How to use the Amazon Kindle e-reader. The best reader for android How to navigate the book and library
"Paper or eBooks?" - the question is about as strong as Shakespeare's "To be or not to be?". Indeed, the scale of the universe.
We decided to put in our two cents and asked the myth-makers about what kind of books they prefer - paper or electronic, what devices and applications they use, where and how they read books. In general, if you have long wanted to know, but were embarrassed to ask - we ourselves told everything đ
I like e-books. There are several reasons for this: e-books have a convenient font and a small gadget you can take with you anywhere. AT recent times I travel often, so I carefully guard the free space in my backpack. There are no such problems with the e-reader. I use the Amazon Kindle reader.
As for paper books, I often take them in order to carefully examine the illustrations. Otherwise, I prefer the electronic version. I also always have a MacBook and an iPhone at hand. If I read on a laptop, then I use Acrobat Reader for PDFs, which are immediately synchronized with the application of the same name on the iPhone.
Most of all I love paper books. Nothing can replace the smell of a fresh cover, the rustle of new pages. And the process itself, when you first pick up a book from a bookstore shelf or receive it in a parcel, reminds New Year's fairy tale. I usually wait for parcels with books no less than New Year's gifts đ
Of course, today you have to read e-books as well. They are more convenient and practical, but I believe that, for example, fiction must be read on paper. Firstly, you can always stop, think, leave notes or pencil scribbles in the margins as a keepsake for posterity đ And secondly, I am convinced that the charm of each particular book can only be fully felt when you hold it in your hands, take it Take it to the bath with you or carry it in your bag.
After everything she has experienced, she becomes somehow closer, dearer and more sincere. This is no longer just some abstract book, but a part of your life.
But the electronic reader is very convenient for work and travel. She is light and unpretentious. For many years I have had one single Pocket Book, which has served me faithfully and has never let me down. She reads 8 document formats, which is enough for me.
Also, while working at MIF, I read a lot of books from a computer monitor. This is convenient, especially when it comes to children's books. You can evaluate pictures, spreads, see some details. And in principle - reading from a computer disciplines. You always know that now is the time for work, and you will rest later đ
For the past few years, I have been reading mostly e-books. If you need to move around a lot, especially in public transport, "Reader" - an indispensable thing. I am in love with my e-book. When I go to choose a bag for myself in the store, I take it with me so that it fits exactly inside. However, I agree with those who say that "readers" cannot create the same feeling of comfort that you feel when sitting with a paper book in your hand. That is why I always buy all my favorite works on paper.
If you ask me which reader to buy, I will recommend mine - Sony PRS-T2.
I love her because:
- I donât even remember the last time I charged it, it doesnât require recharging for a very long time.
- Thanks to electronic ink (e-ink), the eyes do not get tired of it.
- The case (which can be purchased separately) comes with a flashlight that creates the right lighting.
- Most importantly, it has a set of dictionaries! It is very convenient to read texts in foreign languages: you press the stylus on an unfamiliar word - translation options drop out. What would I do without it!
- Enjoy reading!
I read e-books in two applications - for pdf I most often use GoodReader, and I read MYTH books in epub in iBooks, it is very convenient there.
Before (2-3 years ago) I read only paper books. I liked to hold a âfull-fledgedâ book in my hands, make bookmarks, pencil notes. And it was difficult to perceive the text from the screen: it was inconvenient to navigate in the book and did not remember what was read well. But at some point, when I ran out of room for books at home and I realized that the iPad in my bag is much lighter, I began to actively read from the screen. And got used to it. Now I read 30% on paper, 70% in electronic form.
In paper form - children's books, illustrated editions, albums, reference books. In general, all books where the design and visual structure more important than text. Or it can be ordinary text books that I canât buy in electronic form, but I really want to read it. Everything else I read on the iPad.
Myth books are stored in iBooks. For books from other publishers, the LitResa application is installed. If I see an interesting novelty, I prefer to buy right there. Usually this is a multi-page artist and non-fiction.
For a long time, I couldn't get used to working with notes. I read PDF files and tried a variety of ways: I wrote out quotes by hand, copied and saved in different notepads and applications, took screenshots and laid out in OneNote (I have all the notes there).
