# My Kindle Kollege Experience. Spring Semester 2010.



## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

Here is my semesterly update on my experiences with a Kindle as a replacement for academic texts. As always keep in mind that I am a History Major and an English Minor so my book lists may be more prone to being available on the Kindle due to some of them being popular literature in their own right. It is still pretty catch as catch can, but when I do manage a book on my Kindle it's cause for celebration. This semester I had my massive History of the English Language text on my Kindle and it was the first time I really took advantage of the text to speech. I have to say it was a lifesaver and really easy to listen to once I got used to it. I could never get through those dry chapters on my own, but in one commute I have them done!

At any rate, here is my experience so far in the early stages on Spring 2010. I am taking History of Rome, American Environmental History, Spanish II, and World Masterpieces. So far the only book lists posted are those for History of Rome. I am thinking that American Environmental History will be all .pdfs as I have had this professor before and it is how he prefers to do things. Spanish II I never expected to be available so I won't even discuss it, though I do have a dictionary and it's nice to be able to search it (easier to just use my Droid to translate though). I have no idea on World Masterpieces so if I get a list for it I'll update.

The following is my book list for History of Rome. I searched by ISBN as well as title both in the Kindle Store and in the normal books. I also did Google searches for those I could not get from Amazon. Here are the results!

Catiline's War. Jugurthine War, Histories (New $16.00)
Author: Sallust
ISBN:9780140449488 
*Kindle Edition Available: 9.99*

War with Hannibal (Used $13.50 / New $18.00)	
Author: Livy
ISBN:9780140441451 
*Not on Kindle!*
_(There is a book by Livy called "Hannibal's War" for $7.16 in the Kindle Store, so I will need to compare this with the physical text of the other in the bookstore to see if they are the same.)_

Fires of Vesuvius: Pompeii Lost & Found (New $26.95) Great Book!
Author: Mary Beard
ISBN:9780674029767 
*Not on Kindle!*

Critical History of Early Rome (New $25.95)
Author: Forsythe
ISBN:9780520249912 
*Not on Kindle!*
_(Available as a .pdf for $15.95 from ebooks.com)_

Last Generation of Roman Republic (New $34.95)
Author: Gruen
ISBN:9780520201538 
*Not on Kindle!*

Fall of Roman Republic (Used $12.00 / New $16.00)
Author: Plutarch
ISBN:9780140449341 
*Kindle Edition Available: 9.99*

Early History of Rome (Used $12.00)
Author: Livy
ISBN:0140448098
*Not on Kindle!*
_(Barnes and Noble has this as an ebook for $4.99 but I'm assuming this won't work on my Kindle? It won't say what format it is that I can see. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Early-History-of-Rome/Livy/e/9781411429093 )_


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## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

I think it is a terrible shame that the academic textbook publishers are not embracing the e-book.

I know they make a boatload of cash off poor students, but there is the advantage to them that you can't return the e-book at the end of the semester.


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

I'd be willing to pay slightly more for them on my Kindle in most cases, even.  Having the ability to search by keyword and the TTS (if it's available) is well worth not being able to resell them to me.  I'm just glad I actually found a few on my list this semester.  Last semester was kind of a bust except for that English text.  I'll finally get to make use of the .pdf functionality as well.


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## DixieChick (Oct 22, 2009)

This is very interesting, Scheherazade.  Please update us as you find out about your other classes.


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## Chris W (Aug 17, 2009)

I bought my DX mostly for reading textbooks (I returned to college in my late 30's), but have been disappointed with the selection of textbooks actually in the Kindle store. I did get all my texts on PDF this semester (through various e-textbook sites), and they read just fine on the DX, but I'd rather have them Kindle formatted.
I'm taking 5 classes in the Spring, I'm going to the bookstore tomorrow to get the reading lists, I hope I have more success with my titles this time around.


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## Varin (May 12, 2009)

If I add onto this section will it be seen as hijacking?

My Classes;

Japanese 2*
American Poetry
Cultural Anthropology
The Fiction Workshop
The Victorian Novel

* For Japanese 2 my textbook wasn't available because it was ancient and esoteric (and since I take notes in hiragana, katakana and Kanji, I don't think in this instance it would have been appropriate, though a dictionary or two would have been welcomed.)  and The Fiction Workshop class had no required reading materials.

In American Poetry I had two books; Leaves of Grass and The Essential Dickinson; Leaves of Grass was available in the Kindle store though The Essential Dickinson was not; I bought a cheap copy of the book and scanned it myself.

In Cultural Anthropology, my Textbooks The Tapestry of Culture and Applying Anthropology were not available at the Kindle store, but again, I bought them and scanned them myself to use on the kindle- I felt that being able to do a full search of the documents was well worth the effort.

