Free on Amazon Today

Stuck in the Middle (Sister-to-Sister, Book 1) ~ Virginia Smith Available for free i

Note: If you are reading this on your Kindle and want to get a book from the Kindle store now, type the title with your Kindle, then toggle your 5-way switch to the right until the word store is highlighted. Press in on it to search. When the title comes up, use the 5-way toggle switch to move around the book info area to read more about the book. Make sure it is still free (or an acceptable price) before finally pressing in on the 5-way switch to "buy" it. You can always press the back button (before you press buy) if you change your mind.

And remember... what is FREE today may not be FREE tomorrow, so get it while you can! 

Ask Mrs. Wizard:
Please send me a personal email (mrswizard@mrswizard.com) if you have any questions. I answer all my emails and am more than happy to help any time I can. Your questions mean a lot to me, and may even inspire an article that will help others and make this a more valuable resource to anyone who reads it. 

If you are reading this on your computer and would like to have this blog delivered to your Kindle wirelessly every day, click the link below. New subscribers will get the first two weeks free! If you know of a fellow Kindle owner, please share a good word and let them know about From the Desk of Mrs. Wizard.

Kindle Skills - Gift Books

You couldn't ask for better timing, just in time for Christmas giving. Amazon has now made it very easy (added a button) to give someone a Kindle book for any occasion. Just click the button and fill in the recipient's email address. The book charge will go on your Amazon account, and your friend or family member will receive a nice little email with a link to their gift. Of course, it would be nice if they had a Kindle, but it isn't absolutely necessary. There is the free software, Kindle for PC, Mac, and iPhone.

This is a welcome addition, and I'm surprised they didn't do it sooner. Every avid reader I know loves to share, and this is a wonderful way to do it. It is also a great way to take care of a lot of Christmas and birthday shopping. Personally, my favorite gift to receive is an Amazon gift certificate... I love em! Don't have to worry about something not fitting or being the wrong color (I hate orange). It is always the perfect fit and just what I wanted. And now I can share my favorite books via Amazon and Kindle apps. I love it! And if they don't love it, they can swap it for a gift certificate.

Here is a bit more information, straight from the horse's mouth:

Frequently Asked Questions about Giving Kindle Books

• Do I have to own a Kindle to give or receive a Kindle book as a gift? No. Kindle books can be given and received by anyone with an e-mail address. Kindle books can be read either on Kindle or on your PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry, or Android Phone using one our our free reading apps.

• What if the recipient doesn't like or want their gift? Kindle books received as gifts can be exchanged for Amazon.com gift cards.

• Are all Kindle books eligible to be given as gifts? All Kindle books available for purchase in the Amazon.com Kindle Store can be given as gifts.

Kindle Skills - Charging your Kindle and a Slow PC

There have been a few times I have had the Kindle plugged into my PC to charge via USB, then without ejecting the Kindle or removing it from the USB hookup, went on to shut the computer down for the night. The next morning (Kindle still plugged in), the computer didn't want to start at all. I just got that black screen, sort of the pre start up scenario. Once I hit myself in the forehead and disconnected the Kindle, it started up fine.

This is not the first time I have done this, never on purpose, just had my head up the old wazoo. Leaving your Kindle "charging" all night to a turned off PC is not good. The Kindle will only charge when it is plugged into a wall outlet/usb cable or a usb connection to a turned on computer so it can have a steady stream of power. As far as the computer not wanting to start up normally when a Kindle was connected, I'm not sure if the computer was confused because some device (the Kindle?) was wanting power from the usb port, or if it was confused because it sensed an additional external hard drive (the Kindle) during the startup process it wasn't used to. Whatever it was, it might be helpful to know that if you turn your computers off every night, don't leave your Kindle attached. It is not a good thing.

Hope everyone has a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving!

