In addition, as you read through your book, you can set up to four bookmarks. If you look at Figure E, you can see that the eReader uses the entire screen to display your text. At the bottom of the page you'll find the page number followed by the total number of pages in the document. Changing font size or justification will change the number of pages in your document. One caveat -- there's no easy way to jump forward or backward in the document unless you've bookmarked a page. For instance, if you're on page 563 and want to go back to page one, you'll have to move backwards a page at a time. Hopefully, the released version will allow you that flexibility.

FIGURE E


This is what the eReader screen looks like. Roll over picture for a larger image.

To change your settings, tap the center of the screen and the eReader options screen appears, as shown in Figure F.

FIGURE F


You can change settings by using the eReader options screen. Roll over picture for a larger image.

This options screen allows your to set up to four bookmarks, jump to a bookmark, and select a font size. You can select among three font sizes: Small, Medium, and Large.

I found all three of the sizes viable, but I especially liked the small size. Unfortunately, I was unable to select a font. I liked the included font, though some readers will no doubt want to change it.

Justified text can be somewhat ugly, as the program leaves big white spaces on some lines when creating equal line lengths. Even using the small font option doesn't resolve this issue. Fortunately, you can turn justification off.

To exit the program, you need to select Exit the Reader. This is the only way to exit the program as Windows CE doesn't seem to recognize the program is running. It doesn't show up in any of the task switcher programs. I expect this to be resolved in the near future.

The Rotate option rotates the display through 90 degree angles. It is quite useful for H/PC users.

Conclusion
Microsoft (and their third party developers) were thinking when they devised the CE Palm-sized PC standards. By incorporating a scroll device in their Palm-sized PC specifications, they made it easy for these devices to be used with one hand. And by creating a removable screen input panel, they freed up the screen real estate so you could get some real work, or reading, done. In effect, when designing the Palm-sized PC, they created the perfect electronic book reader.

I enjoyed beta testing this service and I look forward to their official launch. For $4 and a half an hour of your time, you can transform your Windows CE device into an electronic book reader that rivals the dedicated readers on the market. And as you lose track of time, reading the great American novel, your ever-vigilant Windows CE device will be there to make sure you don't forget that 3 o'clock meeting.

Clifford Brooks is a technical writer living and writing in Sunnyvale, CA. He can be reached at cbroo@msn.com.