How to merge epub files with free Sigil

People need to merge EPUB files to one EPUB file in some cases. I have previously written a brief guide as to how to make an EPUB book with free Sigil, here I will show you how to merge EPUP files with Sigil again.

An EPUB file uses XHTML to construct the content of a book. Unlike PDF, an EPUB file is based on a collection of compressed files, which can be actually edited. We will manually deal with these EPUB files and eventually put them in one EPUB file.

Download & install Sigil.

1. Decide which is your major EPUB file. Or just select the first chapter (EPUB file).

2. Rename all other EPUB files from ****.epub to ****.zip, decompress the zip file one by one and you will get the extracted folders.

3. Double click one extracted folder, then "OEBPS" -> “Text”, you will find files like "html"/"htm"/"xhtml". Delete redundant files about cover, author bio, forward and so on.

4. Copy content html files to a newly created folder (anyname). Then repeat this operation on every other "non-chapter1" folder. Here are 4 epub files in total, you need to rename the other 3 files to zip and get 3 folders exclude the main (chapter 1) file. Then you will get all non-primary htm/html/xhtml files in one folder.

5. Open the primary EPUB file (Chapter 1) with sigil.

6. Right- click "Text" folder on the left column. Then "Add Existing Files" and locate to the newly created folder and add all those files.

7. Then you can drag and drop each html files and make sure they are in chapter order.

8. Double-click each file under Text folder and make sure the title is in "h1" format.

9. Generate TOC index file (Table of Contents). If there is any original index (Table of Contents) file, right-click to delete. Select "Tools" menu -> "Table of Contents" -> "Generate Table of Contents …" ". Deselect blank items on the pop “Generate Table of Contents” window. Then click “OK”.

Select "Tools" menu -> "Table of Contents" -> "Create HTML Table of Contents". Then a "TOC.HTML"will be created under "Text" folder. Drag it to the proper position.

10. "File" menu - "Save". Then you can reopen the chapter1 epub file to check!

Now we have successfully merged several EPUB files into one book.

A $99 android tablet is coming, without price/performance ratio lost

Budget things will never go out of date although there have been so many desirable tablets in the 7-inch android market with examples of Google Nexus 7 and Amazon Kindle Fire HD. Actually, one of China’s electronic tycoons, Acer, has decided to launch a $99 Android tablet called Acer Iconia B1 next year according to the WSJ.

The price of $99 is no doubt a surprise to us, especially to those who are all through looking for something less than 100 dollars. However, we are just fed up with so much bad stuff. Do you remember the 10-dollar Txtr eagle eReader without internet supported and sufficient storage? I am afraid few people will vote for that reading device in the end.

Fortunately, this 7” android tablet won’t disappoint us, either, from the angle of hardware, which comes with a 1.2 G dual-core processor under a resolution of 1024*600. Compared to its peers, Acer Iconia B1 is said to deliver good specs parallel to Amazon Kindle Fire and Nook tablet whereas it would be dozens of dollars cheaper.

It is obvious that this high price-to-performance-ratio title, Acer Iconia B1, will targets a wider selection of markets instead of exclusive US or European markets. In fact, Acer has filed an application with the U.S. FCC and wait for the eventual result.

Top 10 Latest Gadgets For 2012

A new gadget that lasts only for a few days is worth more than a boring work that lasts forever. Every year there are many innovations of smart devices and new gadgets in the technical market. There is a lot of competition growing among companies which are making gadgets like Smartphones, Tablets, iPad’s, laptops, Notebooks and many more. With the launch of these devices, there is an immense growth in the field of technology and people are also going crazy towards those devices.

The year 2012 is the biggest and best year for tech gadgets as there are many creations and developments in the field of technology. Below are top 10 gadgets which are buzzing around the year with latest and advanced features.

1. Samsung Galaxy S3: This is the latest innovation from Samsung. The Galaxy S3 is a Smartphone and is a successful device with the sales of over 20 million pieces in just three months. This device is liked for its sleek design and display of about 4.8 inches. It is also enabled with 8 MP rear cameras & 1.9 MP front cameras. This device runs on the operating system of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean with 1.4 GHz processor.

2. Apple iPhone 5: This gadget is the latest and finest innovation from the brand makers of Smartphones, Apple. This iPhone 5 has come with few improved changes from its predecessor iPhone 4S. This device is attracted to its sleek curvy design and amazing Retina display of about 4 inches. It has got better resolutions when compared to iPhone 4S. It is supported by A6 chip and iOS operating system and also has better battery life.

3. Lenovo Idea Pad: This is another superb device which is from Lenovo, A Korean Development Company. It is a mix of both notebook and tablet and runs on the operating system of Microsoft Windows 8. It is also enabled by Intel Chief River Platform. It is operated with Ivy Bridge processor and entails with 8 GB of RAM. This device has an amazing look in display which is of 13.3 inches with 17 mm thick.

4. Sony Bravia: This LCD device is from Sony Corp. The Sony 84 inches 4k Bravia is unique and a superb device with standard high resolution display. This is the latest and innovative device from which you can experience total HD & 3D entertainment. The LCD panel of this device is made of eight million pixels. It has a three way speaker system and is now available in the range of $24,999.

5. Dell XPS Ultra Book: This is the finest and advanced revolution from DELL. This Ultra book is the latest trend in notebooks and you can also experience real and simple computing. It is a notebook with a display of about 13 inches amazing picture resolution. It is enabled with a chipset of Intel QS67i5 and also has a camera of 1.3 MP it also has an advanced Wi-Fi system.

6. Play Station Vita: This Play station is Sony’s latest console which gained lots of profit with 72 million sales. As for the clarity and dashing sound, this device is enabled with ARM cortex A9 core processor and graphics processing unit. This device is the most powerful gaming console in market for the year 2012. It also has a long-time battery life which empowers you to enjoy games.

7. Xbox 720: This is also a gaming console from Microsoft. It is the latest one from the world’s largest software developer and is named Xbox 720. This gaming console has been invented with an overwhelming response than its predecessor Xbox 360. It is enabled with a unique 8 core processor and it also supports 3D TV, Live TV and Multi TV. It is also assisted with the feature of a webcam.

