How do you decide when you don't absolutely love or hate the sample??

[Hannah]

I've read a TON of samples...it's one of my favorite things about owning a Kindle. Some of them I love and immediately buy, some I never finish and others are just sort of ok and I'm basically indifferent when I finish them. In this case, I usually keep the sample in case I want to circle back to it later. How do you decide whether or not to buy them when the sample is just ok? Price, ratings, recommendations??? Just looking for some insight!

[[deleted user]]

I don't read samples of books. I read the description and some reviews then decide if I want to buy the book or not. For some reason, I've just never used the Sample feature.

[Cindy]

If it's just okay, I check out the reviews here on GR, with greatest weight given to my friends. For me, it takes a lot to bump a just okay sample to buy mode - so many great books, so little time. And I spend a lot of time with the free out of copyright works.

[Betsy]

If the sample is just okay, I try to make myself wait a day or so before I decide. When the sample ends, it's usually in the middle of something and it's too easy to buy the book just to find out what happens next. So I try to make myself wait. After a little while, if I'm still anxious to find out what comes next, then I buy it.

[Ann]

I can usually tell if the style of writing is pleasing (phrases, descriptions, grammar, etc.) and if the story grabs me or feels intriguing enough to consider reading further from a sample, so I do sample books freely. I rarely click through to buy from my Kindle, preferring to visit Amazon, my library site and audible.com first to consider my format options if the sample is of interest.

[[deleted user]]

Hannah wrote: "I've read a TON of samples...it's one of my favorite things about owning a Kindle. Some of them I love and immediately buy, some I never finish and others are just sort of ok and I'm basically ind..."

If the sample doesn't grab me, I don't buy it. Just okay is not good enough.

[sonya]

i try a sample and if I don't like it, I never buy it again. if a book grabs my attention from what it says in the description, I'll give it a shot. other than grabbing my attention, if it is full of mistakes, like the author is filling it with grammar or spelling mistakes.....ugh.

[Patricia]

I agree with Eveyln, if the sample doesn't grab me, I don't buy it.

[stormhawk]

I have dozens upon dozens of samples on my Kindle, but I use them more as a roving TBR list. I rarely actually read them, and end up deleting more than I read because I've just gone ahead and gotten the book and don't need the samples any more.

I did read the samples of a couple of Haruki Murakami's books, wasn't impressed and haven't gone any further.

I did read the sample of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and if I'd relied on my opinion of the sample, I wouldn't have gone past it. I read the whole book and loved it, but the sample started extremely slowly.

[Ann]

Interesting point, stormhawk - does a sample have to be the first chapter? if the beginning of the book will not be a good representation, I think it should not be employed as the sample. A few samples have been a prologue, I imagine not all are the first few pages.

[Marcus]

Ann wrote: "Interesting point, stormhawk - does a sample have to be the first chapter? if the beginning of the book will not be a good representation, I think it should not be employed as the sample. A few sam..."

On Amazon the sample is the first 5% (approximate) of the book not counting the front matter. The author/publisher does not have the ability to select what goes in the sample.

While it might be nice to skip the prolog, I think reading a sample that appears later in the book would be a bit discontinuous. Kind of like those time when you catch the ending of a move, then days later watch the whole thing. It works, but it doesn’t have the same effect as watching it from the beginning the first time through.

Sometimes you can find samples on an authors website. Just goggle the author and see if there are other samples available.

[Stephen]

I can tell if I'm going to like a book by the sample; the author's style, grammar, how they use dialogue, syntax etc. make or break the purchase for me. I definitely DO NOT rely on user reviews any longer - some "five star" books have turned out to be appallingly bad and, my own fault, I took it on faith that the reviews would reflect the quality and ended up buying before trying. Grab me in the first chapter!

[Helen]

I meant to use samples before buying as I thought it was a really good, money-saving idea. HOwever, not long after buying my kindle (Feb) AMazon had a massive sale with books at about £1, since then I have forgotton all about samples.

[Hannah]

stormhawk - you nailed it! I read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo sample twice... not sure how I felt, but I went ahead and bought it the 2nd time and I loved the entire series. Same with The Hunger Games. I love all the input! Sounds like I'm not alone in this one. My sample books are kind of a hybrid list of to try and for sure TBR so that I don't forget about them. I have a few samples right now that I've read, but I'm just not sure if I want to commit and purchase.