If you are reading this on your computer and would like to have this blog delivered to your Kindle wirelessly every day, click the link below. New subscribers will get the first two weeks free! If you know of a fellow Kindle owner, please share a good word and let them know about From the Desk of Mrs. Wizard - A Kindle Blog

Free on Amazon Today

Santa, Honey ~ Sandra Hill Available for free in the following regions: Middle East*, Latin Am. & Caribbean*, India*, Canada, Australia, Africa*, United States

Note: If you are reading this on your Kindle and want to get a book from the Kindle store now, type the title with your Kindle, then toggle your 5-way switch to the right until the word store is highlighted. Press in on it to search. When the title comes up, use the 5-way toggle switch to move around the book info area to read more about the book. Make sure it is still free (or an acceptable price) before finally pressing in on the 5-way switch to "buy" it. You can always press the back button (before you press buy) if you change your mind.

And remember... what is FREE today may not be FREE tomorrow, so get it while you can!

Ask Mrs. Wizard: Please send me a personal email (mrswizard@mrswizard.com) if you have any questions. I answer all my emails and am more than happy to help any time I can. Your questions mean a lot to me, and may even inspire an article that will help others and make this a more valuable resource to anyone who reads it. 

Winzip for the Mac

Finally they have a version of Winzip for the Mac I can sink my teeth into. I have always tried to teach that "zip" files are really nothing more than folders with compressed files in them. You may come across similar files when you are searching for ebooks for your Kindle.

On a PC you can double click a .zip file and see the contents as though it were a real folder. I like that... straightforward and not confusing. And if you only want one file out of a bunch, you can left click on it and drag just that file to your desktop, decompressing it automatically on the way.

Since I got my Mac a few years ago, I haven't been happy with the way it handles zip files. It opens them ok, with a nice double click.... to a new folder right on the desktop (or wherever the zip file actually is). It is all built in... and that is nice to a point. What I missed on the Mac was the ability to see the contents without actually committing to unzipping the stuff. It was open all or nothing... no in between.

I'm happy with the new Winzip (they aren't paying me to say this) on my Mac. It allows me to open any kind of compressed file out there (including many that don't have .zip at the end of the file name), and see the contents before committing. I can even drag what I want out to the desktop, then delete the original zip file/folder when finished. I love it!

Ask Mrs. Wizard:
Please send me a personal email (mrswizard@mrswizard.com) if you have any questions. I answer all my emails and am more than happy to help any time I can. Your questions mean a lot to me, and may even inspire an article that will help others and make this a more valuable resource to anyone who reads it. 

If you are reading this on your computer and would like to have this blog delivered to your Kindle wirelessly every day, click the link below. New subscribers will get the first two weeks free! If you know of a fellow Kindle owner, please share a good word and let them know about From the Desk of Mrs. Wizard.

Kindle Skills - Contacts on your Kindle

If you (like many) have a tendency to have your Kindle close at all times, you may want to let it do "double duty" as a personal information manager (pim?).

Create an alphabetized contact list in any word processor. I prefer a word processor because you can keep the formatting simpler and choose how to save it, so it will transfer to your Kindle easily. A .doc file can be converted and transferred to your Kindle without much fuss.

Name (first and last)
Address:
zip:
Phone:
Other Phone:
Notes:
Photo: Yes, you can even insert a small photo if you want. Your working file will need to be a .doc or .rtf file though, to accommodate it (no text file). Then you can use either Calibre or Mobipocket Reader to convert it to a Kindle file you can then drag to your little machine's documents folder.

Make your Contacts document personal. Because it is a list, you can insert each addition alphabetically, as you need to, with the header for each entry as the name of the entry. It doesn't have to be only names. I use mine for all sorts of things. Here is a example where I copied and pasted a portion of an email for documentation:

Once your file is converted and transferred to your Kindle, it will be searchable, like any other "book" and very easy to use. It will always open (with your Kindle) to the last page you were viewing, and will be listed on your home screen by the file name/title you give it.

