Nook for Web, which launched Tuesday, is compatible with all PC and Mac-supported web browsers including Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox and Safari. It offers a beautiful, uncluttered reading experience. You can choose between eight font types and sizes. Pages can be read in a single or double-page layout. Pages are turned with a quick scroll of your mouse.
It's surprising it took Barnes & Noble this long to release a web-based e-book reader. According to a Pew Research Center survey published this spring, a computer is the most popular device for reading e-books: 42% of those who read e-books say they read on a personal computer, followed by an e-reader (41%), cell phone (29%) and tablet (23%). Both Amazon and Google launched browser-based readers back in 2010. And although Barnes & Noble already had downloadable reading applications for Macs and PCs, books have been inaccessible to those who frequently use public computers and can't install any software on those devices.
Conveniently, e-books will automatically sync across devices: If you leave off on page 16 of a novel on your iPhone, you can resume on the same page on your desktop an hour later.
In addition to the web, Barnes & Noble has five other applications for reading e-books, including ones for iPhones, iPads, Android smartphones and tablets, PCs (download required) and Macs (download required). Applications can be downloaded here.
A preview of Nook for Web:
