Is there an extension/app that will allow me to read .mobi format books on my Chromebook?
thanks,
John
Not that I know of. But you can easily read .Mobi books almost anywhere by downloading one of the free Kindle apps from Amazon. They have readers for Windows, Mac, Android, iPad, Blackberries, and almost any other platform you can think of. These apps all support Mobi books.
Check the Kindle section of the Amazon store for your country (if any), or on Amazon.com. Or try this link:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=kcr_freeapps_about?docId=1000493771
One caveat: If you plan to use the app for books purchased from Amazon, be sure to download it from the same Amazon store as the one from which you will be buying the books, as you will have to register it to the same account. This isn’t an issue if you get your books from another source.
Mike
The problem is I can’t get the books “delivered” from my library to Kindle Cloud Reader or Kindle for PC, since I didn’t buy them from Amazon. This leads me to believe that I have to put the files on google drive and open on Chromebook.
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No, that’s not the case.
For example, if you have the Kindle for PC program installed, all you have to do is to place the Mobi file in your “My Kindle Content” folder, which, by default, is in My Documents. The book will then show up in Kindle for PC. Alternatively, right-click on the file in Windows Explorer, and choose Open With, then navigate to Kindle for PC.
I have dozens of Mobi books on my PC, and I can read them all happily in the Kindle app without any help from Google.
NOTE ADDED LATER: I assume your Chomebook can run Windows software. Is that the case?
Mike[/FONT]
I assume your Chomebook can run Windows software. Is that the case?
No, Chrome OS (a glorified browser), I agree with everything you just wrote about Kindle for PC. While I can open the docs on my PC I can’t share across devices (which I can live with). But getting back to Chromebook I can’t install Kindle for PC and I can’t opens .mobi’s with Cloud Reader. Thanks Mike for your interest in my problem.
John
[FONT=verdana]My apologies, John. I read your initial post too quickly, and got the impression you were talking about the Chrome browser. Now I realise it’s the Chomebook. I’ve just done a bit of searching, and can see the this device runs the Chrome operating system, which, as you pointed out, doesn’t run Windows software. I’ve also double-checked the Kindle and Mobipocket sites, and can see no mention of them supporting Chrome (but there is support for Android).
You might try posting your question in the Mobile Read forum, which is the best source of information I know about ebooks and related software.
I must say that it seems strange that Google should be promoting a desktop operating system that cannot run common application software. But what do I know?
Mike
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Mike,
Thanks for the link, I’ll follow that. Regarding Chromebook, the focus is light-weight and inexpensive. Ten second start-up, 2.5 pounds, $250, 6.5hrs battery life. It certainly has its limitations, but I’m trying to find a what I can (apps) to improve my experience. Thanks again for your interest.
John
[FONT=verdana]John,
I don’t know if you’ve found a solution yet, but a possibility occurred to me.
If you haven’t already done so, download and install the free Calibre program (you must install it on a Windows computer). Then import your Mobi books into it. There is an option in Calibre to convert the books to a format called HTMLX. Open the HTMLX file in your browser. It will prompt you save the file. Once you’ve done that, you will have a compressed directory containing an HTML file, plus further files for the cover image, metadata, and any images within the book.
Copy all those files to your chromebook, and open the HTML file in the usual way. You should now be able to read the book in your browser.
I just did some quick experiments, and it seems to work. I can see the entire content, as well as the formatting - at least, that was the case with one fairly simple book I tried.
I know it’s a bit long-winded, but it’s at least something to consider.
Mike
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By “Import Books” I assume you mean with the “add books” button. I did that then tried to convert with the “convert books” button, but the only choice close was HTMLZ. Used that, but I can’t open an htmlz file. Not sure where i am going wrong.
[FONT=verdana]Yes, I did mean “add books”. I usually do that by dragging from the folder into Calibre.
Also, I did mean HTMLZ, not HTMLX. That was just a typing error on my part.
Re opening the HTMLZ, I did this by dragging it into Internet Explorer. I got a prompt to save the file, which I accepted. After that, a new folder appeared in My Documents, which had the same name as the HTMLZ file, but with an additional .ZIP as the extension. When I double-clicked on that, it opened a window showing the separate files. These included one named Index.HTML. I dragged all the files out of that window and placed them in a new folder. Double-clicking on Index.HTML then opened the original e-boook in my default browser.
I did all this more or less by guesswork. There might be a more convenient way of doing it, so you might need to experiment (assuming it’s worth the effort).
Mike
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Yeah, this isn’t going very smoothly for me. I found an app called eReader which does a reasonable job. Like alot of these apps/site/programs its kind of designed for novels, so navigating around a reference/instructional book is a problem, but…
[FONT=verdana]Pity it’s proving so difficult. It shouldn’t be. After all, reading ebooks must be a common reason that people buy these lightweight devices.
I take your point about reference and instructional books, but these are a problem with all e-reading methods. I’ve got some Javascript and CSS references on my Kindle, but it’s a pain to navigate them, especially when you need to flip back a few pages to check some earlier information. Reading novels is much more pleasant.
Mike[/FONT]