# Share Samples



## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

We've learned samples can be shared by e-mail.  So this is  a thread for those of you out of WhisperNet range to post if you'd like one of us within whispernet range to download a sample and e-mail it to you.  

Caveats:  this is strictly between you all. . .connect up by PM and exchange e-mail addresses or what have you.  Samples will NOT be posted here.

I will ask luvmy4brats and/or Leslie to please post a 'step by step' for any who wish to participate, as they are the two who have successfully accomplished it.

Finally, remember, if the book is on Mobipocket, you can get samples there as well and transfer them to your Kindle via USB.

This will be stickied for the time being . . . .

Ann


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

Okay, I just tested it:

If you want to send a sample to someone:


Go to Amazon and order the sample. Have it sent to your Kindle in the usual way.
Turn on the WN on your Kindle and receive the sample.
Connect the Kindle to your computer with the USB.
Open your email, compose the message, and add the sample as an attachment. Since the Kindle is connected to your computer with the USB, you can just directly navigate there to find the sample. It will be located in the documents folder. (Hint: Sort the files by "date modified" and that will put the sample at the top of the list.)

For the person receiving the sample:


Open the email message and choose "save attachment." Save to your computer in the usual way.
Connect the Kindle with the USB cable. Copy the sample and paste in the documents folder on your Kindle. Make sure it is in the documents folder....otherwise, it won't show up.
Disconnect the Kindle after stopping it with the "remove hardware" icon.

Let me know if you have questions.

L


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

I'm so glad it worked! Very cool.


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## chynared21 (Oct 28, 2008)

*I suggested we pair up in another thread to email samples to someone out of the Whispernet range...here goes 

I'm willing to pair up with someone who needs samples *


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## Tbarney (Dec 28, 2008)

I'm confused.....why don't you just download the samples yourself?  Whay are you emailing them to each other?


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

Tbarney said:


> I'm confused.....why don't you just download the samples yourself? Whay are you emailing them to each other?


People who don't have Whispernet are unable to download samples. Samples are (in my opinion) one of the best features of the Kindle. Now, if somebody who doesn't have Whispernet is interested in a book, a willing board member can send them the sample.


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

Right, as Luv said.

We have a few members in Montana, Alaska, Iraq, Mexico, the Phillipines...all places without Whispernet for sampling.

L


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## Anju  (Nov 8, 2008)

chynared21 said:


> *I suggested we pair up in another thread to email samples to someone out of the Whispernet range...here goes
> 
> I'm willing to pair up with someone who needs samples *


Thanks - right now I have too many books to read to get samples to be tempted to order more, that being said, you can be assured I will call on you to help me out.

Dona


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## chynared21 (Oct 28, 2008)

Anju said:


> Thanks - right now I have too many books to read to get samples to be tempted to order more, that being said, you can be assured I will call on you to help me out.
> 
> Dona


*Anytime Dona *


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## Guest (Jan 25, 2009)

Tbarney said:


> I'm confused.....why don't you just download the samples yourself? Whay are you emailing them to each other?


I was wondering the samething. I'll be happy to help out with this if someone needs me.


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## eclecticmama (Jan 27, 2009)

Well, I am interested in these samples, if anyone is able to help out.

Deep Storm, by Lincoln Child 
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000W94HE4/ref=s9_kinow_c1_t2?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-1&pf_rd_r=16ECNWT7WMPZP44XJPN0&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=467188171&pf_rd_i=507846

The Broken Window by Jeffery Deaver
http://www.amazon.com/Broken-Window-Lincoln-Rhyme-Novel/dp/B0013A1J74/ref=ed_oe_k

Thanks!

Trish


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## Kind (Jan 28, 2009)

What a great idea. This is a great thread. Has anybody used this "service" from this thread?


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## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

Kind said:


> What a great idea. This is a great thread. Has anybody used this "service" from this thread?


I've sent a few samples to others. If you want some samples, send me a PM with the ones you want and an email address.


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## madrye (Jan 8, 2009)

Send me any and all samples, I'll take them all. I read everything except well hmm, I guess westerns..lol. My email, which I don't care about posting online is, [email protected]  Thanks so very much. Leaving out of the whispernet area this is probably the only area I dislike about the kindle but I knew that going in.


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## chynared21 (Oct 28, 2008)

eclecticmama said:


> Well, I am interested in these samples, if anyone is able to help out.
> 
> Deep Storm, by Lincoln Child
> http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000W94HE4/ref=s9_kinow_c1_t2?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-1&pf_rd_r=16ECNWT7WMPZP44XJPN0&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=467188171&pf_rd_i=507846
> ...


*Has anyone sent you the samples? If not, pm me your email addy and I'll try and get them to you asap *


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## Jill75 (Mar 19, 2009)

Leslie said:


> Right, as Luv said.
> 
> We have a few members in Montana, Alaska, Iraq, Mexico, the Phillipines...all places without Whispernet for sampling.
> 
> L


Does this mean Whisphernet is location specific? So it wont work out of the US? What if I have whispernet and I am in the US, then I will not be able to use it if I went out of the country, say, the Carribean? Thanks!


