Publishers like the device because subscribers do not need a computer to access the magazines and because the Reader's screen is large enough to maintain the page layout of the print publication without losing any of the photos and charts. Neither SoftBook nor its primary competitor, NuVo Media' s Rocket eBook, will say how many units have shipped so far, but analysts guess the numbers will remain low until prices drop and content becomes more readily available. And so far, only about 500 titles have been retooled for the SoftBook Reader. Sachs believes the SoftBook Reader will be compelling to gizmo lovers right now, though. SoftBook's screen is bigger than its competitors' so that readers don't have to scroll within a page.
Users instead can push a button to turn electronically to the next numbered page.
Despite the slow start, Sachs remains confident that E-books in one form or another eventually will become ubiquitous. He holds patents on both the interactive toy Teddy Ruxpin and on the Macintosh mouse, an innovation that is credited with moving the now-pervasive computer mouse from the laboratory into the home. Through a federal grant, all the public school children in Hanover were given free, unlimited access to the college's time-share computer. By the time he was in high school, Dartmouth officials were asking Sachs to write little programs for them. I just wanted to be working on the computer.