Kindle Skills

Originally posted April 27, 2010 by Cindy O'Neal

Personal Files On The Kindle
Oh yes. The Kindle is a great way to carry around any kind of file you deem special.
I have a special file (probably should name it something other than passwords and reg info) which I have been updating and adding to for years. Each page has its own title with information related to that title on it. Over the years it has collected registration information (for easy copying and pasting) of various software applications I have purchased, as well as password information for websites and other things I need passwords for. Anything I need to remember goes on that file.

Contacts is another file I use regularly. It has just what you would think, a long list of names and addresses, with phone numbers and any other information necessary for that person or business. These are listed alphabetically. What is really neat on the Kindle is how fast it can search for any bit of text, and names are a piece of cake.

Recipes: Probably my favorite personal file used on the Kindle. These are my favorite, tried and true, with personal notes. If I am in the kitchen, my Kindle is handy. This little goodie even has a clickable table of contents. How is for a future post, but it is doable.

Creating Your Personal files:You can use any word processor. The best thing to do is plan how you want your document to look. Keep it as simple as possible, with a list type look. You don't need to prepare your document with any fancy formatting. A plain text file would be fine. Your Kindle could care less, and is only going to search through the text anyhow. Your documents can be as long as you need them to be. Your contact list may be much longer than mine. You can organize your things alphabetically, but honestly, that doesn't matter either if you plan to use the Kindle's search function. If you want to page forward or back, then consider alphabetizing your list.

If you want to keep larger lists, and need something a little fancier, you might want to try my favorite personal information manager, AZZ Cardfile. It has been around for years, is certainly one of my comfort programs and something I depend on. I have used it daily since Windows 95, certainly longer than I have owned my Kindle. Anything I want to keep track of or organize is done with AZZ Cardfile. It is ridiculously easy to use. You can even try it out for free to see if it is something you can depend on too. The history behind it is really interesting. It was originally designed as a replacement for a free utility that used to be included as part of the Windows operating system called Cardfile. Windows Cardfile was simplicity in itself and a lot of people loved it. This Personal Information Manager was ditched by Windows after Windows 95. Folks continued to use it, but really had to jump through hoops to get a copy of it. I lost track of it several years ago. AZZ Cardfile helped ease the pain of that loss with a more robust, permanent solution.

Each of the personal files I use on my Kindle (files I created myself) begin as an AZZ file. It is just easier to organize with it. The "cards" are automatically alphabetized. All I have to do is enter the information. To edit an existing card, just click on the card name in the left panel and the information will appear in the right panel. Since my passwords, recipes and contact files are always changing or being added to, being able to quickly create a new .rtf file is a definite plus.

About the only thing AZZ won't work on is a Mac, and that's a shame. I haven't found anything even close for my Mac.

Use AZZ Cardfile (azzcardfile.com)to create the personal information files, then export as a .rtf (rich text format) file so mobipocket reader can neatly convert them to send over to the kindle when you connect it with the USB cable. Each listing will have its own "card," and when you export your file, you will basically be making a copy in a different format, in this case, .rtf format. One of the options when you export your file is to have each card be a separate "page," so you can see, this is perfect for the Kindle. Once you have your .rtf file created, you are ready to convert it with one of my recent favorites, Mobipocket Reader.

So now you can add your personal files to the library you can carry in your hand. AND you have another (really good) reason to keep it on your person at all times.

Tomorrow
The FREE Mobipocket Reader Software and how to use it to convert files for your Kindle

Kindle Skills

Originally posted April 8, 2010 by Cindy O'Neal

Opening Kindle Files on your computer:
Just because you download a file for your Kindle doesn't mean you can double click it and your computer will know what to do with it.

Kindle files are special and unless it is a text (.txt) file, chances are you won't be able to just double click it and expect it to open with something. You may even get that special Windows message that suggests it doesn't have a clue what kind of a file it is, and what do YOU want to open it with. Trust me... this is NOT your cue to pick your favorite word processor because you are comfortable with it. I sure wish Windows would word that message a bit differently. For years people have been taking it the wrong way. What it really means is if you know what software is needed to open a particular file, and you know where the software is located on your computer, you can navigate to the location of that software and choose it to open a particular file type. If you have no idea what I was just talking about, you should always click the CANCEL button when you see that special Windows message. It will keep you out of trouble and from associating a file with a wrong program. In Windows it is always better to cancel than guess and click OK to something that may make unwanted and hard to reverse changes.

The files I usually like to get from manybooks.net are .mobi. If you have the FREE Mobipocket reader installed, double clicking on a .mobi file after you download it will cause the Mobipocket reader software to open and you will be able to view your book right in the reader. You don't have to have it though. If you download a .mobi file for your Kindle, you can copy that file to the documents folder on your Kindle and after you disconnect your Kindle from your USB connector, your .mobi book will be available on your Kindle Home screen.