The Victorian Novel; Jackpot! Mary Barton, Shirley, Bleak House, The Woman in White, The Odd Women... all available in (several) Kindle editions in the kindle store. The ability to search by keyword or phrase was invaluable to me in this class; each week we met for discussion on the chapters of the books we've read, and at the end of each book we had to write a short essay. One of my essay topics was on the relationship between Caroline and her mother in the novel Shirley. Seeing as the only time the word mother was mentioned was when Caroline was thinking about her long-lost parent, I simply searched for the word "mother" and every instance in which the word was used appeared in the entire book!

Incredible; that was almost my whole essay done right there, but it was also great for when I didn't exactly remember all of a particular quote or passage, a quick search of the words I did remember quickly located what I had in mind.


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

Not hijacking at all. I hope more college folks come in and add their experiences this semester with book selections. I think it helps people make informed choices when thinking about getting one for classes.

On a side not, I _did_ see an interesting flyer posted by the elevator today. It said something about a class in new methods of literature and had a big picture of the Kindle on it. Not sure if it's an actual semester long class or just a one night thing. I'll have to look more closely Wednesday.

How exactly are you going about scanning them? Just doing an OCR with a desktop scanner or? I've never thought to try this and it always seemed too technical for me to attempt. If it's not and just requires some time and effort then, yeah, I'm more than willing to do it so I can have the searchable text.

And yeah, I had an Intro to British Lit. class my first semester with my Kindle. I got the Kindle mid-semester after having bought the DTBs but turned around and got them on my Kindle as well. Nearly every book except the anthology was available. I was pretty lucky that semester in terms of getting books on my Kindle.

I had the same searching experience when writing a paper on fashion during the black plague. I had all these journals and massive texts with lists of laws and people's wills and inventories of merchants. It would have taken me forever to pore through all that information, but a simple search on "cloth" and a few other fashionable words and I had a quick jump to the very few references I needed within the thousands of pages I didn't.


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## higdona (Dec 1, 2009)

Have you looked for digital textbooks. They are in PDF format so if you have a kindle DX, you can read them easily. I am happy to see so many chemistry text books for the kindle. I may purchase a few just for reference. Spring will be my final semester as a masters student so I am not taking any classes.


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

My classes generally don't use actual textbooks, but the few that I have had to get weren't available from the publisher.  I almost took biology last semester and attempted to get that book in .pdf, but it seemed to be a self-published work by the professor and unavailable in any other format besides his overpriced binding.  Thankfully most of my history professors pull together lists of interesting books on the subject rather than throw dry textbooks on us.  Unless I have some sort of anthology in my English class this semester, I think my only actual textbook will be in Spanish and I have to buy that anyway to get the workbook.

The one text I absolutely would have killed to have on my Kindle was the massive British Lit. anthology.  I really hate those three inch thick books with the onion skin paper and itty-bitty tiny text.  They drive me up the wall.


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## Varin (May 12, 2009)

Scheherazade said:


> Not hijacking at all. I hope more college folks come in and add their experiences this semester with book selections. I think it helps people make informed choices when thinking about getting one for classes.
> 
> On a side not, I _did_ see an interesting flyer posted by the elevator today. It said something about a class in new methods of literature and had a big picture of the Kindle on it. Not sure if it's an actual semester long class or just a one night thing. I'll have to look more closely Wednesday.
> 
> How exactly are you going about scanning them? Just doing an OCR with a desktop scanner or? I've never thought to try this and it always seemed too technical for me to attempt. If it's not and just requires some time and effort then, yeah, I'm more than willing to do it so I can have the searchable text.


I bought a fujitsu scansnap ADF (automated document feeder).

The positive of it is that it was cheap and reduced the amount of work, I felt, by a great margin;unlike with a flatbed scanner, I don't I have to hold the book open to two pages, scan, turn the page, scan, turn the page, etc... The ADF I mentioned above scans both sides of the paper at the same time and does it automatically so it really cuts down on the time spent scanning by a great amount.

Downside of using a ADF is that you basically have to de-spine the book, which is very simple in and of itself, though that does mean you might want to go about buying a cheap edition.... the other negative was that the pages have to be unbound (like a stack of looseleaf) before they are scanned through the device.

After i've scanned it onto the computer, I use AbbyyFineReader, which results in very few errors while OCR'ing.. I have several options, to make it into an RTF, a Searchable PDF document, an HTML document or a spreadsheet.

I definitely find it worth the effort.

If there's anything you'd like me to do for you I wouldn't mind it at all; so far I've been making ebooks out of books that I've wanted that aren't available in Kindle format.


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## Chris W (Aug 17, 2009)

Scheherazade said:


> How exactly are you going about scanning them? Just doing an OCR with a desktop scanner or? I've never thought to try this and it always seemed too technical for me to attempt. If it's not and just requires some time and effort then, yeah, I'm more than willing to do it so I can have the searchable text.


I'm a Mac user, and the Mac OS has one great feature. Everything you send to print, you can choose to save the document as a PDF. I also have a scanner, and a software program called PDFpen that incorporates OCR, merging, annotation, and many other great features into any PDF. OCR'd docs loaded onto the Kindle become searchable, so it makes the textbooks more workable for class purposes.
I'll be happy to add my results for my Spring semester textbooks after getting my reading list this week.


