In my last post, I talked about Instapaper, a rocking web / iPod app that allows you to save web pages and read them later. I’ve even found whole books that have been published in html form, where you can save each chapter in Instapaper and read them on your iPod.
Next I’m going to talk about another solution – Stanza from Lexcycle.
Stanza is another iPod / iPhone app – an ebook reader. It is free. It integrates with a desktop application of the same name. From within the device application, you can browse and download thousands of free online publications from several sources. This includes Project Gutenberg as well as several similar sources, so it’s a lot of public domain classics, sample chapters, and to be honest, a whole lot of other stuff you wouldn’t actually read. But it’s free! You can also get full content from The Atlantic, BBC, The Guardian, and a bunch of other newspapers, magazines, and blogs. There’s some other good content there too, so check it out.
You download the content onto your device and then you can read it whenever, even if you are off line. Eventually, they say you will be able to purchase best sellers from online book stores.
The app has all kinds of options for cataloging, bookmarking, previewing, etc. your library, and for controlling the colors and fonts you use to view it. Look at their page in the link above to see all that for yourself.
The killer feature on this one for me was the desktop app integration. Here’s how that works:
First you install the desktop app, start it up, and open any kind of document file. Here’s a list of what is supported:
As you can see, it supports just about any kind of text-based document you can imagine. Once you have a file open, choose “Share” from the menu and make sure your computer is on the same wifi network that your iPod is on.
Then you open up Stanza on your iPod and look for shared books. It will see the document you have open and shared and you can download it to your device for viewing any time.
I know, I know, it’s not a Kindle, which has a larger screen and e-ink which is just like paper. But since you are already toting around your iPod or iPhone and may not want to dish out another few hundred dollars for another, larger device to tote around for reading stuff, Stanza it definitely worth a try.
Oh, and I should mention that although the iPod version of the Stanza app is and is intended to remain free, the desktop version is in beta and will eventually have a “small charge” when it is officially released. Still likely to be several orders of magnatude less than buying a Kindle though. 🙂
Kindle satire vid I made: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoP2TGN–b8
I can say the Kindle does make purchasing books very nice. Other than that I don’t get it. Pretty great battery life too.
I’m still waiting for the day when the real digital paper book is invented that feels like real paper but you can load digital files into it and read it like any other book. Sounds like an utopia but it would be cool!
Looks like a similar technology as AirShare http://www.avatron.com/products/ (no longer free, was for a while). Thanks for the heads up.
this is awesome. as a writer and avid reader, anything that allows quick access to written material is welcomed. while i love the kindle concept, i’m not as keen on what i perceive to be the “iTune-ification” of kindle reader, basically meaning you are locked into one service to provide you with your literature. that one service being Amazon which, while having a large selection, doesn’t have everything, nor is it always the better price, printing/version, etc.