Computers and the Internet – Page 5

Surface Pro 7

I recently upgraded my Surface Pro 4 (SP4) to a Surface Pro 7 (SP7).

The SP4 was purchased in 2015 – Core i5, 256 GB HDD, 8 GB RAM, Win 10 pro – and apart from one issue I have been very satisfied.

At that time I also bought the dock, keyboard cover, blue tooth mouse, Display Port to HDMI adaptor plus a 128 GB SD card to expand the storage. The Pen came with it – I seem to remember.

It had good battery life, is a usable tablet, an excellent and portable laptop, the SD card slot is out of the way under the hinge so the card can be left in permanently and has a touch screen with a stylus to write on the screen and use with PhotoShop Elements. Best of all, it has the Windows Hello camera for sign in via face recognition.

The only negative is that from time to time it would get screen shake. This occurred infrequently and initially I was firmly in “Team Software” as the cause.

The internet was divided into those who thought it was a software/driver problem and those who thought it was a hardware/over heating problem. I joined “Team Software” as it seemed to happen after a major update and could be fixed by re-installing the graphics driver from Intel.

As the SP4 was coming up to about 5 years old, I had planned to update but was waiting for a Surface Pro model with USB C Thunderbolt. Needless to say, when SP7 came out with USB C in place of the Display Port, I was initially pleased then disappointed when I found out it was not Thunderbolt.

However, a few months back the screen shake started to become more frequent and updating the driver did not work but putting in in the refrigerator did. So much for “Team Software”, it seemed that “Team Heat” was right after all. Then coming up to Christmas when the weather was getting warmer, the screen shake got so bad that the computer became almost unusable unless it was connected to a second monitor. Putting it in the fridge worked but the cure did not last long.

Naturally I was not a happy camper and was even more disappointed when, looking for a solution on line, I discovered that Microsoft had been offering a free fix (by replacing with a similar re-furbished model) BUT the offer HAD EXPIRED.

Normally, with something like this it is a case of ‘once bitten twice shy’ but I really like the Surface Pro and also, as JB HiFi had the SP7 on discount, I gave in and bought one. It is the same specs apart from the OS. The SP7 has Win 10 Home and the SP4 had Win 10 Pro. However, I wasn’t using any of the Win 10 Pro features so this was not an issue. Also – and importantly – all of the accessories would continue to work with the latest model.

It is a pity that the USB C is not Thunderbolt but I have a NUC with Thunderbolt and have yet to use even the USB C port. (Thunderbolt was really just ‘future proofing”)

In summary I am very happy with my new SP7 (without screen shake) and I really like the Windows Hello camera to the point that I would not buy a laptop without it. My iPhone also has facial recognition and the only reason I have not purchased a new Web Cam for my NUC is that the Windows Hello Web Cams are still a bit too expensive. U Mart has the Logitech Brio 4K marked down but only by $15.

Bluetooth Earbuds / Earphones

Unfortunately I have the type of ear shape that will not hold Apple Airpods or any similar type earbuds. They fall out.

While Apple supported the 3.5mm stereo jack, I had almost unlimited choice but I usually made do with those ultra cheap “hook over the ear / earhooks” corded ones for a few dollars at Woolworths. These do not have a mic but so what. I just answer the phone the normal way. They do the job for listening to podcasts and music and it doesn’t matter much if they get broken or lost.

I did own a pair of over the head Bluetooth headphones but I rarely used them. The corded cheap ones did the job and you don’t have to remember to charge them.

All that changed when Apple did away with the 3.5mm jack. Even today there is not a great choice for corded headphones with the lightning connector. Beats have them but they are all “in ear” types and expensive. As yet I have not been able to find reasonably priced “Earhook” types with a lightning connector – at least not from an Australian retailer.

I do have the lightning to 3.5mm adaptor so it is not a great crisis. (Although, the adaptor costs more than the Earphones.)

A friend of mine ( I will call him “G”) has a similar problem so we decided to test Bluetooth earphones. I went ultra cheap and he went ultra expensive.

MY CHEAP SOLUTION

Jam Live Large Wireless Bluetooth In-Ear Earbuds from JB HiFi. Current price is $49-95 but I got them on special for $40. They do the job, sound OK, battery lasts a long time (7 hours) and have a mic BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY they have ear hooks. They are also joined by a cord so you cant lose one of them. They charge via USB.

