If you’re anything like me, you made a New Years Resolution to try to read a book a week. While it may not always happen, having an eBook makes this a lot easier. You can buy and rent books with just the touch of a button, and it’s much lighter than lugging around a book in your purse all the time. Not only that, no one has to know that you’re reading Harry Potter again for the tenth time. But how to turn your drab e-reader into something fabulous? Here are a few accessories to spice up your Kindle, iPad or Nook.

Add some color

Give your Kindle or Nook some personality by adding a splash of color to its case. Decal Girl Skins for the Kindle run you about $19.99, where GelaSkins for a Nook will cost about $19.95. Have an iPad? Check out Society 6 to add some original artwork to your iPad.

Make it waterproof

One of the classic times an e-reader comes in handy is when you’re vacationing on the beach. While you won’t have to worry about the pages getting caught in the wind, you will need to make sure it stays dry. Be sure to pick up a waterproof case so you can truly bring your eBook anywhere.

Stand up

Sometimes, you want to sit at your desk with your Kindle or iPad but if you’re going to be reading for a while, your hands will get tired from holding it. For between $10-$20, you can snag yourself a stand to prop up your e-reader. This is perfect if you’ll be getting the digital versions of your textbooks for those late nights spent studying.

Let there be light

If you have an older model of the Kindle or iPad, you probably don’t have a backlight on your reader. Or, if you’re trying to read in bed and don’t want to disturb your partner, it’s handy to have a light that clips on to your device to read when you want to. Belkin has a great, inexpensive light for $24.88.

Charge it up

Read so much while traveling that your device ran out of power? Go green and get a Solio charger that will charge your e-reader in the sunlight. And bonus: It features a full-sized USB port that you can plug in other devices as well.

About the Author

Erin Leigh is a freelance writer for Whitman Publishing, a leader in publisher in coin collecting books and supplies. They also publish Vault Books of sports teams and historical events.

Have you ever read an eBook before? Ebooks are short for electronic books which are full-length literary publications that are in digital form which can be read in computers and other compatible reading devices. Lots of traditional books are now translated into eBooks so as to cater to highly modern and technological readers. Aside from digitalized or electronically translated traditional books, you can also find books that are originally published and distributed in online or eBook means. This strategy gives authors the opportunity to try self-publishing.

If you’re asked to choose one type only, would you go for the traditional or electronic ones? This question would be better answered if you consider its ups and downs or plusses and minuses first. Here are some points which you might want to acknowledge:

eBook Plusses

1. They provide for effectively mobile reading opportunities.
With eBooks, all you need is your portable reading device and the eBook files that you need to use. You don’t need to lug lots of heavy and thick books around anymore. This means you’ll have an easier time carrying all your stuff around like office or school supplies and other personal belongings.

2. They are more “readable-friendly” to users.
Ebooks give you the chance to adjust the settings of the gadget to your reading pleasure. You can adjust the font size, type and even the background of your gadget as you please. You can use electronic bookmarks to help you track your reading progress. You can even add some music to accompany you on your reading time if you prefer.

3. They can be more economical than traditional books.
Lots of eBook versions are cheaper than their printed counterparts. Thus, you would do well to buy this version. Another thing to consider is that a lot of books or literary writings are available in digital copy only, so you really have to get it through that means.

eBook Minuses

1. They can be a cause of potential eye-sore.
Not all people are used to reading from a screen so this method may prove to be stressful to them. In addition to that, reading from a computer or gadget screen may cause eventual eye defects, so you might want to be aware about that.

2. They can be source of hassle in accessibility.
You have things like computer and gadget viruses to worry about when downloading, playing, or accessing these eBooks. These can cause potential hassle to the readers.

3. They can make you spend even more than you bargained for.
The use of eBooks is good for people who have laptops, tablets, and other electronic reading gadgets. What about for those people who have no means to buy or get these devices? How can they access references or reading materials that are available in electronic means only?

So before you claim that eBooks are the best things that ever happened to the print or publishing industry, consider these plusses and minuses first. Do you think eBooks are the ones for you or not? It is up to you to decide.

Niña Angeli Pilapil is expert in cheap promotional items and a writer who loves reading books and novels. She works for Promopeddler, a promotional products company. Visit her Twitter page at http://twitter.com/ninsbonita.