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## Chris W (Aug 17, 2009)

Anarel said:


> I bought a fujitsu scansnap ADF (automated document feeder).
> 
> The positive of it is that it was cheap and reduced the amount of work, I felt, by a great margin;unlike with a flatbed scanner, I don't I have to hold the book open to two pages, scan, turn the page, scan, turn the page, etc... The ADF I mentioned above scans both sides of the paper at the same time and does it automatically so it really cuts down on the time spent scanning by a great amount.


I've been looking at picking up a ScanSnap S300M for the reasons you mentioned. I would really love a dedicated scanner (I'm currently using an all-in-one) for both books, and also because I use Evernote, and I'd like to scan in all of my real paper documents, and try to start moving to becoming as paperless as possible.
Maybe I can talk someone into getting me some useful, boring tech for a Christmas present!


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

I'll have to look into those options, though buying a Mac might be a little beyond my budget right now.  I'm bound and determined to get the DSLR I keep promising myself!  Some texts are just so dry that I can never get through them, but I really found myself absorbing it more with the Kindle reading them to me on my commute so the more on my Kindle the better.

Do you have a link to the one you use?  Or a model number?  I assume from your description that you have a sheet-fed scanner.


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## akpak (Mar 5, 2009)

We've got a ScanSnap at the office, and our accountant loves it. It takes all kinds of paper and our boss is fond of accumulating little notes, receipts, business cards, etc all over his desk. The accountant just sweeps up the pile, loads it into the ScanSnap and sifts it later


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## loratliff (Dec 8, 2009)

I just ordered my Kindle today and was really quite torn - I've wanted one for awhile. I finally justified it to myself by looking at my books for next semester. I'm a senior undergrad with plans for grad school next year.

Not all of my books are up yet, but of those that are, I was quite pleased:

*Sustainable Living* (Hey, I needed one last elective, haha!)
Omnivore's Dilemma ($9.36 on Kindle)
Living Green: A Practical Guide to Simple Sustainability ($9.99 on Kindle)
Plan B 3.0 ($9.99 on Kindle)

*Gangs in the United States*
Under and Alone: The True Story of the Undercover Agent Who Infiltrated America's Most Violent Outlaw Motorcycle Gang ($5.59 on Kindle)
Wheelchair Warrior: Gangs, Disability & Basketball ($9.99 on Kindle)
Mexican Mafia: The Story (Not available on Kindle. Can't even find this one on Amazon at all, actually...)
Always Running: La Vida Loca (Not available on Kindle.)
A Rainbow of Gangs (Not available on Kindle.)

One of my other classes is an Art History course in Modern Architecture. Those are typically true textbooks, so I doubt any of its texts will be available in Kindle format. The other course is Editorial/Opinion Writing. I doubt it will have a text at all, but I'm sure it does, it will be on Kindle. I can always read the OpEd page of the NYT.


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

Heh, I took a short story writing class thinking that it would be nice to have a break from reading since I was taking it with two history courses and a British Lit. course... the writing class had -more- reading than any of my other classes.  So don't be too sure about yours not having books yet   And it looks like you did good with Kindle books this semester.  I'm hoping if my other classes do require texts that a few of those will be available as well.


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## bce (Nov 17, 2009)

I also bought the Kindle for schoolwork.  I'm currently working on my masters in computer science/systems engineering.  One of the reasons I bought the Kindle was because of the number of books for my upcoming classes that are available on the Kindle.  For example, for next semester the required text is "The Engineering Design of Systems: Models and Methods".  The hardcover version is $96.00 while the Kindle version is $76.80.

I do have a question about this.  The hardcover lists as Feb, 2009 while the Kindle says it is Dec, 1999.  There is no mention of being different editions, or about editions in general.  Any ideas what the different dates mean?


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## higdona (Dec 1, 2009)

Oogie Pringle said:


> I also bought the Kindle for schoolwork. I'm currently working on my masters in computer science/systems engineering. One of the reasons I bought the Kindle was because of the number of books for my upcoming classes that are available on the Kindle. For example, for next semester the required text is "The Engineering Design of Systems: Models and Methods". The hardcover version is $96.00 while the Kindle version is $76.80.
> 
> I do have a question about this. The hardcover lists as Feb, 2009 while the Kindle says it is Dec, 1999. There is no mention of being different editions, or about editions in general. Any ideas what the different dates mean?


They could be different printings of the same book.


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

Your best bet is grabbing a sample of the Kindle book and going to the campus bookstore to compare it with the one assigned.  My History of the English Language book was the same way.  It had a different cover and publishing date but ended up being exactly the same.


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## ElaineOK (Jun 5, 2009)

Also don't forget to check other sources.  The Livy book shown as not available for Kindle is available from Project Guttenburg. 

