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Reading eTexts |
Introduction Viewing eTexts, whether they be business documents, training materials, or even novels, is another powerful application that business users can enjoy with a color Palm-size PC. In fact, you could almost say that color Palm-size PCs have been expressly designed for this purpose. Black text stands out on the paper-white background of a color Palm-size PC's high-resolution screen, making it easy to read and navigate through, as shown in the screenshot below.  With their small, compact designs, color Palm-size PCs can be held in one hand when reading documents, and rocker switches or jog wheels that are integrated on the device make it easy to scroll up and down text rather than having to constantly mess around with a stylus. Just as important, a growing number of electronic text viewing and publishing applications for Windows CE devices are now available, and thousands of books and documents, including novels and reference works on an almost bewildering variety of subjects, can be downloaded for free from sites like MemoWare on the Internet. So while no single standard document publishing and viewing application like Adobe Acrobat has been set yet for Windows CE devices, we are already beginning to the see the enormous potential for viewing eTexts on a color Palm-size PC in the future. Available Applications There is already a choice of both freeware and commercial document viewing and publishing software applications available for Windows CE devices like color Palm-size PCs. These range from so-called Doc Readers that let you view electronic text files and books originally created for viewing on PalmPilots to bREADY, a commercial application from bSQUARE that allows you to create and read electronic documents in the company's own .brd file format. Doc Readers DocView and BookViewer are the two most popular Doc Reader applications that can be installed on a Color Palm-size PC. They allow you to view thousands of Doc format .prc and .pdb files that were originally created for the PalmPilot and can be downloaded from websites such as MemoWare. Both these applications are free and come with support for such features as bookmarks, text searching, and large font sizes. However, they do lack some of the polish you would expect from commercially produced applications, particularly in terms of installation. DocView was written by the Unsupported Software Co. and can be downloaded from Mike's Palm-sized PC site. The program lets you read PalmPilot books and documents in Doc .prc & .pdb formats. The latest update supports a larger font size and has a smaller memory footprint, and also contains a very useful ReadMe file that shows you how to install and use the application. The latest version of BookViewer by Don Waldo can be downloaded for free from the PDADash website. It allows you to display .prc, .pdb, and .txt files on a color Palm-size PC and supports bookmarks, text searching, and keeps track of your current position in each document you open. It also supports a facility for managing a document library on your color Palm-size PC. BSQUARE's bREADY In contrast to DocView and BookViewer, bREADY is a commercially produced document viewing and publishing application from BSQUARE. bREADY is comprised of two components: bREADY Publisher, which allows users to organize HTML documents or imported Internet/ Intranet materials and text into electronic books and publish them to a Windows CE device; and bREADY Viewer, a free program which enables you to view the information on your device and annotate it. While bREADY Viewer is certainly a more polished application than the Doc Reader applications, one potential drawback with it is that it can only read .brd files created using bREADY Publisher. This is probably a plus point in a corporate environment where a company can publish documents in a standard format for its employees to download to their color Palm-size PCs. But the number of novels and other documents available in .brd format for downloading from the Internet is much lower than for Doc files. Potential Business Applications EText viewing capabilities on color Palm-size PCs give both companies and individual business users additional options for delivering, sharing, and viewing information in a wide variety of circumstances. For example, instead of carrying a set of heavy catalogs, a sales representative could download product information from their company Intranet and publish it on their color Palm-size PC in preparation for a customer visit. The sample catalog that bSQUARE has created for its own products is an excellent example of the type of documents that can be created using the bREADY Publisher. The program not only presents the product information in a clear manner, as shown in the following screenshot:  It also allows users to easily find the information they are looking for with its easily navigable interface.  Even with less sophisticated Doc files, it is convenient to deliver training materials and other documents to color Palm-size PC devices that business users can refer to whenever they need to.  Other Potential User Scenarios Field Service Technicians Field Service Engineers could dramatically speed up their ability to resolve problems with products at customer sites by storing full service manuals on their color Palm-size PC. Information would not only be easy to access, but could also be updated whenever the device is synchronized with the Technician's PC. Color Palm-size PC Electronic Book Viewing & Publishing Links Doc-Reader Applications DocView DocView was written by the Unsupported Software Co. and can be downloaded fromMike's Palm-sized PC site. This is a Freeware program that lets you read PalmPilot books and documents in Doc .prc & .pdb formats. The latest update supports a larger font size and has a smaller memory footprint. It also contains a very useful ReadMe file that shows you how to install and use the application. BookViewer The latest version of BookViewer by Don Waldo can be downloaded for free from the PDADash website. It allows you to display .prc, .pdb, and .txt files on a color Palm-size PC and supports bookmarks, text searching, and keeps track of your current position in each document you open. It also supports a facility for managing a document library on your color Palm-size PC. Doc File Resources Mike's Palm-Sized PCs Home Page Mike's Palm-Sized PCs Home Pagehas an extensive list of links to websites featuring books and other documents in Doc format that can be downloaded for viewing on a color Palm-size PC. PalmPilot E-Text Ring The PalmPilot E-Text Ring also has a comprehensive listing of sites from which you can download books and other documents in Doc format. Over sixty links are included. MemoWare With a total of over 2,200 documents, MemoWare almost undoubtedly has the largest collection of electronic texts in Doc format on the Internet. The documents span nearly every conceivable category, including classic literature, science fiction, technical and reference documents, maps, databases, historical information, sports team schedules, poetry, and dozens of other subjects. Forel Systems Forel Systems has a large number of Christian texts in Doc formats, including Bibles and writings of leading religious figures, that you can download to your color Palm-size PC. Additional religious texts can be downloaded from Devotional Books and Edgar's Pilot BibleDoc Page. bREADY Applications bREADY You can find detailed information about bREADY and download free trial versions of both the Viewer and Publisher applications at the bSQUARE website at: http://www.bsquare.com/development/products/hpc/ready.htm bREADY Document File Resources bREADY Web Ring Home Page To find sites with texts published in the bREADY .brd file format that are available for free download, please visit the bREADY Web Ring Home Page at: http://www.webring.org/cgi-bin/webring?ring=etxt;list Geno's eBook Library Geno's eBook Library has probably the most extensive collection of .brd files with 190 titles, including the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. This website is located at: http://www.dahilig.com/PalmPC/bReady.htm Electronic Text Library for Windows CE Home Page The Electronic Text Library for Windows CE Home Page also has a fairly large collection of .brd files, including titles such as the Triumph of the Nerds and Sun Tsu's Art of War. It is located at http://www.nwlink.com/~smakofs/library.htm Another good collection of movie scripts and novels in .brd file format can be found at http://www.seanet.com/~fulcanelli/books.html. Back to Top Home Color Palm-size PC Overview
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