Amazon Kindle discussion

I am curious to hear about peoples experiences using Smashwords coupons. Has any author had success by using them as a promotional tool? Have any readers ever downloaded ebooks using Smashwords coupons?

Yup, I've downloaded heaps with coupons. I've used them as an author quite extensively.

Bryn wrote: "Yup, I've downloaded heaps with coupons. I've used them as an author quite extensively."

Thanks for replying Bryn. I've tried using them as an author without success and to be truthful I haven't downloaded anything with a coupon. In my case it would probably be different if there was a place where all the coupon offers were browsable.

I've downloaded quite a few from Smashwords as a reader. But, admittedly only after contact with the author him/herself, and upon being given a coupon ref. #. :)

I much prefer Smashwords to Amazon, btw, since Amazon never really works well for me because you always end up with DRM problems with Amazon and Kindle when you try to transfer the book from your PC to your Kindle device.

I have never experienced any DRM problems with Smashwords.

I've only gotten free items from Smashwords, and find it very inconvenient to do so. I'd much rather just get my books from Amazon. Then, the handling of the eBook is all automatic.

Traveller wrote: "I've downloaded quite a few as a reader. But, admittedly only after contact with the author him/herself, and upon being given a coupon ref. #. :)

I much prefer Smashwords to Amazon, btw, which nev..."

Thanks for the earnest reply. I admit I suspect that many people use Smashwords in the same way. The only people who have taken advantage for my Smashword coupons have been people I know. Strangely I was talking about DRM with my Fiancee. Personally I am anti-DRM.

Randy wrote: "I've only gotten free items from Smashwords, and find it very inconvenient to do so. I'd much rather just get my books from Amazon. Then, the handling of the eBook is all automatic."

Are you put off by having to sign up for yet another account?

Apologies, but i have to come up for Smashwords here. (And i promise they don't pay me a cent to promote them)

Once you have signed on for Smashwords, you permanently have an account with them, (I have often had problems with my Amazon accounts, especially when I want to buy books from other parts of the world than where the account is registered) and once you have purchased a book, be it via cash or coupon, you can download that book for an unlimited period of time into the future, in any format (PDF, Kindle, .epub of whatever).

It's extremely convenient. All you have to do, is go to your account, click on the book, and viola! Download.

To purchase is just as convenient. Simply click on the purchase button and either pay (I have paid for some of my books there, ha ha) or type in your voucher code. From that moment onward, the book is yours to download.

What could be easier and more convenient? Not to mention, that Smashwords doesn't have the area restrictions that Amazon has.

Traveller wrote: "I've downloaded quite a few as a reader. But, admittedly only after contact with the author him/herself, and upon being given a coupon ref. #. :)

I much prefer Smashwords to Amazon, btw, which nev..."

What DRM issues are you having with this? I've never run into DRM on smashwords stuff...

No, I meant the Amazon DRM, not Smashwords DRM. I have a version of Kindle for PC and i have a proper separate handheld Kindle. I can't transfer books i've opened or downloaded to my PC 'virtual' Kindle, to my 'real' Kindle, because the DRM recognizes them as different devices.

Also, I need to have a two separate Amazon accounts, one at an address registered in the US, and another one in the UK, because blooming Amazon doesn't allow me to buy US books from the UK or vice versa. Also, you cannot, for instance, buy French books from the French Amazon store from out of (meaning if you are registered in) the US or UK. It's extremely frustrating.

I love Smashwords. The only 'inconvenience' for me is I have to sideload the book to my Fire. But I do that with other book files anyway (I review for a lot of indie authors who email their book to me), so it's not a big deal nor is it hard to do.

thanks - because I was completely confused reading your post

A Voracious Reader (a.k.a. Carol) wrote: "I love Smashwords. The only 'inconvenience' for me is I have to sideload the book to my Fire. But I do that with other book files anyway (I review for a lot of indie authors who email their book to..."

I hate to dld books directly onto my Kindle in any case, because it's so much slower than downloading to PC.

Dee wrote: "thanks - because I was completely confused reading your post"

I've edited message 4 now to try and make it a bit clearer- is that better?

Traveller wrote: "No, I meant the Amazon DRM, not Smashwords DRM. I have a version of Kindle for PC and i have a proper separate handheld Kindle. I can't transfer books i've opened or downloaded to my PC 'virtual'..."

The Amazon author system is just as bad. If you want to have a profile on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk you have to create two seperate accounts, and fill out two different profiles. Click-happy is an understatement.

A Voracious Reader (a.k.a. Carol) wrote: "I love Smashwords. The only 'inconvenience' for me is I have to sideload the book to my Fire. But I do that with other book files anyway (I review for a lot of indie authors who email their book to..."

Do you use an ebook management program like Caliber?

Scott wrote: "Traveller wrote: "No, I meant the Amazon DRM, not Smashwords DRM. I have a version of Kindle for PC and i have a proper separate handheld Kindle. I can't transfer books i've opened or downloaded ..."

Not to mention, that whatever country you want to register in, you need to supply both an address and a phone number...and keep in mind that if you have relatives whose numbers you might have wanted to use, that THEY also have Amazon accounts, so, it's really inconvenient.

Scott wrote: "Are you put off [from Smashwords] by having to sign up for yet another account?"

Nope. Since I've only downloaded free items, I haven't need to register for an account.

What puts me off is having to download it into Caliber, convert to the proper format, and then send it to the Kindle. It's much easier on Amazon, to just send it to the Kindle. And, often, I just put it in the Cloud for later access (I only keep a few books on the Kindle).

In a few cases, the same eBook has been free on Amazon within a month, so I delete the book from my Kindle and get the new copy from Amazon.

Randy wrote: "Scott wrote: "Are you put off [from Smashwords] by having to sign up for yet another account?"

Nope. Since I've only downloaded free items, I haven't need to register for an account.

What puts me..."

is this for files that are only limited in format? I download everything in .mobi which is already formatted for kindle - so don't have to worry about any conversion

Randy wrote: "Scott wrote: "Are you put off [from Smashwords] by having to sign up for yet another account?"

Nope. Since I've only downloaded free items, I haven't need to register for an account.

What puts me..."

Perhaps you're not aware of the fact that Kindle reads .mobi exactly the same as .azw? So, when downloading from Smashwords, you need to download the .mobi format if you want to use it for Kindle. Smashwords gives you a whole list of formats to choose from, and .mobi is included in them.

When I look at the .mobi downloads from Smashwords in Calibre, it tells me they are in .prc format. So I convert them to .mobi. It usually makes them much smaller.

I've had issues with the .prc format on the Kindle with books in the past, which went away when I converted them to .mobi. It may not be necessary for all books identified as .prc by Calibre.

.prc and .mobi are essentially interchangable formats - I use either in kindle with no issues...but then I find Calibre to be ridiculous to use so I don't - maybe that is why - running it through a 3rd party app makes it more ungainly

If you're a eBook-lover,you must have a basic knowledge of Calibre,it helps us to convert well among several formats. But when I've tried Ultimate Converter, I found I can get better quality.http://www.epubor.com/ultimate.html