MXPA97006176A - Apparatus and method for the storage and presentation of te - Google Patents

Abstract

An apparatus (740) for presenting stored text having a book card (136). The book card (136) contains an index number (744) and a compression code (746). An interface (150) receives the book card (136). An internal memory (154) has a permanent dictionary (748) that contains a number of words. A processor (152) encounters the interface (150), the internal memory (154) and a display screen (130). The processor (152) displays a subset of the words, based on the indices (744), on the display screen (13).

Description

APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR THE STORAGE AND PRESENTATION OF TEXTS Related Invention The present invention refers to the following invention that was assigned to the same assignee of the present invention: "System and Method for Limiting Access to a Book Card", which has Series No . 08 / 572,346, filed on December 14, 1995. "Method and Electronic Book to Create a Plurality of Versions of a Book ", which has Series No. 08 / 572,485, filed on December 14, 1995." Journal of Electronic Book and Method for Using the Same ", which has Series No.08 / 572, 602, presented in December 14, 1995. "Method and Device to Inhibit the Operation of an Electronic Device During the Take-off and Landing of an Aircraft", which has Series No. 08 / 572,603, filed on December 14, 1995. "System to Inhibit the Operation of a Electronic Device During the Takeoff and Landing of an Aircraft ", which has Series No. 08 / 572,484, filed on December 14, 1995." Method to Summarize Text "that has Series No. 08 / 572,834, filed on December 14, 1995.

"A Method for Substituting Names in an Electronic Book", which has Series No. 08 / 572,480, filed on December 14, 1995. "System and Method for Authorizing Instruments for an Electronic Book" that has Series No. 08 / 572,358, filed on December 14, 1995. "System and Method for an Automatic Library for a Plurality of Book Cards" that has Series No. 08 / 572,482, filed on December 14, 1995. "Electronic Book and Method for Selecting a Book Primary Character Set and a Primary Size to Display Text with Same ", which has Series No. 08 / 572,407, presented on December 14, 1995." Electronic Book and Graphic User Interface to Select a Book to Read with Same " , which has Series No. 08 / 572,406, filed on December 14, 1995. "Electronic Book and Graphic User Interface to Provide Control of the Same," which has Series No. 08 / 572,403, filed on December 14, 1995. "Book Electronic and Method to Store at Least One Book in an Internal-Legible Machine Storage Medium ", which has Series No. 08 / 572,593, filed on December 14, 1995." Electronic Book and Annotation Method for the Same, "which has Series No. 08 / 572,367, filed on December 14, 1995. "Electronic Book and a Method for Displaying a Relative Position of a Current Page of a Book for the Same" that has Series No. 08 / 572,373, presented on December 14 of 1995. "Method and System for the Coding of a Book for Reading Using an Electronic Book", which has Series No. 08 / 572,468, filed on December 14, 1995. "Electronic Book and Method for Deploying an Animated Page Transformed by It", having Series No. 08 / 572,405, filed on December 14, 1995. "Electronic Book and Method for Controlling a Proportion of Information Deployed by the Same," which has Series No. 08 / 572,372, filed on December 14, 1995. " Reusable Hosting and Memory Card for the Same ", which has Series No. 08 / 572,413, filed on December 14, 1995." Electronic Book and Method to Display at Least One Reading Metric for It, "which has Series No. 08 / 572,842, filed on December 14, 1995. "Electronic Book and Method for Creating a Personal Record of a Reading Activity for the Same," which has Series No. 08 / 572,456, filed on December 14, 1995. "Electronic Book what e Has an Enhanced Configuration ", which has Series No. 08 / 572,469, filed on December 14, 1995." Electronic Book and Method for Capturing and Storing a Reproduction therein, "which has Series No. 08 / 572,601, filed at December 14, 1995. The subject matter of the above-identified related inventions are incorporated herein by reference in the description of this invention. Field of the Invention The present invention relates in general to the field of electronic information devices and more particularly to an apparatus and method for storing and displaying text. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Several types of portable electronic reading devices have been proposed to electronically display text information to be read by a user. A typical portable electronic reading device includes a display device for displaying text information and a user interface that allows the user to navigate through the text information and access various configurations of the electronic reading device. The deployment device and the user interface are incorporated into a portable housing to facilitate the portability of the electronic reading device. Many portable electronic reading devices have a user interface in the form of one or more external keys. The keys are pressed in a predetermined manner either to navigate through the text information or to access various device configurations. NeverthelessMany portable electronic reading devices implement the user interface in a manner that does not provide a simple or efficient intuitive method for navigating text information or accessing settings. The lack of simplicity for the use of current portable electronic reading devices together with the lack of comfort in handling many of these devices results in some people preferring to read a real paper book than using a portable electronic reading device. In addition, current portable electronic devices use bulky storage devices and methods for storing text for display.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention is indicated with particularity in the appended claims. However, other features of the invention will be more apparent and the invention will be better understood by referring to the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a view of a modality of an electronic book in a position closed; Figure 2 is a view of the modality of the electronic book of Figure 1 in an open position; Figure 3 is a block diagram of a modality of the electronic book; Figure 4 is an illustration of several locations of sensitive points used to provide control of the electronic book to a user; - Figure 5 is an illustration of an on-screen display of the library using an e-book mode; Figure 6 is an illustration of a user event initiated to open the desired book from the library screen; Figure 7 is an illustration of a first page of a book displayed in an e-book mode; Figure 8 is an illustration of a title page of a book displayed in an e-book mode; Figure 9 is an illustration of a selection page of the character set displayed in an e-book mode; Figure 10 is an illustration of the page of the title of the book that is displayed when the selection page of the character set is exited, - Figure 11 is an illustration of a page of the system control displayed in an electronic book mode; Figure 12 is an illustration of the title page of the book that is displayed when the system control page exits; Figure 13 is an illustration of the title page of the book where a radio frequency link option is selected; Figure 14 is an illustration of the title page of the book where a progress control option is selected by a user, - Figure 15 is an illustration of a progress control page displayed in an electronic book mode; Figure 16 is an illustration of the title page of the book describing other options initiated by the user, - Figure 17 is an illustration of a page marked by a bent tip for use in e-book modalities; Figure 18 is an illustration of a bent tip dialog box used in e-book modalities; Figure 19 is an illustration of a user selecting a portion of a text page, - Figure 20 is an illustration of an option selection of a dialog box used in e-book modalities: Figure 21 is an illustration of an annotation display used in e-book modalities; Fig. 22 is an illustration of a marker used to indicate that a page has an annotation associated with it; Figure 23 is an illustration of a user selecting a set of bookmark options in the dialogue box option selection, - Figure 24 is an illustration of the page of figure 23 having a bookmark displayed therein, - Figure 25 is a flow chart of a sequence of events performed in an e-book mode; Figure 26 is a flow diagram of the steps performed in a graphical user interface routine mode of the library for use in the electronic book; Figures 27 and 28 show flow diagrams of a routine mode for displaying pages of text in the electronic book; Figure 29 is a flow chart of the steps performed to display a current page in the electronic book; Figure 30 is a flow chart of the steps performed in a modality of an annotation subroutine; Figure 31 is a flowchart of the steps performed in a modality of a reproduction capture subroutine; Fig. 32 is a flow diagram of the steps performed in a bent tip subroutine embodiment; Fig. 33 is a flowchart of the steps performed in a modality of a progress control subroutine; - Fig. 34 is a flowchart of the steps performed in a modality of the character set selection subroutine; and Figure 35 is a flowchart of the steps performed in a system control subroutine embodiment, - Figure 36 is a flowchart of one embodiment of the steps used to store text, - Figure 37 is a flow diagram of a modality of the steps used to store text, - Figure 38 is a block diagram of an electronic book mode; Fig. 39 is a schematic diagram of a modality of a book card, - Fig. 40 is a schematic representation of a modality of a permanent dictionary, - Fig. 41 is a schematic representation of a modality of a page memory, - Fig. 42 is a block diagram of a modality of a speech sound synthesis circuit, and Fig. 43 is a flow diagram of a modality of the steps used to display text. Detailed Description of the Drawings Figure 1 is a view of a modality of an electronic book in a closed position. The e-book has a 100 book-shaped accommodation that has the look and feel of a real paper book. The