I am very happy with them. They work as advertised and sound OK to me. Be aware that I have no appreciation of sound quality so take my statement that they sound OK with a grain of salt. They are not noise cancelling or anything fancy like that but I like that you can hear what is going on around you. It saves from getting run over by a car or hit by an ankle biter on a bike on his/her way to school and riding on the footpath. My only minor complaint is that it is a bit fiddly to get the charging plug in. But this is because I am ham fisted with big fingers.

FRIEND “G” – EXPENSIVE SOLUTION

Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless for around $500. (Although he got them for about half that with Flybuys.)

These are “top end” and all of the reviews confirm this.

G has used them for nearly a year. He reports that they are great, work really well and sound excellent. However he is “not a great fan”.

His reasons –

They are in ear types which don’t appeal to G very much. He says that you are certainly aware your ears are blocked.
The App is good but when you turn on “transparent hearing” to hear local noise, you also get whistling wind noise and can hear your own footsteps.
The right earphone tends to fall out regularly when walking.

So G has now also opted for a cheaper solution. He bought an “Apple AirPod” knock off from Kogan

Kogan W8 True Wireless Earphones (White)

The usual price is $59 (delivery included) but he got them on special for less.

He reports that he is pleasantly surprised. They have excellent sound, hang securely in his ears ## and are not noise cancelling so you remain aware of your surroundings. They can also operate with only one piece as well. (## They would not work for me. They would fall out.)

The negatives he reports are; (The first one made be laugh).

You look like an absolute dork, just like the Apple ones ,
They flash a bright led blue light every 5 secs.

CONCLUSION

Even if your ears are the correct “Apple Approved” shape and can hold AirPods, why spend the money.

NBN

At long last this part of the state is (slowly) getting connected to the NBN.

I am getting FTTN (Fibre to the Node) and, according to the NBN Web Site, it is due this month. I am hoping that the lines will support the NBN 50 (50Mbps down) speed which will seem very fast compared to my current top “speed” of 2.0 to 2.5 Mbps down and up is measured in Kilobits.

A friend was lucky enough to get FTTC (Fibre to the Curb)and he got connected last week. FTTC will support the top speed of NBN 100 (100Mbps down) but he opted for NBN 50 which is more than enough for his needs.

He decided to stay with Telstra and contacted them by phone to make the arrangements. He reports that they were quick and efficient and a new “Smart” modem was delivered within 48 hours. Then it was just a matter of disconnecting the old modem and plugging in the new one.

After changing his WiFi password on his devices it was “all systems go”. A speed test showed he was getting 45Mbps down and 18 Mbps up.

TELEPHONE

For the record his fairly old phone works after being plugged into the NBN modem. It is not one of those original Telstra Phones that don’t need to be plugged into the power, but still it is probably well over a decade old.

SPLITTERS

He only has one phone line into his house and it has the old “610” type socket.

Previously he used a splitter to connect to the RJ11 sockets on his phone and modem.

For the NBN he left the splitter in place and connected the new Smart Modem to the splitter using the ADSL Plug.

The speed test confirmed that this did not affect performance but it is important not to plug into the “Phone” outlet as, apparently, it is the Splitter’s “Phone” line that has the filter.

This is good to know as I have an outside central splitter that was installed by my Home Alarm company.

The Alarm company has since moved over to the Mobile Phone system but at least I know that I can just keep using the current internet outlet and it won’t be necessary to get the outside splitter removed.

WIN 10 PC RESET–Surface Pro 4 Screen Flicker

As I have mentioned before, doing a re-install of a computer Operating System (OS) is not the nightmare that it used to be. Both Microsoft and Apple have streamlined the process and in the case of Windows 10, a PC Reset can even be easy particularly if you pre-plan.

A full explanation of all of the Win 10 options can be seen here https://support.microsoft.com/en-au/help/12415/windows-10-recovery-options

In “All Settings / Update and Security / Recovery / Reset this PC” you are given the choice to “Keep my Files” OR “Remove Everything”. I have never had a reason to use the “Remove Everything” option and in most cases the “Keep my Files” will be all that is needed. This option keeps all your files but removes traditional programs that you have installed including Microsoft Office. It keeps some of the Store Apps but even when these Apps are not put back automatically, when you re-install from the store they come back with your settings intact.

The following are my tips:

Tip No 1 – Use Microsoft Store Apps when you can.