Elaine 
Norman, Oklahoma


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

Ooo nice, I hadn't even thought of Gutenberg.  I guess I assumed the Google search would snag it.  Thanks for the heads up!


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## ElaineOK (Jun 5, 2009)

Also be sure and check www.books.google.com -- you would think a google search would work.  It didn't when I tested that a few minutes ago.  Oh, Google downloads are available in epub and pdf only (at least the ones I looked at).  

Elaine
Norman, Oklahoma


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## Chris W (Aug 17, 2009)

ElaineOK said:


> Also be sure and check www.books.google.com -- you would think a google search would work. It didn't when I tested that a few minutes ago. Oh, Google downloads are available in epub and pdf only (at least the ones I looked at).


If you download in non-DRM ePub from Google, you can easily convert those to Kindle format by using the Stanza Desktop program. I even set up an Automator script on my Mac to automatically convert, and transfer the new file to my Kindle via USB.


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## pawsplus (Mar 31, 2009)

Just curious -- what do you guys do when, in class, the prof says, "Let's look at page 212"?  I can see that being a serious problem.  If EVERYONE had Kindles, the prof could tell the class to search for this string of words, but in a class of mostly DTBs that's not gonna happen.

How do you deal with that?


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

I listen for what they're discussing and put the word in a search box if I'm totally clueless about what section of the book we're on.  Otherwise I usually know the place we're at in the book and can find the page in the text that they're talking about.  Keep in mind that I have had experience with only one actual textbook on my Kindle.  I've gotten dozens of books for classes, but being in a History/English curriculum there is a lot of reading on our own from non-standard texts and discussing them in class.  In fact, I have found it more useful having the Kindle in other situations.  Like someone will be trying to think of a part in the book but not remember anything but a few details.  I've been able to do a quick search and find the quote or the situation they were looking for.

If you're quick with math or a calculator you can also do some quick math based on the number of pages in the physical book.  Say they tell you to turn to page 250 in a 500 page book, 250 / 500 = 50% so you want to be 50% into the book which would be location 2000 out of 4000.  It sounds complicated but you get used to it if you do it enough.  It also works the other way around for citing or trying to give a general page number.  Get the % of the book you're in then, using the example above, 500 * .50 would get you page 250.


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## ElaineOK (Jun 5, 2009)

Chris W said:


> If you download in non-DRM ePub from Google, you can easily convert those to Kindle format by using the Stanza Desktop program. I even set up an Automator script on my Mac to automatically convert, and transfer the new file to my Kindle via USB.


Thanks, Chris.

Elaine
Norman, OKlahoma


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## Prazzie (Oct 25, 2009)

I'm also an English minor. We don't have the 2010 booklist yet, but unless books become unavailable, the list usually stays the same. Going by the 2009 list, I'm going to need the following for English next year:

(Remember that as an international customer, I pay $2 extra for Kindle books and some books may be available to US customers that won't show up in my search results. Also, I'm only searching in the Amazon Kindle store, some titles might be available from other ebook sites.)

Virginia Woolf, Mrs Dalloway (*Available on Kindle* - $11.99)
Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man (*Available on Kindle* - $11.99)
T.S. Eliot, Collected Poems (Not available on Kindle)
Stevie Smith, New Selected Poems of Stevie Smith (Not available on Kindle)

E.M. Forster, A Passage to India (Not available on Kindle)
John Fowles, The French Lieutenant's Woman (Not available on Kindle)
Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Love in the Time of Cholera (Not available on Kindle)
Toni Morrison, Beloved (Not available on Kindle)

Stephen Fry, The Liar (Not available on Kindle)
Nawal El Saadawi, God Dies by the Nile (Not available on Kindle)
Gabeba Baderoon, The Dream in the Next Body (Not available on Kindle)
Arthur Nortje, Anatomy of Dark (Not available on Kindle)

Ivan Vladislavic, Propaganda by Monuments and Other Short Stories (Not available on Kindle)
Gillian Slovo, Red Dust (*Available on Kindle* - $10.84)
Zoë Wicomb, David's Story (Not available on Kindle)
J.M. Coetzee, Elizabeth Costello (Not available on Kindle)

Kazuo Ishiguro, Remains of the Day (*Available on Kindle* - $11.99)
Milan Kundera, The Unbearable Lightness of Being (Not available on Kindle)
Arundhati Roy, The God of Small Things (Not available on Kindle)
Michael Ondaatje, The English Patient (Not available on Kindle)
Peter Hoeg, Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow (Not available on Kindle)

A rather dismal list. It would be interesting if someone in the US could check to see how many of these titles are available to US Kindle owners. Poetry is not a problem, there are several other anthologies available for Kindle, or if I can find out which poems we're doing, I can find them online, add them to a text file and transfer it to my Kindle.


