Hi Addicts,
In this week's tip, I'll show you how you can convert your Microsoft Word Documents to Microsoft Reader book format and how to have the resulting eBook sync automatically to your Pocket PC.
Every now and again I'll get a long Word Document emailed to me that I am supposed to print out to read on the airplane or read at home before the big meeting the next day. Bah Humbug! I don't want to lug around paper! If you are like me and you prefer to use a dedicated reader to read books and long reports, then this tip is for you!
First, head over to Microsoft and download the Microsoft Reader Plugin for Word 2000/2002 (works on 2003 too!)
Download here.
Installation is very basic. Just double-click, hit Next:
Agree to Microsoft's rules for using the Reader Plugin:
It will go through the motions and install it onto your desktop computer:
Once installation is complete, you can launch Word on your desktop computer. You will see a new Reader Icon within the tools menu. For the sake of this tutorial, I am using a Public Domain text of
PT Barnum's The Art of Money Getting from 1880.:
Once you have that icon, it is so simple to convert your document and copy it to your device, it is almost silly! Just open your word document and push the reader button and away you go! You get a prompt for information such as Book Title, Author, filename, etc. I normally leave them the way they are. But I double check to make sure that the "Send to Microsoft Reader Library On" option is set to my Pocket PC Mobile files directory. Hit Ok and the converter does the rest:
After docking my iPAQ, the new MS Reader book is synchronized to my Library on my Pocket PC:
Just a tap and you're reading!
Overall, this is a fun tool to use and play with. You can do some limited cover customizations by hitting the Customize Covers button while setting options (see screen above).
Enjoy!