Keep your original as a working file and update it whenever you want. Then reconvert it and send the new file to your Kindle again and again, replacing the older one with the newer, updated file.

Do whatever you need to do to make this document work for you. And have fun with it.

Ask Mrs. Wizard:
Please send me a personal email (mrswizard@mrswizard.com) if you have any questions. I answer all my emails and am more than happy to help any time I can. Your questions mean a lot to me, and may even inspire an article that will help others and make this a more valuable resource to anyone who reads it. 

If you are reading this on your computer and would like to have this blog delivered to your Kindle wirelessly every day, click the link below. New subscribers will get the first two weeks free! If you know of a fellow Kindle owner, please share a good word and let them know about From the Desk of Mrs. Wizard.

Kindle skills - Free ebook tools

Educate yourself by reading about these free tools, and learn how they can help enhance your Kindle and ebook reading experience. These are my favorites with the url so you can copy these and check them out on your main computer if you are reading this on your Kindle:

• Manybooks.net - http://manybooks.net One of my favorites for the PC, mainly because it is so easy to drag and drop convert files to make them Kindle ready.
• Calibre ebook management - http://calibre-ebook.com/ Fast becoming my favorite because it works on the Mac as well as the PC. You can edit, convert, organize, and even read your favorite non Amazon books with this.
• Stanza (for your iPhone, as well as PC or Mac) - http://www.lexcycle.com/
• Kindle for PC - http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_pc_mkt_lnd?docId=1000426311
• Kindle for Mac - http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_mac_mkt_lnd?docId=1000464931
• Barnes & Noble Reader  - http://www.barnesandnoble.com/u/nook-for-pc/379002322/ How bout a taste of that Nook? With this on your iPhone or PC or Mac, you can take advantage of free offerings from Barnes & Noble too. 
• iPhone BookShelf - http://www.iphonebookshelf.com/ This has a nifty little server you can install on your mac or pc that allows you to (very easily) transfer your favorite epub files to your iPhone wirelessly. A neat tool to experiment (play) with.

All of these are freeware, no advertising, everything works great, and they all install nice and clean, and won't mess up your computer system. Years ago (Windows XP and before) I would never have installed so many different applications on one machine, but now with Vista and Windows 7, it is much easier. It could be they are just making software better too. Who knows? My Mac has been an experience too, with not much to choose from in the way of software, but what is available is very good, even freeware. Freeware can sometimes mean crapware, but not in the case of anything you will hear about from me.

Bottom line from old Mrs. Wizard? You can never have too many tools...

Kindle Skills- Mobipocket Reader

It isn't nearly as robust as Calibre, and it is only available for PCs (sorry Mac users), but the Mobipocket Reader is still a great tool to have handy if you like to download books from other sources and find yourself with a book in a common format for other ereaders, but won't work on your Kindle.

The Mobipocket Reader is a FREE tool that can be a great way to read your favorite ebooks on your computer screen, but it also doubles as a quick and easy way to convert some files to a format you can use on your Kindle.

Drag your epub, html, doc, .rtf, .txt, .pdf, excel or powerpoint files right into the right window pane of the main Mobipocket Reader window. You will see the conversion indicator, and when it is finished, you will see your book opened in the reader. Click the words eBooks in the left pane to close the reading view and return to your list of books pane where you originally dragged the book that has just been converted. 

Your book will now appear in the list with any others you have opened with your Mobipocket Reader. Right click any book and choose Open containing folder to open the folder where all these converted books are stored. Drag that .prc file right to the Documents folder on your Kindle. When you disconnect (safely) your Kindle from your USB connection and your computer,and turn it on, your newly converted book will appear on the main home screen to treat just like any other Kindle book.

Oh... a .prc file is one of the file types your Kindle can read with no trouble a'tall. Isn't that convenient?

Down and dirty... my kind of file converter!

Kindle Skills - Hands free page turning

This is almost too much... but a really neat trick! Great for a lazy day of reading in bed... a really lazy day.