8. HP Compaq Elite: This is the latest innovation from HP {Hewlett Packard}. You can say this as the All-in-One device as it has amazing functions. It's got all the stylish looks and the screen is about 23 inches wide with superb brightness and supports multi colours. It is also entailed with a unique web camera of 2.0 MP which is an added feature of this device.

9. Nokia Pureview: Nokia Pureview is the latest gadget and magnificent mobile phone launched by Nokia. This device is especially known for its camera of 41 MP, which is an amazing and superb creation. It has got flawless AMOLED display of 4 inch with protection by Corning Gorilla Glass. This device is also supported by a single-core ARM processor of 1.3 GHz.

10. Apple iPad 4: This is a fabulous invention from brand Apple, this iPad is the fourth generation iPad and has record sales of three million in just three days of release and has got improved in size and thickness. It is especially featured with a Retina display of 9.7 inches and also entailed with A6X chip which gives you the best performance and also with a Facetime HD camera.

The above devices are the latest and made a crucial appearance in market and if you think you deserve any of this, you can visit a store and if you feel that you are short of cash, you can opt for a cash payday as it is the instant form of cash.

About the Author:
The guest post was contributed by Sophie, financial guest blogger from Manchester, UK. Find out more about her finance related blogs @financeport

The best budget eBook Reader

An eBook is example of electronic manuscript that people can read via the internet. There are terms and policies that guide readers on how to use the book. It is highly recommended that you print the book and read it at your convenient time. There are numerous best eBook readers that can be purchased at the online auction stores including local retail outlets. Your responsibility as a shopper is to identify the model that best suits your interest. In case you are marooned of the type of eBook to opt for, don’t give up. There are various eReader basics that can be found online; they are suitable for giving all-inclusive guides that make it simple to compare available eBooks. On the internet, you can also find link to other sites where e-reading devices are on auction.

These digital books have gained so much popularity. The Amazon Kindle is easy to read and therefore one can easily digest the information. This book is being downloaded by many people at a fast pace than it was expected. The good thing about Amazon Kindle is that its price tag has drastically decline since it release and therefore customers can make unbelievably great savings by purchasing the eBook on the website. That means you can grab these fabulous digital books as low as $100. In addition, there is wide variety of eBooks to choose from.

However, it is imperative to conduct a deep research before making a conscious decision of purchasing any digital book. EBook readers usually make use of E Ink Screens as well as monochrome to show the text. You can read the book many hours since the E Ink used resembles an ordinary paper. Just like reading any printed book, you will require a light to clearly see the texts. Online auction stores such as Amazon sell eBook of various sizes that are appropriate for students and consumer-level readers. In most cases, the readers prefer 6-inch but there are also 5-inch, 7-inch and 9.6-inch models. For more information on eBook readers read some of the latest reviews on them at UKTechReviews.co.uk.

Currently, the producers of eBooks are making the E Ink displays of superior quality. Initially, the pages looked sluggish and the ereaders experienced lots of difficulty while reading the texts. The contemporary eBooks (Nooks and Amazon Kindle) have crisp including vivid texts.

Due to the excellent features of Amazon Kindle, many people regard it as the best budget eBook reader. Its price is reasonable and on top of that, discounted prices, special packages and gift vouchers that enable shoppers to save good money. It is also very easy to download the eBook provided you have stable internet connectivity and computer.

5 top bestsellers free giveaway this week only!

There are always awesome eBooks in front of us. Apart from the proverbial Hunger Games and Fifty shades serials, here let’s check another 6 books (Fiction) you can’t miss for this Christmas season.

1. The racketeer by John Grisham

After the deaths of 4 federal judges, Judge Raymond Fawcett has become the next one, together with his young secretary. His body was found in the remote lakeside cabin, no struggle or forced entry, just two bodies with one large safe opened. The FBI is thirsty to figure out the truth of the murder and the safe, whereas the racketeer, who is currently known as Malcolm Bannister and a former attorney, actually knows everything. Malcolm is willing to tell them, but there are hurdles in front.

The racketeer, John Grisham’s latest novel, is unquestionably worth your attention.


2. The Casual Vacancy by J. K. Rowling

The Casual Vacancy is another title from J. K. Rowling. Unlike the Harry Potter series, this is Rowling’s first novel for young adults.
The story starts with the death of Parish Councillor Barry Fairbrother in a suburban West town, Pagford. Subsequently, some rack their brains to get the vacancy while others own ax to grind. This book not exclusively covers the ripple effects after Parish’s death but discloses a variety of social issues, rape, poverty, racism, suicide and the like.


3. THE PANTHER by Nelson DeMille

John Corey and FBI agent wife Kate Mayfield have been sent to Sana'a and work with a small team to track down the mysterious Panther. They are actually reluctant, as John had investigated the Cole bombing before and known the peril of staying at such a place filled with terror and wars. The couple don’t know much in the game, but have to find out who their enemies and allies are. This plot-gripping story is sure to get you hooked.

4. The Bone Bed by Patricia Cornwell

The first time I read the review of “The Bone Bed”, I myself was enthralled by it.
Chief Medical Examiner, Kay Scarpetta unexpectedly found something weird in her inbox, which is exactly related to a woman who has vanished while digging a bone bed of dinosaur. Next, Kay starts to find that woman’s disappearance is probably related to a series of crimes around her. Even the closest, her husband and niece, make her feel odd and betrayed. You can’t miss this title if it is the genre to your taste.


5. NYPD Red by James Patterson, Marshall Karp

NYPD Red, the special task force, is in charge of the safety of movie stars and the most powerful men in town, working under a high-tense every day. As we can expect, a big shot, who is known as a world-famous producer, suddenly drops dead at his breakfast. Zach Jordan, the top NYPD Red Detective happens to be the first one on the spot. How will he work with his ex-girlfriend, an attractive detective, to find the murderer? What will happen next in the city filled with flames and potential chaos? NYPD Red is bound to be a work you can’t miss.

