Chapter 17. Browsing the Web on Your NOOK

When B&N released version 1.3 of the NOOK firmware, it added a web browser so that you can browse the Web on your NOOK. Arguably, the most useful reason to have a web browser on your NOOK is so that you can join Wi-Fi hotspots that require you to authenticate via a browser (such as those often found in hotels), but you can also use the browser to access any web page, provided you connect to a Wi-Fi hotspot.

An Overview of Browsing on Your NOOK

B&N has used a unique method of implementing browsing on the NOOK. Because web pages are designed to be navigated by scrolling and clicking links, the page Turn buttons on your NOOK are used to pan your view of the web page you’re visiting. The page Turn buttons on the left side of the reading screen pan up and down on the page, and the buttons on the right side pan left and right. Using this method, you can view any portion of a web page on the reading screen.

In addition to the reading screen, you can also view web pages on the touchscreen. As you pan around a page, a rectangle (the Panning Indicator) highlights the portion of the page shown on the touchscreen.

To follow a link on a page, simply tap the link on the touchscreen. To enter information into a form, tap the form field, and your NOOK displays the keyboard on the touchscreen.

Now look at how you can use the browser to navigate the Web.

Using the Web Browser Toolbar

The Browser toolbar provides buttons for navigating and controlling the browser. To access the toolbar, tap the Show Tool Bar button in the upper-left corner of the touchscreen.

The following buttons are available on the toolbar from left to right.

• Refresh: Tap to refresh the current page. While a page is loading, the arrows spin. Tapping the button while a page is loading stops the loading of the page.

• Go To: Tap Go To to navigate to a page in your browser. You can go to a web page, your home page, a search page (Google search), a favorite, or see your browsing history.

• Favorites: The Star button takes you to your favorites. You can add a favorite for the page you are currently viewing by tapping Add Favorite, or you can navigate to an existing favorite by tapping the Favorite icon.

• Back: Tap to navigate back to the previous page.

• Forward: Tap to navigate forward after tapping Back.

• Zoom: Tap the magnifying glass to zoom in or out on a page. When you zoom in, text appears larger so that it’s easier to read.

• Settings: Tap to access the browser settings.

Configuring Web Browser Settings

As mentioned previously, tap the Settings button to access browser settings. The following settings are available.

• Hide Tool Bar Automatically: By default, the tool bar disappears after a few seconds, and you need to tap the Show Tool Bar button to show it. You can control whether the tool bar hides itself by changing this setting to Off.

• Hide Panning Indicator: The panning indicator is visible by default. To hide it, change this setting to On.

• Home Page: To change your browser’s home page, tap this setting and enter a URL into the URL textbox.

• Clear Cookies: Tap to clear your browser’s cookies.

• Clear History: Tap to clear your browsing history.

B&N labeled the web browser as a beta application, meaning it is testing it and it’s likely not yet in a final state. In my experience, browsing on the NOOK is awkward because of the small size of the touchscreen. I also found that many web pages displayed incorrectly, and some (including Google) had overlapping page elements that made them almost impossible to read. Hopefully, B&N will continue to improve this feature of the NOOK.