Quote:
Originally Posted by Dave_S
Just for the record, FB2 (aka FictionBook 2) is an ebook format, not a program. CoolReader is the application that your reader uses to read FB2 files, as well as other formats. It certainly is correct that the CoolReader on the PocketPRO is much older than the CoolReader on the Lbook version of the firmware though.  |
Yes, and in my opinion FB2 is
THE eBook format to read in - I have been using it for years and convert nearly everything as it is (again IMHO) the best format. It is pure XML so is concerned with content over format, using tagged markups for the reading software (in this case CoolReader) to interpret and display the text.
It has some shortcomings over the so-called "open" ePub format (that has been rammed down our throats as the "standard" now) when concered with highly formatted books (the Jerome K Jerome "Three Men in a Boat" ePub book on this site is a good example) as it doesn't handle tightly wrapped text around images (images are centred on their own line). Hyperlinks and footnotes are handled in the format but I have not had any success in using them on an eBook reader yet.
But thos issues aside, FB2 has many more benefits - especially since the available readers (mainly FBReader and CoolReader) provide a huge array of options to really tailor your reading experience - complete flexibility in font choice and sizing, layout styling (using CSS stylesheets you can really tweak the way your book looks on the screen, with more or less spacing between line and paras, margins, indenting, etc.).
And I work around the negatives mentioned above - for footnoted text I just place it in a para below the reference so you can read it as you go or just skip over. The reader software also provides excellent contents overview if you set title in the book (e.g. each chapter is set as a title) so navigating is no problem - I don't worry about a hyperlinked table of contents, but rather just use the built-in contents facility of the reader software which allows you to jump to any title you choose - essentially the same degree of navigation as in an ePub.
Anyway, FB2 is huge in Russian language countries, hence the Lbook advancement in CoolReader implementation and the PocketBook (and other) efforts with FBReader. You can buy and download for free heaps of Russian langauge FB2 books, and it's a pity the format wasn't adopted in the English language book world, but I guess we had to come up with our own format and then tie it up with Adobe's ADEPT (or inept?) DRM and the ridiculous Digital Editions reader software.
If you get the chance, try out FB2 - I think you'll like it!
P.S. As I was used to FB2 before getting an eInk device, it has always been a mandatory criteria in selecting any reader for me - I have a BeBook (Hanlin clone) iRex DR1000S (which has an FBReader port) and PocketBook 360 (comes with FBReader - I hope they do a CoolReader port soon to provide another degree of flexibility).