Frustrustrated newbie: Making progess?

[DreamWeaver]

You could be on to something here, Elaine.  On that very top line, it says "My Kindle" at the very left, with a battery indicator and time at the very right.  Nothing about 3G.  What do I need to do?

Dave, I tried to help you in one of your other threads. Do you have the wifi-only Kindle Touch or the model with 3G? Since you do not have wifi at home, this is important to know so we can help you. Since it doesn't say "3G" on the very top line of your device, it sounds like you either did not have 3G turned on or you have the wifi-only Kindle.

Are you certain that your Kindle is registered? You said that your device says "My Kindle" at the top, and that is how an unregistered device (or one that has not connected wirelessly to Amazon) is labeled, so that's the first thing you need to verify.

Using a computer, go into "Your Account" from Amazon's main page, then click on "Manage Your Kindle" (across from Digital Content). Next, click on "Manage Your Device" and see if your Kindle is registered there. You can register the Kindle from that web page if you wish, or you can do it from the device if you have a wireless signal (see below). Once the online account information says that it is registered, then your Kindle needs to connect to Amazon via wifi (or 3G, if you have that model) so the device knows that. Once your Kindle is properly registered and the device connects to Amazon via wireless, you will see "My Kindle" (on the top line of the Kindle's home screen) change to whatever you named your device. At that point, you should have access to your archived books from the device.

If it is not registered and you wish to do that from the Kindle device, you will need to have a wifi or 3G signal. If you do not have the 3G model, then you can go to a free wireless hotspot and connect there to register. Or maybe you have a friend or relative with wireless access? To register your Kindle once you have wireless or 3G access, tap the Menu button from the Home screen, then tap Settings from the displayed menu. Tap Registration and select the appropriate option to begin the registration process.

I hope you're able to resolve the problem! I know it's been a struggle for you.

[edited]

[ElaineOK]

Report in, please, Dave.

Elaine
Norman, OK

[Betsy the Quilter]

Are you certain that your Kindle is registered? You said that your device says "My Kindle" at the top, and that is how an unregistered device (or one that has not connected wirelessly to Amazon) is labeled, so that's the first thing you need to verify.

DW,

this would explain why the book isn't showing up when he transferred it to his device...

Betsy

[DreamWeaver]

DW,

this would explain why the book isn't showing up when he transferred it to his device...

It's been a little difficult for me to piece things together since information has been spread out over at least three threads. At this point, I'm not sure if Dave has a wifi-only or 3G Kindle. He doesn't have wifi at home. I think this may be a situation where the Kindle is actually registered but the device has not "phoned home" to Amazon via wireless, so the device itself doesn't know that it's registered. Purchased books will not show up in Archived Items on the Kindle if the device hasn't connected wirelessly to Amazon (via wifi or 3G). And that would explain why the Kindle is still named "My Kindle."

Dave, if you have the 3G model, it would be a good idea to check the 3G coverage map to make sure you're in a good reception area. Kindle 3G may be provided by a different carrier than your cellphone, for example, so coverage may differ.

You should check your Amazon account using a computer, as I instructed above, to verify that the Kindle is registered. And since you do not have wifi at home, it's important to know whether your Kindle Touch is the wifi-only or 3G model.

You said that you have successfully downloaded one book to your Kindle. If that was an ebook from Amazon, then that means that the device is registered. I assume that that ebook was actually downloaded to your computer and then transferred to the Kindle via USB cable.

If you do have good 3G coverage where you are, a Kindle with 3G would be the easiest way of managing things. I use 3G on my Kindle and it works great. I usually purchase ebooks using my computer because I prefer browsing for books that way. At the time of ebook purchase, I request delivery to my Kindle. Then, I turn on 3G on the Kindle (on my Kindle Keyboard model that's done by pressing the "Menu" button and then selecting "Turn Wireless On"), and the ebook magically appears on the device within seconds. It couldn't be easier.

I have also transferred books from computer to Kindle via USB many times. If that's how you want to do it, it would help to know what type of computer you have (PC or Mac) and if it's a PC, which operating system (XP, Vista, Windows 7, etc.). We can give you step-by-step instructions for transferring books from computer to Kindle via USB cable that are computer-specific.

