The developer of the Cool Reader Android app has created a version of the Cool Reader app specifically for the Nook Touch.
What’s great about the app is that it has settings for partial page refresh. Not only that but the Nook’s page turn buttons work too, and you can even remap them for functions other than page turning for both long press and short press.
With partial refresh you can set the page to refresh only the text instead of flashing the entire page, just like the Nook’s stock ereader app. But unlike the stock ereader app, you can specify how often you want partial refresh to occur.
Cool Reader is a free open-source program that has been around for a long time on Windows and Linux. Cool Reader came to Android awhile back, and it has become one of the more popular ereading apps because of it offers a lot of advanced settings. I found out about the Nook Touch version of Cool Reader via a comment someone left on this earlier blog post about using night mode on the Nook Touch (white text with black background). The comment pointed to this thread at XDA about partial refresh for FBReaderJ on the Nook Touch, another good ereading app.
Anyway, the gist of the story is this: the developer for Cool Reader got permission to use the code from FBReaderJ for partial page refresh and added it to the Cool Reader app. But if you download the Cool Reader app from the Android Market it doesn’t have those settings; you need to get the one specifically for the Nook Touch (link below). There are a bunch of other versions on the Cool Reader project page over at SourceForge as well.
Download Cool Reader cr3_0_49_13.apk for Nook Touch
The Cool Reader app has a ton of features. You can view the complete list at the Cool Reader website. Below is a list of the most prominent features for the Nook Touch:
- Supports EPUB (non-DRM), FB2, TXT, RTF, HTML, CHM, and TCR formats
- Set partial refresh from 0 to 20 pages
- 13 font types
- 30 font sizes
- Add bookmarks and notes
- Select and copy text
- Adjust line spacing and margins
- Bold fonts
- Night mode
- Hyphenation support
- Landscape mode, 1 and 2 page views
- Dictionary support (ColorDict and Fora Dictionary)
- Fullscreen mode
- Customize or remove top menu
- Customize page button key actions
Hmmm. I still don’t see support for style sheets listed. UNACCEPTABLE!
I didn’t list it but the Cool Reader site says “Styles can be customised in wide range using external CSS “.
Thanks. I will have to check it out when I get my new Samsung Galaxy Tab S Wifi 5.0. It seems every time I try anything other than Aldiko on Android, I am disappointed with how it handles style sheets. Maybe CoolReader has been working on it since last time I tried it.
Just tried it.It won’t even see pdf files on my Nook.Am i doing something wrong?
Cool Reader doesn’t support PDF files…
Thanks for this review.
The best thing about cool reader is the nine tap zones that can be customized for long or short presses. It makes it really easy to change up things quickly.For instance, I long press the bottom right or left to increase or decrease text size, top center to toggle orientation and bottom center to toggle day/night mode.
I’ve tried other reading apps and keep coming back to cool reader for this alone.
Oops!You ‘re right.I i should have read more carefully the features.Thank you!
how do you install cool reader on the Nook touch
For starters the Nook has to be rooted. Then you install it by putting the APK file on the SD card and use a file manager to find it an open it, or download the file with the Nook’s browser is the easiest way—the Opera browser works for this. Check the app install tutorial for more details.
Hey, Nathan…great job, as always, but I have several questions as I’m so “low tech” at age 54 🙂
1. Does it cost anything to add this new app, which seems to add a lot more good things?
2. Why does an e-reader need to refresh as opposed to just keep turning pages indefinitely?
3. I don’t have wi-fi, so I’d like to buy and download library books without having to go somewhere, like to my nearest Barnes & Noble, to browse and purchase books or even add books from the library. Do you see an app coming for that (if it operates that way?)
4. Is there any progress on lowering the prices of e-books? It appears that one can buy the actual paperback version of a book more cheaply in some cases.
5. I’m holding off buying an e-reader because it seems that many more “kinks” have to be ironed out in all the major brands.