book-shaped housing 100 has a first housing member 102 connected on pivots to a second housing member 104 to facilitate opening and closing in a book-like manner. The first housing member is partially formed by a front cover member 106 as a book. In a similar manner, the second housing member 104 is partially formed by a back cover member 108 as a book. The front cover member 106 and the rear cover member 108 are pivotally connected by a spine member 110. In order to better provide the appearance and block of a real book, the front cover member 106 and the cover member Later 108 have an elaborate exterior of a material used in the covers of real books. Example of such materials include, but are not limited to, skin, simulated skin, vinyl and a woven material such as cotton. The exterior can be either permanently fixed to the front cover member 106 and the rear cover member 108, or be in the form of a removable cover. In addition to the front cover member 106, the first housing member 102 is partially defined by a fence 112. Similarly, the second housing member 104 is partially defined by a fence 114 in addition to the rear cover member 108. When the book electronic is in the closed position, the fence 112 and the fence 114 have an external appearance of edges of pages of a real paper book. In particular, the fences 112 and 114 define an upper edge 116, a lower edge 118 and a edge 120 which appears as the upper edge, the lower edge and the edge, respectively, of a real paper book. The upper edge 116, the lower edge 118 and the edge 120 are recessed with respect to the front cover member 106 and the rear cover member 108. FIG. 2 is a view of the embodiment of the electronic book of FIG. open position It is preferred that the first housing member 102 and the second housing member 104 be substantially symmetrical so that the front cover member 106, the rear cover member 108 and the edge member 110 rest substantially flat on a flat surface in the open position. Substantial symmetry makes the electronic book feel like a real paper book being open to one of its middle pages. As a result, the electronic book can be held and read comfortably in a manner compatible with a paper book. A touch screen 130 is integrated into the book-shaped housing 100 to be accessible when the book-shaped housing 100 is opened similarly to a book. In the illustrated embodiment of Figure 2, the touch screen 130 is integrated with the fence 114 of the second housing member 104. Optionally, a second touch screen 132 may also be integrated into the book-shaped housing. As illustrated, the second touch screen 132 can be integrated with the fence 112 of the first housing member 102. The touch screen 130 and the second touch screen 132 each include a touch-sensitive panel on a deployment device. A lighting element can be found from the bottom behind the deployment device. The touch screen 130 and the second touch screen 132 may provide either a color display or a monochrome display depending on the particular model of the electronic book. To provide its touch sensitivity, the touch screen 130 and the second touch screen 132 can utilize a similar resistive technology as is known in the art. It should be noted, however, that other technologies to provide touch sensitivity can also be used. It is preferred that the touch screen 130 and the second touch screen 132 be able to provide illumination from the bottom to allow the use of the electronic book in poorly lit or poorly lit environments. More preferably, the touch screen 130 is capable of illuminating from the bottom selected portions or subsets of the entire touch screen 130. Here, the electronic book can provide a power saving mode when it is actively illuminated from the bottom, only one portion of the touch screen 130 that is being viewed by a user. The book-shaped housing includes a receiving slot 134 that physically receives a removable machine-readable storage means 136. The removable machine-readable storage means 136 contains data readable by machines representative of the text of a book. Optionally, the machine readable storage data is also representative of a graphic information within the book. It should be noted that the term "book" should be interpreted broadly as any written or printed composition that has textual information that is read by an individual. Hence, the term "book" must be inclusive of books, magazines, newspapers, or the like. The text and graphic information contained in the removable machine readable storage means 136 is displayed on the touch screen 130. The second touch screen 132 may be included to display graphic information while the touch screen 130 displays the text. As another option, the touch screen 130 and the second touch screen 132 can display contiguous pages of the book. In addition, the touch screen 130 and the second touch screen 132 can be used to simultaneously view two books. The second touch screen 132 can also be used in a second level operating system which is here called an advanced reader graphic user interface. The functionality of the second touch screen 132 may be selected by the user using a switch or the advanced reader graphic user interface in the electronic book. It should be noted that there are many ways to encode the text and graphic information within the book to be stored in a removable machine-readable storage means 136. In one embodiment the removable machine-readable storage means 136 contains a series of indicators indicating the words contained in a dictionary within the electronic book. Words that are not contained in the dictionary are located in a custom dictionary on the removable storage media machine-readable 136. In this way, the words to be displayed on the touch screen 130 are selected with minimum storage requirements in the removable machine readable storage medium 136. Preferably, the removable machine readable storage means 136 is in the form of either a smart card or a PCMCIA card. Here, the receiving slot 134 is configured to receive either a smart card or a PCMCIA card. The book-shaped housing 100 further defines a power receiving port 138 and a data receiving port 140. The power receiving port 138 receives a plug or other type of connector to power the electronic book. The energy supplied to the electronic book through the power receiving port 138 can be used to directly operate the electronic book or to recharge the internal batteries of the electronic book. In one embodiment of the electronic book, the spine member 110 is configured to receive a combination of battery cells that can be recharged through a power receiving port 138. If the second touch screen 132 is not used, the 112 close of the first housing member 102 can be used to store additional batteries and / or additional book cards. The data port 140 is used to communicate signals representative of the machine-readable data between the electronic book and an external device. The data port 140 may be used, for example, to receive machine-readable data signals representative of the text and graphics in a book from the external device to be stored in the electronic book. In this way, the data port 140 provides an alternative for the receiving slot 134 to receive the text and graphics of the book. Additionally, the data port 140 may be used to transmit machine-readable data contained in the electronic book to the external device. Preferably, the e-book is activated automatically (that is, it automatically turns on) when it is in the open position and is automatically deactivated (ie automatically switched off) when it is in the closed position. For this purpose, the electronic book may include a magnet 142 incorporated within the first housing member 102 or the second housing member and a reed switch 144 incorporated within the other housing member. When the electronic book is in the closed position, the magnet 142 is close to the reed switch 144. The magnetic field generated by the magneto 142 causes the reed switch 144 to assume a first position that deactivates the electronic book. When the electronic book is in an open position, the magnet 142 is distant from the reed switch 144. In the absence of a significant magnetic field, the reed switch returns to a second switching position that activates the electronic book. It is noted that in alternative embodiments, the electronic book is activated and deactivated by a switch or external key (not specifically illustrated) instead of by means of the reed switch 144. Figure 3 is a block diagram of an electronic book mode . An interface 150 receives the removable machine readable storage means 136 containing machine-readable data representative of text and graphics of a book. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the interface 50 comprises a PCMCIA interface that receives a removable storage medium readable by machine in the form of a PCMCIA card. Physically. The interface 150 is close to the receiver slot 134 illustrated in FIG. 2. In general, it is preferred that the interface 150 be capable of receiving an external device other than the machine readable storage medium. In addition, it is preferred that the interface 150 be capable of receiving a plurality of external devices. For those purposes, the interface 150 may comprise a plurality of similar interfaces, such as a plurality of PCMCIA interfaces. Here, the electronic book can simultaneously receive two or more memory cards, a PCMCIA modem or another PCMCIA device. A processor 152 is in communication with the interface 150 to read the machine-readable data of the machine-readable storage removable media 136. The processor 152 can be found, for example, in the form of a microprocessor, a custom integrated circuit, a specific application integrated circuit or a programmable logical ordering. Physically, the processor 152 is housed within the book-shaped housing 100. The touch screen 130 is in communication with the processor 152 to display a page of the text and / or graphics represented by the machine-readable data. In addition, the touch screen 130 acts as an input device for receiving user-initiated events, that is, actions initiated by the user and communicates those events or actions initiated by the user to the processor 152.

