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Originally Posted by buba
I think I will use e-book device mostly for reading non-ascii texts (Russian) and technical HTML documentation. HTML formatting and hyperlinks should be preserved (conversion to plain text is not acceptable).
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Like several other software readers,
FBReader is developed by Russians (and so has good Russian support). I use FBReader on a Nokia 770 (800x480 LCD screen), and it is now also available on the iLiad. I don't yet have an iLiad, but I will probably buy one when iRex releases the "2007" version. I'm not sure if FBReader will run as an X11 application on a Mac, but there is a Linux Desktop version you might be able to get working on your Mac (e.g. under Parallels or VMWare) to test it out. FBReader reads many non-DRM formats directly, without conversion. It supports HTML, but really only single-page HTML because each file is treated as a separate e-book. A better option is to convert HTML into CHM or Plucker documents, which retains their links etcetera (many technical manuals are already available as CHMs). All documents can be searched, but there is no bookmark or annotation capability. PDF is not supported by FBReader, but is available via other software on the Nokia and iLiad. The battery life of the 770 is about 4 hours but it has a good sleep mode - and in general is a very nice design. Nokia's newest Linux Internet tablet is the N800, which is more capable than the 770 but a marginally worse e-book reader (because it has no hard case and the redesigned keys are harder to use when reading). The iLiad has a longer battery life than the 770 but no instant on capability, and the battery has been one area of concern for the user base. It is certainly very poor for an e-ink device.