The Digital Reader

It’s been a fun year here at The Digital Reader, and as I look back at the most-read posts it is interesting to see what people choose to read. Some were popular for obvious reasons; others surprised me.

The most popular posts, according to Google Analytics, include a couple reviews and a couple bits of news, but mostly how-to posts. That fits with what I have seen in the weekly tracking posts I used to do.

I could in fact stop writing news posts and I wouldn’t see much of a drop in traffic. But then I don’t know what I would do with my time.

1. How to Add a Kindle DRM-Removal Plugin to calibre (15 June 2012)

• This was the single most popular post on the blog with nearly as many page views as the next 3 posts. Curiously enough the similar post on removing Nook DRM has gotten hardly any attention.

2. How to Add Android Market to Polaroid PMID702C (6 June 2012)

• This comes as no surprise; my biggest concern for cheap Android tablets is access to Android Market and clearly other owners agree with me. The review for this tablet also makes this list at no. 6.

3. How to Install Android Market on Polaroid PMID701 (7 April 2012)

• Like the PMID702C, the review for this tablet almost made this list.

4. 5 Free Apps You Should Install on Your New Kindle Fire HD (16 September 2012)

• While at first glance this might look like the usual linkbait, the apps in question are the ones I needed the most.  What really surprised me was that the related post on installing Google apps on the Kindle Fire HD has gotten hardly any attention. I’d have thought that was the more useful set of instructions.

5. How to Read a PDF on Android (19 December 2010)

• My goodness this post is old. I originally wrote it because I was frustrated in trying to find a PDF app for Android. Clearly that problem hasn’t gone away, which says a lot about Android.

6. Nook Tablet Now Runs Kindle, Aldiko, & More – No Hack Required (16 November 2011)

• Even though this post stopped being useful about a month after I wrote it, Nook Tablet owners were still interested in it. That shows that there’s a solid interest in a more open Nook hardware.

7. New Update for Pandigital Novel (Black 7″) Adds Android Market (30 December 2011)

• Would you believe this tablet came out in 2010, and the post about hacking it still managed to make the top 10 list for 2012?

8. iBooks: how to add books without connecting to iTunes (28 July 2010)

• I didn’t know iBooks would be this popular.

9. Kindle Touch Gets World’s Simplest JailBreak  (10 December 2011)

10. I’m Returning my Nook Tablet – Here’s Why (23 November 2011)

• This was a contentious post at the time. But it sparked an interesting debate, and I still feel that my arguments are valid and true.