That may not sound like much, but it's just long enough to break the flow while reading a long selection. At least the Reader is easy to operate. Press Online Bookshelf to purchase new titles, making selections by tapping on the touchscreen. Downloading a book or magazine, after paying with a credit card, takes three to five minutes. The connection is direct to SoftBook through a network of local phone numbers nationwide, so you don't need an account with an Internet service.
Users can also put their own writing into a Reader from a personal computer, using the Internet.
Then they can get the files into their Reader from the Online Bookshelf. But, no surprise, I can't recommend the SoftBook Reader for the intense concentration required to read and appreciate a full-length book. I wondered if magazines, which are consumed in small bites rather than lengthy sittings, might be a better fit. The electronic versions provided only the text and photo captions from the magazines, without the pictures themselves or any illustrations and charts. The only exception was a muddy reproduction of each magazine's cover.