[Clare K. R.]

If a sample doesn't grab me, I delete and don't look back, except in two cases: if some aspect of the book (from descriptions I've previously read) really, really intrigues me, or if it's a group read for one of my groups here on Goodreads. In those cases, I get the book from the library. I do prefer reading on my Kindle as it's more comfortable, but you can't beat free! Can't wait for Kindle library lending!

[Karen B.]

I look at the price, the reviews, the price, try to remember why I downloaded the sample, look at the price again. Sometimes if I am still ambivalent I add it to my wish list.

[Anthony]

I think the sample tells you more than the Amazon reviews. The sample is what it is; the reviewers can be a posse of friends and family.

[[deleted user]]

Anthony wrote: "I think the sample tells you more than the Amazon reviews. The sample is what it is; the reviewers can be a posse of friends and family."

Yes, although the reviews are helpful, there is nothing like a good sample. Everyone has different opinions. What I love someone else might hate. I always read the samples before buying.

[Karen B.]

I agree about samples. And the nice thing is you can take your time, mull it over and decide if you want to buy it or not. In the meantime the price might come down.

[Katrina]

When I download a sample and than read it I than put it into two different folders...I have one that says Samples to Buy (for ones I know I will buy next time I get on my computer), Samples for possible future reading (for ones that intrigued me but not what I am looking for at that moment, but might in the future when I am really wanting a book)...and if it doesn't fit in either, I delete it and forget about it...Once I have purchased it or after I do some cleaning...the type of book you want changes with the season, weather etc..the sample gets deleted.

[Angela]

Samples are my Kindle version of browsing the bookstore. I used to spend a couple hours in the bookstores reading the first few pages of several books deciding what to buy. Now I do it in bed or on the couch etc. If I want to know more after the sample, I buy the book. If I am not excited to read on then I haven't spent any money. I usually have 15- 20 different samples on my K3 at any given time.

[Betsy]

I just upgraded from a Kindle1 to a Kindle3. Today I started working on transferring books to the new system (can't believe I have to do it one at a time!), and it looks like I can't transfer all the samples I have. So I guess I have to read them really quick or go ahead and buy them or forget them. I suppose I could download new samples for the new Kindle. Fortunately there aren't too many (maybe 8), but it seems strange to me. Most of Amazon's procedures are pretty easy.

[Gail]

I love reading samples, too. I would never buy a book if the sample is "just" ok. But several factors help me decide if a book is more than "just" ok.

I take into consideration spelling and grammar, book layout, writing style, pace (did ANYthing happen in the first three chapters?)and character development.

Price isn't a factor for me. If I don't like a book, I won't buy it just because it sells for 99 cents. And, as a rule, I do not purchase books based on reviews.

[Heather]

Betsy wrote: "I just upgraded from a Kindle1 to a Kindle3. Today I started working on transferring books to the new system (can't believe I have to do it one at a time!), and it looks like I can't transfer all ..."

Betsy, have you tried doing it by connecting your kindle to your computer? I'm not sure if it would work. But it seems like you should be able to drop and drag your files to the new kindle. Just a thought...Good luck:)

[Betsy]

Heather wrote: "...have you tried doing it by connecting your kindle to your computer?"

No. I'm pretty sure it would work, but I think connecting to my computer is a hassle. Besides, I'm holding off transferring everything. I'm not absolutely sure I'm going to keep the K3. I don't like the reading screen as well as the K1.

[stormhawk]

Not sure how you can get the samples isolated and over easily, but if you do know the names of your purchased titles you could do this ...

1. copy files from K1 to PC

2. open folder on PC, then hand select titles that you know are samples

3. drag those files to K3.

That's as straightforward as I can envision it.

For your purchased Kindle content, your easiest option is probably to go to your amazon account, head off to manage my Kindle, and select the "send to" on each of your files.

Then just wait until they download via 3G or Wifi (I'd suggest wifi, it tends to be faster).

********

I am also a K1 to K3 user. I love the battery life on the K3 and think the display is a lot crisper and has better contrast. give it a couple of days.

AND I love how small and light the K3 is, even if I do have a REAL fondness for the "squashed oragami" shape of the K1.

[Betsy]

Thanks, Stormhawk. I'm reading as much as I can right now on my K3; hopefully, I'll get used to the display. I just don't like that really high contrast; I think it's hard on the eyes.