If you have a book that has Text to Speech enabled, activate it, then turn down the volume on your Kindle and watch the pages turn for you automatically. Press the Aa button if you want to adjust the speed.

The keyboard command to turn on Text to Speech is Shift+SYM. While holding down the Shift key (up arrow), press the SYM key once. This turns it off or on, and works on the Kindle 2 as well as the latest Kindle 3 and DX.

Another way to turn on (and off) Text to Speech is to press the Aa key. If the option is not available, the words Text to Speech will be greyed out.

Text-To-Speech Keyboard Shortcuts:

• Start or stop - Shift+SYM (shift key is the "up arrow")
• Pause text-to-speech - Spacebar
• Switch Between Male and Female Voices & Change Voice Speed - press the Aa button while it is playing, then use the 5-way to navigate to the option you want. Press in on the center button to make it happen.
• Start text-to-speech at specific point on a page - To begin the text-to-speech at a particular point on a page, move the cursor with your 5-way controller to the point just before you want the reading to begin.

Free on Amazon Today

A nice little romance/thriller.

Lonestar Sanctuary (Lonestar Series, Book 1) ~ Colleen Coble Available for free in the following regions: United States, Africa*, Australia, Canada, Middle East*, India*, Latin Am. & Caribbean*

Note: If you are reading this on your Kindle and want to get a book from the Kindle store now, type the title with your Kindle, then toggle your 5-way switch to the right until the word store is highlighted. Press in on it to search. When the title comes up, use the 5-way toggle switch to move around the book info area to read more about the book. Make sure it is still free (or an acceptable price) before finally pressing in on the 5-way switch to "buy" it. You can always press the back button (before you press buy) if you change your mind.

And remember... what is FREE today may not be FREE tomorrow, so get it while you can!

Ask Mrs. Wizard: Please send me a personal email (mrswizard@mrswizard.com) if you have any questions. I answer all my emails and am more than happy to help any time I can. Your questions mean a lot to me, and may even inspire an article that will help others and make this a more valuable resource to anyone who reads it. 

If you are reading this on your computer and would like to have this blog delivered to your Kindle wirelessly every day, click the link below. New subscribers will get the first two weeks free! If you know of a fellow Kindle owner, please share a good word and let them know about From the Desk of Mrs. Wizard - A Kindle Blog

Kindle Skills - Manual Download

On the Road Again...Traveling with your Kindle is one of the easiest things to do. You have room on your little machine for enough books to keep someone occupied for a lifetime (or two, or three). So load it up with your favorites and new books you would love to read before you leave.

If you are on an extended trip, you may need to take your laptop with you as an additional resource. It can come in handy if you have a nice Internet connection at the hotel, or wherever you happen to be, but your Kindle can't connect for one reason or another. Connect to Amazon with your laptop, shop till you drop in the Kindle store, but instead of sending the purchases to your Kindle, click the little drop down and choose Transfer via Computer.

You will see a new window appear, and you will need to specify which device you plan to transfer the download to (because each book is specially coded for each Kindle it is being used on?).

You will see a .prc file appear on your Desktop (or wherever you have your downloads sent to). Hook up your Kindle and copy this file to the Documents folder on it. When you disconnect the Kindle from your computer and turn it on again, your book will be right there. Ready to read and enjoy!

Safely Remove Reminder: Remember... don't just jerk that USB cable to free your Kindle from the computer or Mac. Do the safely remove thing. 

PC users: Click the Start button, then click Computer and look for your Kindle. Right click on the Kindle drive and choose Eject. 

Mac users: To safely remove your Kindle from your Mac, drag the icon to the trash. You will see the pointer change to an eject button when you have it over the trash bin... drop it and the icon will disappear, indicating you can safely disconnect the USB cable.