An internal machine readable storage means 154 is in communication with the processor 152 to support a number of operating characteristics of the electronic book. The internal machine readable storage means 154 may include one or more memory devices, such as a random access memory, a read-only memory and / or an electronically erasable and programmable read-only memory (EEPROM). A computer program or other form of software or firmware is stored in the internal machine readable storage medium 154. The computer program directs the processor 152 to support the operating characteristics of the electronic book. Preferably, the computer program includes a sequence of events that processes and responds to events and actions initiated by the user. More specifically, the received events are placed on a waiting line of events in the internal means of machine readable storage 154. Each of the received events is processed and removed from the event waiting line. As a result, a user can initiate a number of events or actions without having to wait for previous actions to be processed. The internal machine readable storage medium 154 may also include a dictionary to which the indices stored in the removable machine-readable storage medium 136 indicate. By including the dictionary within the electronic book, less storage space is required in the medium removable machine readable storage 136 to store the text of the book. In addition, the internal machine readable storage medium 154 may contain machine-readable data representative of text or graphics of a book. Here the processor 152 reads the machine-readable data from the internal machine-readable storage medium 154 and commands the touch screen 130 to display the pages of the text and graphics. The signals are communicated between the e-book and an external device through either a data interface 156 in communication with the processor 152, through an antenna 158 and a radio frequency modem 160 in communication with the processor 152 or through an infrared transceiver 161 in communication with the processor. As another option, the communication between the electronic book and the external device can be made using either an intelligent communication card or a PCMCIA communication card received by the interface 150. Here, a PCMCIA modem card or a PCMCIA infrared transceiver card it can be used, for example, for external communication. Optionally, a speech synthesizer 162 is included in the electronic book to provide a spoken auditory display of pages of the text read from either the machine-readable storage removable media 136 or the machine-readable internal storage medium 154. In one embodiment, the processor 152 directly converts the text of the book into speech signals for the speech synthesizer 162. Optionally, the control codes may be provided within the removable machine-readable storage means 136 to allow the words to be pronounced or emphasized in different ways. In addition, control codes can govern words to be spoken in either a male voice, a female voice, or a child's voice. The speech synthesizer can be sampled (such as using the user's voice) or it can be a synthesized computer voice. As an alternative, a custom speech dictionary can be provided to increment a general voice dictionary stored in the electronic book. The personalized voice dictionary can be used for alternative pronunciations, voices and emphases. The voice synthesizer 162 is either permanently integrated into the electronic book or is a removable accessory. To facilitate the removability, the speech synthesizer 162 may be incorporated into a smart card or a PCMCIA card for reception via the interface 150. Alternatively, the speech synthesizer 162 may communicate with the processor 152 through an accessory interface bus 163 In a similar manner, the RF modem 160 and / or the second touch screen 132 can communicate with the processor 152 via the accessory interface bus 163. Before giving a detailed description of the steps performed by the elements of the figure 3 for the various embodiments of the present invention, a functional description of a particular modality of the electronic book will now be described. This mode is based on a single touch screen, specifically the touch screen 130, to display the text and graphics of the book and to allow the user to control the electronic book. It is noted, however, that the teachings herein can also be applied to a dual touch screen mode which also includes the second touch screen 132. Furthermore, it is noted that the teachings herein are not limited to the use of a screen tactile, and consequently, can be applied to an electronic book that contains any type of display device (such as a liquid crystal display or a cathode ray tube, for example) and any type of input device (such as a series). of keys, a mouse, a tracing sphere, a stylus, or a touchpad, (flat tactile surface) for example). Figure 4 is an illustration of various locations of sensitive points used to provide control of the electronic book to the user. A page of the text represented by the machine-readable data, read from either the machine-readable storage removable media 136 or the machine-readable internal storage medium 154 is displayed on a screen portion 168 of the touch screen 130 The screen portion 168 is also used to display graphics represented by the machine-readable data. A first portion of sensitive points 170 of the touch screen 130 is designated to receive a predetermined event initiated by the user which requires that a subsequent page of the text be displayed on the touch screen 130. Accordingly, the first portion of sensitive points 170 can be referred to synonymously as a "front page portion" or a "front page sensitive point" to receive a forward page event. In the embodiment illustrated in Figure 4, the first portion of sensitive points 170 includes a top margin portion 172, a side margin portion 174, and a bottom margin portion 176 of the touch screen 130. The top margin portion 172 is located above the screen portion 168, the side margin portion 174 is located next to the screen portion 168 and the bottom margin portion 176 is located below the screen portion 168. A second portion of sensitive points 178 of the touch screen 130 is designated to receive a predetermined event initiated by the user which requires that a previous page of the text be displayed. Accordingly, the second portion of sensitive points 178 can be referred to synonymously as a "return page portion" or "backward page responsive points" to receive a return page event. In the embodiment illustrated in Figure 4, the second portion of sensitive points 178 is located adjacent to the screen portion 168 of the touch screen 130 and opposite the side margin portion 174. The third portion of the sensitive points 180 of the touch screen 130 is designated to receive a predetermined event initiated by the user, which requires a pre-marked page to be displayed on touch screen 130. In the embodiment of figure 4, third portion of sensitive points 180 is located in a portion top of the touch screen 130 and it is shaped like a book mark graphic 182. Consequently, the third portion of sensitive points 180 can be referred to synonymously as a "book mark portion" or "bookmark sensitive points". A fourth portion of sensitive points 184 of the touch screen 130 is designated to receive a predetermined event initiated by the user to close the current book that is read and to request that a library screen be displayed on the touch screen 130. The screen of The library is used by the user to select a book to read from a plurality of books within a library. Accordingly, the fourth portion of sensitive points 184 can be referred to synonymously as a "closed book portion" or "closed book sensitive points" to receive a closed book event. A fifth portion of sensitive points 186 of the touch screen 130 is designated to receive a predetermined event initiated by the user which requires the displayed page to be marked. In the embodiment of figure 4, the fifth portion of sensitive points 186 is located in an upper corner of the touch screen 130. In this embodiment, the fifth portion of sensitive points 186 of the touch screen 130 is used for bent tip pages from the book. Consequently, the fifth portion of sensitive points 186 can be referred to synonymously as a "bent tip portion" or "bent tip sensitive points" for receiving bent tip events. A sixth portion 188 of the touch screen 130 is designated to provide a depth indication representative of what amount of the book has not been read. In the embodiment illustrated in Figure 4 the sixth portion 188 is located above the screen portion 168. The second portion of the sensitive points 178 can be used in conjunction with the sixth portion 188 to provide the depth indication. In the embodiment of figure 4, the screen portion 168, the first portion of sensitive points 170, the second portion of sensitive points 178, the third portion of sensitive points 180, the fourth portion of sensitive points 184 and the fifth portion of sensitive points 186 are portions of the touch screen 130 mutually exclusive (ie, do not overlap). However, in alternative embodiments of the present invention, these portions may not be mutually exclusive, and consequently may overlap. In addition some embodiments of the present invention may use different sizes and positions for the portions of sensitive points described above. Preferably, the portions of sensitive points are sensitive to movement so that an event of touching, a touching and holding event and a stimulus event can be detected to initiate different responses. For example, a page return event may be received in the form of a fast-stroke movement (ie a short touch) through the second portion of sensitive points 178. Figure 5 is an illustration of a library screen deployed using a modality of the electronic book. In a preferred embodiment, the library screen is displayed upon opening the electronic book or activating the electronic book. The library screen includes a back graphic representation of book 200 having a spine graphic portion 202. A front graphic representation of book 204 is displayed in front of the back graphic representation of book 200. The front graphic representation of book 204 has a portion spine graphic 206 and a front cover graphic portion 208. A title 210 of a book is displayed which is currently read in the front graphic representation of book 204. In the embodiment illustrated in figure 5, title 210 is displayed on the graphic spine portion 206 of the front graphical representation of book 204. Upon receipt of an event initiated by the user in which a portion of the subsequent graphic representation of the book 200 is selected a title of another book or books of a plurality of books in a library that unfolds in place of the title 210 on the front graphic representation of the book 204. In a preferred embodiment, the portion of the subsequent graphic representation of book 200 selected in this event initiated by the user is within the graphic portion of spine 202. The titles of the books in the library can be obtained from a storage medium (containing the books) installed in the electronic book. Alternatively, book titles can be obtained through a connection to an information service that provides books or other information in real time. As another alternative, titles and books can be accessed on demand from a global network page. A user can scroll through the book library by repeatedly touching the spine portion 202 with his finger 212 until a desired book title is attracted to his view. When the spine portion 202 is selected by the last of the plurality of books, the title of the first book is displayed. In this way, the user can rotate through the book library until a desired book is in front. Figure 6 is an illustration of an event initiated by a user to open the desired book of the library screen. The front book is opened until an event initiated by a user in which a portion of the front graphical representation of book 204 is selected. This event initiated by a user may include, for example, the user's touch of the portion of front cover 208 of the front graphic representation of book 204 using his finger 212. In response to this event initiated by a user, the book indicated by title 214 is opened. If the book is not read previously, the book is opened until the page one. If the book has been read before, the book opens the last page that was read. Figure 7 is an illustration of a first page of a book displayed on the touch screen 130 when exiting the library screen. To display the first page of the book, machine-readable data representative of text and book graphics are read either from the removable machine-readable storage medium 136 installed in the electronic book, or from the internal machine-readable storage medium 154. When reading the machine-readable data, a page of the text and / or the graphics are then displayed on the touch screen 130. As shown, the text is displayed to appear as a standard page in a real book. If an event initiated by a user is received, in which a user selects the second portion of sensitive points 178, that is, the return portion of the page, of the touch screen 130 when the book is on the first page, then A title page containing system controls is displayed. Figure 8 is an illustration of a title page of a book displayed on an electronic book mode. The information displayed on the title page includes a book title 220, author information 222, copyright information 224, a number from the Library of Congress 226, and publisher information 228. Statistics such as a total number of pages 230 in the book, the number of unread pages 232, and the length of the reading time 234. A number of control options are also displayed. These control options include, but are not limited to, an advance control option 236, a character set selection option 238, a system control option 240, a readme option 242, and a link option of radio frequency (RF) 244. Any of these control options may be initiated by a respective event initiated by a user indicating that a user selected the option. As illustrated in Figure 8, a user initiates a routine of selecting a character set by touching the selection option of a character set 238 using his finger 212. Figure 9 is an illustration of a selection page of a set of characters displayed on a modality of the electronic book. The selection page of a character set is displayed at the beginning of the character set selection routine. Displayed on a selection page of a character set, there are a number of combination options of character set / size. Each option is in the form of a word displayed using a specific character set and a specific size according to the combination of characters / size. A user selects a combination of desired character set / size by observing how the words appear in the various combinations, and selecting the combination that is desired. For example, in Figure 9, the user selects a desired character / size combination combination by selecting a word 250 displayed in the desired character set / size combination using his finger 212.