All this was unsystematic and inconvenient, while a colleague, Dima Utrobin, our Commercial Director, did not advise a simple and ingenious solution - read in epub. This format allows you to email selected quotes to yourself or save them to Notes on your iPad. Everything is done automatically, without hands.
This is a very important point for me. I love it when everything is kept in one place where I can easily get to. Everything should be fast and at hand. As a result, I completely lost the habit of writing out quotes from paper books with my hands. And this for me is another argument in favor of the e-book.
I hardly have time to read paper or e-books, so I usually listen to audiobooks. To do this, I bought an iPod Shuffle 3 years ago (such a mini-version for athletes, without a screen). Very small and light. When I take a bath, I generally cling it to my earlobe. Holds a charge up to 7 days (depending on bitrate and playback volume). I download 2 gigabytes of books and listen on the road or, for example, when I go shopping.
Natalia Babaeva, Development Director
Actually, I love paper. I usually have a paper book completely covered. There is no living space on the margins and endpapers. I write not only excerpts from the book, but also the thoughts born in the process of reading. Sometimes I get to the decomposition of the project =) This is not enough in the e-mail.
I read e-books on two occasions:
- if it is very long, itâs less scary to read and you donât have to carry a thick volume with you,
- if I prefer linear reading along it (without jumping from chapter to chapter). Approximately half of the books that I read are in electronic form.
I love reading on paper. The phone is small and uncomfortable. The "reader" is a little annoying, there are problems with the encoding, but sometimes I use it. I read on my phone before going to bed, so as not to disturb the sleeping person next to me. I read in the standard iBooks application - in my opinion, very convenient - and in Acrobat Reader.
I read only paper books for three reasons. Firstly, it is much more pleasant than reading electronic versions: touching the cover, paper. Secondly, creative books cannot be felt without holding them in your hands. Thirdly, MYTH has too beautiful books to refuse such pleasure. =)
However, many friends prefer electronic versions of books: they are more mobile and cost less than paper books. But in the case of creative notebooks and coloring books, friends are forced to take my side: you canât fully enjoy coloring in electronic form.
I read a lot and often. I prefer paper books, but I often use e-books as well. I am a supporter of active reading - I emphasize interesting places, make notes in the margins, leave bookmarks. And many programs allow you to do this in an e-book.
It's actually easier to list the places where I don't read, because I read ... almost everywhere. Here I tried to remember where I read in the last week. The result was such a list: in public transport, at a music school (while I was waiting for my son from class), at the entrance to the martial arts hall (again, while I was waiting for my son), at home, in a park, at a bus stop ... Well, of course, at the workplace: Fortunately, work not only allows, but also obliges to read a lot đ
What are my reading secrets? Actually none. Unless I make a list of those books that I want to read (although it does not decrease with each book read, but only increases weekly).
My son and I also have two other lists - they include books read since the beginning of the year. And his list so far is one book larger than mine. A very motivating thing for both, in fact.
I read both electronic and paper books. But I like paper ones more: I am a 100% kinesthetic, and for me the feeling of holding a high-quality book in my hands, flipping through the pages, putting bookmarks is simply indescribable
Most of all, of course, I love paper books: the smell of the pages of a new book is one of the most attractive in the world. Reading paper books is somehow cozy at home. And always a pleasure. And if I have to travel, I always run into a bookstore and buy books - like birthday candy. And then I read, read and read đ Yes, and, fortunately, they have not yet come up with ânotificationsâ that pop up in the real world about new messages and letters, so nothing distracts from reading and you can safely immerse yourself in a book.
At work, in 95% of cases I read electronic books - from a laptop (more often) or a phone (less often). The undoubted advantage of e-books is that the notes that I save in Evernote or a document in Google Docs are easy and quick to take. Nothing needed will be lost.
Before working at MIF, I bought books and read paper versions in 80% of cases. Now the situation is the opposite - I read 80% only in electronic form. I have an iPad mini4, the iBooks program suits me completely. It is most convenient to work with versions of epub files, since in this case you can highlight text with a marker and add notes. I have a whole library in my iPad, without it Hermione's bag would be needed. Paper books have 100 pluses, but there is also one minus - deforestation, the lungs of our planet.
As for e-books, I'm a fan of paper books. Of course, I have an e-book, I always take it with me on the road or vacation, but only because it takes up little space. This is such a necessary measure, like instant coffee instead of freshly roasted, ground and cooked in a Turk over a fire. Some kind of compromise.
