"I Don't Have a Kindle"

It still surprises me that many people think they need to own a Kindle to read books published on the Amazon Kindle store.

That is simply not so!

For one thing, many books on the Kindle store have paperback versions, and both the Amazon web site and the Amazon shopping app provide links to alternative versions (including audiobooks) wherever they apply on book product pages.

But perhaps more importantly, Amazon also provides a free cross-platform Kindle app which can be downloaded by a range of supported devices.

The app is supported on the following platforms:

• iOS for iPhone and iPad,
• Mac OS for Mac, Mac Mini, and all varieties of MacBook,
• PCs and laptops,
• Android for phones, tablets, and other mobile devices,
• Blackberry mobile devices.

It's true that you won't be able to purchase or borrow a Kindle title unless you have at least one "device" registered to your Amazon account. But Amazon doesn't care if that's a real Kindle, or a linked device running the Kindle app.

When you first download the app, simply link it to your Amazon account. You can then buy, borrow, and read Kindle titles, subscribe to newspapers and other publications, and make your own custom collections, all within the app.

The app is handy even if you own a Kindle, because the pages you have read to on every book you have going, and your notes and bookmarks, are all shared between Kindle devices and any devices running the app. So if you find yourself with time to kill, and you left your Kindle at home, you can still enjoy a read right from where you left off last time.

Go Kindle!