Mobipocket Reader 4.3
One does not have to look deeply into public newsgroups or forums to find Handheld
PC owners sharing their frustration over the lack of Microsoft porting the Microsoft
Reader to their devices. While it does not appear that Reader will be available
for HPCs soon (although petitions are being formed to send to Microsoft), there
are alternatives for owners who want to read e-books. One of the best is Mobipocket's
Reader.
The Mobipocket Reader, currently in version 4.3, allows user to not only read
e-books in a proprietary format but also allows news and up-to-date information
to be downloaded to your Handheld PC much like Avantgo (but with considerably
less of a selection).
The installation process of Mobipocket is simple and requires little intervention
by the user. During the install process, two new directories are created on
the Handheld PCs root directory named E-books and E-news. These default locations
for book and news storage can be modified to another location (such as a Compact
Flash card) using the configuration features of the reader once it is installed.
Additionally, Mobipocket adds a plug-in to Active Sync which allows for the
e-news or e-books to be synchronized with the HPC automatically.
With the application now installed, the user will see there is a desktop client
(named Mobipocket Web Companion) that auto-start when their Windows PC is booted,
as well as the HPC client/reader. The desktop client, who synchronizes with
the HPC client via Active Sync, allows the user to configure what news, if any,
is to be synchronized. To add or change the news that is downloaded, simply
add or remove the checkmarks in the listing within the Web Companion) Further,
with a valid Mobipocket account, users can search for e-books to download for
the reader.
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| The Web Companion for Windows makes getting the
latest news headlines easy |
The reader interface is cleanly laid out, making it simple to find the e-news
or e-book that is being sought. By default the reader will initially display
the library that the user has created. If e-news is needed, simply click on
the News link towards the top of the GUI and the reader will go to its current
news database. It is important to remember that the news will only be as current
as the last Active Sync. Therefore, if more up-to-date information is desired,
a manual synchronization with Active Sync will be necessary.
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| The Mobipocket Library lists all of the e-books
users have installed on their Handheld PC |
In the e-book library, there are two books included by default: the Mobipocket
Users Guide and a Sample Book. To open either one, or any other e-book, simply
tap the name of the book while in the library. The Users guide is where users
can find information and get questions answered about using the reader. I have
found that the User Guide is almost a must read for the Mobipocket Reader. It
explains the online purchasing process (detailed at the end of this review)
along with all of the shortcuts and modifications that can be made by the user
to make the reader more friendly for them. The Sample Book is a small book designed
to help the user learn to navigate through an e-book. Turning "pages"
in the e-book can be done either by tapping the left or right arrows in the
upper right-hand corner of the book page, by using the left and right arrow
keys on your HPCs keyboard or by tapping the HPCs screen (to go forward only).
These settings, along with the font size, font family and color can be changed
by accessing the Settings menu while in an e-book. Simply tap the books name
to open the menu to access the Settings menu. Once adjustments are made to make
the reader easier to view and use, click Apply and the settings will be saved.
If the text size is the only thing that needs to be adjusted, this can be done
by tapping the Font icon in the upper right-hand corner while viewing an e-book.
There are seven different font sizes that can be used to make reading easier.
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| Many visual settings can be adjusted in Mobipocket
Reader to customize it for individual needs |
While reading an e-book, several functions can be accessed using the icon bar
at the upper right-hand corner of the interface. Users can return to the library
to select another book, can go back to the beginning of the book or can adjust
the font size as mentioned above. Additionally, next to the page number is a
pull down menu which allows users to go back to the first page or any other
page in the book as well as creating a bookmark. The bookmark works remarkably
well and is easy to use. While there is a bookmark automatically created when
users leave a book, the ability to create other bookmarks is particularly handy
when doing research or text comparisons between e-books.
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| The in-book pull-down menu allows users to navigate
in an e-book as well as create bookmarks |
When using the e-news function of Mobipocket Reader, the functionality is similar
to that of the e-book reader of the application. The layout of the interface
is identical as well as the icon functionality of the menu bar.
Downloading e-books from Mobipocket requires that users register their personal
information as well as the PID of the reader installed on your HPC. This number
is unique to each user and allows Mobipocket to sell copyrighted materials that
cannot be used on any other reader other than yours. Additionally, e-books from
on a variety of topics and genre are available through Mobipocket with prices
ranging from $50 to free and new additions are added weekly.
While there are several readers out in the marketplace for HPCs, I have found
Mobipocket to provide the easiest to use as well as having the most content
and current releases available. I have noticed it is a bit slow with larger
books but overall performance is acceptable. The e-book sizes themselves are
comparable to the .LIT format of Microsoft Reader.
Additionally, the User Guide that is included with the reader download is an
excellent, well thought file that should be read by all users. In my now nearly
2 years of using Mobipocket Reader, I have always been able to find the answers
to my questions in the Users Guide. It is comprehensive yet easy to find answers.
The Mobipocket Reader is a free download from the Mobipocket website.
System Requirements:
Windows CE 2.0 and above
SH3, SH4, StrongARM, MIPS, XScale
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Mobipocket Reader can be found at the following URL.
http://www.mobipocket.com/
Clinton Fitch
Chief Reviews Editor
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