Books printed on paper are a completely different matter. Everything from the first acquaintance with the book, its unique smell of printing ink, snow-white pages that are still difficult to open completely, including the pleasure of future reading and the desire to look at the last page to see how this story ends, is like magic, like the evening before the holidays, like a first date. đ So I am for paper books!
I do not read e-books at all - only those books that do not come out in paper. I always wait for paper, I only buy paper. And if I read electronically, then it's banal with ipad through iBooks.
Nemtseva Irina, production manager of MIF publishing house
I like paper books more, I love the tactile feeling when you flip through, you see how much is left to read.
I love both paper and e-books! Since I mainly work with illustrated and gift editions, the paper version is ideal for them: hold it in your hands, look at photos, drawings, read in a special mood đ Text books I enjoy reading electronically. Moreover, for the last year and a half - I have a baby - itâs hard to find time for reading, so I use the achievements of civilization to the fullest. I have an e-book on the kitchen table - while my son is eating, I manage to read 10 pages. While the child goes to bed (he is still small for fairy tales), I sit next to him in an armchair and read from a smartphone. The smartphone is synchronized with the computer, and when my son falls asleep, I can move to the table and continue reading from the computer. I also love summari. For parents with young children, this is just a godsend. In general, there would be a desire, you can almost always find time for reading đ
I prefer paper books. But more and more I read e-books. I donât pay much attention to readers, apparently, I immediately got lucky) I use iBooks
Of course, I like paper books more, but electronic books are more convenient to read anyway. Unfortunately, I canât give advice on readers and applications, I just read PDF from a tablet)
As for reading, I read electronically from my phone, but since it has os simbian, which Nokia no longer supports, none of the formats presented on our site are suitable for my phone. So I download, convert to another format and read. But this is only because of convenience, and I like paper books more and read them when possible.
What books do you prefer? Tell us in the comments what you like to read, what applications you use and what you can advise us and readers.
Large diagonals and high resolution in modern Android devices make the reading process more convenient and fun. Choosing an application for reading e-books, the user is guided by personal needs and tastes. For some it is important to support a large number of formats, someone needs access to network libraries. For example, I will never use the "reader" if it does not have a night reading mode. Someone will say that what matters most is the content, not the form. And here I, perhaps, agree, but I would like to draw an analogy with paper books. After all, it is much more pleasant to hold a book in your hands in a beautiful cover with a clear and beautiful font. The same can be projected onto reading applications. Like it or not, but it is with paper books that we subconsciously compare electronic counterparts. And the more we find similar moments, the more likely it is that we will choose a particular program. It is these âclose to realityâ reading applications that we have tried to select for you.
- the most famous and popular book reader for android. Although it does not have the easiest interface, but after spending some time setting it up for yourself, you will be 100% satisfied with the result. The application supports all popular formats: fb2, .fb2.zip, .txt, .rtf, .doc, .epub, .chm, .pdb, .prc, .mobi.
You will not find built-in stores here, but you can open the desired book from any directory on the root system of your device. Beautiful background textures, page turning effect and convenient work with the table of contents will help you plunge headlong into reading for hours. 
FBReader can be safely called one of the best "readers". In addition to numerous customizable reading options, the app has a sense of style! FBReader looks especially organic on devices with Android 4.0 and higher. The menu, settings, display of read pages and much more are made in the holo-style inherent in the standard Android interface. It is impossible not to note the excellent optimization of the application and very smooth navigation within the program itself. Users can also find various plugins for accessing network libraries. 
In principle, another good application for reading e-books, which has one indisputable advantage - synchronization with Dropbox. Having similar functionality to the programs described above, it has a beautiful appearance and built-in access to various bookstores.
Aldiko Book Reader is the simplest and most convenient program for reading books on Android smartphones and tablets. The application has a simple and minimalist design. In other words, nothing more to distract you from reading. The lack of a Russian-language interface and a small number of supported formats, of course, is a little disappointing, but the simplicity and decent work on devices running not the latest versions of Android has allowed this application to provide more than 10 million downloads to date! 
"Omnivorous" application for reading electronic literature. It has an original interface in the form of a "circular" menu with various controls, which is called by pressing the center of the screen. Working with text is very conveniently implemented: selection, creation of quotes and comments, snapshots of individual sections of the screen. The font size can be adjusted by a simple "slivers" on the display. Even if it does not deserve to be defined as the best program for reading, then it will be able to compete with the leaders in terms of functionality and âbells and whistlesâ.
