A year later, Amazon's Kindle finds a niche

(CNN) -- It has the curves of a Lamborghini, looks like something an astronaut might take into space and weighs only 10.3 ounces.

Amazon's Kindle e-reader is wireless and can hold about 200 books, plus newspapers and magazines.

Amazon.com's electronic Kindle reader -- a device meant to remove the paper from the page and make reading both more convenient and eco-friendly -- is celebrating its first birthday.
Released in November 2007, the Kindle has sold more than a quarter million units. Its texts account for 10 percent of Amazon's book sales despite the fact that 200,000 titles -- a tiny fraction of the books offered on the site -- are available in digital form.

While exact sales figures are hard to come by, recent estimates have put the Kindle's sales on par with other high-profile mobile devices in their first year. Amazon.com says that the Kindle is currently sold out due to heavy demand.

So what has spurred its success? After all, electronic books have been around, in small numbers, for about a decade. Even Jeff Bezos, Amazon's founder and CEO, has admitted that the book is "elegantly suited to its purpose. It's hard to improve on."

One clutter-killing Kindle can hold about 200 books. And while other e-readers such as Sony's Reader must connect through a USB port to upload content, the Kindle is a wireless device, thanks to Whispernet, which is powered by Sprint's high-speed data network.

"I think the Whispernet is what sets the Kindle apart from all the other e-readers on the market," says Leslie Nicoll of Portland, Maine, who co-authored "The Amazon Kindle F.A.Q." book after her tech-loving teenage daughter urged her to get a Kindle.

Like Branch, Nicoll says she likes the Kindle's low-impact effect on her bookshelves. "I don't have to worry about giving it to someone else, reselling it on Amazon or finding a place to store it in my house," she says. "For the enjoyment and convenience, it has given me in the past seven months, I consider that it has paid for itself already."

Readers can visit Amazon's online store and upload a new book right to their Kindle. Subscribers also can have electronic versions of The New York Times and other newspapers and magazines delivered automatically to their Kindles in time for reading with their morning cup of coffee.
"The large and tightly interacting collection of Kindle features, that go far beyond those of any other previous e-Book attempt, will cause the Kindle to be the first e-Book to succeed," wrote one reviewer on an Amazon discussion board.

Blockbuster writers such as J.K. Rowling, author of the "Harry Potter" series, have said they'll never allow their books to appear on the market in electronic form. Yet future, better versions of e-readers may seduce younger consumers who grew up on PSPs and iPhones.

A next-generation model of the Kindle is due in 2009. Early reports indicate the new device will be thinner and will have fixed some current design bugs, such as poorly placed buttons that cause readers to turn pages accidentally.

"I think it's certainly a ways away from hitting the mainstream ... because of the price and the experience a reader gets from long-form reading," says Reynolds of Consumer Reports. "Whether these ... are successful, stand-alone devices remains to be seen. From what I've seen and heard, I think the technology is here to stay."

What a Difference a Year Makes!

Devin Setoguchi only played in 44 out of the 82 games during the 2007-08 season and scored 17 points (11 goals and 6 assists) during his limited time in the NHL. Ron Wilson sent Devin down to the minor league affiliate a couple of times during his rookie year. This year (his sophmore year) he secured a full-time roster spot with the San Jose Sharks and currently has 29 points (13 goals and 16 assists) in only 25 games! This would lead to a projected total for the 2008-09 season of 95 points (43 goals and 52 assists).

He's currently leading the team in goals scored and is second only to Jumbo Joe in points. He's tied with Patrick Marleau for the highest +/- rating on the team at +14. He's second on the team with 93 shots on goal (Patrick Marleau has 94). He's only taken 2 minutes in penalties and is doing all of this with only 16:06 in average ice time!

San Jose Sharks Beat Toronto Maples Leafs 5-2

Landed three tickets to the game against the Maple Leafs and went with a couple of friends from work. I still can't believe the Sharks scored 4 goals in the first period (earning us free Round Table pizza before the first intermission). The team stopped skating in the second period and then stepped it back up in the third. McLellan still has some work to do to get his team playing a consistent level of hockey for sixty minutes. The game was also historic since we tied the NHL record for most points in the first 25 games of a season with 43 points. The last team to do this was the Montreal Canadiens in 1943-44! GO SHARKS!!

Ron Wilson not sentimental about return to San Jose with Maple Leafs

This will not, Ron Wilson insisted again and again, be a sentimental journey. Yes, tonight's game against the Sharks might be a homecoming of sorts as he returns to HP Pavilion for the first time since being fired as San Jose's coach in May.

But don't expect him to get all misty-eyed. Here's something else Wilson, now the Toronto Maple Leafs' coach, won't be feeling — a grudge.

As Wilson stood outside the visitors' locker room at Staples Center, where the Maple Leafs were preparing to take on the Los Angeles Kings on Monday night, he said getting fired is just part of the coaching business and you can't take it personally.

"I've been through it before with Anaheim and Washington," Wilson said. "When San Jose fired me, I was on a red-eye flight and on the golf course the next morning. And I was on my boat that evening. I moved on. It's as simple as that."

Roller Hockey Tournament in Davis, California

My nephew Ryan had his first hockey tournament outside his home rink in San Jose, California. I was invited to go with his family on a road trip to Davis, California where he played in four games in order to win the championship 4-2. Ryan's team was sporting their new jerseys for the Silicon Valley Quakes. His sister and friend were both wearing their brothers' extra jerseys during their games to help cheer on their team.