The character sets can be selected from the internal character sets and custom character sets provided in the media provided by an editor. For example, a user can select a set of Gothic characters provided in a medium that contains the word Shakespeare instead of the default character sets (for example, Courier, Helvetica, Avant Garde) within the e-book. By selecting the combination of a desired character set / size, the e-book automatically returns quickly to the title page that contains the system controls. Thereafter, the electronic book uses the combination of a desired character / size set as a combination of a primary character / size set to display the text of the book. The titles and headings in the book are enlarged and highlighted based on the combination of a set of primary characters / sizes. Other portions of the text may be italicized based on the primary character set. However, it is preferred that the body of the text never be displayed smaller than the size selected in the combination of a primary character / size set. In some modalities, it may be preferred to display apostilles in a size smaller than the selected size. Figure 10 is an illustration of the title page of the book that is displayed when the character set selection page is exited. Here, a user is shown initiating a system control routine by selecting the system controls option 240 using his finger 212. Figure 11 is an illustration of a page of the system control displayed in an e-book mode. The system control page is displayed when performing the system control routine. The system control page provides a number of display controls that include a contrast control 254, a tone control 256, and a color control 258. Each of these controls provides a number of different control values that can be selected by the user directly. In addition, each control value is displayed in a graphical manner consistent with the result of its selection. For example, the contrast color 254 includes a high contrast graphic representation 262, an intermediate contrast graphic representation 264, and a low contrast graphic representation 266. The graphic representations 262, 264 and 266 are from the same graphic image, but they are deployed using different contrast control values. Accordingly, a user can visually determine a desired contrast by looking at the graphic representations 262, 264 and 266. In a similar manner, the tone control 256 and the color control 258 each display a predetermined graphic image using a different number of pixels. tone control values and color control values respectively. Preferably, the display of the graphic representations within the deployment controls are not affected by current values of the selected controls. In a preferred embodiment, the display of the graphic representations is independent of all current values. For example, the display of the contrast display under 266 may be independent of the current contrast control value, the current tone control value and the current color control value. In another preferred embodiment, the display of the graphic representations in each control is independent of the current value of that control, but depends on the current value of the other controls. Here, for example, the display of the contrast display under 266 is independent of the current contrast control value, but dependent on the current tone control value and the current color control value. Using either of these two modalities, a user can immediately determine a result of each control value selection before actually making the selection. The system control page also includes a sound control 267. The sound control 267 is illustrated to have a number of different sound intensity values that can be selected by a user. In the embodiment of Figure 11, the sound intensity values are monotonically related to the size of an ear deployed on the sound control 267. An ear 268 having a cut through it is indicative of an option to turn off the sound . For purposes of illustration, Figure 11 shows a user selecting an intermediate sound intensity when playing an ear graph 269. The user then returns to the system control page by touching the second portion of sensitive points 178, i.e. , the touch-sensitive points of the page, of the touch screen 130. It is noted that the controls on the control page of the system can provide continuous rather than discontinuous control of the control values in the alternative modes of the electronic book. Here, for example, ear size and volume can increase or decrease based on finger selection movement. A flat surface area 270 of the system control page is used for test movements such as a sustained event, a return event, and a mark event. In particular, a user may indicate any of a sustained selection 271, a return selection 272, and a mark selection 273, and then perform the selected movement in the flat surface area 270. Here, a sustained length of time or style The stimulation of a finger for a quick order can be calibrated for each user, for example, using the flat surface area. Figure 12 is an illustration of the title page of the book that is displayed when the system control page exits. Here, the user is illustrated to select the readme option 244 that initiates the speech synthesizer 162 to audibly read the text that is being displayed visually on the touch screen 130. The audible reading of the text starts on the last page that has been deployed on the touch screen 130. The reading speed and other controls for the readme routine are provided on a progress control page described hereinafter. Figure 13 is an illustration of the title page of the book where a radio frequency link option is selected. This option is selected by the user by touching the RF link option 244 using his finger 212. By selecting the RF link option 244, an RF link routine is performed. The RF link routine allows the user to update the transfer of the text to the electronic book, and / or the interface of the electronic book to a personal computer or communication unit. The RF link routine uses the antenna 158 and the RF modem 160 illustrated in Figure 3 to communicate with the personal computer using a wireless local link, or more generally to communicate with a wireless data communication network. Using a national wireless data communication network, such as the Ardis network, allows people to receive book updates through radio frequency links in most cities. Figure 14 is an illustration of the title page of the book where a progress control option is selected by a user. Specifically, the user is shown initiating a progress control routine by selecting the advance control option 236 displayed on the title page using his finger 212. Figure 15 is an illustration of a progress control page displayed in a mode of the ebook. The progress control page is displayed once the user selects the advance control option 236 on the title page. The progress control page includes a display 280 of a current reading advance by the user. Based on the number of unread pages in the book, which are given in a display 282, there is also a display 284 of an estimated completion time for the book. In the embodiment of Figure 15, the current reading progress, the number of missing pages and the estimated completion time are displayed in the form of one or more statements. Also displayed on the progress control page is a display 290 of a desired reading advance. There is also a display 292 of an estimated completion time according to the desired reading progress. The desired reading progress is controlled by the user using a graphical cursor bar 294. The pages of the text in the book are automatically advanced by a progress routine that is enabled and disabled by means of a graphic switch 296. In a mode, each page of the text is displayed for a duration in proportion to the desired reading speed controlled by the graphic cursor bar 294. The user returns to the title page from the progress control page to select the second portion of point 178, that is, the page return portion of the touch screen 130. Figure 16 is an illustration of the book title page describing other options initiated by a user. The user can return to a bookmarked page by selecting the bookmark graphic 182. The user can return to the library screen by selecting the fourth portion of sensitive points 184, that is, the closed book portion of the book. touch screen 130. The user can go to the first page of the book by selecting the first portion of sensitive points 170, that is, the leading page portion, of the touch screen 130. Figure 17 is an illustration of a page marked by a tip bent in an electronic book mode. The user initiates a bent tip command when performing a predetermined event initiated by a user. An example of such an event includes a user touching a portion of the upper corner of touch screen 130, such as the fifth portion of sensitive points 186 defined above. If the page does not have the tip bent, then a brief touch of the upper corner portion 186 causes a bent tip graph 300 to be displayed in the upper corner portion. In addition, an indication that this page is bent tip is stored either in the removable storage medium readable by machine 136 or in the internal machine readable storage medium 154.