Download various applications. The reader does not have to be read-only at all, you can download a lot of different applications there! Bring up the menu on the main page and select Apps.
- You can download applications social networks- Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, etc. Actually, if you want to share with the world the news about what you read and what you like about these books, then such applications will serve you faithfully.
- You can also download the Netflix app (if you have an account) or HBO to watch movies and shows directly from your reader.
- Even games can be downloaded to the reader! For example, free versions Candy Crush Saga, Words with Friends and more.
- Sideloading (installing apps from unknown sources) is a great way to install apps on your reader that aren't available through Amazon. In this case, you need to go to the settings, then More, then Device, and then find the phrase âAllow Installation of Applicationsâ or âApps from Unknown Sourcesâ and activate this option. You will then be able to download apps from third-party Android app sources. To do this, you need to go from the reader to the network, go to the site from which you are supposed to download the application, find the application and click on the âDownloadâ button or similar. Then go to the Amazon app store and download the ES File Explorer app there (this will help you find apps from third-party publishers). When it downloads, open it and go to the downloads folder. There you will find the app you downloaded. Select it, agree with everything and click Install. Once the app is installed, open it.
Convert PDF files. Alas, the Kindle opens the .pdf as if the page size of the text is exactly the same size as the screen. In other words, the text can simply be compressed to the point of obscenity and unreadability. To avoid this, you need to send a .pdf file to your reader with the word "convert" in the subject line. Kindle will then convert the .pdf to its format.
- However, this is an experimental feature that does not always give a qualitative result. However, it's better that way!
- And yes, you can upload .pdf files to your e-reader, either converted to native Kindle format or not (and you can read them instead of books).
Problem solving. Alas, even Amazon readers can suddenly start to work incorrectly. The reasons for this are darkness, and most of them can only be corrected by a specialist. However, before you panic and look for the address of the nearest service center, it's worth checking something yourself - but, of course, not when the reader constantly overheats, such problems require replacement of components.
- If your screen is frozen or seriously freezes, then hold down the power button for 20 seconds. Then release the button, but press it again for another 20 seconds. The start screen should appear. There can be many reasons for the appearance of a âfrozenâ screen - from outdated firmware and clogged memory to overheating and low battery power.
- Email not working? Yes, sometimes. Sometimes it does not turn on at all, sometimes it works, but only for a short time. Either way, it's annoying. The best way deal with this - download the third-party app K-9 or Kaiten mail, or buy the Enhanced Mail app.
- Problems with access to the network can lead to white heat, because if there is no connection, then there is no opportunity to buy books! In this case, you need to check the connection (upper right corner of the screen). If the signal is weak, but still there, then restart the reader. Also check the battery level - sometimes this affects the quality of the connection.
In the first two parts of the How to read books on iPhone series, we talked about the wonderful free apps iBooks and Bookmate. We will not change ourselves and tell you about another worthy free application, reading books on which is very pleasant and accessible.
Aichitalka - an application from Russian company"Imobilco", which has proven itself in the App Store. Thousands of fans good books have given preference to this program for a number of objective reasons: huge database of books, excellent text processing capabilities, impeccable appearance applications and more.
Before considering possible ways to download books to Aichitalka, let's spend a little time on the application itself. And there is something to see here. To begin with, I would like to note the magnificent design of Aichitalka, which has recently become fully adapted to iOS 7. The most beautiful thing is that for all its beauty, the application works extremely quickly and does not slow down even on older devices.
There are three main sections - My books, Score and Profile. AT Profile each new user will have to register, however, it is optional. If you do not plan to upload your books to the application and want to be content with just a free choice, for example, the application will create a temporary account for you, which you can use quite successfully.
Free books, by the way, a huge amount. All of them are classic works of Russian writers, so lovers of foreign literature will still have to think about registering with the application and then buying or downloading books.
Reading books in Aichitalka is a special pleasure. The ability to change the font, format, brightness and display style on the go will help you quickly, without unnecessary navigation through the menu, customize the application to your liking (or based on the degree of illumination). While reading a book, you can save your favorite quotes with just one click, as well as write comments on individual paragraphs of the text. In Aichitalk, a book search and an elegantly executed bookmarking system are available.