Ask Mrs. Wizard:
Please send me a personal email (mrswizard@mrswizard.com) if you have any questions. I answer all my emails and am more than happy to help any time I can. Your questions mean a lot to me, and may even inspire an article that will help others and make this a more valuable resource to anyone who reads it. 

If you are reading this on your computer and would like to have this blog delivered to your Kindle wirelessly every day, click the link below. New subscribers will get the first two weeks free! If you know of a fellow Kindle owner, please share a good word and let them know about From the Desk of Mrs. Wizard.

Free on Amazon Today

More more more! Some of this stuff I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole, but using your Kindle, you can read all about any of these you may be interested in and decide for yourself. Enjoy!
Improve Your Business Communication (Collection) ~ FT P ress Delivers
Available for free in the following regions: Africa*, United States, Australia, India*, Middle East*

Snowy Night Seduction ~ Arianna Hart Available for free in the following regions: United States, Africa*, Australia, India*

The Paradise War ~ Stephen R. Lawhead Available for free in the following regions: United States, Africa*, Australia, Canada, India*

Sophie's World ~ Nancy Rue Available for free in the following regions: United States

	Holiday Bound ~ Beth Kery Available for free in the following regions: United States, Africa*, Australia, Canada, Middle East*
	The Dickens With Love ~ Josh Lanyon Available for free in the following regions: United States, Africa*, Australia, Canada, India*, Middle East*
	Deeper Water (Tides of Truth Series, Book 1) ~ Robert Whitlow Available for free in the following regions: United States, Africa*, Australia, Canada, India*, Middle East*
	My Christmas Wish ~ Ember Case Available for free in the following regions: Africa*, Canada, India*, Middle East*, United States, Australia
	Love on a Dime ~ Cara Lynn James Available for free in the following regions: Australia, Middle East*, United States, Africa*, Canada, India*
	On the Run ~ Bill Myers Available for free in the following regions: United States
	Fixing Toyota: Quality Is HardLean Is Much Harder ~ Richard J. Schonberger Available for free in the following regions: Australia, Africa*, Middle East*, United States, Canada

Note: If you are reading this on your Kindle and want to get a book from the Kindle store now, type the title with your Kindle, then toggle your 5-way switch to the right until the word store is highlighted. Press in on it to search. When the title comes up, use the 5-way toggle switch to move around the book info area to read more about the book. Make sure it is still free (or an acceptable price) before finally pressing in on the 5-way switch to "buy" it. You can always press the back button (before you press buy) if you change your mind.

And remember... what is FREE today may not be FREE tomorrow, so get it while you can!

Ask Mrs. Wizard: Please send me a personal email (mrswizard@mrswizard.com) if you have any questions. I answer all my emails and am more than happy to help any time I can. Your questions mean a lot to me, and may even inspire an article that will help others and make this a more valuable resource to anyone who reads it. 

If you are reading this on your computer and would like to have this blog delivered to your Kindle wirelessly every day, click the link below. New subscribers will get the first two weeks free! If you know of a fellow Kindle owner, please share a good word and let them know about From the Desk of Mrs. Wizard - A Kindle Blog

Kindle Skills - Back Up Your Stuff

This shouldn't be a problem if all you put on your Kindle are books you purchased from Amazon. If your Kindle ever bites the big one, you can always replace it, then resend your books from the archives on Amazon associated with your account. Every book you ever purchased is right there. It is the ultimate backup... books from your account on your Kindle, as well as (an alternate location) on the massive Amazon servers. The best backup scenario is to have your stuff at home, as well as off site. Isn't that nice of Amazon? You can just relax and enjoy all the good stuff on your Kindle.

You can do the same thing for any other books, audio books, or music files you put on your Kindle. Make a special folder on your computer ( I keep mine on my desktop) for your ebooks you download from free sources like manybooks.net. Do the same for audio book or music files. It doesn't matter where you keep your folders, as long as you can find them easily. If you also want to add another layer of security, you can copy these folders onto a recordable CD, then store the CD in some other location. Most computers have a CD recorder/player, and the blank CDs are relatively inexpensive, so this is another way to get your money's worth out of your equipment, and another computer related skill that will enhance your Kindle reading experience.