I have learnt, via trial and error, that wherever possible you should get an App from the store rather than installing a program. The only problem here is the lack of choice in the Microsoft Store, BUT things are improving.

For example, you can get iTunes in the store and my advice is to use this version, rather than downloading from Apple. When you do a “PC Reset / Keep my Files” you have to go to the store to re-install, but the store knows that you own the App. Moreover, it re-installs with your settings, even in my case knowing that, with my Surface Pro 4, I have my iTunes library/ Media file on an SD card with an allocated Drive letter inserted in the card slot under the hinge. It also comes back with Playlists, Podcasts etc..

It is the same with things like the Money App that re-install with your personal settings/ Watchlists and so on.

Tip No 2 – Make list of non-store programs to be re-installed including location of install media and / or Web Sites – with Activation Codes.

If you have to download a program from the internet, make sure that you only re-install from the program’s home site. I will not use any of the download sites and if I can’t find the home site I will not install. If you want VLC go to https://www.videolan.org/vlc/

Use Wikipedia to get the URL if you don’t know it.

When you do a PC Reset, Windows provides a list on the Desktop of the programs that it has removed. However, I only put back the essentials like printer software and other programs that I always use and re-install anything else when needed. With my scanner/printer I keep the install .exe files in a folder in my Downloads. These things rarely change. UPDATE – CARE! Don’t store in Downloads as Disk Clean-up now deletes Downloads.

Tip No 3 – Have your Email Passwords handy.

I use the Mail App and on completion it automatically installs the Email for your Microsoft Account (that you sign into the computer with) IF you have used a Hotmail/Live/Outlook Email for your Microsoft Account. (You can use any Email address for your Microsoft Account and if say you use a G mail address it won’t put back that G Mail.)

You will have to re-input all other Emails. The only one I have any issues with is my Yahoo Email. It comes up with a flag to “Fix” but if you just keep clicking “Fix” and re-inputting the password, it eventually repairs itself. Also, if like me, you have Email on your own Domain name, be sure to keep the server / port details so you don’t have to go looking for them.

Tip No 4 Back Up First

You should be doing a back up in any case so this is a “no brainer”. I just use the inbuilt Win 10 Back Up to an external drive. So, go to All Settings/ Update and Security / Backup (attach your back up drive if applicable) and run a backup FIRST.

Comments

The thing that takes the longest time for me is re-installing Office 365, but this is down to my SLOW internet.

Otherwise it is a simple process made even easier when you pre-plan.

SCREEN FLICKER

I did have, however, one particular concern with the Surface Pro 4 (SP4) and it occurred for the first time when I did a PC Reset a couple of days ago. The issue was with “Screen Shake/ Flicker” which, if you search on line, appears to be a problem for a number of SP4 owners.

I was aware that this problem exists, and it apparently is a driver issue for the Display Adaptor. I immediately went to Device Manager/ Display Adaptor and tried to update the driver but got the notification that the most recent driver was installed. I then went to the Intel site and downloaded their driver, but I got the same notification.

I was starting to panic a bit as the flicker was bad enough to almost make the screen un-readable. However, I found this solution on line – and it worked. Go to Device Manager/ Display Adaptor and un-install the Intel HD Graphics 520. Then do a complete shutdown by holding down together the power button and the volume up buttons for 15 seconds. (Turning it off with only the power button does not fully shut it down.) Then when I started it again, it found the “new” hardware (the Intel HD Graphics 520) and installed the driver. This fixed the problem for me at least.

UPDATE – SCREEN FLICKER

This page contains the official Microsoft Instructions for a complete shutdown and restart of Surface products.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-au/help/4036280/surface-force-a-shut-down-and-restart-your-surface

Procedure to reinstall Display Adaptor:

Go to Device Manager / Display Adaptor and right mouse on the Intel Display Adaptor and click “Uninstall Device”. (It will default to the Microsoft Basic Display Adaptor)

Complete a hard shutdown and restart as per the Video (40 seconds in for SP4/3 & Surface Book) – Hold down the Power Button for 30 seconds, release and then hold down the Power button and the Volume Up together for 15 seconds. (Note if you press longer than 15 seconds the UEFI will come up – just click/tap Exit and Restart)

The Windows Hello camera will not work on the restart so press the Space Bar and log in with your PIN.

Go to Device Manager/Display Adaptor/ Microsoft Basic Display Adaptor – Right Mouse / Update Driver. Select the Search Automatically option and download and install the updated Driver. This will take a few minutes.

