Now that I have been using my Kindle DX for a couple of weeks, I have some observations. First, all of the menu-driven controls that I criticized a little bit in assessing the changes from kindle 1 to Kindle 2 are not as problematic as I thought. Switching the wifi on and off is pretty…
Tag Archive for usability
Kindle DX Page Turning for Lefties
by Will DeLamater
Many have noted the “hair trigger” pivot function on the new Kindle DX that switches from portrait to landscape mode when you change the orientation of the device. It’s true. When you handle the device, the content on the screen jumps around like crazy, like a cup of coffee in a car off road. That’s how…
Kindle Cleanup Checklist
by Will DeLamater
Update: Want to clean up your Kindle Fire? Click HERE. It is a fine, bright Saturday morning and I think that today I will clean up my Kindle. What I mean is, clean up all the content that has been chewing up space in the onboard memory. I knew it was time when I recently…
Why Educators Should Mourn the Departure of the SD Chip Slot from the Kindle 2
by Will DeLamater
Can’t find the expansion slot for additional memory on your Kindle 2? That’s because there isn’t one. And, as I have indicated in earlier posts, that’s not a good deal for educators. This change seems to be part of the “closing” of the Kindle, where a sleek form factor trumps functionality. If the Kindle is…
Why Fewer Buttons On the Outside of the Kindle 2 is Bad News for Educators
by Will DeLamater
There is another way in which Amazon is “veering away from supporting educational uses.” The Kindle 2 actually makes it harder to manage the settings of the device. How? Most importantly, the Kindle 2 pushes the wifi “on/off” setting into a menu and removes the button from the exterior of the device. Stylish, yes. Helpful,…
Why Kindle 2 Isn’t Good for Education
by Will DeLamater
OK, ket’s be fair. Amazon created the Kindle as a consumer device for reading books, novels primarily, with a little assistance on the side for newspapers, magazines, and blogs. As a business system, the device actualized the ebook value chain for the biggest etailer of books on the planet. It only makes sense. It also…
The Logic of the Kindle
by Will DeLamater
Someone said “Why would I want to carry another device just to read a book?” I guess they missed the fact that they were already carrying a device just to read a book, and that would be the book itself…