If the user touches the upper corner portion 186 of a page already marked with a bent tip, or if the upper corner portion 186 is held for a duration greater than a predetermined threshold, then a bent tip dialog box is opened. Figure 18 is an illustration of a bent tip dialog box used in the e-book modalities. A bent tip dialog box 302 is displayed on the touch screen 130. The bent tip dialog box 302 displays a list 304 of all the bent tip pages. A user can immediately go to one of the folded tip pages of the list 304 by touching a display of a selected page number. The bent tip dialog box 302 also displays an option 306 to display the marks 308 along an edge 310 of the page. After this, a user can touch any of the marks 308 to quickly move to one of the corresponding bent tip pages. In the example illustrated in Figure 18, a mark 312 corresponds to the page 1 marked, a bent tip 314 corresponds to the page 35 marked, a mark 316 corresponds to the page 94 marked, a mark 318 corresponds to the page 111 marked, and a mark 320 corresponds to page 120 marked. In a preferred embodiment, page 1 is always marked with a bent tip so that the user can quickly return to it using either the marks 308 or the bent tip dialog box 302. Upon receipt of an event initiated by a user while the folded tip dialog box 302 is displayed, the folded tip dialog box 302 is transferred to display the selected page of the book. Figure 19 is an illustration of a user selecting a portion of a text page. A portion 330 is selected by an event initiated by a user to slide his finger 212 (or other pointing member such as a light pen) from a first position 332 to a second position 334. When selected, the portion 330 of the Text is enhanced in a predetermined manner. The portion 330 of the text may be enhanced in color if the touch screen 130 is capable of displaying a color. Alternatively, portion 330 of the text may be enhanced using gray scale shading, videoinversion, or underlining. A choice of dialogue box option is then displayed on the touch screen 130 to provide the user with a number of text-marking options. Figure 20 is an illustration of a choice of dialogue box option used in the e-book modalities. A choice of dialog box option 340 is displayed on the touch screen 130 at a location out of the way of the portion 330 of the text that is marked when possible. The dialogue box option selection 340 includes a plurality of text marking options that include a note capture option 342, a highlight option 344, a reproduction capture option 346, and an established bookmark option 348. Briefly, note capture option 342 allows the user to write on notes associated with portion 330 of the text. The emboss option 344 leaves the 330 portion of the highlighted text, and stores an indication of this enhancement so that any subsequent return to this page displays the portion 330 as being embossed. The reproduction capture option 346 allows the user to store portion 330 of the text along with the source data, such as the name of the author of the book or the title of the book in the internal means of machine readable storage 154. The option of Established bookmark 348 can be selected to add a bookmark to the current page. If the page already has a bookmark, then the user is provided with a number of bookmark management options similar to the options used for the bent-tip command. Figure 21 is an illustration of an annotation display used in the modalities of the electronic book. The annotation display is provided in response to a user selection of the note capture option 342 illustrated in figure 20. After receiving an event initiated by a user indicative of the selection of the note capture option 342, a programmable keyboard 360 is displayed on the touch screen 130. The programmable keyboard 360 includes alphanumeric keys and symbolic keys together with a closing key and a note collection key. A plurality of key-press events are received by the programmable keyboard 360 to form an annotation. As the keystroke events are received, a plurality of characters corresponding to them are displayed in a window 362 on the touch screen 130. The user selects the closing key on the programmable keypad 360 upon completion of the annotation. In response to the selection of the closing key, the electronic book removes the programmable keypad 360 and the window 362 from the touch screen 130 and displays a note marker icon to indicate that the page has an annotation associated therewith.

The note collection key on the programmable keyboard 360 instructs the electronic book to communicate the annotation to an external device such as a personal computer. The personal computer can communicate to the e-book either wirelessly through the antenna 158 or the radio frequency modem 160 shown in Figure 3, using a wiring connection through the data interface 156, or using an infrared link. An annotation can also be found in the form of a pixel image which extends over the page of the text. The pixels can be attracted on the touch screen 130 using a pointing device. The pixels may be stored in a pixel map form for subsequent visualization or for subsequent conversion to text using a handwriting recognition method. As another option, a keyboard accessory can be added to the ebook to enter the annotation as well as other information. Figure 22 is an illustration of a marker used to indicate that a page has an annotation associated with it. The page illustrated in figure 22 results after the user enters the annotation and selects the closing key from the programmable keyboard 360 as illustrated in figure 21. As shown, the page in figure 22 no longer has the keyboard programmable 360 and the window 363 displayed on it. However, a note marker icon 370 is displayed in a lower corner of the page. The user can see the annotation associated with this page by selecting the note marker icon 370. By selecting the note marker icon 370, it has the same effect as selecting the note capture option 342 as shown in figure 20. In addition, an annotation can be indicated by underlining or highlighting the portion of the text associated with the annotation. The annotation can be viewed in a hypertext manner by selecting the text portion. Figure 23 is an illustration of a user selecting a bookmarking option set in the dialogue box option selection. The user selects the bookmarking option set 348 by touching the text display associated with it using his finger 212 or other signaling member. If this page already has a bookmark included, then the bookmark management dialog box similar to the one used for the doubled tip command is displayed. Since the page illustrated in figure 23 does not have a bookmark associated with it, the bookmark option selection set 348 causes a bookmark to be added to the page. In a preferred embodiment only one page has the bookmark within each book. Figure 24 is an illustration of the page of Figure 23 having a bookmark displayed therein. A bookmark icon 380 is displayed at the top of the page to indicate that the page has had a bookmark. It is noted that the pointing devices other than the fingers of people can be used to generate user-initiated events indicative of desired selections using the touch screen 130. For example, a light pen or the like can be used to select the desired portions of touch screen 130. It is also noted that various types of graphic controls can be used to control electronic book settings and parameters. These graphic controls include, but are not limited to, graphic keys, check boxes, radio keys, scroll bars, scroll bars, direct menus, and dialog boxes. Below is a description of the stages that are performed by the various components of e-book to provide their features and functionality. These operational steps are performed on or with the aid of the processor 152 illustrated in Figure 3. The processor 152 is directed to operate in a manner in accordance with those operational steps based on a computer program or other software or firmware form stored in the computer. a computer readable memory. In the computer-readable memory it can be contained in the processor 152, inside the machine readable internal memory 154 or within a separate machine readable storage means in communication with the processor 152. It is noted that the order in which the steps are described is indicative of one embodiment of the present invention and that the alternative embodiments of the present invention can perform the steps in a different order to achieve the same functionality. Figure 25 is a flowchart of a cycle of events performed in an e-book mode. As indicated by block 400, a step of executing a library graphic user interface routine is performed. The library graphical user interface routine provides a virtual library to allow a user to select a book to read from a plurality of books within a library and / or access an information service or global network page as described previously. The plurality of books can be contained in one or more removable means of machine-readable storage and / or the internal means of machine-readable storage. Upon selecting a desired book, a step of executing a routine to display one or more pages of text and graphics from the desired book is performed, as indicated by block 402. The routine for displaying the text pages is performed until receives a default event initiated by a user to exit the routine. As indicated by block 404, if a closed book event is received, then the flow of the event cycle is directed back to the step of executing the library graphical user interface routine in block 400. If received a page return event when the current text page being read is page one, then a step of displaying a book title page is performed as indicated by block 406. The title page provides a number of control options available to a user. The user selects a desired control option based on an event initiated by a user. Block 408 indicates a stage of receiving this event initiated by a user.