We can try to help you further if Amazon's customer service cannot straighten things out for you. I hope you'll let us know how things go for you.

[DaveA]

Do you have a Best Buy locally?  I've forgotten now where you live, but if you do, there should be someone there who can help you and see what it is that you are doing. 

Elaine
Norman, OK

I visited Best Buy today, and I think my problem is about to be solved.  It turns out that Kindle works on the ATT phone network, and our ATT signal here is very weak.  (My cell phone is through US Cellular, which has a very strong signal.)  So tomorrow afternoon, the Geek Squad is going to come out and set up a wireless router for me and make sure I understand everything I'm doing.  Thanks, Elaine, for your excellent advice!

[DaveA]

I visited Best Buy today, and I think my problem is about to be solved.  It turns out that Kindle works on the ATT phone network, and our ATT signal here is very weak.  (My cell phone is through US Cellular, which has a very strong signal.)  So tomorrow afternoon, the Geek Squad is going to come out and set up a wireless router for me and make sure I understand everything I'm doing.  Thanks, Elaine, for your excellent advice!

 

The Geek Squad showed up at the exact time they had scheduled and within fifteen minutes had set up my router and activated my Kindle!  I want to thank you all for all of your efforts in helping me solve the problem -- yours is a very friendly and helpful forum, and I will definitely keep you bookmarked.  For now, I'm off to explore my Kindle!  Many thanks again.

[Ann in Arlington]

Yay, Dave!  Glad to hear it. . . . .

[DreamWeaver]

Fantastic! I hope you thoroughly enjoy your Kindle, Dave!

[DaveA]

Fantastic! I hope you thoroughly enjoy your Kindle, Dave!

Thanks, Elaine and Dreamweaver.  I'm sure I'll be enjoying my Kindle for a long time to come.  It was such a weird situation -- I knew I had good 3G coverage, but didn't realize that it had to be with At&T, whose signal is weak to non-existent where I live.  I haven't explored this board fully enough to know -- do you post "stickies" about particular issues?  If so, it might be worth creating one for others who find themselves in my particular frustrating situation.  Having 3G isn't enough...it has to be the right kind of 3G.

[DreamWeaver]

Thanks, Elaine and Dreamweaver.  I'm sure I'll be enjoying my Kindle for a long time to come.  It was such a weird situation -- I knew I had good 3G coverage, but didn't realize that it had to be with At&T, whose signal is weak to non-existent where I live.  I haven't explored this board fully enough to know -- do you post "stickies" about particular issues?  If so, it might be worth creating one for others who find themselves in my particular frustrating situation.  Having 3G isn't enough...it has to be the right kind of 3G.

There are stickies in the individual forums here at Kindle Boards, but I'm not sure if that subject has been covered.

There is a 3G coverage map link posted on each 3G Kindle product page at Amazon. The map isn't 100 percent accurate, but it gives potential buyers a rough idea regarding 3G reception in their area. I suspect that most buyers don't check the 3G map before purchase. That's probably because (1) they don't read the entire product page (there's a lot to read!) and (2) like you, they assume that if they have 3G cellphone coverage that the Kindle 3G will work too.

I didn't have wifi at my house until a few months ago myself, so I know what that's like. Fortunately, I do have good AT&T 3G coverage, though, so the Kindle 3G works fine for me and I rarely connect via wifi on my Kindle. I don't travel much, but it's nice to know that 3G will likely be available if I'm away from home.

I'm just glad you were able to get things working!

[winwun]

I am pushing 80, a genuine geezer, and very illiterate when it comes to high-tech stuff, but what I do (It works for me), is take my Kindle to church, well, it is  my Bible, as the first thing I downloaded was the KJV of the Bible, and I find the lady who is our C & Y (children and youth) Director, and she usually has a gang of little guys, 6 to 16, hanging around her, and I put the problem to them, and whether it is Ipad, computer, laptop, Kindle, Ipod, or whatever, the little guys are more than willing to show me how to do it . . .

At best, it is difficult to explain something on the forum, but one-on-one works every time . . .

[Betsy the Quilter]

DaveA,

Glad you got it working!!!!

And winwun, great solution! 

Betsy