03-17-2009, 05:56 PM | #1 |
Join Date: Mar 2009
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Digital eBook reader devices...
I'm not really sure how deeply electronic book readers like the Kindle and the Sony Reader have penetrated the gamer market...
Out of curiosity, has anyone here tried loading one of the e23 PDFs onto one and seeing how it reads? I know Sony recently added a "reflowing" feature for text-based PDF documents so you don't have to read microscopic text. I haven't tried putting one of my GURPs rulebooks on mine... |
03-17-2009, 07:24 PM | #2 |
Banned
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Europe
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Re: Digital eBook reader devices...
I just want to say that even though this may look off-topic, I think that discussions about e-book-reading devices are very pertinent to this forum, and I hope the moderators will continue to let such threads live and thrive.
Personally, I have not yet heard of any device that I believe able to satisfactorily display a whole-page A4- or Letter-sized document. I'd like to get myself an ebook-reader some day, and also a laptop or other portable computer (I hear vague rumours about this thing called fresh air, and I kinda want to see what it is like, eventually), and so I've pretty much made up my mind to go for an expensive middle-ground solution of a netbook PC, a sort of miniature laptop computer. Not ideal, though, so even after I've bought such a thing, I'll remain very interested in a lightweight device that can display table-heavy RPG documents in a readable fashion without needing to zoom in. |
03-18-2009, 03:34 AM | #3 |
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Los Angeles
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Re: Digital eBook reader devices...
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03-18-2009, 06:22 AM | #4 |
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Austin, TX
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Re: Digital eBook reader devices...
Except they delayed it a year, until 2010. On the plus side, that makes it much more likely to be affordable, and it will probably have some great features that aren't available now. On the downside, unless you can time travel, it isn't available until at least 2010.
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03-18-2009, 08:03 AM | #5 | |
Not-So-Secret Master /.\
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Austin, TX
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Re: Digital eBook reader devices...
Quote:
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03-18-2009, 08:28 AM | #6 |
Join Date: Sep 2004
Location: Oldenburg, Germany
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Re: Digital eBook reader devices...
It's possible to convert e23 ebooks for the Kindle format (with freely downloadable software), but it's not optimal.
The main issue is that the conversion process hopelessly mangles tables - so I wouldn't recommend using it for books which have a lot of them (for example, GURPS High-Tech and anything else with lots of equipment tables). On the other hand, setting-only books work reasonably well. The Sony Reader can display PDFs, but its screen is so small that you will have to do a lot of zooming and scrolling. The iLiad should work, but it's still outrageously expensive. Waiting for the Plastic Logic device seems like your best bet - I will probably buy it as well, despite owning a Kindle.
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03-18-2009, 08:43 AM | #7 |
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Austin, TX
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Re: Digital eBook reader devices...
I'm also waiting for the PlasticLogic reader - it's the only thing on the horizon that'll do justice to 6.5 inch wide table (as in from a GURPS book).
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03-18-2009, 02:05 PM | #8 | |
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Chicago IL
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Re: Digital eBook reader devices...
Quote:
That way I can have my books in front of me full-size when running a game and not have all the space by the GM screen taken up by my library. |
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03-18-2009, 02:47 PM | #9 |
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Chillicothe, OH
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Re: Digital eBook reader devices...
I've converted some GURPS pdfs for my iPod Touch through Stanza. They share the problems that Jürgen had with his Kindle, but they are minimally readable. I've also sent attachments to myself in email, which lets me use the iPod's internal pdf viewer. That means formatting is preserved but I have to do a lot of zooming and moving around to make things readable.
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03-18-2009, 06:17 PM | #10 |
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Victoria, BC, Canada
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Re: Digital eBook reader devices...
I use my Dell Mini 9 Netbook. It's not perfect but it works well enough that I can read SJG PDFs in reasonable comfort.
A reflowable HTML based ebook format would be better of course. |
Tags |
ereader, ereaders, pdf |
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