Based on the event initiated by a user, which is received, the flow of the event cycle is directed to one of a number of subroutines in a step indicated by block 410. If the received event is indicative that the user selected the advance control option, then a step of executing a progress control routine is performed as indicated by block 412. If the received event is indicative that the user selected the character set selection option, then it is performed a step of executing a character set selection routine as indicated by block 414. If the received event is indicative that the user selected the control option of the system, then a step of executing a control subroutine of the system is performed. system as indicated by block 416. If the received event is indicative that the user selected the RF link option, then a step of executing an enl subroutine is performed. RF signal as indicated by block 420. Upon completion of either the feed control subroutine, the character set selection subroutine, the system control subroutine or the RF link routine, the cycle flow events is directed back to block 406 where the stage of displaying the title page is performed. If the event received from block 408 is indicative that the user selected the read me option, then a step of executing a read me routine is performed as indicated by block 422. The flow of the event cycle is then directed back to block 402 to execute the routine to display the text pages of the book. The execution of the readme routine in block 422 provides a spoken auditory display of the text in addition to the visual display of the text in block 402. If the event received in block stage 408 is a forward page event, then a step of setting the current page to page one as indicated by block 424. If the received event is indicative that the user selected a bookmark displayed on the title page, then a step of establishing the current page is performed to a previously bookmarked page as indicated by block 426. After the current page is set to either the stages indicated by blocks 424 and 426, then the flow of the event cycle is directed back to the stage of executing the routine to display the text pages indicated by block 402. Finally, if the event received in block 408 is indicative of a closed book event, then the flow of the event cycle is directed back to block 400 to perform a step of executing the library graphical user interface routine. Figure 26 is a flowchart of the steps performed in a routine of graphic user interface of library to be used in the electronic book. These steps can be performed in the execution of the library graphical user interface routine by block 400 in FIG. 25. The steps provide a method of selecting a book for reading in an electronic book when the book is selected from a plurality of libraries. books in a library. As indicated by block 430, a step of displaying a subsequent graphic book representation having a portion of graphic spine is performed. A step of displaying a front graphic book representation in front of the subsequent graphic book representation is performed as indicated by block 432. The front graphic book representation has a portion of graphic spine and a portion of graphic front cover. As indicated by block 434, a step of displaying a title of a first book of a plurality of books on the representation of the front graphic book is performed. The title of the first book can be displayed anywhere on the representation of the front graphic book. Nevertheless, in a preferred embodiment, the title of the first book is displayed on the graphic spine portion of the front graphic book representation. Figure 5 illustrates an example of the back graphic book representation 200 having the graphic spine portion 202, the front graphic book representation 204 having the graphic spine portion 206 and the graphic front cover portion 208 and the title 210 displayed on the back. the representation of the front graphics book 204. Referring again to Figure 26, a step of receiving a first event initiated by a user is performed in which a portion of the subsequent graphic book representation is selected as indicated by the block 436. In a preferred embodiment, the portion of the representation of the subsequent graphic book selected in this step is within the graphic spine portion of the subsequent graphic book representation. Upon receiving the first event initiated by a user, a step of displaying a title of a second book of a plurality of books is performed as indicated by block 440. Preferably, the title of the second book is displayed in the place of the title of the book. first book on the portion of graphic back of the representation of the front graphic book. As indicated by block 422, a step of receiving a second event initiated by a user is performed in which a portion of the front graphic book representation is selected. In a preferred embodiment, the portion of the front graphic book representation selected in this step is within the front cover portion of the front graphic book representation. The reception of the second event initiated by a user terminates the execution of the graphic user interface of the library and the flow is directed to the routine to display the text pages of the second book. Here, the steps are performed by reading machine-readable data from a machine-readable storage medium installed in the electronic book, the machine-readable data representing the text of the second book and displaying the text represented by the readable data by the machine. machine. It is noted that the steps indicated by the blocks 436 and 440 can be repeated to allow the user to permute through the plurality of books. When the first event initiated by a user is received while the last of the plurality of books is displayed, the next displayed title is the first of the plurality of books. It is preferred that the steps of displaying and receiving the events initiated by a user are all performed using the touch screen 130 integrated in the electronic book. However, in alternative embodiments of the electronic book that include a series of keys external to the touch screen 130, any of the events initiated by a user described above can be received using those keys. Figures 27 and 28 show the flow diagrams of a modality of the routine for displaying the text pages in the electronic book. The steps indicated in these flowcharts are performed in a modality of the step indicated by block 402 in figure 25. When introducing the routine, a step of unfolding a current page of the book is performed as indicated by block 450. The current page includes text from the current page of the book, a graphic display of a number of pages that remain in the book, a display of a bookmark chart if there is a bookmark associated with the current page, a chart of tip folded if the current page is tipped folded, and a note marker icon if there is an annotation associated with the current page. Optionally, the current page includes graphics from the current page of the book. After displaying the current page, a bifurcation stage is performed as indicated by block 452, based on any event initiated by a user that is received. If an event initiated by a user that selects a portion of the text is received, a step of marking the portion of the text is performed as indicated by block 454. The portion of the text may be marked either by highlighting in color or scale gray the portion of the text, underlining the portion of the text or displaying the portion of the text in a form of video-investment. The portion of the text can be selected directly by a user by sliding a finger or a bright pencil over the portion of the text. Alternatively, the portion of the text may be selected indirectly by a menu selection technique. After the portion of the text has been marked, a step is performed, a dialog box option selection is displayed as indicated by block 456. The dialog box option selection provides a plurality of options to the user that include a note capture option, a highlight option, a reproduction capture option, and an established book mark option. As indicated by block 460, a step of receiving an event initiated by a user indicative of a selection of one of the options is performed. Based on the selection, a bifurcation step is performed as indicated by block 462. If the note capture option is selected, then a step of executing an annotation subroutine is performed as indicated by block 464. If the playback capture option is selected, then a step of executing a playback capture subroutine as indicated by block 466 is performed. If the highlight option is selected, then a step of executing a highlighting subroutine is performed is indicated by block 470. If the bookmark option set is selected, then a step of executing a book mark subroutine is performed as indicated by block 472. When the execution of either the annotation subroutine is finished , the playback capture subroutine, the highlighting subroutine or the bookmark subroutine, a step of determining whether an advancement mode is active as indicated by block 474 is performed. the advance mode is inactive, then the flow of the routine goes back to block 452 which performs a bifurcation stage based on an event initiated by a user. If the advance mode is active, then a step of determining whether a boost mode is active as indicated by block 476 is performed. If the boost mode is active then a step of shifting a boost is performed. through the current page as indicated by block 480. Scrolling the highlight through the current page allows the advance of a user's crawl through the current page. A user can activate the enhance mode to help improve his reading speed. The highlight that moves across the page can be found in the form of either a color or gray scale highlight, an underline of text, or in the form of video inversion of the text. If the touch screen 130 is capable of illumination from the selective background, then, the enhancement can be made in the form of illumination from the selective background of a small portion of the touch screen 130. After the displacement of the highlight through the page current in book 480 or if the enhancement mode is inactive, then a step of determining whether it is time to display a subsequent page as indicated by block 482 is performed. If it is not yet time to display a subsequent page, then the flow is directed back to block 452. If the time has come to display a subsequent page, then a step of updating the current page is performed as indicated by block 484. Next, a stage of unfolding a turn is performed. from page forward in an animated pattern, as indicated by block 486. This step includes displaying a sequence of animated images simulating a fast forward of a page. The routine flow is then directed back to block 450 to display the current new page. With reference to block 452, if an event initiated by a user indicative that the user selected the note marker icon is received, then the step of executing the annotation routine indicated by block 464 is performed. Hereinafter, the subsequent steps are performed starting with the step indicated in block 474. With reference to the branch step performed in block 452, if a bent tip event initiated by a user is received, then a step of executing a routine is performed bent tip as indicated by block 490. If the event initiated by a user is indicative that the user selected the portion of the bookmark page, then a step of executing a bookmark administration routine is performed. as indicated by block 491. From here on, the subsequent steps are performed starting with the stage indicated by block 474. Similarly, if no events are received, s by a user in block 452, then the flow of the routine is directed to the step indicated by block 474. If the event initiated by a user is indicative that the user selected the portion of the page return page, then the flow of block 452 branches to a step of decreasing from the current page as indicated by block 494. In addition, a step of displaying a backward page turn in an animated pattern as indicated by block 494 is performed. This stage includes displaying a sequence of animated images that simulate a quick return of a page. The steps indicated by blocks 486 and 494 give the user the feeling of feeling that a page of information is being rotated in place, leading forward the familiar paradigm of flipping the page of a standard paper book. As indicated by block 496, a step of determining whether the current new page is the title page after the block stage 494 is performed. If the current new page is the title page, then the execution of the routine to display the text pages in the electronic book as indicated by block 500. If the current new page is any page except the title page, then the routine flow is directed back to block 450 where it is performed a stage of unfolding the current new page. If the event initiated by a user is indicative that the user selected the portion of the page page in advance, then the flow is directed from the stage indicated by block 452 to a step of increasing the current page as indicated by the block 502. In addition, a step of displaying a forward page turn in an animated pattern indicated by block 504. The flow of the routine is then directed back to block 450 where the new augmented current page is displayed. Figure 29 is a flow chart of the steps taken to display a current page in the electronic book. These steps constitute a method modality for performing the step indicated by block 450 in figure 27. As indicated by block 510, a step of displaying the text from the current page of the book is performed. The text is displayed according to a primary character set parameter and a primary size parameter. If there is any embossing associated with a portion of the text on the current page, then a step of unfolding the portion of the text is performed in an enhanced manner as indicated by block 512. If any graphic information is included on the current page, then a step of displaying the graphic information is performed as indicated by block 513. As indicated by block 514, a stage of graphically displaying a number of pages that remain in the book is done. The number of pages remaining in the book can be displayed in the sixth portion 188 of the touch screen 130 as illustrated in Figure 4. The number of pages remaining in the book can be displayed graphically using either an image of a number of pages. pages, a dark line as a falling shadow or a group of parallel lines to indicate the relative depth by the number of pages in a given document. When the current page is one of the previous pages in the book, the drop shadow or depth of graphic image is relatively deep, indicating that a significant portion of the rest of the book to be read is found. When the current page is near the middle of the book, the falling shadow or graphic image depth is half deep. When it is near the end of the book, the falling shadow or depth of graphic image becomes very thin indicating that the reader is near the end of the book. As a result, the user can determine at a glance how much of the book he has read and his relative position in the book as well as in a standard paper book. As an alternative to using an upper portion of the touch screen to graphically display the remaining number of pages in the book, a side edge and / or lower edge of the touch screen 130 may be used to provide this graphic display. As indicated by block 516, a step of determining whether a bookmark is associated with the current page is performed. If a bookmark is associated with the current page, then a step of displaying a bookmark is performed as indicated by block 520. As indicated by block 522, a step of determining whether the page is performed is performed. current is tipped folded. If the current page is bent tip, then a step of displaying a bent tip graphic is performed as indicated by block 524. As indicated by block 526, a step of determining whether there is an annotation for the page is performed. current. If there is an annotation associated with the current page, then a step of displaying a note marker icon as indicated by block 530 is performed. Figure 30 is a flow chart of steps performed in a modality of an annotation routine . Such an annotation routine is executed in the step indicated by block 464 in FIG. 28. As indicated by block 540, a step of displaying a window to display the annotation is performed.