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Jill. . . .first, welcome!

WN works in most of the US but is problematic in some more rural areas.  Good in much of Hawaii; not there at all in Alaska and, apparently, a lot of Montana.  It's a function of Sprint's coverage map, mostly.  It is absolutely NOT available outside the US; the reason has to do with the license under which Amazon sells the e-books which is only for the US.  They're working on something broader.  What Id suggest is to make sure you have plenty of books on your Kindle when you leave so you will not need to get more.  If you do need (or want) to get more, you can do it by downloading via computer.  

This used to be pretty clearly explained on Amazon's web site but it's possible that it's not quite so prominently displayed now.  I also think the K2 has a better radio than the K1 so even places that were spotty for the K1 work pretty well for the K2.

If you haven't already, pop down to "intros and welcomes" and tell us a bit about yourself!

Ann


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## mwvickers (Jan 26, 2009)

I don't get it.  My dad just tried to e-mail me a sample, and we both followed the steps.  I couldn't get it to open on my Kindle.  It's really strange, too, since we are both on one account.  

Oh, well.


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## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

mwvickers said:


> I don't get it. My dad just tried to e-mail me a sample, and we both followed the steps. I couldn't get it to open on my Kindle. It's really strange, too, since we are both on one account.


What kind of error did you get?


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## mwvickers (Jan 26, 2009)

pidgeon92 said:


> What kind of error did you get?


It basically just said that the Kindle couldn't open the file and that I should call customer service if I needed help.


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## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

I'd like to test this.... Can you tell me what the book was?


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## PJ (Feb 25, 2009)

This thread was started before the Kindle 2 came out.  Has anyone verified that this works with Kindle 2?  mwvickers were either of you using a Kindle 2?


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

mwvickers said:


> It basically just said that the Kindle couldn't open the file and that I should call customer service if I needed help.


When he downloaded to his computer did he have your Kindle selected? It may be that it was downloaded on the computer, but under his Kindle. Don't know if that matters, but worth a try.


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## mwvickers (Jan 26, 2009)

pidgeon92 said:


> I'd like to test this.... Can you tell me what the book was?


This one (sorry, I don't have time to do the link-maker): http://www.amazon.com/Three-Views-Origins-Synoptic-Gospels/dp/B00200LOD0/ref=ed_oe_k


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## mwvickers (Jan 26, 2009)

PJ said:


> This thread was started before the Kindle 2 came out. Has anyone verified that this works with Kindle 2? mwvickers were either of you using a Kindle 2?


No. We both have the original Kindle.


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## mwvickers (Jan 26, 2009)

Kathy said:


> When he downloaded to his computer did he have your Kindle selected? It may be that it was downloaded on the computer, but under his Kindle. Don't know if that matters, but worth a try.


Samples cannot be downloaded straight to a computer. They can only be sent to Kindles. That's why some people had the idea of sharing in this thread.

I sent it to his Kindle, because I don't get Whispernet access at my house.

This should be the same process that anyone else would use to share them.


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

The process in this thread is that person A would obtain a sample from Amazon on their Kindle. Then that person would use the USB cable download the sample to their computer, then email the sample file to person B. Person B would then use the USB cable to transfer the file to their Kindle.

Is that what you did mw?

The sample obtaining person has to have Whispernet, as that is the only way to get a sample from Amazon.

L


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## Jeff (Oct 28, 2008)

I have downloaded samples to my Kindle then copied the files to my PC and sent the samples to friends who are outside of Whispernet range on several occasions. It has always worked.


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## Kathy (Nov 5, 2008)

mwvickers said:


> Samples cannot be downloaded straight to a computer. They can only be sent to Kindles. That's why some people had the idea of sharing in this thread.
> 
> I sent it to his Kindle, because I don't get Whispernet access at my house.
> 
> This should be the same process that anyone else would use to share them.


You are right. I was just trying to walk myself through the process and wondered if a sample is connected to the Kindle it was downloaded. I'll have to try this with my daughter since we share an account.


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## mwvickers (Jan 26, 2009)

Leslie said:


> The process in this thread is that person A would obtain a sample from Amazon on their Kindle. Then that person would use the USB cable download the sample to their computer, then email the sample file to person B. Person B would then use the USB cable to transfer the file to their Kindle.
> 
> Is that what you did mw?
> 
> ...


That's what we did.


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

Silly question, but are you sure it's a sample? It won't open if he actually purchased the book, only samples can be done like this.

I just had it sent to my Kindle and I'm going to test this and see if it still works.


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## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

mwvickers said:


> This one (sorry, I don't have time to do the link-maker): http://www.amazon.com/Three-Views-Origins-Synoptic-Gospels/dp/B00200LOD0/ref=ed_oe_k


I tested this, and indeed the sample will not open on another Kindle.

Not sure if it should make a difference in the DRM, but the sample is a Topaz format - .azw1 - and came in at a whopping 388kb.


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## Jeff (Oct 28, 2008)

Sailor and I just tried it with the AZ1 file and it failed too. Verena must be right. They have the sample DRM protected. Shucks.