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## geneven (Jul 30, 2009)

I think that you students should consider Kindle for PC as well -- you might, for example, be able to take advantage of low Kindle book prices without even buying a Kindle if you learn to read happily on a laptop, as I do on this ASUS EEE 1000h. I'm in Linux using Wine for Kindle for PC, but of course setting up is even easier in Windows.

The huge advantage of using a laptop is that note-taking is pretty much worthless on Kindles; I use Freemind as a mind-mapping program, which works great on a laptop but of course is not available on a Kindle.

People talk about eyestrain on laptops -- for most people, I don't think it's very significant. I've been reading books on computers since before the Internet existed and I haven't noticed a big problem.

I have a Kindle 2, but I often prefer to skip it so I can take good notes. Before Kindle for PC, I was using my laptop AND my Kindle 2 at the same time, taking notes on the laptop while reading on the Kindle. Obviously, using the laptop alone is less cumbersome than using a Kindle and a laptop at the same time.

Also, of course, the options for reading .pdf files are much better on a laptop than on a Kindle. So is web browsing. With Kindle for PC, you can have the best of everything, except for grey e-text.


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

I've always had problems with prolonged reading on computer screens... but I think it might be due more to the other distractions. Which is why I'm not worried about not having Droid apps for my Kindle <grin>

I am betting you can get the Mrs. Dalloway cheaper than that. I seem to remember it not being so bad when I had to get it.


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## Prazzie (Oct 25, 2009)

Yes, it's on Mobipocket for $0.99. It's also available as a free read on Wowio, but then you have to read it on the pc, directly on their site.

I definitely won't be paying the Amazon prices for the items, that's for sure! It's still cheaper to buy the paperbacks than the Amazon Kindle versions.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Sceherezade, 

The one book that you found available at B&N, you could use their PC software to read (I know you said you'd prefer to not read on the PC, but it is an option.)

Betsy


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

Ah right this is an idea... hmmm. I think someone said they also saw it on Gutenberg or one of those sites as well, so hoping I can get it there. Having my Kindle read to me on my hour commute to class is pretty handy. Wonder when these folks will make Kindle and BN Apps for Droids <shake fist>.


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## kevindorsey (Mar 4, 2009)

some of you students can always get the pdf version of books not available on kindle and transfer them over.


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## Annalog (Dec 28, 2008)

pawsplus said:


> Just curious -- what do you guys do when, in class, the prof says, "Let's look at page 212"? I can see that being a serious problem. If EVERYONE had Kindles, the prof could tell the class to search for this string of words, but in a class of mostly DTBs that's not gonna happen.
> 
> How do you deal with that?


Another option would be to make notes in your Kindle copy of the page number of significant sections. If the book is in chapters, make a note at the beginning of each chapter something such as "pg 210." Then a search of the book for "pg" will result in a list of the notes containing "pg" so that you can then select the one closest to the desired page. (While not for a college class, I did something similar for a book that had the index as images with page numbers. When I knew the page number of a specific location, I made a note of the page number at that location.)

Since most of the class will have paper books, get together with someone in the class and note the page numbers of significant sections.


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

Classes start Monday and here is my latest up to date findings in terms of books I should be able to get for my Kindle. I say -should- because I am dependent on my grant in order to buy the things because I'm a poor college student and the university has, in their wisdom, decided to send the checks out the week before school starts the last couple of semesters. Then the bank put a hold on the check for 2 days (which actually, seriously, means five days in bank time... it won't be available till Tuesday) because for some reason I guess they need to make sure Old Dominion has the money to cover it? No idea, but it's irksome. Anyway...

I put a lot more googling and searching through ebookstores and going to the publisher's websites than I did before (I even checked less savory methods just for kicks, but who really wants to pirate Environmental History texts? I wasn't planning on downloading but was curious) so this is a pretty definitive rundown of what I could find. I don't really get why Google Books would have huge previews available with no actual electronic versions anywhere, but I guess that's par for the course. I imagine they may just scan in select pages, but it seems to me that if you're doing that then you may as well do the whole book... and if you did the whole book make it available somewhere!

Sadly the book I would want an electronic version for the most isn't available anywhere that I've looked. The huge World Literature Anthology that is actually three other anthology books shoved into the confines of one binding that covers everything from the ancient world to early modern literature would be the perfect candidate for an electronic book, but alas it is not to be. I am sure I could find pretty much anything we'll be reading from it in an electronic format for free even, but the professor didn't post a syllabus so I can't say if that will work right now or not. Even if I get the book I may download as many of the stories as I can... having the Kindle read to me on my 45 minute to 2 hour drive is too good to not to take advantage of.

Without further ado... here is my updated list! I really made out in my Roman History class. Dr. Pearson is usually okay with us using different translations so I'm hoping that's the case with the Livy books as well.

