Win a Kindle from Concentrated Tech

You would have to be living under a rock to not know about the Amazon Kindle… and yet I finally got the chance to play with one last week. Oddly enough, it wasn’t at all what I expected (in other words, it wasn’t another LCD eBook device).

Amazon’s Kindle is a simple device with a surprisingly crisp display. Released at the end of last year, InfoWorld did a review of it at that time. There is no backlight. It’s not an LCD screen. It actually uses “tiny little bubbles filled with black or white (well, off-white) ink. They’re electrically charged and can be turned to display either side on command, creating a flat, crisp display that reflects light… Once turned to the desired position, the little bubbles stay put, meaning the display uses no power unless you’re turning pages.”

A couple of gurus in the world of technical writing and speaking (Don Jones and Greg Shields) have decided to join forces under Concentrated Technology. And they are giving away an Amazon Kindle to those that respond to their blog. You can see that the first entry is a huge explanation on why the Kindle is such a great device (although it is quite expensive if you check it out on Amazon … so a free one would be nice).

They mention that “Technical books are a bit out of scope for the device; the heavy and detailed formatting of most IT books simply doesn’t translate well to the Kindle.” So, I did some research to see if any of my own books are Kindle-worthy. Apparently one is! My Tricks of the Vista Masters book is in Kindle format. Makes me want to get a Kindle and the book just to see how it comes out in mini-bubble format.

Perhaps I’ll try to win the Kindle myself. Unless one of my readers beats me to it.