I still *heart* my Kindle

I know. It's been forever. I hope I haven't lost my touch :)

I love books. Particularly a good fantasy novel, but I'll read just about anything that tells a good story or teaches me something new and fascinating. When the Kindle first came out, it seemed like a natural fit. But I delayed. E-books don't have the wonderful feel and smell of paper! E-books won't fill up my bookshelves! Until finally, I had so many books that there was no more space. I could always go back and read my favorites on the old fashioned medium, but it was clear that I needed a more compact solution moving forward, so I bought a Kindle.

It was love at first sentence. The ability to download books in seconds, and take a whole library of reading material any where I go won me over in a heartbeat. I was a Kindle aficionado. When rumors flew that a color Kindle was going to be released, I immediately started a "new Kindle fund". With my Fire pre-ordered the first day, I not so patiently awaited its delivery. And finally the day arrived. My Kindle Fire was born. I named it Sam.

Having read a dozen books on Sam, and read a small army of disparaging Kindle Fire reviews, I want to put my $0.02 out there.

The hardware:
I really enjoy the LCD screen compared to e-ink. I don't have to fuss with a book light to read at night, and turning pages is noticeably faster. Carrying Sam around is no more difficult that any paperback. The 7" size works for me. I don't miss a camera or any other high-end tablet features. Yes the Fire is less powerful than my smartphone. It also cost less than half the price.

The software:
Amazon's locked down version of Android has left me between a rock and a hard place. Half my life is organized around Google: gmail, google docs, gtalk, the list goes on and on. To make Sam really useful as a tablet, I need access to those apps. I don't have it.

About 2 minutes after realizing this, I looked into rooting Sam. I was all set to go for it until I read one critical sentence: Rooting a Fire removes access to Amazon Prime functionality. Sigh. Here's my not so guilty, not so secret: I buy tons of stuff from Amazon. I got a Prime membership the first year they were available. The $80 more than pays for itself in "free" 2-day shipping. I see the library of downloads as an added bonus. One that doesn't justify the Prime membership, but also one I don't want to lose on Sam.

So, Sam remains unrooted. I use him to read books, very happily. He is not a fully functioning tablet though, and that may prompt me to look into Android tablets more in the future. Cause, you know, I always *need* more technology :)

Christmas Eve at Last

As the people of Castleville gather around their new fondue pot, a special visitor, straight from Santa's Workshop teleports in to deliver presents.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Fondue Anyone?

"I have been saving a special surprise," announces the Queen. "Gather round, and we shall have fondue! Look at that yummy cheese melting over the flame!"

Peace at Last

"Boys! Boys!" says the Queen, "I will have none of your fighting this time of year. I have brought the Owl of Peace. Greet him gently, and apologize to your friends."
"Your Majesty! We will stop at once!" says Sir Edgar, "But please know, we would not have hurt anyone. The missiles raining down from above, they were marshmallows! And the arrows, pretzel sticks!"
The Queen and her men at arms have a good laugh over the food fight.

A Little Retialiation

Sir Edgar has friends with long range armaments, and he asks on of them, the crossbowman Steve, to send back a little return fire. Things are getting dangerous around here!