_*ROMAN HISTORY*_
_Catiline's War. Jugurthine War, Histories_ (New $16.00)
Author: Sallust | ISBN:9780140449488
*Kindle: $9.99*

_War with Hannibal_ (New $18.00)
Author: Livy | ISBN:9780140441451
*Different translation available free on Gutenberg.*

_Fires of Vesuvius: Pompeii Lost & Found_ (New $26.95)
Author: Beard | ISBN:9780674029767
*Not available.*

_Critical History of Early Rome_ (New $25.95)
Author: Forsythe | ISBN:9780520249912
*ebooks.com .pdf: $15.95*

_Last Generation of the Roman Republic_ (New $34.95)
Author: Gruen | ISBN:9780520201538
*Not available.*

_Fall of the Roman Republic_ (Used $12.00 | New $16.00)
Author: Plutarch | ISBN:9780140449341
*Kindle: $8.24*

_Early History of Rome_ (Used $12.00 | New $16.00)
Author: Livy | ISBN:0140448098
*Different translation available free on Gutenberg.*

_*ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY *_
_Everglades Providence_ (Used $26.25 | New $34.95)
Author: Davis | ISBN:9780820330716
*Not available.*

_Environmental History and the American South_ (Used $20.25 | New $26.95)
Author: Sutter | ISBN:9780820333229
*Not available.*

_*WORLD MASTERPIECES*_
_Longman Anthology of World Literature 2nd Edition_ (Used $58.25 | New $77.50)
Author: Damrosch | ISBN:9780205625932
*Not available. Might be able to download separate stories.*

_*SPANISH*_
_Renjilian, Reflejos_ (New $231.50)
Author: Renjilian-Burgy | ISBN:9780618546183
*Not available and comes with required CD.*

_501 Spanish Verbs/CD 6th Edition_ (New $16.99)
Author: Kendris | ISBN:0764179845
*Not available and comes with required CD.*

_English Grammar for Students of Spanish 6th Edition_ (New $19.95)
Author: Spinelli | ISBN:9780934034364
*Not available.*


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## GinnyB (Dec 19, 2009)

I am a photography major. My search for this semester's textbook: Art Since 1940 The Art of Being was not available. Over $100 new. $65 used.


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## Badandy (Dec 4, 2008)

Almost all of my textbooks are available in Kindle form for this upcoming semester.  The notable ones being in strategic management and finance.  I was very surprised they were there, BUT

-Strategic management ebook $100.  Anyone want to guess what it is in paper form?  $92.

In any case, I don't have a Kindle DX so textbooks that are actually textbooks and not just books probably wouldn't work too well on the normal Kindle's screen so I didn't get them.  One of my books is just normal prose so I will get that off WhisperNet on the first day of class if my professor indicates it will be important to have.


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## bce (Nov 17, 2009)

Be careful when buying Kindle Textbooks that they are the right edition.  My current book (The Engineering Design of Systems: Models and Methods) for this semester is available on Kindle, but it is the first edition not the second edition.

The problem is that the kindle version is linked to from the second edition DTB page.  I only found out about the version difference when I downloaded the sample.  I downloaded the sample because I was suspicious because of the vast difference in publication dates.


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## marianneg (Nov 4, 2008)

Oogie Pringle said:


> Be careful when buying Kindle Textbooks that they are the right edition. My current book (The Engineering Design of Systems: Models and Methods) for this semester is available on Kindle, but it is the first edition not the second edition.
> 
> The problem is that the kindle version is linked to from the second edition DTB page. I only found out about the version difference when I downloaded the sample. I downloaded the sample because I was suspicious because of the vast difference in publication dates.


I just wanted to give you a huge "good for you!" I'm always amazed at how many college students (not here, but they do show up on the Amazon boards) display such a dearth of critical thinking skills. It makes me even sadder when their mommies are there asking how to find their textbooks.


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## bce (Nov 17, 2009)

marianner said:


> I just wanted to give you a huge "good for you!" I'm always amazed at how many college students (not here, but they do show up on the Amazon boards) display such a dearth of critical thinking skills. It makes me even sadder when their mommies are there asking how to find their textbooks.


Thanks, but I'm easily the oldest in all of my classes. Most of the time, I'm older than my professors.

Guess that's what happens when you wait over 25 years to go back and get your Masters.


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## Anju  (Nov 8, 2008)

The 501 Spanish Verbs is available in kindle format, but I downloaded a sample and it is barely readable, maybe on the DX the tables would be bigger, but it's not worth it to me.  I'll wait a bit and I do already have the paper book, and CD which I have never looked at, but then I have a living breathing Spanish verb book in my DH around


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## us024077 (Jan 9, 2010)

Early History of Rome (Used $12.00)
Author: Livy
ISBN:0140448098
*Not on Kindle!*
_(Barnes and Noble has this as an ebook for $4.99 but I'm assuming this won't work on my Kindle? It won't say what format it is that I can see. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Early-History-of-Rome/Livy/e/9781411429093 )

This book is in pdb format. Can easily be converted in Calibre to Kindle format (mobi).