6. Does one have to worry about not reading such an “electronic device” on an airplane flight?
Thanks,
John
Hi John, here we go:
#1. No extra cost, but the Nook has to be rooted.
#2. If has to refresh to rearrange the black and white micro capsules. Refreshing all of them makes everything cleaner, refreshing just the text is faster but can leave artifacts sometimes.
#3. Not following you about an app. You can sideload content onto the Nook with your computer so you don’t need wifi but you do need internet. Gotta use a computer to download library ebooks anyway, can’t do it directly from the Nook unless it is rooted.
#4. That greatly depends on what you read. Apple colluded with the big publishers to jack up ebook pricing and to fix ebook pricing so publishers set prices and no one can offer discounts back when the iPad was first released. This is currently under investigation, so hopefully the price fixing will come to an end at some point.
#5. I’m not seeing that, perhaps with Kobo. Kindle, Sony, Nook are solid.
#6. Nope. Read away…
Nathan, why you talk as if someone’s chasing you? Take your time, brother! Organize your material before filming. And don’t use words like “maybe,” “you could,” or “you can also.” Most people that watch this want simple and direct instructions. Thank you so much for your effort, though.
Personally I’d prefer a super model to do the videos, James Earl Jones do the narrating, and Tim Burton do the directing and writing. But that’s just me…
My background is always dark despite me unticking the night mode. What have I done wrong?
It’s probably the background texture. There are different settings for that too.
Does the newest version CoolReader support partial refresh of nook simple touch?
No, you need to use this version made specifically for the Nook. The other versions don’t have the partial refresh options in settings.
Thanks a lot for the review Nathan, this seems really good.
Is there a special branch of development for the Nook version of CoolReader?
The link you posted:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/crengine/files/CoolReader3/cr3-3.0.49/cr3_0_49_13.apk/download
does not have nook in the name, so if a new version comes around, how would we know about it?
The last Android version of CoolReader has exactly the same naming format:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/crengine/files/CoolReader3/cr3-3.0.55/cr3.0.55-26.apk/download
but it’s not a nook version, so it’s a bit confusing
Answering my own question: there is no special branch, the Android version includes the Nook changes. The Android market might be too old to include them though.
Since this article was posted, here are the Nook changes that were made:
– Move settings and DB to SD card; EInk screen mode setting for Nook Touch fix
– Android: Nook Touch gesture page turning, Sony Reader support
– Android: integrate Nook Touch current book coverpage screensaver feature
– Android: Nook Touch current book coverpage saving function
– Android: Nook Touch fixes
– Android: enable dithering for eINK screen (Nook Touch & Sony)
There were also a lot of other changes. See change log here:
http://crengine.git.sourceforge.net/git/gitweb.cgi?p=crengine/crengine;a=shortlog
@atisha -dark background- I discovered that, touching the screen of my e-book reader from top to bottom left side makes the background dark. The opposite movement (bottom to top) makes it lighter
at this time… December 2012… which is the proper apk I should download to install Coolreader in a Nook Simple Touch with Glowlight?
Similar question as Khonshu:
Which apk is the one to download?
I rooted my Nook Simple Touch with the help of NookManager and tried to install the apk linked in the article (cr3_0_49_13.apk) – but for some strange reason the option to setup/change the rate for partial refresh is missing from the settings menu in coolreader.
Is the linked apk really the right one to install?
Answering my own question:
The up-to-date version straight from the Android Market did the trick for me.
I uninstalled the previously installed cr3_0_49_13.apk and installed Cool Reader from the Market (version 3.1.2-33) – besides having _many_ more options for settings, that version also has the options for partial refresh.
Does this app provide support for library ebooks downloaded from Overdrive? I’m hoping to find an app that has support for Adobe Digital Editions built in. Aldiko has support, but page turning is painfully slow.
Cool Reader does not. Mantano and Bluefire both support DRM’d ebooks but I don’t know how well they work on the Nook.