NOOK – Don't look back Readaholics, it's time to take the plunge

Which is the best application for a bookaholic and readaholic? Of course, one that lets one read without going bankrupt, which is one of the biggest risks of being a readaholic. Though I manage to control my urge to buy books most of the time, I inevitably end up buying several while traveling. That's one of my biggest weaknesses (I think).

Recently I discovered an Intel application – Nook by Barnes and Noble – that made me really feel on top of the world. I can read as much as I want... including several classics at very low rates. And then there are so many free e-books that I can choose from.
I loved the fact that I could adjust the page and font size to avoid getting too tired. I only see the page I'm reading but a simple click helps open the left menu. I can bookmark, annotate, highlight text... do everything that I can do with a real book. And simply by selecting words I can actually highlight the selected text, add notes, and look up the word on dictionary.com (a monolingual on-line dictionary site) as well as on wikipedia.

Here is a comparative list of advantages and disadvantages of NOOK:

Advantages	Disadvantages
1000s of books at your fingertips.	You can't feel the book in your hands.
Free application and several free and inexpensive books.	Strain on eyes.
These days solar chargers are available for laptops and cell-phones; therefore, one can limit the impact on environment and still recharge these tools.	One needs electricity to operate/ charge notebook, laptop, and mobile phone.  What if there's a power failure?
Ecological: Paper-less so helps save trees.	Though the application per se is free and one can get lots of books for free or at a very low rate but one has to make a one time investment on one or more tools such as PC, laptop, notebook, IPhone, etc.
No need to re-read the whole book if you forget where a sentence/ phrase is.  Simple search feature.	You have to give your credit card number even if you download a free book.
One can change font, font-size, display area, etc. and thus limit the strain on eyes.
Portability: How many books can one carry if one is traveling?  With NOOK you can have as many as you want.
Your credit card isn't charged for Free books and you get receipts by e-mail.

From a readaholic's point of view, the advantages largely outshine the disadvantages. So in short, I think that it is an excellent application or readaholics, bookworms, students, researchers as well as everyone else. Want to read a book on the move? No need to carry heavy suitcases. Now you can do so on your laptop as well as on your phone! What else can a readaholic ask for?

Guess, there's one more thing that a readaholic can ask for: more books for free... So here's the icing on the cake: the unique LendMe(TM) Technology helps one exchange books with friends and family.

I can talk about it for hours but am busy reading a new book today. So check it out for yourself and happy reading! :-)







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