As indicated by block 542, a step of deploying a programmable keyboard is performed on touch screen 130. The programmable keyboard is provided to receive a plurality of key press events to form the annotation. After displaying the programmable keyboard and the annotation window, a step of receiving a key-press event is performed as indicated by block 544. As indicated by block 546, a branch operation is performed based on the event of key press received in block 544. If the key press event is indicative that the user selected either an alphanumeric key or a symbolic key on the programmable keypad, then a step of displaying a character associated with the key is performed. as indicated by block 560. The character associated with the key is displayed in the annotation window. After displaying the character, the flow of the routine is directed back to block 544 where a subsequent keypress event is received. Referring again to the branch step indicated by block 546, if the key press event is indicative of a user selecting the closing key from the programmable keypad, then a step of closing the programmable keypad is performed as indicated. by block 562. A step of closing the annotation window is also performed, as indicated by block 564. As indicated by block 566, a step of displaying a note marker icon on the page is performed. From here on, the execution of the annotation subroutine is completed. With reference again to the branch step performed in block 546, if the key press event is indicative that the user selected the note collection key, then a step of communicating the annotation to an external personal computer is performed. as indicated by block 570. After communicating the annotation to the personal computer, the flow of the routine is directed back to block 544 where a subsequent keypress event is received. Fig. 31 is a flow diagram of the steps performed in a capture-to-play subroutine modality. Such playback capture subroutine may be performed to provide the step indicated by block 466 in FIG. 28. Before entering the playback capture subroutine, an event initiated by a user in the electronic book that selects a portion of the text is received. deployed on the touch screen. After receiving the event initiated by a user, a plurality of text-marking options are displayed, including a capture-to-play option and an event initiated by a user indicative that a user selected the capture-to-play option is received. As indicated by block 580, a step of storing reproducing data representative of the text portion is performed. The reproducing data is stored in the internal machine-readable storage medium 154 illustrated in FIG. 3. As indicated in block 582, a step of storing source data identifying the source of the reproducing data is performed. The source data may be representative of the author of the book, the title of the book, a date of publication of the book and / or a book editor. The source data is stored in the internal machine-readable storage medium 154 of FIG. 3. As indicated by block 584, a step is performed to keep the reproducing data and the source data in the internal environment of the source. machine-readable storage where the removable machine-readable storage media is removed from the electronic book. As a result of this step, the subsequent steps can be performed based on the reproducing data and the source data when the removable machine-readable storage medium is removed. Specifically, a step of recovering the reproducing data and the source data from the internal machine-readable storage medium can be performed when the removable storage medium readable by the machine is removed from the electronic book. Hereinafter, a step of displaying the portion of the text presented by the reproducing data and the source information represented by the source data may be performed. Fig. 32 is a flow diagram of the steps performed in a bent tip subroutine embodiment. Such bent tip subroutine is executed in the step indicated by block 490 in Fig. 27. As indicated by block 590, a step of determining a duration in which a bent tip portion of the touch screen is held is performed. . A step of comparing the duration to a predetermined threshold is performed as indicated by block 592. The predetermined threshold may be approximately one second. If the duration is less than the predetermined threshold, then a step of determining whether the current page has a bent tip as indicated by block 594 is performed. If the current page does not have a bent tip, then a storage step is performed an indication that the current page is bent tip, as indicated by block 596. In addition, a step of displaying a bent tip graphic in an upper corner portion of the touch screen 130 is performed as indicated by the block 600. From now on, the execution of the bent-tip subroutine is terminated. With reference to blocks 592 and 594, if the duration is greater than or equal to the predetermined threshold or if the current page already has the tip bent, then a step of unfolding a bent tip dialog box as indicated by the block is performed. 602. A list of all marked pages is displayed inside the doubled tip dialog box. In addition, an option is displayed to show the marks corresponding to all the pages marked along one edge of each page. As indicated by block 604, an event initiated by a user is received. As indicated by block 606, a bifurcation step is performed based on the event initiated by a received user. If the event initiated by a user is indicative of a user selecting a page number from the list of marked pages, then a step of setting the current page to the selected number of pages as indicated by block 610 is performed. the event initiated by a user is indicative that the user selected the mark option, then a step of displaying marks corresponding to the tip pages folded along a page edge is performed as indicated by block 612. Figure 33 is a flow chart of the steps performed in a mode of a progress control subroutine. The progress control subroutine is executed in the step indicated by block 472 in the figure . As indicated by block 620, a step of determining a number of remaining pages in the book is performed. As indicated by block 622, a step of determining a step of the current reading user is performed. Based on the number of pages remaining in the book, a step of calculating one or more estimated completion times is performed as indicated by block 624. A first estimated completion time can be calculated by dividing the number of words or pages that remain in the book by the user's current reading step. As a result, the estimated first completion time estimates how much it would take the user to finish the book at its current reading step. A second estimated completion time is calculated by dividing the number of words or pages remaining in the book by a desired reading step. The estimated second completion time estimates how much it would take the user to finish the book at the desired reading step. As indicated by block 626, a step of displaying each estimated completion time is performed. Each estimated completion time may be displayed in a corresponding statement as illustrated in Figure 15. As indicated in block 630, a step of calculating a reading step necessary to satisfy a predetermined reading goal is performed. The predetermined reading goal can be found in the form of a length of time in which a user wishes to finish the remaining pages in the book. Here, the necessary reading step is calculated by dividing the number of pages remaining in the book by the duration time. A step is then performed to display the reading step necessary to satisfy the reading objective as indicated by block 632. As indicated in block 634, a step of displaying one or more graphical advance controls is performed. As illustrated in FIG. 15, the one or more graphics advance controls may include a graphic slide bar such as the graphic slide bar 294 used to modify the desired reading step and a graphic switch such as the graphic switch 296 which is Use to enable and disable an automatic text advance using an advance routine.

