Digital versions of cookbooks?

[sharonj]

Has anyone tried cookbooks in iBooks and Kindle in Android?

I have about a dozen cookbooks in my Kindle account and I usually view it in my Galaxy tablet, 7 inch, and the presentation leaves something to be desired sometimes.I'm debating whether to switch formats before my collection gets larger.

Thanks!

[rasputina]

I have about 70 digital cookbooks for the kindle app. I use them all the time. And yes you can make notes in the margin and highlight. Best part is you aren't stuck with tiny font or crappy contrast between the font and background like on some of cookbooks. Light green print on a beige background? Who was the moron that made that decision? And no you don't have to change the font size back to turn in the page in the kindle app for iPad. Navigation is simple, either use search, the table of contents or my favorite way is to highlight my favorite recipes and then just look at my notes and highlight list.

[donovt]

I'm with you. I have about ten of them and use them very often.

[Heidi cooks and bakes]

Making notes was one of the reasons that I hadn't considered electronic devices before. But now I see that you can make notes in Kindle and iPads. That just might be a game changer for me! But I do love browsing through the pages and photos, and contemplating what I might be making next.

[ttoommyy]

"But I do love browsing through the pages and photos, and contemplating what I might be making next."

Of course that can be done on an iPad as well, but for those of us of a certain age and older, leafing through the tactile pages of a book just is not the same experience with and iPad or Kindle, and that's what I think this issue really comes down to.

[Heidi cooks and bakes]

Yes, I think you hit it clearly. The tactile experience of flipping those pages back and forth. I do enjoy that.

[rasputina]

I'm thrilled to be able to read the darn cookbooks, having the ability to change the font size is a huge benefit for me. It's also nice that I can carry carry so many cookbooks around so lightly. Some of my hardcover cookbooks are unwieldy.

[ttoommyy]

@rasputina: this has nothing to do with the subject at hand or anything on CH at all for that matter, but is your screen name in reference to the band Rasputina?

[rasputina]

Yes, I'm a fan.

[ttoommyy]

Me too.

[mpjmph]

I haven't purchased any cookbooks for my nook tablet, but I do use it to view online recipes. My kitchen is small, but the dining area is just a few steps away. I keep recipes on the table, both paper and electronic forms. When using a recipe on my nook, I prop it up in a bag of flour, but would like a proper stand to hold it.

[MelMM]

I have over 1,000 cookbooks in print, and am really short on space for new ones. So I buy the iPad version when I can. I also have a Kindle, but have found the navigation too cumbersome, and do not use the few cookbooks I have in that format. I love the Kindle for reading novels, but not for cookbooks. As for the iPad, the books vary quite a bit in how well they are adapted. We are seeing more and more that are well adapted, but some are not. I expect lots of links, if there is a reference to a glossary entry, or a sub-recipe. I expect the index and table of contents to link to the recipes. This is a bare minimum. The better versions have embedded video, audio and/or slideshows, and alternative recipe formats to better fit the iPad. An example that comes to mind is the Charles Phan cookbook, Vietnamese Home Cooking. They really made the iPad version to take advantage of the features of the device. Having digital books, especially cookbooks, as a viable option is still quite new. I think we will great improvements in this area over the next year.

I love paging through a cookbook, flipping back and forth. And for the cookbooks that really prove worthy, I'll still buy a print version. But as space becomes more and more of an issue for me, I will buy every cookbook in an iPad version if I can, and they are getting better.

[sharonj]

I'm jealous. I got the Charles Phan book in the Kindle. I've been reading how well thought out the iPad cookbooks are so I guess I'll have my eye out for the next i Pad mini.

[sr44]

Some iPad cookbooks have built-in timers as well.

[angelsmom]

Have tried a few.....NEVER again.

[ttoommyy]

Not a fan of cookbooks on e-devices either. While I have never actually purchased an e-cookbook, I have looked at them on devices in B&N, etc. Not for me. I don't even like using my iPad for recipes found online; I always wind up printing them out. iPads, Kindles, etc., are just not kitchen/cooking friendly. At least that is my opinion. I will say I am a huge fan my Kindle for just regular type reading though. Absolutely love it.

[FrankJBN]

I don't currently use any sort of ebook reader, but since I have between 6-7 linear feet of cookbooks, it doesn't sound like a bad idea to me.

"I see all that gunk that build up on anything in there just with time" You don't have to leave it in the kitchen - especially considering that very likely an ebook reader wouldn't be used exclusively for cookbooks.

[Njchicaa]

I downloaded a preview of a cookbook onto my Kindle and hated it. I don't mind digital books for most things but I'm sticking with real cookbooks...ones I can make notes in and splash sauce on.

[Crockett67]

I wouldn't dream of bring a hand-held electronic device in my kitchen. Having worked in a lot of kitchens I see all that gunk that build up on anything in there just with time.

Besides nothing is like flipping through cookbooks and smiling at the memories behind the stains.

[ElsieB]

I bought Christina Tosi's Milk cookbook for my ipad. Hate it! do not like a cookbook on an electronic device, I want to flip pages back forth, make notes on margines and the typeface is very small (for me) and if you do enlarge the type, you have to un-enlarge it to turn the page. I think ebooks are fine for manual or novel but I will never buy a cookbook that way again.