Go to our Google Plus Page and you will get something unexpected!!

3 Advantages E-Books Give Self-Published Authors

It’s an unfortunate fact that in the wild, lawless jungle of mainstream entertainment, the novel is fighting for its place in the circle of life—movies have chased it into exhaustion, video games have gnawed on its legs, and reality television (the biggest predator the world has ever seen) is going for its throat. It’s no surprise that traditional publishing houses and chain bookstores are both shutting their doors.

But if there’s one thing that will keep reading alive in the 21st century, it’s e-books. There’s never been a better platform in literary history for a self-published novelist to take advantage of, and if you’re ever going to take your shot, the time is now. Here are 3 advantages that e-books offer over the old world publishing houses:

Professional-Class Presentation

Let’s say you have an unsold novel about a precocious fairy that leaves the magical land of make-believe to become a hotshot young doctor who narrates her love life in a series of snarky voice-overs, like a Tinker Bell crossed with Grey’s Anatomy. Randall House may have called it “strange,” and ordered you to stop sending over the manuscript week after week.

But now you can have your work edited, uploaded, and professionally displayed on Amazon with the same slick packaging that Steven King’s latest e-books gets. You’ll be doing all of this yourself, of course, but the platform is there. Give a college kid $50 to sketch a fairy wand entwined with a stethoscope for the cover, dedicate your digital fly page to some imaginary mentor, and your book looks just as polished and professional on a Kindle or Nook as anything by Grisham or Clancy.

You Control 100% Of The Finished Product

Continuing the subject of book covers, there’s an interesting phenomenon regarding fantasy author Jim Butcher’s The Dresden Files series. It’s a spectacularly successful series, spawning 14 books, a brief television series, graphic novels, role-playing games, and more. And yet there’s a running gag in the novels where the hero repeatedly claims that he never wears hats. Why? Because he’s wearing one on nearly every single book cover. This author—who has made his publisher considerable sums of money—keeps dropping hints in the book that Harry Dresden doesn’t look that way. Yet Dresden keeps popping up with a black fedora, like a cross between Indiana Jones and a cruise ship magician.

That’s a very minor detail for an established bestselling author, and he still can’t get his way. How much control is a first time novelist required to give up on their life’s work? That may not be an important point for everyone—compromise is a part of any professional’s life. But if you have a vision and you want to see it through, a self-published e-book will let you keep your dream intact.

You Get Paid For Every E-book Sold

It’s extremely difficult to make a living as a novelist; you really do have to crack the bestseller’s list to make it as a full time author. This is made twice as difficult by the traditional payment structure of publishing houses: you receive an initial advance for your first book, usually in the neighborhood of $5,000-10,000. Then your book has to sell enough copies to make back its entire production cost before you see another dime. If your novel goes the distance, your royalty checks will come in anywhere from once every couple of months to once a year. It’s hard to pay the cable bill on time when you won’t get your paycheck until there’s snow back on the ground.

But with a self-published e-book, you get paid for every sale. There’s no advance, obviously, since you never sold the rights to anyone, but if you manage to scrape up 100 sales for your book in January, you get paid in January. The popularity of e-books has made novel writing a legitimate second profession for a lot of people, even allowing a hardworking few the chance to transition to fulltime work. It’s a lot easier to keep your dream alive if you’re seeing financial results every month, rather than the occasional reminder in the mail, like an automated birthday card from Jiffy Lube.

Novels are in for a tough fight as we continue on through the new millennium. It may very well be that we’re in the waning age of written fiction of any kind. If that’s the case, it’s rewarding that the final age for reading is a time when everyone is given the tools to make their name known, if they’ve got the stamina for it.

Author Bio:
John has published many guest posts across the web on digital and tech related topics. He also writes as a freelancer for some respected brands such as gadget insurance brand Protect Your Bubble, which is a leading insurer of tech gadgets and mobile phones.

Amazon enters China

Finally, Amazon enters Mainland China.

10:00 AM today, people in China who visits Amazon.cn (Chinese substation of Amazon.com) find that there is a new menu called "Kindle eBooks", then the news spreads the entire China in hours.

Amazon has specially prepared the chinese version of Kindle reader app for Amazon.cn, and readers can only register the app with their Amazon.cn account. I tried to register my Kindle reader app on iPad which used to be read eBook from Amazon.com (the app download from iTunes US Store), it failed to show up in my Amazon Kindle device list on the official site. It indicates that people can only read Amazon.cn eBooks with the chinese version Kindle app (download from CN Store).

After hour of testing, I find that the features on Amazon.cn bookstore are similar with Amazon.com, they all support one-click purchase, auto-sync items to your Kindle reader app (as Amazon doesn't release Kindle device in China yet), send document to your Kindle cloud with email address, etc.

At this moment, chinese Kindle eBook Store only enables people in Mainland China, Hongkong, Macau, Taiwan, USA, Canada and Thailand use their Amazon.cn account to purchased items.

We all know that the biggest obstacle for Amazon to enter China is the contents as China has a very strict content censorship. Today Amazon's chinese eBook store has been set up, we can be confident enough to believe that the most popular e-ink reader device and the wonderful Kindle Fire tablet will show up in China in the near future.

Kindle AZW, TPZ and the related PHL, MBP, APNX and LPR files

I always thought that Kindle content files were something like AZW and TPZ until I came across a guy trying to convert Kindle APNX file to PDF the other day. I was not wrong, frankly. I just wondered why people would attempt such a conversion. Then what roles do those PHL, MBP, APNX and LPR files under "My Kindle Content" folder play? Are they useful or simply useless?

I did an experiment by deleting all non-content files under "My Kindle Content". Therefore there were just AZW files left on my disc (I haven't got any TPZ books yet). I then launched Kindle for PC and every downloaded book worked all right. Thus I came to a conclusion. It’s OK to read Amazon Kindle books without those auxiliary files, such as APNX.

