(Note: For ebook and audiobook conversions, visit Fowler Digital Services.)

As much as I still love good old-fashioned print books, there are new benefits that come with ebooks and ebook readers like the Amazon Kindle. Here are the top ten things I like about the Kindle, including my absolute favorite (and little known) Kindle feature listed below.

Order the all New Kindle Fire here!

1. Portability: The Kindle is lightweight, and easy to carry around. And it almost feels like a regular book when you put it in its book cover.
2. Readability: The E-Ink screen is amazing. It is just like reading paper. I can adjust the font size up or down as needed. I also like that I can hold the Kindle “open” and “turn the pages” with just one hand (leaving the other hand free for coffee or tea).
3. Accessibility: I have access to all my Kindle books and magazine subscriptions at all times. Plus, I can browse new books, read samples, and download directly to my device. As a result, I find I am reading more with my Kindle, which is a good thing.
4. Flexibility: I am not limited to the Kindle reader but can read my Kindle books on a variety of devices, including my desktop computer, laptop, or netbook. When I switch devices, each book opens up exactly where I left off reading on the former device. Multiple devices also means more than one family member can be reading Kindle books at the same time. Amazon offers reader apps for PC, Mac, iPhone/iPod Touch, BlackBerry, Android, and now Tablet Computers (including the iPad). .
5. Searchability: I can search for specific words or phrases in individual books or across my whole library.
6. Free samples: Who doesn’t like free samples? I can download free samples from books or magazine subscriptions and preview before purchasing.
7. Cost savings: This one is simple. Books are cheaper on the Kindle. Most books I have purchased are $9.99 or less. Many of them you can get for free (including over 30,000 classic titles from Project Gutenberg).
8. Space savings: We ran out of bookshelf space a long time ago. Many of our books are currently in boxes. With the Kindle I can purchase new books without worrying about where to put them.
9. Note-taking: It is easy to highlight text and make notes on the Kindle while I read, and I never need to look around for a highlighter or pen.

 
And my absolute favorite Kindle feature? (Most people don’t know about this one.)

10. Note-retrieval: I used to type up important notes and quotes from a book when I finished reading it, but it was a long, laborious, time-consuming process. Amazon saves all my highlights and notes along with their locations for me at a special password protected website. When I finish a book, I can go to the website and easily access all my underlines and notes for that book in order. Then I copy and paste them into a Word file for permanent reference. This is a huge time saver, and one of the best advantages of digital over printed books for me. Note: This is different from (and far superior to) the Kindle’s clunky My Clippings folder.

Did you find this post helpful? If so, please help support this site by making your Amazon purchases through one of the links below or through the portal in the top left side bar. Thank you! (And check out the new Kindle Fire below!)

Related posts:
    • Ebook Formatting for the Ipad, Kindle and Nook
    • My Kindle Got Run Over by a Car

(Note: For ebook and audiobook conversions, see Fowler Digital Services.)

Here is a great little clip from a Julie Miller song. Remember, not all things are as they appear. “Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.” (2 Corinthians 11:14) “Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil.” (1 Thessalonians 5:21-22) Be wise; be warned; be well.

(Click to play)

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Well, you look just like an angel,
You sound so bright and true,
You seem so sweet coming down my street,
But the devil is an angel too,
The devil is an angel too.

From Julie Miller; Blue Pony; “The Devil Is An Angel”

On Friday, March 12, 2010, the four greatest tennis players of the past two decades played a doubles match at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. Roger Federer and Pete Sampras teamed up against Andre Agassi and Rafael Nadal in the Hit For Haiti charity expedition that raised over $1 million dollars for the Red Cross and Haiti.

Although the match was more for entertainment than competition, it is still amazing to see these four tennis greats on the court all at the same time. Between the four of them they have a combined 222 titles (44 Grand Slams), 13 year-end No. 1 rankings, and 706 weeks at No. 1 in the ATP Rankings system. For the last 19 years straight (since 1992), one of the four has earned at least one Grand Slam title each year. Their combined prize earnings total a staggering $157,292,855.

Here is a ten-minute video clip with highlights from the match. For the record, Federer and Sampras came out on top 8-6.

Indian Wells – Federer/Sampras vs. Nadal/Agassi (Video length: 10:56)

Note: Click on the “4-arrow icon” in the bottom right corner of the video to view in full screen.

“Google is not God.”   Well, I’m glad we got that squared away.

      (Note: For ebook and audiobook conversions, see Fowler Digital Services.)

Privacy

Note to self: Do not put Kindle on top of car, then drive away letting Kindle fall into street in front of home. Also, do not leave Kindle in street overnight, exposing it to rain and passing cars. If you do, it will look like this:

Happy ending: Fortunately, when I bought my Kindle I purchased the 2-Year Extended Warranty which provides full coverage for accidental damage. Amazon sent me a brand new Kindle the next day fully loaded with all my books, notes and highlights in place and ready to read. Thanks, Amazon!

Related posts:
    • Ebook Formatting for the Ipad, Kindle and Nook
    • Top 10 Kindle Features

(Note: For ebook and audiobook conversions, see Fowler Digital Services.)