Device Manager/ Display Adaptor will then show the Intel Adaptor and Windows Hello and everything else will work as per usual.

NOTE! I am beginning to accept opinion that the screen shake problem has more to do with heat than Display Adaptor drivers. Last time it happened it was a hot day (about 37°C) and I had the SP4 located next to a TV that gives off heat. So I detached the keyboard and put the SP4 in the fridge for 15 minutes and the issue went away. Be careful with this and don’t put it in the freezer. The temperature range for SP4 is 0°C/32°F to 35°C/95°F – So a fridge should be OK for a short period but not a freezer. This is just my opinion so anything you do is at your own risk.

Win 10 Photos–continued

The Win 10 Photos App has improved to such an extent that it is my first option for editing of images. Although I have Photoshop Elements, I use the Photos App more frequently particularly when I want to make quick adjustments or save a still image from a video or an iPhone “Live” photo.

The App lets you drag through the video or “Live” photo to select the desired frame to save.

Note: It saves the still image as a .jpg in the same folder called “original name + moments”

Another very handy edit is the “Enhance your photo” function that quickly and automatically corrects light and colour with a vertical line that can be dragged left or right to make further manual adjustments.

There are many more manual adjustments that can be made, but I find that the automatic “Enhance” function does all that I ever need.

Be aware that with the “Crop” function you have to click on “Aspect ratio” and select “Custom” as the default maintains the original aspect ratio.

This App is probably all most people will need and the automatic “Enhance” is a life saver for me as I am hopeless with manual adjustments to photos.

SSL CERTIFICATE

After much procrastination, I finally bit the bullet and purchased an SSL Certificate for my domain. Therefore the URL will now be https://www.whysun.com

WINDOWS 8–ON LINE IS THE BEST AND CHEAPEST WAY TO UPGRADE

See my previous post on 27th Oct 2012.

After the straightforward and easy upgrade to my main desktop machine (using upgrade discs that I bought from a retailer) I decided, as it was so easy and inexpensive, to upgrade the old laptop on which I had been running the preview version. As mentioned previously, this is an Asus M5200AE notebook with a 1.73 GHZ Pentium M CPU & 1GB RAM.

This time I used the “on Line” upgrade assistant.

This is the way to go. It only cost AUD$39-99 for Win 8 Pro and I took advantage of the offer to get WMC for free. (Not that I will use WMC on it but hey it’s free!) The Microsoft Australian link is http://windows.microsoft.com/en-AU/windows/buy?ocid=GA8_O_WOL_DIS_ShopHP_FPP_Light

As soon as I finished, I created an Image and Repair/boot Disc on DVDs using the old Win 7 Image back up which is still available in Win 8. Install discs are offered in this process as an optional extra but the cost is $25. Why pay when it is so easy to make your own discs. (Type “recovery” in the Charms search and click on “Settings” and you will see “Windows 7 File Recovery”. Open this and it is the familiar Win 7 control panel to make a system image and recovery discs.)

It could not have been easier. As first it runs a check of your system to identify any potential problems and then proceeds with the upgrade (retaining your data). Also you can pay by credit card or PayPal during the procedure.

The only issues I had with the old laptop were:

I needed to go to Realtek to get a driver for the sound (Vista / Win 7 driver worked)
The card reader does not work but I have not made any effort to find drivers

AND the DVD Drive that was not working with the Preview Version of Win 8 now works. For $39-99 I have an adequately working Win 8 Notebook. (According to Microsoft, 2GB Of RAM is the preferred minimum but it goes OK with 1GB).

Windows 8 Update

I have been playing with Windows 8 now for a few days. My initial enthusiasm has waxed and waned a little as I ran across problems. I must mention that without the information available on Paul Thurrott’s Winsupersite http://www.winsupersite.com/windows-8 , I would have been more than a little frustrated at times. Tekzilla (http://revision3.com/tekzilla) and Windows Weekly (http://twit.tv/ww) have also been of great help.

Nevertheless, despite some ups and downs, the more I get used to it the more I like it. In particular, I have been trying to use the Metro interface as much as possible rather than using the familiar desktop. I really like the Metro interface even without a touch screen. In regard to this, there was a very good suggestion on Episode 250 of Windows Weekly (http://twit.tv/show/windows-weekly/250) that something like the Apple Magic Touchpad would be an ideal substitute for a touch screen.