Apparently, related Kindle PHL, MBP, APNX and LPR exert their own functions when it comes to highlights, annotations, bookmarks, and the like. I opened a Kindle book to turn to Page 20 and at the same time, there was a MPB file generated under "My Kindle Content" folder. I then added some highlights and bookmarks in the book, however, there was no more file generated. I was curious about the other files and then searched for it on the internet. I got following things from mobileread and Amazon community.
 
PHL: Kindle Popular Highlights File
MBP: marks, bookmarks, position (last location read)
APNX: Associated (Amazon) page number xref (a map of page numbers)
LPR: Kindle position information
TAN: the same things as the MBP does for AZW files, but comes along with TPZ files.

Thus if you just need to convert your Kindle books to PDF or EPUB or transfer your books to another place, those PHL, MBP, APNX and LPR files can be deleted. It doesn’t matter.

Grab the deal! The Grim Diaries Prequels 1-6!

Howdy everyone, it's time to bring you freebies again. But this time, I am not going to send you books without any charge, but no worry, I promise you this package won't disappoint you.

The Grim Diaries Prequels 1-6 for only $0.99!

Yest, it includes 6 books in this pack and you can get them only in Amazon in 12-13 December. 

Grab the deal: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00AA4JIWC

About Author

Wonderlander, Neverlander, Unicorn-chaser, enchanter, musician, survived a coma, & totally awesome. Sometimes I tell stories. Always luv the little monsters I write young adult paranormal romance, urban fantasy, and science fiction mostly. The Grimm Diaries series is a seven book saga that deals with retellings of fairy tales from a young adult POV - it connects most of the fairy tales together and claims to be the truth about fairy tales. I live in San Fransisco and seriously think circles are way cooler than triangles.

If you want to get more information, here is author's official site: http://cameronjace.blogspot.com

Take notes on Kindle Fire (Kindle Fire HD / Google Nexus 7 / Nook HD) using free InkPad app

Sometimes we need to take notes on our tablets, kindle Fire HD, Nexus 7 or other titles. This is especially useful for college students. Here I would recommend a free note-taking app, InkPad, for Android tablets.


This free app is available in amazon app store as well as Google's Android Market. Or you can follow me to download this app through Kindle Fire's built-in browser.

Allow installation of applications on Kindle Fire
Turn on "Allow Installation of Applications" on Kindle Fire. Tap the upper right corner on home screen. Select "More …" -> "Device". Scroll down to "Allow Installation of Applications" and tap "ON".

take notes on Kindle Fire - turn on "Allow Installation of Applications"

Tap "OK" on the following warning window.

take notes on Kindle Fire - confirm to install external apps

Download & install InkPad 
1. Download InkPad (WIFI/3G required). Tap "Web" on home screen of Kindle Fire (HD) to launch Kindle Fire (HD)'s built-in browser. Search for "InkPad app download" on the device's built-in browser and scroll to everydaydownloads.net to download InkPad APK file. Seconds later, tap the "Menu" icon on the bottom of the download page and select "Downloads".

take notes on Kindle Fire - download InkPad

2. Tap the InkPad_Notepad ***.apk and install.

take notes on Kindle Fire - install InkPad

Use InkPad to take notes Launch InkPad. 
Tap the "+" icon in the bottom to create a note and type words. Tap the two icons beside the "Buy now" on the right side to go to the "tick" mode. Under this mode, you can tick the items you have finished. Apart from that, you can tap the upper left icon to go back to InkPad main screen.

take notes on Kindle Fire using InkPad

Sync notes 
Tap the "Menu" icon on the bottom to change default settings. You can also sync notes to the web if you upgrade to a premium member. Free users can manually send their notes via email. Just tap one note and tap the "share" icon. Select "Send with Email" and you will get your note on your inbox soon. In this case, you can sync your notes on different devices without charge, though it's a bit burdensome.

take notes on Kindle Fire - send with email

take notes on Kindle Fire - edit email address

How to Transfer iPad Video/Songs to Amazon Kindle Fire (HD)

We know that the Kindle DX can convert the text of some books and magazine articles into speech. But I once heard that people can listen to music on Kindle while reading. I can't believe my ears. As a tablet, Amazon Kindle Fire (HD) has added the ability to play music and movies while you're reading or otherwise using the device.

More suprisingly, there is a way to help you transfer ipad video/songs to amazon kindle fire, which is wonderful! Now let's talk about it.

Part 1: Transfer movies/songs from ipad to computer

As we know, it's hard to use iTunes to transfer iPad media to PC. Thus I recommend to you an easy-to-use tool to transfer iPad media to PC, which is know as Cucusoft iPAD/iPOD/iPHONE to Computer Transfer.

Step 1: Connect your iPad to computer and run iPad Transfer. The playlists of iPad will be shown on the interface. (Don't let iTunes launch automatically, it will erase your all iPad music)

Step 2: Choose your iPad songs files that will be uploaded to computer. Then mark the files you need to upload to computer from iPad.

Step 3: Click "Start Transfer" button to transfer songs from iPad to computer, then choose "Export to Disk Only" on the following form. The program will automatically open iTunes after transferring.

Part 2:Remove Media DRM

Remove DRM from your purchased Media with Aimersoft DRM Media Converter.

It is an all-in-one DRM removal software that helps you to remove DRM protection from movies and songs bought from iTunes and convert common unprotected music and video to target formats. Then computer and itunes will do the rest.

Part 3: Transfer videos / songs from computer to Amazon Kindle fire HD

Step 1: Connect your Kindle to the computer using the USB cable.

Step 2: Select "My Computer" from the Windows Start menu to view the computer and network drives. Mac users can see that the Kindle registers as an external drive in the Finder window or desktop.

Step 3: Double click the drive for Kindle to open directory. Double click the "Music" folder under Kindle directory and a separate window will be opened. Pay attention to the "music" folder, which is where you should drop your mp3 files.

Step 4: Select the desired MP3 music file and drag it to the Kindle Music folder to create a copy. Play songs on the Kindle device by selecting the option "Play MP3" on the "Experimental" page.