How to upload books to Aichitalka?
If you donât have enough free books to choose from, and now itâs not possible to spend money on purchasing literature in the built-in store, then books in FB2 format can be easily downloaded into the application using the web interface - imobilco.ru.
Step 1. Register on the website imobilco.ru
Step 2. Go to your profile settings and click on the button Storage
Step 3. Click the button Download book and select a book in FB2 format
Step 5. Go to the section My books in the Aichitalka application and press Download all
Step 6. After the download is complete, you can start reading
The process, as you can see, is very simple and similar to what we saw in the second part of the How to read books on iPhone series when we reviewed Bookmate.
Attention! This instruction was written in 2013 and, of course, outdated. After 5 years, I redid it to be more relevant.
iPad as a reader is used by the vast majority of users of this tablet. This article is about OPDS directories. I will tell, what are OPDS catalogs, how to read free books on iPad using OPDS, I will give a list of iPad programs that support OPDS catalogs. I will also give a list of network libraries that you can connect to readers that support OPDS. And all this will be quite briefly in the form of a cheat sheet.
What is an OPDS catalog?
The OPDS catalog (Open Publication Distribution System) is an electronic publication aggregation format based on the Atom and HTTP protocols.
If you call things in an understandable language, then OPDS is a convenient system for finding books. In the best OPDS catalogs, you can search for books by author, by book title, by series, by genre, and so on. In these catalogs, you can usually read the description of the book, see the cover, and even download the book to your device in a convenient format.
List of iPad apps that support OPDS catalogs
eBook Search Pro-EPUB+
Convenient search engine for books in OPDS catalogs. The advantage is that you are not tied to the reader. We are looking for a book, and then we open it in our favorite reading program (at least Kybook, at least Shortbook). The program is convenient for those users who use the reader without the OPDS function. If you don't want to move from iBooks, then this is the app for you.
Total Reader
Another reader with a bunch of features, but I didnât really like it. Judging by the reviews, people like it. Supports a bunch of formats, features and, of course, OPDS.
Our Attitude To Reading Free Books From The Internet
Someone may notice that we carefully avoid issues of pirated content on the site. We do not encourage piracy. But at the same time, I am ready to give a list of sites that are full of free books.
We ourselves buy books in paper form (yes, we suffer from this) and occasionally digital. Sometimes we download from flibusta. Our position here is this - links to directories are given for informational purposes only. If someone doesn't like them, don't use them. :) We are for people to read more, and the fight against book piracy is not our task.
Roskomnadzor blocks both sites with books and OPDS catalogs. To make them work, it is enough to turn on the VPN before using the applications. For example, the application now does a great job with this task.
OPDS catalogs in Russian
- flibusta.is/opds or proxy.flibusta.is/opds- the most famous and popular book resource in Runet. A lot of books. Sometimes lies or tupit. But this is the best library of books in Runet. Recommend.
- lib.rus.ec/opdsâ requires authorization to work with OPDS. Not all programs support this authorization. But even after that, it is not a fact that you will download the book. I do not recommend.
- coollib.net/opds is an interesting library. Positions itself as an open community of users.
- dimonvideo.ru/lib.xmlâ OPDS catalog by genre only. A lot of fantasy and science fiction, but the uniqueness of the material is in question.
Here are some more catalogs...
- epubbooks.ru/index.xml
- www.feedbooks.com/catalog.atom
- www.zone4iphone.ru/catalog.php
- opdshome.uo1.net/samlib/
- asmodei.ru/opds/
- f-w.in/opds
- www.e-reading.link/opds/
- profilelib.com/opds
- maxima-library.org/opds
- jbooks.mobi/opds
- m.gutenberg.org/ebooks/?format=opds
How to add an OPDS catalog to the iPad reader
As a rule, everything is added very simply. You must specify the name of the library (we write any name) and a link to the OPDS catalog (copy a little higher). As you can see in the screenshot below, several directories have been added to Kybook 2.
To add a new one, you need to find in the âLibrariesâ section a button with a plus in the lower right corner. Press it and select the âOPDS Catalogâ item. Next, either select a directory from the list, or enter the direct address of the directory in the search bar.
After that, go to the directory and poke on the right items.
After a few search clicks you will reach the right books and download them to your reader.
The principle of adding books in other readers is similar.