There are always three ways to interact with the computer with Win 8 i.e. Touch, Mouse and Keyboard. In the absence of the “Touch” option, I have downloaded a full list of the Keyboard Shortcuts and the mouse works pretty much as you would expect but with the additions of “corners”.

Many of my tiles have “come to life”, but the X Box ones are still “dead”. “Live Tiles” is something I really like and in addition you can set it to show up to 7 Apps on the Lock Screen with one in full detail.

So far I have only come across a couple of significant concerns (but I am only playing around with it and not using it full time):

Internet Explorer ( Metro) – I just can’t make sense of IE (metro) and I have set IE to always open in the Desktop. Instructions are here http://www.winsupersite.com/article/windows8/windows-8-consumer-preview-internet-explorer-10-secrets-142451
Spell Check - There is still no spell check built into the OS. WordPad was updated for Win 7 and it also comes with Win 8 but again without spell check. However, if you download Windows Live Essentials and install Windows Live Writer (WLW), you get spell check with this program. (I am using WLW to write this blog post but you could also use it for non blog purposes and, after a spell check, cut and paste into WordPad – Or buy Office, which I suppose is the reason there is no spell check in WordPad.

Other Discoveries

I was watching the latest episode of Tekzilla and, thanks to the Tekzilla crew, I now know what the “Share” Charm is for.The Share charm is used to send links, photos, etc. to people via Email and / or Social Networks without leaving the app you have open. For Example if you are looking at pictures in the Photos App, you click on the Share Charm to send the photo to someone via Email.

However at this stage not many Apps appear in the Share Charm. I expect that this will expand in due course

I will keep “playing” and post more as I come across things of interest.

WINDOWS 8

I have downloaded and installed the Consumer Preview (or pre release test) version of Windows 8.

My first reaction is positive.

It is different in many ways from Windows 7 but “under the hood” it remains familiar to a Win 7 user. I am still learning, but from what I have seen so far, I will probably be upgrading after it is officially released sometime later this year even though I have been more than happy with Windows 7. I will, however, buy a touch screen for my computer before I do so as a lot of the new features are designed for touch. I will also get an SSD for my boot drive.

The install process has been automated so it performs an upgrade from Win 7 or Vista without losing any of your programs or features. You run a compatibility test first and are given warnings about anything that will not work. The only major warning that I got on my Core i7 machine was that Microsoft Security Essentials won’t work. However this is not a worry as the anti virus/malware program is now fully integrated into Win 8.

I started to download Win 8 onto my main computer but, as I did not want to risk mucking it up, I changed my mind. Instead, I downloaded the .iso and did a clean install of Win 8 (32 bit) on an old computer running XP. It has a Pentium 4 (3 GHz) CPU, Nvidia GeForce 6200 and 1 GB RAM.

I had no trouble loading Win 8 to dual boot with XP and it runs well. Naturally there is no “Touch Screen” functionality.

First up I will address the three things that have been causing the most comments:

Lack of a Start Button
The “Missing” Search function that came with the Start Button in Vista and Win 7
The Metro Interface

Start Button

The Default is the Metro Start Screen. But it is very easy to revert to the normal Desktop via a bottom left “swipe” or “click”. In both cases there is no Start Button. On The Metro Interface you can include tiles for programs you commonly access. When using the Desktop option, the old task bar remains and you can “Pin” things there. However access to all programs and other functions in both Metro and Desktop is now via a bottom right “swipe/click” which brings up a bar that contains buttons for these things. You can also do a right mouse click in the bottom left to bring up a menu that provides links to a number of functions like “Control Panel” , “Explorer” etc. .

Search Function

It is still there and you get to it via a bottom right “click/swipe”. I have been using it and when you get the hang of how it works it is as good as the Win 7 version.

The Metro Interface

It is easy to swap between The Metro Interface and the Desktop (bottom left click/swipe).

The Metro Interface looks like this (see below). As you can see it contains Tiles. The Tiles provide access to programs (or Apps) and you can add or remove them. I am still setting up my Metro Interface and I intend to reduce the number of tiles so I only have tiles for things I regularly use. It is a bit crowded now as the programs for Windows Live Essentials had been installed prior to the image (below) being taken.

Some of the Tiles are active like the Weather one which updates weather information throughout the day. You go into the settings for the App to add places and change from Fahrenheit or Celsius.