You can download the free Mobipocket reader from mobipocket.com.  This little bit of software will also import other files, like word documents (including .rtf files), html, epub, chm and others with a simple drag and drop operation right into the open book listing area on the right of the main Mobipocket reader window. When you drag and drop a file, the Mobipocket software will convert it into a .prc file and store this converted file in a folder in your My Documents folder called My Ebooks. You can open that folder and drag any of those .prc files right to the Documents folder on your Kindle and your Kindle will have no problem letting you view them. I use this little feature all the time to quickly convert various books and personal files when I need to. Most of the time, the file you download will be something your Kindle will be able to process with no conversion.

File types your Kindle likes:
.azw (native Kindle file)
.txt
.mobi
.prc
.pdb
.pdf (not as pretty as it would be on your computer screen, but viewable)

Other files your Kindle likes:
.mp3 (music and audiobook files...these go into the music folder on your Kindle)
.aa (audible.com files... these go into the audible folder on your Kindle) You need to have an audible.com account for these audio books.

No Kindle Required:Most of the books are going to be "protected" (meaning you can't read them on anything other than an approved Kindle device) with DRM (digital rights management) code embedded in the files. This doesn't mean you absolutely have to have a Kindle to read them. You can download special software from Amazon to read Kindle books you purchase on your PC, Mac, iPod, iTouch, Blackberry, and now even the iPad. Go to the Kindle Store on Amazon and look in the far left column for the various software applications (Kindle Reading Apps). Download and use the one you need for free. Yep... you can read free Amazon books, and the ones you purchase on something other than your Kindle, in addition to your Kindle, no Kindle even required. Neat huh?

Show extensions on Mac

Originally posted March 21, 2010 by Cindy O'Neal

What do file extensions have to do with your Kindle? A lot! If you can't see the file extensions, you won't know if it is a .mobi, .txt, .prc, or .azw file - all file extensions for files that can be used directly on your Kindle without any conversion. I have no idea why the brains who invented the operating systems for Macs and PCs decided to not show file extensions as the default settings for both systems - like we're to stupid to have that information? I call it the Adult View. It is a great tool to have in your arsenal... knowledge.

You can choose to show or hide file name extensions in Mac OS X (Leopard and Snow Leopard). It is one of the things I really liked about the new Mac. Before they have always made file extensions such a mystery for users. I have always (as a pc user) depended on file name extensions as a tool to help figure out what kind of file I was dealing with.

A file extension consists of a dot (.) followed by several letters that identifies the type of file. The extension may determine which application opens the file. File extensions are usually hidden in Mac OS X, but you can show them.

To show the extension of a single file, select it and choose Show Info from the File menu. Choose Name & Extension from the pop-up menu and uncheck the "Hide extension" checkbox. To show the extension for all files, click the word Finder at the top of your main screen (top left). Click the word Preferences, then click the Advanced tab when the Finder Preferences pane appears. Click in the box to the left of the words Show all filename extensions so there is a check in it. Quit the Finder Preferences pane and you are done.

Now you too, will have the adult view for your files.

Kindle Contact List

Originally posted March 20, 2010 by Cindy O'Neal

No conversion necessary

• Open your favorite word processor.
• Type your contact list using the top line for the name (make it bold if you like), next line for address, next line for phone number, etc. 
• Save your list as a plain Text file (where you will have no trouble finding it). It will have a .txt extension at the end of the file name.
• Connect your Kindle with the USB cable.
• Drag your Text file to the Documents folder on your Kindle
• You're done! You now have a perfectly searchable contact list at your fingertips at all times. Uh... You do keep your Kindle with you at all times... right? 

Keep your file handy on your computer so you can update it (add or remove contacts) any time you want. When you do, replace the old one on your Kindle with the new updated one. This will work for any kind of list you want to keep on your Kindle. 

PC users: Can't see the file extensions?
Hiding file extensions is the default view in Windows when you get a new computer. I always thought it was really important to know what kind of files you are dealing with, and the extension (.txt, .doc, .html, .xls and lots of others) is a great clue. If you look in your Documents folder and can't see the .txt at the end of a file name (or .doc or whatever to indicate what kind of file it is), fix it by clicking the word Tools at the top of the Documents (or My Documents) window. Click the words Folder Options. 

When the Folder Options window appears, click the View tab. Scroll down and click so there is not a check next to the words Hide extensions for known file types. Click the OK button to lock in your change.

Voila! The Adult view for your files. You should be able to see those file extensions now. They are much better at helping you guess what kind of file something is, rather than depending on an icon or picture next to the file name.