Web Browser
A Web Browser can be used to read eBooks.
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[edit] Browser eBook features
A browser tends to treat each page individually and scrolls through the page. As an eBook reader it lacks some features such as bookmarking your location and the ability to read books in eBook formats other than direct HTML. There are some browsers addons to fix these problems and others. Browsers can also read eBook files coded in wiki formats because the wiki server converts pages on the fly.
- ePUB - Firefox and SeaMonkey can use EPUBReader.
- eBooks.com has a feature called eb20 (eBook 2.0) which is a format for eBooks that can be read in a browser.
- Lucifox is an ePUB Reader that is an extension for Firefox.
- Opera addon is an Opera widget for adding, reading and downloading EPUB books with limited support of ePUB format.
- Chrome features HTML5 support and is built into Chrome OS.
Browsers also need to be told which character set the file is using. This is normally done in the header section with a line like:
- <meta content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1"/>
- <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1">
- <meta content="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml; charset=utf-8" http-equiv="Content-Type"/>
To avoid confusing the browser only one such line should appear. Some browsers have settings that can override this entry.
[edit] EBook Devices
Dedicated eBook Devices typically do not have a full browser capability however some do provide browsers.
- Amazon Kindle - has a limited custom browser
- iRex iLiad Web Browsers - these are addons
[edit] Smartphones
Smartphones generally require a browser for data plans. They will typically include one but it may be a stripped down version. Here are a list of replacements.
- Opera Mini and Opera Mobile browsers
- Bitstream's BOLT for Blackberry
- Skyfire, from Skyfire Labs, works for Windows Mobile and Nokia S60 Third Edition phones
- Dolphin browser on Android
[edit] For more information
Downloads for all sorts of Web browsers - Includes reviews.
