A social networking site for people building and flying Van's Aircraft RV kitplanes.

Amazon Kindle:  Lighten your baggage weight.
by Doug Reeves. 
Founder/Owner: www.VansAirForce.net

Feb 2008

  A little off topic, but hear me out...there's some RV stuff in here, I promise.  I ordered an Amazon 'Kindle (all about it) a month ago, and it came in the mail Tuesday (the same day Paul Dye called me to say he bought the competition - a Sony Reader!).  They do a lot of the same things and are geared at reading books, but I thought I would take a minute to describe some of the ways you might use it with your RV.
  The 'electronic paper' display is pretty amazing, it reads just about like a paperback book, only you can make the text bigger and smaller if you want.  You can order most new books for $9.99 from amazon.com or from the unit itself - you don't need a connection, as it uses its own 'whispernet'.  I ordered two books from amazon.com while I waiting for it to be delivered, Steve Martin's 'Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life' and Jon Huntsman's 'Winners Never Cheat'.  When I got the unit and turned it on, it was already configured for my account, then auto-downloaded the two books in under 30 seconds.  Neat.
  Looking at the default memory that comes with it, I could probably put close to 200 books on this thing.  You can also insert a SD memory card, so I'll be going to Best Buy in a day or so for one of those $20 2GB cards.
  The thing that really gets me excited is that there are thousands upon thousands of free public domain books online.  Don't believe me?  Go to this Kindle blog that links free books or to MobiPocket's Free Book link.  Kindle will read the 'Mobi' format.  This site has hundreds of free audio books.  I downloaded the first twenty chapters of Moby Dick and let it read to me for awhile on Tuesday.  Call me Ishmael.
  It's primarily a book reader, but it comes with a simple web browser.  I set bookmarks for some of the news sites that have 'mobile' versions.  An example is CNN's http://m.cnn.com.  Nice and simple.
  OK, now for the RV angle I promised you.  Because it is 'online' when you power it up, you can go to the less graphically rich sites anytime you please pretty effectively.  I've tried the following and have saved them in my Kindle's bookmarks:

- METAR/TAF site (NOAA) ...works like a champ.
-
TFRs...works like a champ.
- I downloaded Van's parts list.
-
I downloaded the IFR written questions (and answers) from Mike's site, then sucked it into MS Word and converted it to Kindle format using a free app described next.

  The free app Mobipocket Creator 4.2 will turn any MS Word, TXT, or PDF (that is mostly text) into a format that Kindle will read.  That opens up the FARs, AIM and a host of others.
  Think about it for a minute.  I have WEB ACCESS on a device that I can ACTUALLY READ, and it doesn't involve lugging a laptop around, searching for a wifi hotspot, dealing with 'connections', typing on a cell phone, etc.  You already know I have one of those big, professional digital cameras that weighs eight pounds, right?  Guess what I do the majority of my photographing with?  A $200 Sony SD-1000 pocket camera.  If I can get the news, TFRs, METAR/TAFs and carry a hundred books with me in a package that weighs 10.3 ounces, I'm sold.  It fits in my gun bag (which my wife lovingly calls my 'man purse').
  Download all the public domain and free ebooks you want off the web using your computer, then plug the device in using the same cable that you use for your camera.  It pops up as a drive letter just like your camera.  Move stuff over.  No biggie.  You want to order stuff using the device itself?  You don't need a computer - it's online when you power it up and Amazon is a button press away.
  What free stuff have I downloaded over the past 24hrs?  The IFR Written Test (and answers), Moby Dick (audio book), Project Mercury - A Chronology, Treasure Island, The Oregon Trail, Edison (his life and inventions), Thomas Jefferson Biography, and many more...  Like I said, I enjoy reading.  This thing is for reading but it does some other things I'm fond of.

Minuses:  

  • Price ($399). 
    Having put that here in the 'minuses' section, let me just say that I read a LOT.  On average a book a week.  In my case, I now don't have to drive to/from the library anymore, or go to Barnes and Noble, or the used book store ever again.  I think I'll break even in a year and be ahead after that - with the bonus of free web access when I need it.
  • Won't display PDF files (like approach plates) that are heavy in graphics.  If you want it to display approach charts, this ain't your bag, baby.

Pluses

  • A joy to read books with.  The 'electronic paper' display gives me no eye strain at all.
  • Bigger screen than any cell phone and lighter than any laptop (10.3 oz)
  • Web access to METAR/TAFs, TFRs and news that means you don't need to bring the laptop (unless you want to read your email).  I worked up a simple web page where I get to these - feel free to use it.
  • Want it to read 'Moby Dick' to you while you fly?  It plays audio books and has a headphone jack.  Yes, you can load music in there, too.
  • Ability to buy a book from Amazon using just this device - no computer needed. (ex.  Stuck in Lodi waiting for the rain to lift - you can buy a book, magazine, etc to read.)
  • Comes with a wall charger (the Sony Reader doesn't).

  I give it five out of five clecos....whatever that means <g>.

related links:
   The Kindle Store Online

   Should I buy a Kindle?
   Sony Reader vs Kindle

 

Feb 16 Update: 
I went to Best Buy and bought a $20 2GB SD Memory Card to bump the default 180MB memory that it comes with.  Pushed it in and turned on the unit.  Plugged the Kindle into my PC with the USB cable, and in addition to the drive 'G:' that normally pops up when I plug in the Kindle, I got a drive 'H:' also.  I copied about 1GB of music (mp3) files over to the 'music' directory on drive 'H:', and when it was done unplugged the cable.

Worked like a champ.  You can find some of the Kindle's keyboard shortcuts below.  Note that Alt-P starts playing a random song (press Alt-P again to stop it).  Pressing Alt-F hops to another song.  So, you can listen to music on headphones while you read (if that's your thing).  You don't have the control that you have on an iPod, but you can play music.

Leave the iPod at home.  One less thing to take on the trip....and more weight savings.

 

Kindle Keyboard Shortcuts (some of them)

Global keys
Alt-Shift-R reboot Kindle
Alt-Shift-. restart GUI

Home
Alt-Shift-M Minesweeper
Alt-T show time

Reader
Alt-B toggle bookmark
Alt-T spell out time

Audio Player
Alt-F next
Alt-P play/stop

Font List
J show/hide justification options

Browser
It seems there is a location capability (GPS?) in the CDMA module.
Alt-1 show current location in google maps
Alt-2 find gas station nearby
Alt-3 find restaurants nearby