Also, the easiest way to "de-spine" a book is to take it to Kinko's. They will cut the spine off, and all the pages will end up the same size with smooth edges, etc. They will also punch it for a 3-ring binder. You can then scan easily, and then store the book in a 3-ring binder.

I scanned a 430 page textbook (paperback so did not de-spine it) on a flatbed scanner. Took me about 4 hours while watching football.

If you have a DX, probably best to leave as a pdf. If the book is in a column format, then converting to mobi from a pdf could be a formatting nightmare._


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## us024077 (Jan 9, 2010)

Prazzie said:


> E.M. Forster, A Passage to India (Not available on Kindle)
> Toni Morrison, Beloved (Not available on Kindle)
> 
> Stephen Fry, The Liar (Not available on Kindle)
> ...


These are available on the US Kindle store. Not many but a few more. Pices listed in order are 3.95, 9.99, 9.60, 9.99


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## loca (Jan 3, 2010)

Some of these titles are actually priced right when compared to most college text books


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## cheerio (May 16, 2009)

I have recently read about 10 colleges that have allowed the Kindle for textbooks


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## Prazzie (Oct 25, 2009)

Oogie Pringle said:


> Thanks, but I'm easily the oldest in all of my classes. Most of the time, I'm older than my professors.
> 
> Guess that's what happens when you wait over 25 years to go back and get your Masters.


Same here, I'm also an older student who decided to pursue a new career. I'm not older than my (ancient) professors, but I'm definitely older than all of my tutors. I feel like such an old fogey amidst the almost-still-teenage students who all gush about Twilight during lectures. *sigh* But now that I have a Kindle, I feel cool and, er, hip again. 



us024077 said:


> These are available on the US Kindle store. Not many but a few more. Pices listed in order are 3.95, 9.99, 9.60, 9.99


Thanks us024077. Still not available in SA, but maybe it's coming soon. Here's hoping!


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

I am "older" but people think I'm a lot younger than I am so it works out.  And yes, it's pretty amazing how students show up and expect to have their hands held.  I have not taken a class yet where the professor didn't have to take a lesson or two after our first paper to explain how to write papers to the class.  Even in the 400 level classes I'm taking people just don't know... well much of anything.  I sometimes think I just get As because I actually write well, not that the information is all that great    I think a lot of it is to blame on how bad public schools have become.  The SOLs and this no child left behind thing are pretty much ruining what little learning there was left in grade school.  Now teachers just teach the bare essentials to pass the SOL and... well, my professor explained how the questions are chosen for that and it's pretty scary.

And that's odd on the Spanish one... I thought I looked for it but maybe I just decided not to because of the CD thing.  The search function might be worth more than the CD, I'll have to see how it looks on the DX.  And yeah, still trying to decide what to do with Livy since these all seem to be different versions floating around.  At least with my bank being stupid it gives me a chance to ask my professors before I buy my books.


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## bce (Nov 17, 2009)

I understand about the students not knowing the basics.  I've got two fields that I'm covering in my Masters work, Computer Science and Systems Engineering.  While most of the students in the System Engineering courses are older, the professors still have to remind them that yes, grammar, spelling and writing do matter.  One of them told the class that "You are all trying to be professionals, and the ability to write does matter in this field".  He also stated that the homework was supposed to be hard because we are in graduate school and you have to show the ability to take the material from the lectures and go beyond regurgitating it back to him.  You were expected to show a mastery of the material and the ability to apply what you learned in new situations.


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## us024077 (Jan 9, 2010)

Prazzie said:


> Same here, I'm also an older student who decided to pursue a new career. I'm not older than my (ancient) professors, but I'm definitely older than all of my tutors. I feel like such an old fogey amidst the almost-still-teenage students who all gush about Twilight during lectures. *sigh* But now that I have a Kindle, I feel cool and, er, hip again.
> 
> Thanks us024077. Still not available in SA, but maybe it's coming soon. Here's hoping!


Where abouts in SA are you? I was raised in Malawi...used to vacation in Jo'burg and Rhodesia (Zimbabwe now).


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## angelad (Jun 19, 2009)

Oogie Pringle said:


> I understand about the students not knowing the basics. I've got two fields that I'm covering in my Masters work, Computer Science and Systems Engineering. While most of the students in the System Engineering courses are older, the professors still have to remind them that yes, grammar, spelling and writing do matter. One of them told the class that "You are all trying to be professionals, and the ability to write does matter in this field". He also stated that the homework was supposed to be hard because we are in graduate school and you have to show the ability to take the material from the lectures and go beyond regurgitating it back to him. You were expected to show a mastery of the material and the ability to apply what you learned in new situations.


What is spell check for then


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## BTackitt (Dec 15, 2008)

angelad said:


> What is spell check for then


My husband's answer to this is: You have to get close to the correct spelling for spell check to get it. (his spelling is atrocious.)


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Well, yeah.  