However you can easily revert to a more traditional Desktop like this. As you can see it still has shortcuts and things can be pinned to the task bar at the bottom. The clock and other icons appear in the right corner as in Win7.

HIDDEN UTILITIES – CHARMS ETC

I was familiar with the concept of hiding task bars from the latest version of Ubuntu. To see the Launch Bar on Ubuntu 11.10 you hover your mouse (or swipe) the left hand side of the screen. It is similar with Win 8. You can either use a manual swipe if you have a touch screen or use a mouse or the keyboard to access all of the things that you might think are missing. I haven’t worked it all out yet but I am relying on Paul Thurrott at Win Super Site here http://www.winsupersite.com/windows-8 to bring me up to speed.

I can’t say much more at this stage as I don’t have a touch screen and I barely know what “Charms” are. I think they are the buttons that come up when you swipe bottom right. See below – The buttons on the right in the black bar – “Search”, “Share” etc. are “Charms” (I think).

OTHER THINGS

When I installed Win 8 I input my Windows Live / Hotmail sign in details and it automatically synced all my stuff from Windows Live – Calendar / Mail / Contacts / SkyDrive etc..

This means that I have to use my Windows Live details to log onto my computer. You don’t have to do this but I consider it to be a good idea.

The first time I re-started the computer I could not work out how to get to the log in screen. However, by a fluke I pressed the Ctrl button and it bought up the Log In screen. On the other hand it took a few minutes to locate the power button to turn it off. All is well now that I know where to look. (In the “Charms” under “Settings”.)

There are lots of other little things that you discover and here a few screen shots of things I found in Charms/ Settings / More PC Settings:

I included this last one as it shows an excellent feature of Win 8 – The Refresh and Reset functions that should do away with the need for a re-install.

I have to add that not all the “Live” tiles work yet but as I said above this is only an early test version. ( I was anxious to set up the X Box tiles but I got a “not yet available in your region” notification.)

I downloaded the Windows Live Essentials programs and used Live Writer to write this blog on Win 8. No doubt, I still have a lot to learn but I can safely say that I am already “up and running” after only a short period.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

It was easy and quick to install and after a little bit of initial confusion I am learning how to use it. So far I give it a thumbs up.

KINDLE REVIEW

With the Australian dollar currently worth more than the US dollar, now is the time to buy stuff from the U.S.

I have had an Amazon account for some time and have always been interested in their eBook reader, the Kindle, so I bought one.

The process is simple. First set up an Amazon Account. You need to give them a credit card number but Amazon is a reputable major US company and giving them your Credit Card details is as safe as these things can be. Far safer than handing your card over to say a waiter at a restaurant which is something we do regularly without thinking too much about it.

Amazon also owns Audible and the UK government is currently considering the proposed acquisition by Amazon of “The Book Depository”. Amazon and Audible have my Credit card details but I use PayPal for “The Book Depository”.

After the account is set up, log in and you can then buy a Kindle direct from Amazon if you wish. CARE!!! – If you want a wall charger make sure to get both on the same order to save on postage.

I selected the Wi-Fi only model without ads for $139. There is a cheaper option at $114 that has adds on the screen saver. A model is also available with 3G Wireless Internet access if you want to be able to buy books anywhere at any time. However, I have a Wi-Fi network at home and a Telstra Prepaid Mobile Wi-Fi router so I don’t need to pay extra for 3G. If you have an iPhone with Telstra (and other carriers I assume) you can set it up as a Wi-Fi router and connect your Kindle to the internet via iPhone.

After I ordered it, I was astounded when it turned up just a few days later. I don’t know how they did it but the package said that it was posted from 1850 Mercer Road, Lexington KY USA.

It is ready to go when you get it. Apart from charging it and inputting the WPA password to get on your home Wi-Fi network, there is nothing else to do as it is already registered to the Amazon Account from which it was ordered. You have full control over the device via your Amazon Account so you can change registration and account details if necessary.

It comes with a USB cable to charge from a computer but you do not need a computer to operate it. I purchased the wall charger (optional extra) so mine has never been hooked up to a computer.

Buying books could not be simpler. Providing you are on the internet via any 3G or Wi-Fi network, you go to the Kindle Store link on the Kindle, browse and select a book and click on buy and within seconds it downloads and you can start reading.

