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I want to create an ebook in *.mobi format (for now assume that's a solved problem) and view it on a regular 6-inch e-ink Kindle (not Kindle Fire). Is it possible to do this without going through uploading it to the Amazon store or other Amazon services? I don't own a Kindle yet, thus the question.

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Even though it's no problem to copy it to your Kindle with a USB cable, consider emailing the book to your Kindle email address if it is not too big. This method has the advantage of an automatic backup in case your ebook gets lost and you cannot accidentally delete it (just send it to your Amazon archive from where you can restore it). – Suzana_K Mar 6 at 23:14

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Yes.

Connect the Kindle to your PC with a USB cable, so that it enters mass storage mode. You'll see a new drive letter assigned for the Kindle. Open that drive, and copy your e-book to the documents folder on the Kindle.

Remember to Safely Remove Hardware and wait for the message that it's safe to remove the device before you unplug the USB cable.

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Thanks for instructions; can't verify that it works without a Kindle, but sounds like it is pretty straightforward :) – Joe Nov 3 '12 at 3:16
It works with my Kindle. :) – Michael Hampton Nov 3 '12 at 3:18
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YMMV depending on the distribution, but I've had success connecting to an Ubuntu Linux 11.04 - 12.04 Desktop. Ubuntu recognizes it as a USB storage device and allows me to drag/drop Mobi files. There is also some excellent software called Calibre (http://calibre-ebook.com/) which can be used to sync e-books between your hard drive and several e-readers. It also has categorization and allows converting between several different formats.

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