Amazon Kindle Fire Content formats supported: Kindle (AZW), TXT, PDF, unprotected MOBI, PRC natively, Audible (Audible Enhanced (AA, AAX)), DOC, DOCX, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BMP, non-DRM AAC, MP3, MIDI, OGG, WAV, MP4, VP8. It does not support the standard EPUB book format used by Google Books and other publishers.

How do smartphones & tablets affect our life?

More and more people have owned smartphones nowadays. Some also possess larger-display tablets, which deliver better experience when it comes to vision and manipulation. In this article, I will discuss how smartphones & tablets have affected our daily life.

How many things have been replaced by smartphones & tablets?
Smartphones and tablets have greatly shaped our life unconsciously. With a collection of powerful apps installed, a smartphone (sometimes a tablet) can be used as an clock, a GPS locator, a digital camera, a notebook, a telephone, an MP3 player, a front camera (optional), a shelf of books and newspaper, a game device, access to internet, a recorder, a DVD player, a flashlight and the like. Thanks to so many functional apps, we eventually save a lot on these things.

How many hours do we spend on smartphones & tablets every day?
Frankly, I cannot give a figure as to this question. But what will you do if you don’t work / eat / sleep or have no computer at hand? These mobile devices have actually served as fully functional assistants rather than single gadgets. In the digital era, smartphones & tablets have splendidly offered users access to all kinds of information across the world. Many people have spent over 3 hours on smartphones & tablets per day. As one of the results, a large amount of people have suffered from serious eye strain.

How do smartphones and tablets affect each other? 
Compared to tablets, smartphones appear to be more practical as they work as telephones at the same time. Apart from the size and call function, I personally keep that tablets and smartphones are nearly the same. Although there are high-end tablets endowed with specific features, such as Samsung GALAXY Note and its S pen, most tablet functions can be achieved on cognate smartphones. Some people prefer to take 5” smartphone titles so that they don’t have to invest extra money on tablets.

In some cases, nevertheless, tablets take on particular advantages over smartphones. Supposing that you have a business appointment with others, a tablet is apparently more formal and professional than a smartphone. Smartphones are after all personal items whereas tablets can be used as common tools in certain occasions. Besides, 10 inch size is pretty cumbersome for a mobile but it’s almost perfect for a tablet.

Smartphones and tablets have played a big part in our everyday life. But please make time to walk, chat or do something else. It would be a terrible thing if we tremendously immense ourselves in the virtual world and lack real life experience.

The necessity of backing up your purchased Nook Books

Since the shutting down of FictionWise sounded the alarm to eBook buyers, now the Barnes & Noble ring the alarm bell again.

An article on Consumerist reports a terrible case caused by Barnes & Noble eBook DRM. She purchased Nook eBooks months ago, and maybe lost the file by accident. Yesterday when she tried download the book from her Nook Library agian, she got an error message saying that she is not allowed to download the book again because the credit card she used to buy the book is expired.

This is the quote of her words:

I already paid for it. Who cares if the credit card is expired? It has long since been paid for, so the status of the card on file has nothing to do with my ability to download said book.

This is just one more proof that DRM is not just protect the publisher's benefit, but also do harm to the buyers like her, maybe you and me in the future. And I do believe there will be more cases like this.

Don't forget Kindle also removed their customer's books directly from the cloud library just a couple of days ago.

I know strip the DRM from eBooks is againt the publisher's terms, but why we should tolerate their unfair (or even rude) action on our purchased books? So if you do not want to lose your purchased contents someday, I advise you back up your eBooks before suffering a loss. You can learn how to back up your Nook and Adobe protected books at the last paragraph of this post. In addition, refer to this article to learn how to back up Kindle books as it is not included in the post above.

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Why you can not download your purchased Nook books any more after the credit card is expired?

The reason why you cannot get the book from Barnes & Noble's content server any more is because of the Nook DRM. Unlike other DRM protections, Nook DRM is generated upon your purchasing credit card number and the billing name, while Kindle and Adobe DRM are generated upon your website account.

If your credit card is expired, then the Nook's content server is not able to recognize your identification which suits your book's DRM protection. As a result, you can't prove that you are the owner of this book in Nook's content server any more (This is extremely stupid, you can see your order information in the B&N website, but the content server refuses to admit you have purchased the book ).

Why you must input the credit card information to strip DRM from Nook books?

Similarly, if you want to remove the DRM from Nook books, you must input the correct credit card number and the billing name (maybe it's not your real name), then the decryption program can generate the correct key to unlock your book's protection.

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Remove DRM from iTunes 1080p HD video with Requiem 4.1

If you always purchase contents from Apple iTunes, you must be familiar with a tool called "Requiem".

I used to be excited with the Requiem 3.3.5 as it is able to remove DRM from iBooks. But the author of this tool didn't go on supporting iBooks decryption in later versions for unknown reasons.

Days ago, the author issued a declaration that he is retiring from Requiem and won't release any new version of this amazing tool. This is really a huge blow to all the fans of iTunes decryption.

And before he completely quit the job, he launched the final version of Requiem, V 4.1. Which is perfectly suit for iTunes 10.6&10.7. 

And as the previous versions, the V 4.1 doesn't support iBooks decryption while it is really capable for removing DRM from iTunes videos.

So how to remove DRM from iTunes 1080P HD Video?

All you need to do is downloading the video to your computer from iTunes, then run the Requiem 4.1. The tool will scan your library automatically and find the protected stuff and decrypt them. It is pretty easy to use.

And to get the tool, you may need a bit trick as the website is hidden behind the Tor Proxy. But sometimes you can also directly visit the site.

Here is it: http://tag3ulp55xczs3pn.onion.to/cgi-bin/ssi/index.shtml

Convert your PDF files to Kindle using PDF2LRF

As a former Sony Reader, I frequently used a program called PDF2LRF which I found to be the best PDF converter too because it specifically increased the contrast for text/ images to make them more readable on our eReader screens (which default converters don't do).

I came up with a straightforward workflow to convert PDFs to Kindle format which also bypasses Amazon's service. Note: this works best for image based/ or text + image based pdfs or if you want to preserve PDF formats.