There’s a new film version of A Wrinkle in Time in the works by the same people who brought us the first two installments in the new Chronicles of Narnia series. From The Hollywood Reporter:

Jeff Stockwell has been hired to adapt author Madeleine L’Engle’s classic time-travel head trip, “A Wrinkle in Time,” for Cary Granat and his new Bedrock Studios …

The BBC made a film version of the young-adult novel, and Dimension produced a telefilm for ABC in 2004. Disney carried remake rights from that deal and is developing the new feature iteration with Bedrock, which had negotiated rights to the property from the L’Engle estate. Catherine Hand also is producing, and L’Engle’s granddaughter, Charlotte Voilkis, is exec producing.

Granat has a relationship with Disney from when his Walden Media produced such films for the studio as the “Chronicles of Narnia” series and “Bridge to Terabithia,” co-written by Stockwell. L’Engle wrote a handful of follow-up novels to “Wrinkle,” now called the Time Quintet, and Disney’s Rich Ross is seeking more franchise material in the mold of the female-driven success of Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland.”

A Wrinkle in Time was one of my favorite books as a child, and I enjoyed the other books in the series as well. I don’t know if they can pull a whole film franchise out of the series, but I am excited that at least Wrinkle will get the big screen treatment. Any other Madeleine L’Engle fans out there?

HT: CT Movies Blog

Related post: Madeleine L’Engle Passes Away (1918-2007)

A recent Barna poll indicates that less than half of all churchgoing adults plan to invite a non-churchgoing friend to church for Easter.

The Barna research … examined whether churchgoing adults perceive Easter weekend to be a good time to invite people to attend worship services with them. While most active churchgoers said they would be open to doing this, a minority said they would be likely to do so. Overall, 31% of active churchgoers said they would definitely invite someone they know who does not usually attend a church to accompany them to a church service on Easter weekend this year.

That’s too bad. According to research by the North American Mission Board, most Americans say they would visit a church if invited by a family member, neighbor or a friend. Easter is a great time to invite someone to attend church with you. So what are you waiting for? Easter is only a few weeks away. Who will you invite this year to hear the good news that Jesus rose from the dead?

Related posts:
    • Church Holiday Two-Timers
    • Most Americans Open to Church Invitations

Don’t forget to change your clocks forward one hour tonight.

Related post: The Thief

Wondering when you will get your Federal Tax refund from the IRS? You can easily check your refund status online at the official IRS website here: Get Refund Status. Just enter your Social Security Number, your Filing Status and the refund amount as shown on your tax return, and the IRS will tell you your status in a matter of seconds.

I checked my status yesterday, and the site told me that my refund would be direct deposited into my bank account today. I just checked my bank account, and sure enough, the full amount is there. Now I can pay my state taxes and my estimated quarterly taxes for January through March. Yay.

HT: Get Rich Slowly

If you enjoy listening to audiobooks, you might want to check out this deal. Each month, ChristianAudio.com offers a free audiobook download. This month they are offering two free selections: The Cost of Discipleship, by Dietrich Bonhoeffer (run time 9 hours; normally $16.98) and Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die, by John Piper (run time 3.5 hours; normally $5.98). Use the coupon code MAR2010 to download both books for free this month only.

Here are the descriptions from the site:

The Cost of Discipleship:

This book is quite simply, one of the most profound and important books of the 20th century. Dietrich Bonhoeffer lived a testimony of his thoughtful and engaging writers. Focusing on the most treasured part of Christ’s teaching – the Sermon on the Mount with its call to discipleship, and on the grace of God and the sacrifice which that demands.

Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die:

The most important questions anyone can ask are: Why was Jesus Christ crucified? Why did he suffer so much? What has this to do with me? Finally, who sent him to his death? The answer to the last question is that God did. Jesus was God’s Son. The suffering was unsurpassed, but the whole message of the Bible leads to this answer.

You can listen to a free audio sample from The Cost of Discipleship here and a free audio sample from Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die here.

Some sad news out of Pakistan today. From Reuters:

Suspected Islamist militants stormed an office of a U.S.-based, Christian aid agency in Pakistan on Wednesday, killing six Pakistani aid workers after singling them out and then blowing up the building … Seven members of staff were wounded and one was missing, the agency said in a statement, adding that its relief and development work in Pakistan was conducted by Pakistanis. “Those who kill humanitarian workers must be reminded that they are not only killing their own country’s residents, but also people seeking to improve the lives of victims of poverty and injustice,” it said.

Here is a statement from World Vision:

World Vision today is mourning the brutal and senseless deaths of six members of our staff in the Mansehra district of Pakistan, following an unprovoked attack by gunmen. We are seeking to confirm reports that gunmen first set off bombs or grenades, then opened fire on the office, located 65 kilometers north of the capital, Islamabad. In addition to those killed, seven employees are hospitalized with injuries. No threatening letters were received prior to the attack.

World Vision’s relief and development work in Pakistan is conducted by local citizens. All of World Vision’s operations in the country have been temporarily suspended. World Vision remembers those staff who have died as dedicated people seeking to improve the lives of people affected by poverty and disasters.

Please pray for the wounded, for World Vision, and for those who lost loved ones in today’s attack.

Updated 3/16/2010: 7th World Vision Staff Dies after Pakistan Attack

I am getting a lot of visitors today looking for the ugly dog picture from a previous post. Welcome! Please click on this link for the post with the picture of the World’s Ugliest Dog. (Update: Aah, I see where all the traffic is coming from. Sunday was the 15th Annual Ugly Dog contest in San Diego, and the first image that comes up on Bing’s image search for an ugly dog is the picture from my previous post.)