Ask Mrs. Wizard: Please send me a personal email (mrswizard@mrswizard.com) if you have any questions. I answer all my emails and am more than happy to help any time I can. Your questions mean a lot to me, and may even inspire an article that will help others and make this a more valuable resource to anyone who reads it. 

If you are reading this on your computer and would like to have this blog delivered to your Kindle wirelessly every day, click the link below. New subscribers will get the first two weeks free! If you know of a fellow Kindle owner, please share a good word and let them know about From the Desk of Mrs. Wizard - A Kindle Blog

Free on Amazon Today

Wow!  Even more free books today! Hope there is something here for you!

	The Truth About Thriving in Change ~ William S. Kane Available for free in the following regions: United States
	Breakthrough!: How the 10 Greatest Discoveries in Medicine Saved Millions and Changed Our View of the World ~ Jon Queijo Available for free in the following regions: United States
	The Cruelest Cut ~ Rick Reed Available for free in the following regions: United States
	Rebel: ~ Zoe Archer Available for free in the following regions: United States
	Hustlin' Divas ~ De'nesha Diamond Available for free in the following regions: United States
	Michael Tolliver Lives ~ Armistead Maupin Available for free in the following regions: United States
	Pack Challenge: Magnus Pack, Book 1 ~ Shelly Laurenston Available for free in the following regions: Latin Am. & Caribbean*, India*, India*, Canada, Australia, Africa*, Africa*, United States, Middle East*

Kindle Skills - Travel with your Kindle

Hi Mrs Wizard,

First let me thank you for your great blog tips, as a new subscriber I've already found many useful tips. Now, my question, I will be traveling out of the country for several weeks early next year and I would love to see a few tips on the subject. The country I will be traveling to is England. One of the things I am wondering about is whether or not I need to change the country designation before I leave and how this will effect my use before the plane gets to my destination and how it will effect it when I get there?

Thanks a lot!
Emily

Special Thanks to you Emily for such a great question!
Travelling with your Kindle is great. It can be tucked in your pocketbook or purse, or (if you are a man) tucked into your carry-on baggage, or pocket if you have a good sized one, like a jacket pocket. Whatever you do, your Kindle can be handy whenever you want it. You will find it is quite a conversation starter too.

We have made a few trips overseas since I had my first Kindle (first generation K1), and I can say I never ran out of anything great to read. My best advice for a long plane trip is to load it up with your favorite books before you leave. If you are in an airport in the US, you should have no trouble connecting with the Whispernet 3G service (free). Once you are in a foreign country, only the latest 3G/wifi Kindle will work, but according to Amazon, it will work in over 100 countries.

Here's what I found:
Kindle 3G (Free 3G + Wi-Fi) is the easiest option because there is no wireless setup—you are ready to shop, purchase, and read right out of the box. Built-in Free 3G connectivity uses the same wireless signals that cell phones use, but there are no monthly fees or commitments—Amazon pays for Kindle’s 3G wireless connectivity. The added convenience of 3G enables you to download books anytime, anywhere, while on the go—without having to find a Wi-Fi hotspot connection. With wireless coverage in over 100 countries and territories, Kindle 3G is a great option for travelers.Check 3G coverage area

Now I don't have any experience with the new one overseas. There was no connecting outside of the US with the Kindle 1 or 2, and I haven't taken the latest one on a trip yet, but this is exciting news and certainly worth experimenting with if you are going on a trip. Let me know and I will be happy to help you share your experience. I don't think you can (or should) change your country designation on your Kindle. I have a feeling that information is tied to your Amazon account.