PDF to Kindle Workflow:

1) Use PDF2LRF to input a PDF and output to a .ZIP file filled with PNG files. (I have to use PDF2LRF in command line format to accomplish this).

Link: http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13135 (download the command line program). Use command:

" pdf2lrf -i INPUT_PDF_FILENAME.pdf -o OUTPUT_PDF_FILENAME.zip " (which generates a zip file of PNG images from PDF)

2) Then use the program that jbenny posted (PNG2PDF) to generate a PDF file in commandline from the Zip files.

LINK: http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13135&page=18 (scroll down and download the file PNG2PDF.zip) Type this command in command line prompt:

" png2pdf OUTPUT_PDF_FILENAME.zip "

This generates a file called: OUTPUT_PDF_FILENAME_png.PDF

3) Afterwards, run Mobipocket Creator to import PDF file and output to .PRC format which is readable on Kindle.

Download link: http://www.mobipocket.com/en/DownloadSoft/ProductDetailsCreator.asp.

Use option: Import PDF file: OUTPUT_PDF_FILENAME_png.PDF in Mobipocket Creator program (free), then after setting the Metadata, click Publish, to generate PRC file.

4) Move the generated .PRC file to your Kindle and enjoy it.
Note: you can fiddle with the PDF2LRF settings although the default settings worked pretty well.

Note: The advantage of this is I don't have to email the file to Amazon at all to get it converted and readable on kindle! (Since Gmail's 20 meg limit which I find quite limiting). And best of all the output is split nicely with high contrast, 2 pages/ landscape rotated which makes it as readable as on my Sony device compared to Amazon's default PDF conversion.

Summary: PDF -> PDF2LRF -> PNG2PDF -> MobiPocket Creator -> Kindle.

PDF2LRF download link is unavailable at present, but the best eBook converter and manager, Calibre, can help you. Calibre is a freeware which can convert e-books from format to format. It supports following input formats: CBZ, CBR, CBC, CHM, EPUB, FB2, HTML, LIT, LRF, MOBI, ODT, PDF, PRC, PDB, PML, RB, RTF, SNB, TCR, TXT. The output formats: EPUB, FB2, OEB, LIT, LRF, MOBI, PDB, PML, RB, PDF, SNB, TCR, TXT.

Kindle Vs Apple in the Tablet Wars

Image Credit: Tablet-news.com

The Amazon Kindle Fire is hot on the heels of Apple’s iPad in customer satisfaction, according to the first Tablet Satisfaction Study by J.D. Power and Associates. Hot, in this case, means breathing down Apple’s neck. The tablets were ranked on a 1,000-point scale that measured price, ease of operation, design, features and performance.

 After the scores were tallied, Apple garnered 848 points while the Kindle pulled in behind with 841 points. By anyone’s measurement, the race for the tablet gold standard is neck and neck.
In its press release, J.D. Power stated that it surveyed 1,985 tablet users.

The primary factor that helped Kindle earn its high ranking was low price, Power stated. Here is how the tablet users ranked the five criteria in importance from most important to least:

* Performance, 26 percent.
* Ease of operation, 22 percent.
* Design, 19 percent.
* Features, 17 percent.
* Price, 16 percent.

Only the Apple iPad and the Amazon Kindle beat the Power tablet average of 832 points. Hewlett-Packard, Barnes and Noble, Acer and Samsung all fell below the average bar. Here are the Power scores for the other tablets:

* Samsung, 827.
* Acer, 811.
* Barnes and Noble, 803.
* HP, 790.

The Kindle Fire is indeed catching fire with consumers. According to a comScore report released in April, Amazon’s Kindle then commanded a greater than 50 percent share of the Android tablet market. Back in December, 2011, the Kindle held a 29.4 percent share. That number nearly doubled by this past February to 54.4 percent. The Samsung Galaxy Tab had a 15.4 percent share, and the Asus Transformer came in with a 6.3 percent share. No other Android-based tablet besides Kindle and the Galaxy have a 10 percent or greater share.

The Kindle has a reputation as a fast runner that immediately challenged Apple for tablet market share. A week after the Kindle was released in November, 2011, it jumped to the No. 2 tablet in the market. In its first month, the Kindle Fire out-performed Apple’s iPad launch in 2010. Consumers bought four million Kindle Fires during the last holiday season.

These numbers indicate a giant battle for tablet dominance this coming holiday season. Analysts are already raising the possibility that 2013 may be the year when Apple loses its dominant position in the tablet market.
At Apple’s recent cattle call in San Francisco to announce the launch of the iPhone 5, many people voiced disappointment that Apple didn’t roll out a new mini-tablet. It was rumored that this new device would directly target the minipad market. No such luck.

The Power study also found that tablet owners use their devices 7.5 hours per week. Tablet owners who also own smartphones use tablets 40 percent more. Nearly 40 percent of tablet users said they plan to buy another tablet within a year. One-quarter of tablet owners use them for business.
Apple announced a mini-tablet in October, just in time for the holiday season. Add to this the new Kindle Fires announced this week, and the contest to capture the gold standard for tablets should turn out to be the season’s most exciting high-tech race to watch.


Sam Jones, the author, has a passion for the latest mobile phones, tablets and gadgets and can't wait to get his hands on the best new offerings from Apple and Amazon.

Kindle Paperwhite vs. Kobo Glow: Amazon Kindle cuts price to counter its peers in Japan

Amazon Kindle has stepped into Japanese market after its success in the US, UK and other countries. To counter local eReader providers like Kobo and Sony, Amazon has decided to lower the price of Kindle titles for its first battle.

Kindle Paparwhite sells at $119 in the US market while the ad-free version comes at $20 more. In all probability, the model for Japan market will be the ad-free version while we cannot yet make sure of that. The latest price of Kindle is parallel to that of Kobo line, which also delivered a model with backlight, Koko Glo, even earlier than Kindle Paperwhite this year. Compared to the gloom of Nook Simple Touch with Glowlight, Kobo Glo seems to have received more lauds from customers.