Alternatively, can also log into the Amazon site on a computer and buy Kindle books there and they will automatically download onto your Kindle. However, I have never used this option but I do sometimes browse on the computer but, after I have made a selection, I go back to the Kindle to buy it.

There are two important matters that need to be addressed.

FIRST – THE BAD NEWS – This is the lack of available books to Australian Account Holders. As is the case with Audible, there are thousands upon thousands of books available both old and new in the Kindle format until, that is, you log in with your Australian Account. This is not the fault of Amazon or Audible. It is however the fault of Australian Publishers. Yes, the exact same bright sparks who moan and groan and complain about falling sales and closing book shops apparently don’t seem to realise they have a growing number of people with money in their hands wanting to buy their product. But for reasons known only to them, they have decided that they don’t like the colour of our money or something. It beats me but because of this I have no sympathy at all for them. If my money is not good enough they can go to hell. I will now only buy from Audible and Kindle and, if not available from these sources, I will buy paper books from The Book Depository in the UK (or Amazon in the US but The Book Depository is cheaper and they only take about 2 to 3 weeks to get here).

SECOND – THE GOOD NEWS – In general you can have up to 6 devices (Kindle, iPad, iPod Touch, iPhone etc.) connected to one Amazon Account. (Sometimes it is less depending on individual publications. In this case you are told of the limit). This means that you only need to buy a book once for up to six devices to be able to share it.

This is always the first question I get asked about the Kindle. Most families buy one book and share it around various family members. The following is copied from the Amazon Web Site http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_kip_faq_num?nodeId=200298470&#howmany

How many Kindles can I use to access titles in my library?

Most books and other non-subscription items you purchase from the Kindle store may be simultaneously accessed for your personal use on up to six Kindles (or Kindle compatible devices, such as Kindle for iPhone) registered to your Amazon.com account. If the limit is less than six kindles for a specific title, you’ll see the message "Simultaneous Device usage: Up to X simultaneous devices, per publisher limits" on the detail page.

If you reach the device limit and wish to replace one of your current devices with a new one, you must first deregister and delete the content from the device you wish to replace before you can access the content in question from your new device. For device registration instructions, please see the Help page for the device you wish to register/deregister on the Kindle Support pages. There is no limit on the number of times a title can be downloaded to a registered device.

Subscription content can only be downloaded to one Kindle at a time and cannot be accessed from Kindle for iPhone.

Therefore if you want to share books, you have the option to buy more than one Kindle or if you have an iPad, iPhone, iPod touch etc. you can register these devices.

However you may want to seriously consider the multiple Kindle option as it is the perfect device on which to read books. The Kindle basically does one thing but it does that one thing faultlessly.

Here is a summary of my review:

· The Kindle behaves a lot like a paper book. You turn pages with back / forward buttons and use bookmarks. It is not backlit. Consequently, you need a light to read by, but by the same token this means that there is no trouble using it in bright sunlight – just like a book.

· Because of the technology it uses (no back light for the screen), the battery lasts for weeks if not months. You are given plenty of warning when the battery is getting low. To re-charge, either plug into a computer or the wall socket (with the optional extra cord). I have had mine for 2 months and I have only fully depleted the battery once but, even then, I ran an Audio Book through the speakers for days to run it down.

· Mine has 3 GB of memory so that it will hold thousands of books (depending on size). When (and if) you fill up your Kindle, you can delete content but it always remains available on your Amazon Account Archive to be downloaded again at any time (much like Audible).

· The Kindle weighs less than a book and you don’t have to hold it open like you do with a book.

· The prices of individual books vary but all are significantly less that paper books. To give you some idea, here a couple of examples – More Recent Books – Harry Bosch (Michael Connelly) novels – The Overlook (published 2007) $7.59 – – 9 Dragons Published 2009 $8.42 — Jack Reacher (Lee Child) “Worth Dying For” Published 2010 $9.12– Dan Brown “The Lost Symbol” $8.63

Older books can be really cheap but my 2 most recent purchases were:

Zero Day (Mark Russinovich) $11.99
The End of the Wasp Season (Denise Mina) $9-99

· Dictionary – There are any number of very handy features that the Kindle provides but one of the best is the Dictionary function. If you come across a word you don’t know, you just put the cursor before it and a definition appears at the bottom. In the book “The End of the Wasp Season” which is about a Scottish detective, the word “oxter” came up. I had no idea what it meant but with the Kindle Dictionary function I just scrolled the cursor down to the beginning of this word and the following definition appeared at the bottom of the page – “oxter” – Scottish – N English – A person’s Armpit”

· Find Function – When I wanted to find “oxter” in the book to write this blog, I used the Find / Search function and found it immediately. Try doing that with a paper book!