It won't hurt to hedge your bet, and make sure you have plenty of good books on your Kindle before you leave. Lord knows there is plenty of room for a very respectable library on your Kindle. And you won't care if you do find a place or two you can't connect to the Amazon store.

If you carry a laptop with you, you can use your hotel Internet connections to visit Amazon and download any new ebook purchases. Then if you can't connect with your Kindle, you can always transfer the books via your USB cable.

Road trips are my particular favorite now with my Kindle. I will always remember getting sick as a dog trying to read in the back seat when my family traveled when I was a kid, but now I'm in the front (passenger of course) seat and the longer the road trip, the more I enjoy my Kindle! No barf bags for me any more :)

I sincerely hope you enjoy YOUR trip Emily! I will be sure to post more on traveling with your Kindle in the days to come. Stay tuned...

Ask Mrs. Wizard:
Please send me a personal email (mrswizard@mrswizard.com) if you have any questions. I answer all my emails and am more than happy to help any time I can. Your questions mean a lot to me, and may even inspire an article that will help others and make this a more valuable resource to anyone who reads it. 

Free on Amazon Today

Note: If you are reading this on your Kindle and want to get a book from the Kindle store now, type the title with your Kindle, then toggle your 5-way switch to the right until the word store is highlighted. Press in on it to search. When the title comes up, use the 5-way toggle switch to move around the book info area to read more about the book. Make sure it is still free (or an acceptable price) before finally pressing in on the 5-way switch to "buy" it. You can always press the back button (before you press buy) if you change your mind.

And remember... what is FREE today may not be FREE tomorrow, so get it while you can! 

	How to Make Money with Social Media: An Insider's Guide on Using New and Emerging Media to Grow Your Business ~ Jamie Turner Available for free in the following regions: United States
	Writing Fiction For Dummies ~ Peter Economy Available for free in the following regions: United States
	House of Dark Shadows (Dreamhouse Kings Series, Book 1) ~ Robert Liparulo Available for free in the following regions: Africa*, Australia, Canada, United States, India*, Latin Am. & Caribbean*, Middle East*
	Danger in the Shadows ~ Dee Henderson Available for free in the following regions: Africa*, Latin Am. & Caribbean*, Middle East*, United States, Australia, Canada, India*
	Crossing Oceans ~ Gina Holmes Available for free in the following regions: Australia, India*, Middle East* , United States, Africa*, Canada, Latin Am. & Caribbean*
	Shrimp: The Endless Quest for Pink Gold ~ Jack Rudloe Available for free in the following regions: United States
	Out of Water: From Abundance to Scarcity and How to Solve the World's Water Problems ~ Colin Chartres Available for free in the follo wing regions: United States
	Real Health Care Reform: Will Physicians Change? ~ Jim Champy Available for free in the following regions: United States

If you are reading this on your computer and would like to have this blog delivered to your Kindle wirelessly every day, click the link below. New subscribers will get the first two weeks free! If you know of a fellow Kindle owner, please share a good word and let them know about From the Desk of Mrs. Wizard.

Kindle Skills - Keep your Desktop Clean

Your Desktop is where you do most of the staring at your computer screen. How it looks is a direct reflection of the personality of the owner of the computer. If it is neat and tidy, and easy to find stuff, you can be sure the owner is the same. If there are icons all over the place, and downloaded software installation files (no longer needed because the software was installed long ago)... well you get the picture.

On a PC, many times when you install something new, the installation software also installs what the designers of the software think is a handy dandy little shortcut icon to that software right on your main screen (desktop). You can tell a shortcut by the little arrow on the icon. These shortcuts for the most part are totally useless and can be deleted. My favorite useless icons are for your antivirus software and the Acrobat Reader. Your antivirus software is designed to work in the background and pull your bacon out of the fire whenever a cootie is sensed. Having that icon on the desktop isn't going to keep you any more protected. If you delete it, you can always open the software by clicking the icon down in the system tray (bottom right of your main screen), or click the Start button, then click where it says All Programs, and navigate to the program folder.