One thing Amazon has done right is that people who have preordered Kindle Paperwhite at a higher price have been informed of the price change. As a customer remarked, Amazon didn’t make the status confused.

Amazon announced last month to launch Kindle Paperwhite and Kindle Fire in Japan whereas Sony and Rakuten Kobo have stepped forward in Japanese eReader market. It’s likely that Amazon try to win the popularity from the new market by its competitive price. The US’s eReader tycoon, Amazon Kindle, has dominated American eBook market with its abundant resources at budget prices. Will it stand out again in the new land as a newcomer with its reportedly 50,000 novels?

Well, here is a video comparison between Amazon Kindle Paperwhite and Kobo Glo. Just pay attention to it!

Fictionwise is shutting down, back up your purchased books soon!

The old and famous eBook store Ficionwise is shutting down since last Friday.

This site can be dated back to early 2000s, it is one of the most ancient eBook stores in the world and has brought eBooks to many people's world. At that times, it is the most popular eBook store and absolutely ahead of that time.

Then Barnes&Noble bought it in 2009, unlike Facebook bought Instagram and Google bought Sparrow, Fictionwise didn't meet its another peak after purchased by B&N. On the contrary, it fell down with a surprisingly rapid speed.

I can remember the site didn't change its design since 2003 or even earlier, and the customer service is becoming more and more dumb, sometimes even reply customer's email after tens of days.

Finally, in the end of 2012, Fictionwise (or B&N) declared the cease operations.

Okay, let's finish the mourning. R.I.P Fictionwise.

Now the trouble is coming.

As Fitionwise is not going to offer the service anymore, for those purchased books, if you lost the copy, then you will not be able to download them to your computer any longer. What's worse, which is also I most worry about, will those DRM protected books become not readable?

Barnes&Noble allows users to transfer most of their purchased books to Nook library, but there is a list of Fictionwise titles which are not transferrable. (This list is so long..)

So if you happend to buy some of those books in the list, or you just don't want to have a Nook library, you'd better back up your purchased Fictionwise books before December 21, 2012.

Don't know how to back up?

If your purchased books are marked as "MultiFormat", then you need not to worry about them as they are not encrypted books. You can read them freely no matter Fitionwise is alive or dead.

If you purchased books are marked as "Secure *** Format", then you should keep an eye on them.
For "Secure Adobe Format", this post can help you.
For "Secure eReader Format", please refer to this post.
These two guides require a bit coding skills, if you want to back up your books easily and quickly, please ask a favor to this software, and you can back up all thest two kinds of secure formats with this software.

Nook HD VS Kindle Fire HD

After Google and Amazon both rolled out their new tablets, Barnes & Noble certainly refuses to admit being inferior and unveiled their new generation tablet, the Nook HD and Nook HD+.
In the 10-inch tablet niche, iPad is the King beyond dispute, but in the 7-inch area, the battle is bloody fierce. Therefore we mainly discuss the 7-inch size tablet in this article, namely Kindle Fire HD and Nook HD.
Let's have a horizontal evaluation between these two gadgets first.

Pros and Cons of Kindle Fire HD

Pros:

No doubt Kindle Fire HD has the advantage on price, you only need to pay $199 to get a Dual-core, 1G RAM, 16G ROM, and a Built-in Camera tablet.
Let alone the AppMarket which contains more than 51,000 apps, and the Amazon Prime account allows you to read thousands of books for free.
Another huge advantage of Kindle Fire HD is that its vast Ecosystem, imagine every people in your social circle uses Kindle Fire HD, but you are the exception, you can't lend book with your friends, can't share the joy or tricks of using the gadget, that will be definitely pretty boring for having such a gadget.
By the way, there are many third-party websites offering variety kinds of services for Kindle, such as Lendle (a community which allows you to lend books for free), and those tons of websites which introduces you free Kindle books everyday.

Cons:

The customized Android system is a bit closed than native Android, the interface may make you a little indisposed, it may make a skillful Android geek lost if it is the first time he hands on a Kindle Fire HD.
Amazon forces to show the advertisement when in the lock screen and home page, you need to pay $15 to call it off. And it doesn't support SD card slot, although 16 GB is enough for most users, but for some video lovers it is obviously not enough.
The size of Kindle Fire HD is a bit awkward as its width is slightly bigger than a single hand, sometimes you have to hold it with two hands. And the material of the back cover is kinda a "fingerprint collector".
Then turns to the processor, Kindle Fire HD's processor ranks at the bottom in the 3 popular 7-inch tablets, Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD, and Nook HD. And for the battery, Amazon said the battery can supply 11 hours reading, video and surfing on internet. But the actual test show that it can only support 7 hours video watching.
Finally the principal shortcoming of Kindle Fire HD for eBook lovers, the eBook format and DRM protection. We all know that ePUB is one of the standards in eBook industry, but Amazon tookover .mobi and turned it into AZW and protected with its own Kindle DRM, which forces us to read the Amazon books with Kindle device and programs.

Pros and Cons of Nook HD

Pros:

The largest traditional U.S. bookseller has invested heavily in their new generation tablet, it equips an amazing screen which has 1440 x 900 resolution and 243 ppi, which is the best among Nook HD, Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD. And the 1.3 GHz processor is also better than the 1.2 GHz in Kindle Fire HD, it is able to handle intensive games fine.
Nook HD is also the only one among those 7-inch tablets which offers you a SD Card slot, this will attract lots of video collectomanias.
It's width suits a single hand to a hair, you can hold it easily and comfortably. And it also weights 20% less than the already-extremely-light Kindle Fire HD, what's more, it won't show the lock-screen ads like Amazon's tablets, this gives us a pure and sheer user experience.
For eBook readers, the majority of Barnes & Noble books are in ePub format protected by Adobe DRM, which is supported by many third-pary reading apps like Aldiko, Bluefire Reader, DL Reader. We can have more choices to read Barnes & Noble books freely.