If there is a sub-field of electronics which is never boring or totally foreign to the man in the street, it is radio. Radio will continue to be important because it is inevitably tied up with the basic human need to communicate. Radio amateurs, for instance, communicated by satellite long before you could even watch satellite TV programmes. Similarly, their packet radio networks were in existence ten years before the breakthrough of Internet, and they pioneered microwave communication decades before you could walk in the street talking into your mobile phone.

The great thing about being a licenced radio amateur (of any class) is that you are never stuck for ideas, helpful suggestions or even components when it comes to solving a problem related to electronics or microcontroller project construction. The radio amateur is never a lone battler because he can reach his allies via a variety of media, including telephony, television or even computer mail by air (free of charge, as opposed to any link by telephone). So, if you have ever had the desultory feeling of being the only electronics enthusiast for miles around, and have no one to assist you, consider seriously becoming a radio amateur. The hobby will put you in touch with hundreds of electronics enthusiasts of a wide diversity of educational levels. Many radio amateurs are friends for life although they live thousands of miles apart, and have never actually met each other in person. In the UK, the Radio Communications Agency (RCA) and the Radio Society of Great Britain (RSGB) will be pleased to show you the ropes to this highly interesting and educational pastime.

After a decline during the past five years or so, the number of licenced radio amateurs is on the rise again, witness the latest reports of the IARU (International Amateur Radio Union). The temporary drop in active amateurs is probably owing to the growing popularity, at the same time, of the personal computer. Now, the two hobbies are linked by the tremendous interest in packet radio, and even those who once gave up the tuning dial for the PC keyboard are now back on the air again as enthusiastic packeteers. Also, home construction is back on the rise again, with many amateurs becoming aware of the educational value of building a project, as compared to buying off the shelf and never knowing how it actually works. This goes for simple projects, like power supplies, to more complex stuff like a DTMF-over-air controlled digital heart for the local repeater station.

he alkaline-manganese battery is an example of the type of battery that until some years ago was available only in non-rechargeable (primary) form, but has since become available in rechargeable (secondary) form. It must be said, however, that this is primarily so in the USA and Canada; in Europe they are still very scarce, but demand (and supply) is growing. Manufacturers that supply rechargeable alkaline manganese cells and batteries include Union Carbide (Eveready), Ray-O-Vac (both USA) and Pure Energy Corporation (Canada). Today alkaline-manganese batteries are available also in many online stores.

These batteries use a unique electrochemical system, are maintenance free, hermetically sealed, and will operate in any position. Their discharge characteristics (voltage decrease, internal resistance and self-discharge) are very similar to those of a primary alkaline-manganese battery. Their capacity is comparable to that of a nickel- metal-hydride (NiMH) battery, that is, somewhat higher than that of a NiCd battery, but rather lower than that of a primary alkaline-manganese battery. Like NiMH batteries (but in contrast to NiCd batteries), rechargeable alkaline-manganese batteries do not contain heavy metals. They are somewhat dearer than NiCd batteries, but cheaper than NiMH batteries.

Charging (pulsed charging at a constant voltage of 1.8 V) is rather different from that of nickel-based batteries. The charging time for AA/R6/HP7 size batteries is 16 – 18 hours: fast charging is not (yet) possible. On the other hand, the battery can be charged at any time, irrespective of the state of residual charge: discharging it beforehand is not necessary.

The charge retention properties of secondary alkaline manganese batteries are as good as those of primary batteries.

The cell uses electrodes of powdered zinc and manganese dioxide with an electrolyte of potassium hydroxide. These are put together as shown and the cell is then hermetically sealed. The voltage per cell is 1.5 V. Batteries of higher voltage are made by connecting the requisite number of (similar) cells in series and sealing them in a metal case.

When the cell is being discharged, the manganese dioxide gives off hydrogen, which reduces its mass, while the zinc reacts with the hydrogen to form zinc oxide. When the cell is being charged, the zinc oxide is reduced to zinc again which is made possible, among others, by the separators (made of non-woven fabric) that are much stronger than those in a primary cell.

When energy is withdrawn from the cell, the terminal voltage drops slowly. The total voltage drop for a given energy withdrawal increases as the number of discharge/charge cycles rises. Furthermore, the available energy per cell diminishes with each discharge/charge cycle although the e.m.f. remains constant. If the power demands exceed the rated battery capacity, the cells cycle life will decrease more quickly. Nevertheless, when the cell is discharged at the maximum rate for a period of time and then recharged as recommended by the manufacturers, the discharge/charge cycle can be repeated many times before the cell e.m.f. will drop below 0.9 V.