The same thing applies to the Acrobat Reader icon that loves to situate itself on your main screen after installing this FREE software. You don't need to open the software from your desktop. If someone sends you a .pdf file, just clicking it will cause your Acrobat Reader software to open right up.

So here's your homework assignment kiddies... Get rid of those useless shortcuts on your Desktop. Right  click on each one and choose Delete. If you aren't sure what it is first, make sure there is a little arrow on it (indicating it is a shortcut). Then click on it to open it and see. Then click the Start button on the bottom left of your Desktop, then All Programs and browse around to satisfy yourself it is well represented on that list. Then just delete the thing.

Have fun! You ought to enjoy your Desktop wallpaper more now.

Ask Mrs. Wizard: Please send me a personal email (mrswizard@mrswizard.com) if you have any questions. I answer all my emails and am more than happy to help any time I can. Your questions mean a lot to me, and may even inspire an article that will help others and make this a more valuable resource to anyone who reads it. 

If you are reading this on your computer and would like to have this blog delivered to your Kindle wirelessly every day, click the link below. New subscribers will get the first two weeks free! If you know of a fellow Kindle owner, please share a good word and let them know about From the Desk of Mrs. Wizard - A Kindle Blog

Free on Amazon Today

Something funny!  This sounded really interesting.
Stupid History: Tales of Stupidity, Strangeness, and Mythconceptions Throughout the Ages ~ Leland Gregory
Available for free in the following regions: United States, Africa*, Australia, Canada, India*, Latin Am., Caribbean*, Middle East*

Crossing the Line (short story) ~ Stephen Jay Schwartz

Available for free in the following regions: United States

Note: If you are reading this on your Kindle and want to get a book from the Kindle store now, type the title with your Kindle, then toggle your 5-way switch to the right until the word store is highlighted. Press in on it to search. When the title comes up, use the 5-way toggle switch to move around the book info area to read more about the book. Make sure it is still free (or an acceptable price) before finally pressing in on the 5-way switch to "buy" it. You can always press the back button (before you press buy) if you change your mind.

And remember... what is FREE today may not be FREE tomorrow, so get it while you can!

Kindle Skills - documents folder

Once you have your Kindle hooked up to your computer (mac or pc), you will have access to it as though it is an external hard drive. Click the icon (mac) on the desktop or choose open folder to view files using Windows Explorer (pc) to see what is inside your Kindle.

The documents folder is where all your books are, and where any book files you download (not from Amazon) must be put in order to read them on your Kindle. Click on this folder to open it and view the files and folders within.

If you are comfortable dragging and dropping files, this is where you need to drag your ebook files. You can also  right click (ctrl+click if you have a mac) the files and choose copy from their original location, then right click in any white area inside the documents folder on your Kindle and choose paste. Copy and Paste can be a handy tool if you are drag and drop challenged. Personally, I just like copying and pasting!

Kindle Skills - Text to Speech shortcuts

If you own a Kindle, you certainly need to spend some time experimenting with the Text To Speech features. If it is available (allowed by rights holder) on a book, your Kindle can actually read to YOU.

Text to Speech Tips:

• Press the Aa key on your Kindle keyboard while a book is opened to see if Text to Speech is available. If it is not, it will be greyed out.
• Shift+Sym to start and stop Text to Speech
• A male voice is default. To switch to a female voice, press the Aa key and use the 5-way controller to navigate to the female choice. Press the center button to make it happen.
• While Text to Speech is playing, the screen will update to the corresponding page of text. If you want it to start in a particular place on the page, use the 5-way controller to position the cursor to the area you want to begin listening (before starting Text to Speech).
• Pause and resume Text to Speech by pressing the Spacebar.
• Text to Speech will continue playing even if you put your Kindle to sleep by sliding and releasing the power button. This allows you to continue listening while locking all the keys and buttons to prevent accidental pressing or clicking.