But, seriously, spell check is immensely useful. . . .I almost never spell niece right the first time.  (Hey!  I did just then! Go figure!)  But it won't fix to/two/too or there/they're/their or things like that. . . and it's really obvious when someone has relied on it to heavily.  In another thread someone mentioned a book where the author had used the word 'shuttered' when they meant 'shuddered' and 'sidle' when they meant 'slide'.  Those are examples of use of spell checker and failure to proof read!

So, if it's a technical article of some sort, and you show that lack of attention to detail in the writing of commentary, why should I think you showed any more attention to detail in the actual development of the item in question.

I jokingly say that I own half my husband's Masters degree in Engineering -- as well as those of some of his pals in the classes.  Mostly they'd not had any real writing classes in college and, while they were all really smart guys, and well spoken, they weren't experienced in stringing words together in good sentences on paper.  Several of them would have me proof their papers for them. . .and in a couple of classes they had one a week to turn in!  The professor made no secret that he didn't much care what they thought of the articles they had read; he was grading on how well they communicated in written English.  That said, by the end of the course work, I was suggesting many fewer edits to these guys than I had at the beginning of the program!


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## Prazzie (Oct 25, 2009)

us024077 said:


> Where abouts in SA are you? I was raised in Malawi...used to vacation in Jo'burg and Rhodesia (Zimbabwe now).


I'm in Port Elizabeth, studying at Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, formerly UPE. I'm sorry you had to vacation in Jo'burg!  No, maybe back then it was still nice, but lately the place looks like a big construction site. They've been preparing for the 2010 Soccer World Cup non-stop. Jo'burg is the South African city with the most trees, but you wouldn't know it today. Heaps of sand and bricks everywhere, lots of dust and more noise than usual.

Scheherazade, our one English lecturer had a serious talk with our class last year. He held up an essay and told us that it was completely unacceptable. No punctuation whatsoever. No paragraphs. The whole thing ran 4 pages long with never-ending sentences! The sad thing is that we are inundated with resources. The university offers free courses on writing university papers, there is a writing centre with people who will not only help you with planning a paper, but also help you edit it. Our tutors also give us writing outlines and guides and are available to answer questions. Of course the kids who need it most never make use of these resources.

I took a film course just for fun. The lecturer placed all the marked essays on the windowsill outside her office. While waiting to see her, I read through some of the papers. There was one about Halle Berry, but the writer spelt her name several different ways in that single essay! Hally Berry, Halle Berrie and variations of that. Unbelievable.


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## BTackitt (Dec 15, 2008)

Both of my parents were going through college when I was a preteen. I was the house proofreader. Neither of my parents is a wonderful speller. My mom freely admits that if it were not for me checking her spelling, and my grandmother checking everything else, she might not have made it. Mom is MUCH better now, as she gets ready for retirement.  Dad was an accountant, so more of a numbers man than a writer.

Both of my parents are readers. My husband is a voracious reader. For him though, the spelling issue is at least in part due to his dyslexia.


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## Varin (May 12, 2009)

Just got my list for Books next semester;

Sociology
Intro to Sociology

You May Ask Yourself, Conley Ed. - N/A in Kindle Edition (KE)


English; Jane Austen & Popular Culture

Jane Austen (Carol Shields) - Available in KE.

Walk With Jane Austen- N/A in KE

Mansfeld Park- Available in KE

Pride and Prejudice- Available in KE (the version in particular, edited by my Professor for this class is actually in the Kindle store- she's the only other person I know with a Kindle)

English; Laughter; Definitions of Comedy

Midsummer Night's Dream- Available in KE

Emma- Available in KE

She Stoops to Conquer- Available in KE

Pygmalion- Available in KE

The Satires of Horace- Available in KE


So, a pretty good number available, I'd say.


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## BTackitt (Dec 15, 2008)

thats great news for you Anarel!


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## kevindorsey (Mar 4, 2009)

BTackitt said:


> My husband's answer to this is: You have to get close to the correct spelling for spell check to get it. (his spelling is atrocious.)


that's gotta be bad if spell check turned his head the other way


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## Reyn (Feb 10, 2009)

I am working on my Masters in School Counseling.  I just purchased my first Kindle textbook and saved $120+ on one text.  I ONLY have to buy 3 books this session and I could have bought another text on kindle but it would have only saved me $10 so I just got it in hardback since I had never used a kindle textbook.  I am looking forward to seeing how I like it.


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## Scheherazade (Apr 11, 2009)

I found out that I could actually replace two of my other texts with items downloaded and put on my Kindle, but I decided to buy them anyway so I am sure to have the right translations.  But I can still load them up and have it read to me on the drive to school which is nice.  So out of all those books, only 4 or 5 ended up not being available on my Kindle through various means.


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## BTackitt (Dec 15, 2008)

My Microbiology professor gave us a CD with all of his lecture notes for the semester on it. Last night, I sent them all to my @free.kindle.com address for free conversion, went to bed, and this morning, I DL them all to my Kindle. I did send them in 2 batches, and yes, the first batch had returned before I was done sending the second batch.


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