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## mwvickers (Jan 26, 2009)

luvmy4brats said:


> Silly question, but are you sure it's a sample? It won't open if he actually purchased the book, only samples can be done like this.
> 
> I just had it sent to my Kindle and I'm going to test this and see if it still works.


Yes. It was a sample.


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## mwvickers (Jan 26, 2009)

pidgeon92 said:


> I tested this, and indeed the sample will not open on another Kindle.
> 
> Not sure if it should make a difference in the DRM, but the sample is a Topaz format - .azw1 - and came in at a whopping 388kb.





Jeff said:


> Sailor and I just tried it with the AZ1 file and it failed too. Verena must be right. They have the sample DRM protected. Shucks.


That's unfortunate. It's a $9.99 book. I might have purchased it if I could have seen a sample. I may get it anyway. I don't know.

Thanks for the help everyone.


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## chynared21 (Oct 28, 2008)

mwvickers said:


> That's unfortunate. It's a $9.99 book. I might have purchased it if I could have seen a sample. I may get it anyway. I don't know.
> 
> Thanks for the help everyone.


*If there is a paperback version, can you "look inside?"*


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## luvmy4brats (Nov 9, 2008)

mwvickers said:


> That's unfortunate. It's a $9.99 book. I might have purchased it if I could have seen a sample. I may get it anyway. I don't know.
> 
> Thanks for the help everyone.


Remember that Amazon has a 7-day return policy for Kindle Books. If you buy it and don't care for it, you can return it. I wouldn't hesitate to do it for books that you can't read samples for.


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## Leslie (Apr 7, 2008)

So is the upshot here that we can't share samples via email anymore?

L


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## Jeff (Oct 28, 2008)

Leslie said:


> So is the upshot here that we can't share samples via email anymore?


Apparently you can't share Topaz formatted samples but I've downloaded quite a few regular files and successfully sent them to friends outside of Whispernet coverage. Of course Amazon may be in the process of changing that too. If so, it strikes me as a bad business decision. Google let's anyone sample up to 50% of the books in their library and they seem to be very interested in taking some of Amazon's market share.


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## AFS_NZ_IT (Feb 3, 2009)

luvmy4brats said:


> Remember that Amazon has a 7-day return policy for Kindle Books. If you buy it and don't care for it, you can return it. I wouldn't hesitate to do it for books that you can't read samples for.


Actually they don't anymore. I couldn't return a book I bought and it had been 5 days. They told me that they stopped returning kindle books in Sept. of last year.

I live outside of the whispernet too. So can I send a sample to my iphone and transfer it so my kindle the same way?


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## pidgeon92 (Oct 27, 2008)

AFS_NZ_IT said:


> Actually they don't anymore. I couldn't return a book I bought and it had been 5 days. They told me that they stopped returning kindle books in Sept. of last year.


I don't think this is accurate.... They stopped doing refunds on price reductions at that time, but we have had several members return books since then. I did it once myself in November.


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## AFS_NZ_IT (Feb 3, 2009)

When I tried, it was in Feb. or March.  The amazon customer service guy would not let me return the book.  If they do then I will be even madder that the guy wouldn't let me.  


I just went and searched through their return policy and this is what it states:  
Returning Kindle Content

Any content you purchase for Kindle from the Amazon Kindle store is eligible for return and refund if we receive your request within 7 days of the date of purchase. Once a refund is issued, the item will be removed from Your Media Library and will no longer be readable on your Kindle. To request a refund and return, click the Customer Service button in the Contact Us box in the right-hand column of this page to reach us via phone or e-mail. Please make sure to include the title of the item you wish to return in your request.


It makes me furious that he wouldn't let me because there return policy does state that you can.  He must have been in a cranky mood because the cs guy wouldn't let me after only 5 days.  

Back to the actual thread content.  I just tried to sample a book on the iphone to send to my kindle and  I can't get into my iphone in order to download the file.  So that way is a dud.


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## kevindorsey (Mar 4, 2009)

I haven't tried this, but this makes no sense?  Why would they DRM protect samples?


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

There is no DRM on the samples. . . .that's why we can e-mail them to each other.  The issue is, you can only get them direct to Kindle via Whispernet.  So folks who are out of WN area who generally load content via transfer across USB, would not otherwise be able to get samples from Amazon.  But if someone with WN downloads it, they can use USB to move it to their computer, then e-mail it to a non-WN Kindler, who can then move it by USB to their Kindle.  

There is a more detailed step by step in the second post of this thread for anyone who wants/needs to try it.


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## SusanCassidy (Nov 9, 2008)

Perhaps there are sample chapters available for the book from Mobipocket.com.  Their samples usually are readable (with Mobipocket Reader) on a pc.  It may be a book that they don't have, since it is in Topaz format on Amazon.

It sounds like Topaz books may be DRM-protected, but Mobipocket won't carry Topaz-format books.


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## davebaxter (Jul 24, 2009)

For anyone who wishes, I'm more than happy to email samples.  PM me from now to eternity and I should be able to nab 'em for you! --Dave B.


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## ak rain (Nov 15, 2008)

remember that the Iphone/touch can be sent samples without regard to WN
sylvia


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