Cons:

Nook HD is lack of a camera while its rivals are all equipped with a front camera to handle Facetime or Skype video calls. And the worst disadvantage on hardware is the proprietary plug, which used to be a typical symbol of Apple devices, if you need a HDMI output signal from it, you will have to pay $40 for a adapter.
Then it's the price, with $199 you can buy a Kindle Fire HD with 16G ROM or Nexus 7 with a Quad-Core processor. As either ROM or processor is the most important spec which influences a client's purchase decision, therefore I have to say this is a huge shortcoming for Nook HD.
In the aspect of soft power, Nook is also at a disadvantage, neither the App Store nor Book Store is able to compete with Amazon's huge capacity. Nook's video service is not rolled out yet while Amazon's Instant Video has gathered a plenty number of clients. What's more, Amazon's appstore is going to open the door to Europe while we didn't hear any similar plan of Barnes & Noble.

Conclusion

Before opening your wallet and swiping your credit card, you need to make clever decision, and this is the reason why we compile this comparison for you.
This article doesn't want to tell you which one is definitely better than the other, the better one is the tablet which suits most.
In my private opinion, if you are deeply engaged with the stuff (videos, apps and eBooks) provided by the native content market, the Kindle Fire HD will be your choice for its huge capacity of resources.
While if you want a tablet which is friendly to hand on and carry out, and prefer to get the contents from variety of sources and is not restricted to Barnes & Noble store, Nook HD is prior to Kindle HD. The higher processor performs better when you play games, the excellent screen will satisfy your eyes when you watch HD videos and the built-in reader app accepting ePub and PDF allows you easily read most of books downloaded from computer.

Important update for our softwares

After months of hard working, we have updated the version for all of our softwares. Here are the details:

eBook Converter V1.40.5:

• Solve the utf-8 encode problem；
• Add the feature of fixing file structure error；
• Improve the stability;
• Add the support of HTMLZ format;
• Add the license authorization information;
• Improve the conversion quality;
• Auto send the log file to our technical support team once error occurs；
• More bugs fixed.

Adobe DRM Removal V1.8.3:

• Update the decryption core, remove DRM from your eBooks faster and more stable;
• Fix the bugs which lead to program boot failure;
• Add drag & drop feature in the registered version;
• Add right click menu in the registered version, which enable you to delete the item.

Kindle DRM Removal V2.5.6:

• Update the decryption core, remove DRM from your eBooks faster and more stable;
• Fix the error “out of string table limits”, and the error “out of list range” ;
• Fix the bugs which lead to program boot failure;
• Add drag & drop feature in the registered version;
• Add right click menu in the registered version, which enable you to delete the item.

Visit our official site to get all the latest version: http://www.ebook-converter.org/

How to get started with eBook-reading

With the booming of internet as well as information technology, more and more people have jumped on the digital bandwagon. Some people are currently familiar with e-books whereas there are still a huge amount of people who are strange to these invisible titles. This guide aims to help fresh men to get started with eBooks, thought it might be sort of easy for veterans. You will be shown how to get free eBooks on the internet and then read on a handy device.

1. Fetch eBooks
You do not have to pay for eBooks as there are a lot of sites offering free eBooks of various genres like Gutenberg, Free-Ebooks and so forth. Refer to this guide to download your first eBook from Tuebl. Or you can download a free eBook here.
More sites for free eBooks (Registration may be required).

2. Read eBooks on different devices
Reading eBooks can be achieved on different devices. You do not have to buy a dedicated eReader if you are not an avid reader. Just try to read eBooks on your computer or other portable devices with compatible reading apps installed. Note that all applications covered below are free of charge.

Read eBooks on computer
Most eBooks are EPUB & PDF, which are not supported on PC/Mac as default. With Adobe Digital Editions installed on our computer, we will be able to read EPUB and PDF books effortlessly.

1. Download and install Adobe Digital Editions (ADE).

2. Authorize your computer with your Adobe ID (recommended). Register an Adobe ID if you haven’t got one. Free eBooks from torrent are generally DRM free while $0 books from e-Book stores are often DRM-restricted. Adobe ID works when you read Adobe DRM protected eBooks. Books from public domains are not always to your taste, I am afraid.

3. Open your EPUB/PDF book with Adobe Digital Editions. Right click one book, select “Open with” and then “Adobe Digital Editions”.

Now it’s time to read your books on ADE.

If you are also interested in the famous Amazon Kindle books, you will need to download & install free Kindle for PC / Mac reading software. Register an Amazon account is another requirement, which enables you to purchase free Kindle books and authorize your Kindle software.
Get free Kindle books.

Read eBooks on smartphone / tablet
Reading on android tablets is parallel to reading on android smartphones as they are based on the same OS. iPhone / iTouch / iPad users can use built-in iBooks to read eBooks. Here I mainly talk about how to read eBooks on android devices (at least Android 2.1).

There is a collection of free reading apps especially for Android OS, such as Aldiko and Moon + Reader. We take Aldiko for example.

1. Download and install Aldiko app (.APK) on android device (I use my HTC smartphone). Download Aldiko APK file here and copy to your device with the USB cable connected to your computer. Or search for “Aldiko apk” on the browser of your phone / tablet and download & install.
How to install an app on an android device (android mobile).

2. Transfer books to your phone / tablet. Connect your Android device to computer via the USB cable and your mobile will be recognized as a removable disc. Create a folder like “eBook” on your smartphone. Copy downloaded eBooks to that folder.

3. Import books to Aldiko. Tap “Files” -> “eBook”, select books and tap “Import to Aldiko (*)”.

Minutes later, your eBooks will be listed under “Library”.

4. Tap the cover of a book and read.

If you have Kindle for Android app installed, make sure to copy your Kindle MOBI books to the “Kindle” folder.

These books will be listed under the “On Device” column.

How to use Aldiko on android tablet (Kindle Fire).


How to install an app on an android device (android mobile).
1. Tap “all apps” icon on homescreen and scroll to “File Manager”. Tap “File Manager”.

2. Scroll to Aldiko APK and tap it to install.

3. Tap "Install".

4. After installation, select “Open”.

5. Done.

If this is the first time for you to install apps on your android device, you may need to go to "Settings" and do some change to allow external applications to be installed on your device.