· One feature that I have found that I need is “Bookmarks.” Just like a paper book you can turn down the top corner of a page as a “bookmark” and you find this place again from the Menu / View Notes and Marks. When you leave your Kindle it remembers the last page that you were on but I have found that with my clumsy hands I frequently accidentally press the page back / forward buttons thus losing my place. So I have trained myself to add a bookmark (as I would have to do with a paper book).

· Print / page Size. It is fully adjustable and you can make the print bigger or smaller with plenty of settings that will satisfy all tastes including type size, words per line and whether you want it to be vertical or horizontal. There is also a “Text to Speech” function that I have not yet tried. (I tried it just now – It is typical Computer type speech – I’ll stick with Audible).

· The Kindle store has publications other than books. Newspapers, magazines etc. are available and every time I look the list grows longer. Magazines and Newspapers might be better on an iPad but at least this is an option. I have heard that in the U.S., text books are now being made available on Kindle and this seems to me to be a great idea. Not only should this make text books much cheaper, but it would also reduce the bulk of printed books that students need to carry around these days.

· There are plenty of other functions that I won’t go into here but, after you make a couple of purchases, Kindle makes suggestions for similar books you might like and you can download your Audible Audio Books and listen to them via the Kindle’s speakers (or headphones).

· Each Kindle comes with a private Kindle Email address that you can use to download your own content onto it via an attachment to an Email (that you send to your Kindle Email). Many formats are acceptable including Word Documents, PDF and JPG pictures and more. See http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200505520&#email

COMPLAINTS

I am genuine when I say this but I can’t think of anything to complain about (apart from the content issue for Australians but this is not the fault of Amazon / Kindle).

However I will mention a couple of things that you should be aware of:

1. Impulse buying – If ever there was a device designed to encourage impulse buying it is the Kindle. It is just so easy, quick and cheap to buy books. One of the books mentioned above (The End of the Wasp Season) was an impulse buy. I was listening to our local talk radio (4BC Brisbane) and every Friday they have a lady who reviews books. She highly recommended this one and I went to my Kindle and before I knew it I had clicked “Buy”. (Yes – It was a good book and I enjoyed it but I will have to exercise a bit of self-control in future).

2. Bookmarks – As mentioned above, I have had to train myself to always add a book mark to my last page as I have a terrible habit of accidently clicking the Forward / Back buttons when I put it down after I finish reading. I am trained now but when I first got it, I had to leaf back to find my place on many an occasion (just like when you lose your place on a regular book).

SUMMARY

I know a lot of people will baulk at paying for a Kindle but with the average cost of a Kindle book at about half of the retail price of a paperback book at the large chain stores like Big W or K Mart it would not take all that long to recover the purchase price.

The issue of available content for Australians cannot be overlooked but one would hope that Australian publishers will eventually wake up to the fact that they have a growing number of eBook readers with money to spend. Also remember that Big W and K Mart do have some limitations on the range they carry and if you are forced to go to a book store to find what you want then prices are higher again.

On the other hand a Kindle is better than a book. It is light and easy to use with heaps of handy functions. Buying books at any time day or night is cheap and simple (as long as you have an internet connection). Moreover, you can carry around thousands of books on a small light device.

For me it is a “no brainer”

Now I must get back to reading “Zero Day” (by Mark Russinovich). Although I am not sure that I ever should have started reading it. This is from the Amazon Description:-

The horror of cyberterrorism explodes on the page in Russinovich’s first novel. A plane over the Atlantic suddenly needs to reboot its computer to stay in the air, and the pilots barely avert disaster. A hospital network mixes up patient information, resulting in the death of several people. A law firm, which has lost all of its clients’ data and can’t get its system running again…,

“So what” – I hear you say – “It is just another work of fiction”.

Maybe – but look at who the author is – See Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Russinovich

If ever there was a bloke who knew what he was talking about it is him! I think I will sell all my computers and anything using a computer to operate (there goes my new car), stop flying in planes, going to hospitals and even shopping at Woolworths (their systems are fully computerised – my milk might get mixed up with the rat poison) and go and live in a tent in the bush somewhere.