.com address, Amazon can charge the 15 cents per Mb charge whether it needs to be converted to a Kindle compatible format or not.


How do I send to my kindle using the USB?


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## Anne

Ann in Arlington said:


> A PDF sent directly to the @kindle.cm address will be converted and loaded onto your Kindle for a small charge. Note that if it is a text heavy PDF it will probably convert just fine but if it has unusual layout or lots of pictures the results may not be so great.
> 
> Oh and steps for USB transfer are in the Users guide. . . .I don't use it often and would have to look it up myself if I wanted to. . . .


Thanks Ann do you know how long it will take if I send the PDF directly to the kindle.com address for them to convert and send it to my kindle?


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## neila23

I wish it worked for me.  Well it half worked.  So I transfer the file to my kindle 2 via usb connection, however, I do not see it in my home screen.  So I run a search for a word that I know is in the book (particularly the title) and poof it finds it.  I transferred another file a *.doc that I emailed to free.kindle.com and it converted and I transferred yet I cannot find it anywhere on my kindle, even using search.

Very strange.

Any ideas on how to get this to populate in my home screen?

Thank you,
Neila Gatrell


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## webhill

neila23 said:


> I wish it worked for me. Well it half worked. So I transfer the file to my kindle 2 via usb connection, however, I do not see it in my home screen. So I run a search for a word that I know is in the book (particularly the title) and poof it finds it. I transferred another file a *.doc that I emailed to free.kindle.com and it converted and I transferred yet I cannot find it anywhere on my kindle, even using search.
> 
> Very strange.
> 
> Any ideas on how to get this to populate in my home screen?
> 
> Thank you,
> Neila Gatrell


Neila, when you transferred it, are you sure you put it into the documents folder on the Kindle?


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## andreuebe

RavenclawPrefect said:


> Yes, you send a PDF file to yourname @ free.kindle.com and then Amazon converts it and sends it back to the email specified on your Kindle account. Then you just move the file via USB to your Kindle.
> 
> It is very quick, simple and free. I have done it numerous times, have another free PDF book that I need to send later.


Please.

An information: I did it (send PDF to my @free.kindle.com) but... How can I access my Inbox mail to get the converted file?

I tried to find the link in entire site https://www.amazon.com and https://www.amazon.com and couldn't to find the place were I could to download the file.

Can you help me

Regards

Andre Uebe


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## luvmy4brats

It goes to the main email address you have registered to your Amazon account (and actually, if you have a Kindle 3, if you turn on WiFi, it will automatically download to your Kindle for free)

So for me, my email address is [email protected]
my Kindle address is [email protected] or [email protected]

to get the file, I'd go to the [email protected] address and it will be in the inbox. 

Clear as mud?


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## grizedale

Luvmy4brats said:


> ( if you turn on WiFi, it will automatically download to your Kindle for free)


I Use the free email regularly to send converted books from calibre to my K3 when I cannot be bothered to find my cable...


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## BiopSea

How do I send to my kindle using the USB?
[/quote]

I am new here, but I have done this. I presume that you are using Windows. Turn on your Kindle, connect the USB cable from the Kindle to a USB port. You will probably hear a 'ding'. Then click on Computer in your Windows Start menu. The Kindle should have appeared there just like any other USB object. Open the Kindle and copy the file to it.

Hope this helps.


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