As indicated by block 636, an event initiated by a user is received. As indicated by block 640, if the event initiated by a user is indicative that the user selects the page return portion of touch screen 130, then execution of the progress control subroutine is terminated. Upon completion of the progress control subroutine, the system control page is displayed on the touch screen 130. If the event initiated by a user is not indicative that the user selected the page return portion, then a stage is performed of updating an advance parameter based on the event initiated by a user as indicated by block 642. Examples of the advance parameters include the reading step desired and the reading target. After updating the advance parameter, the flow of the subroutine is directed back to block 624 to recalculate an estimated completion time and the necessary reading step. Fig. 34 is a flowchart of the steps performed in a modality of the character set selection subroutine. The character set selection subroutine is executed in block 414 in the event cycle of FIG. 25. As indicated by block 650, a step of displaying a plurality of words is performed using a plurality of combinations of different sets of corresponding characters and different sizes. More specifically, each word is displayed using a specific character set and a specific size according to the combination corresponding thereto. Optionally, the step of displaying the plurality of words may include displaying a respective character set name for each of the combinations. As another option, the step of displaying the plurality of words may include displaying a single textual expression using the corresponding plurality of combinations. As indicated in block 652, a step of receiving an event initiated by a user indicative that the user selected a word of the plurality of words is performed. This selection indicates that the combination of character set / size is desired by the user. As indicated by block 654, a step of updating a primary character set parameter and a primary size parameter is performed. The primary character set parameter and the primary size parameter are updated according to the character set / size combination selected by the user. As indicated by block 656, a step of automatically returning is performed to display the title page after receiving the event initiated by a user by selecting the word. From here on, a subsequent stage of displaying the text of a book includes displaying the text using the primary character set at least the primary size. Figure 35 is a flowchart of the steps performed in a mode of the system control subroutine. The control subroutine of the system is executed in the step indicated by block 416 in the cycle of events of figure 25. As indicated in block 660, a step of displaying a plurality of graphical controls is performed to establish the parameters of the system. The system parameters may include display parameters such as a contrast parameter, a tone parameter, and a color parameter. The system parameters can also include a sound parameter. As indicated in block 662, a step of receiving an event initiated by a user is performed. If the event initiated by a user is indicative that the user selected the page return portion of the touch screen, as indicated in block 664, then the execution of the system control subroutine is terminated. For other events initiated by a user, a step of updating a system parameter is performed as indicated by block 668. As described above, the electronic book uses a unique method of encoding words on the book card or in the middle Removable from machine-readable storage 136. One embodiment of the text storage (encoding) method is shown in Figure 36. The process is initiated in step 702, by converting a plurality of text sequences to a plurality of indicators in the step 704. The plurality of indicators consists of a plurality of data bits. The plurality of data bits used to form the plurality of indicators is compressed in step 706 and the process ends in step 708. In the preferred embodiment, compression is performed using a Huffman compression technique. In another mode, the bits used to compress the indicators are measured in 706. In this form, the editor knows the total number of bits used to store the text of the book. The publisher uses this information to determine the total storage requirements for the book card, which in turn is a factor in setting the price of the book card. In addition, the publisher uses this information to determine licensing rights for the use of less than the entire book. For example, if another publisher wishes to use only the first chapter of the book in one of his books, the publisher changes a license right based on the number of bits in the first chapter. Figure 37 is a mode of the steps used to store text. The process starts in step 710, by determining whether the first sequence is contained in a permanent dictionary (the permanent dictionary is described in more detail with respect to figure 40) in step 712. When the sequence is contained in the permanent dictionary, the sequence is converted to an indicator in step 714. When the sequence is not contained in the permanent dictionary, it is determined whether the sequence is contained in a special dictionary in step 716. When the sequence is contained in the special dictionary, this is converted to an indicator in step 714. When the sequence is not contained in the special dictionary, it is determined if the sequence should be added to the special dictionary in step 718. When the sequence is added to the special dictionary it is converted to an indicator in step 714. When the sequence is not added to the special dictionary, it is left as a sequence in step 720. After the sequence was converted to an indicator in step 714 or left as a sequence in step 720 , it is determined whether the process has reached the end of the file in step 722. When the process has not reached the end of the file, the process returns to step 712. When the process has At the end of the file, a statistical analysis of the underlined data bits is performed in step 724. This statistical analysis is used to form a code table in step 726. The underlined data bits are then compressed in step 728 and the process ends in step 730. One mode of a method for storing ASCII clear text for a compressed file (indicators) is a C program of amusement in a general-purpose computer. The program has different phases: a phase of lexicographic coding from indicator to word and a phase of probabilistic compression of sequence bit by bit. In the coding phase, the program interactively builds / expands a standard dictionary and a custom dictionary. For each word in the cleared text file the program tries to find the word in the standard dictionary (SD). If the word is in the SD, the program continues until the next word. If the word is not in the (SD), the program questions whether the new word should be added to the SD. If the answer is affirmative, the word is added before proceeding to the next job. If the answer is negative, the program searches in the custom dictionary (CD) and if the word is found, it returns to the next word. If the word is not found on the CD, the program questions whether the new word should be added to the CD. If the answer is affirmative, the word is added before proceeding to the next word. If the answer is negative, the program simply proceeds to the next word. At the end of the first step, all the normal words in the text file must be in either the SD or the CD; sequences of special characters (for example, an expletive # @% voided) must be explicitly excluded and treated simply as interspersed ASCII sequences (see below). In one mode, the program can start with an existing SD and CD. In another modality, the program can start with an existing SD and build an SD or vice versa. In the second or coding step, the program uses the SD and CD built in the first step to encode the cleared text file into a coded text file. As in step one, the program extracts each word in the cleared text file and tries to find the word in the SD file. If the word is found in the SD, the program constructs an SD indicator that indicates where the word was found in the SD and append the indicator to the encoded text file. If the word is not found in the SD, the program searches the CD. If the word is found, the program constructs a CD indicator that indicates where the word was found on the CD and attaches this indicator to the encoded text file. If the word was not found in the SD or CD, the program append each character of the sequence to the encoded text file, pre-selecting each character with an appropriate control code. In the second phase the program performs probabilistic compression (Huffman coding), making two steps through the encoded text file. In the first or construction phase, the program reads the encoded text file, counting the number of occurrences of each of the 256 possible 8-bit ASCII characters. Using this statistical information, the program constructs a Huffman table in which the character that occurs most frequently is assigned to a very short replacement bit sequence and the character that occurs less frequently is assigned to a much larger replacement bit sequence. , assigning all the other characters that intervene to respective bit sequences indicative of their frequency. In the second step, the program uses the Huffman table built in the first step to compress the encoded text file into a compressed encoded text file. In this step, the program extracts each character in the 8-bit encoded text file, finds the corresponding replacement bit sequence in the Huffman table, and writes that sequence of bits to the compressed text file. Note that the encoded text file contains several work tables that precede the current target bit stream. These tables are preserved during the compression phase. In addition, the program presets the Huffman table to the compressed encoded text file. This aspect is very important for security reasons. If this table is kept in the protected memory inside the MCU of the book card then the rest of the file may be in the memory outside the board (but on card). This is because without this table, the rest of the information is pure incoherence, even if the coding formats given below are made public. In another mode, the program during the second step of the second phase has the ability to accept chapter limit markers embedded in the encoded text file and build a chapter displacement table that indicates each chapter start location in the file of compressed text encoded. This chapter table would then be included in the data card to facilitate protection and resume functions. Below are the tables that show the coding formats used by the program.

Code Field: Clear ASCII text (including Control Functions) Standard Dictionary (the uppercase letter) 10 Custom Dictionary (the uppercase letter) 110 Standard Dictionary (the uppercase letter) 1110 Custom Dictionary (the uppercase letter) 11110 Flat Surface Field: No initial space precedes this word Initial space preceding this word Data Field: ASCII- [7: 0] standard 8-bit code Standard Dictionary Indicator - [15-0] index in the SD file Custom Dictionary Indicator [11-0] index in the CD file Control Functions: Def Códiao Function Tab. Horizontal HT 009 Paragraph New NP 010 Page Clear / Page New PG 012 Text of Center CT 001 Tab to Center TC 011 IN CAPITAL LETTERS all the preceding words CW 003 Ellipsis (...) EL 201 Diéresis (for example, ü) UM 005 Repeat start of the control function, for example put in italics CO 006 Repeat stop the control function ST 007 Backspace (ie overlay) BS 008 Put the next word (repeatable) in italics IT 014 Underline the next word (repeatable) ) UN 095 Bold word the next word (repeatable) BO 015 Enhance the next word (repeatable) HL 016 ASCII Text Sequence Delimiter start / stop TS 024 (For long sequences, ie,> 10 characters) Possessive case l - s' Pl 017 Possessive case 2 - 's P2 018 Shrinkage case 1 - '11 Cl 019 Shrinkage case 2 -' d C2 020 Shrinkage case 3 - 've C3 021 Shrinkage case 4 -' re C4 022 Contraction Case ón 5 - not C5 023 Contraction Case 6 - 'm C6 025 End-of-Text EOT 004 The standard and custom directories have the same basic format. The SD contains all the most commonly used words, while the CD contains all or at least most of the other words in a 'book' not yet present in the SD. The current SD contains approximately 35,000 words. Each dictionary file contains the following structures: Word Indicator Base Table: Input 1 is the total number of words in the Dictionary; Entries 2 through 27 are (the fast binary search indicators in the dictionary up to the corresponding letter 26 of the alphabet, for example, Entry 2 indicates the letter VA 'while Entry 27 indicates the letter' Z ', and Entry 28 indicates the last word in the Dictionary. Dictionary: The ASCII text of the lower case of each of the words in the Dictionary, arranged in standard alphabetical order, includes each of the letters of the alphabet per se .. The words are separated from each other by a space. In one modality the SD would be included as a permanent part of the electronic book. The SD could be updated by a separate data card 136. The custom dictionary is included in the book card along with compressed coded text and control files. In one modality, the e-book would dynamically build the CD in its storage job, so that all subsequent references would be through only the CD indicator. In another mode the CD is a separate file on the book card, but a transferred front phase is not necessary. During the exchange of book-to-princepal card signals, the MCU book card can notify the main MPU of the size of the CD on the card. Having built the necessary (empty) structure to accommodate the CD inputs, the main MPU can almost easily detect when the book card MCU is subsequently passed to an indicator to an empty CD input. In response to an adequate demand, the book card MCU can quickly search the card and pass the corresponding word to the MPU to update its CD structure in the book. Figure 38 is a block diagram of an electronic book (device) 740 mode. A card reader (interface) 150 receives the book card 136. The book card 136 (see figure 39) contains a special dictionary 742, a plurality of indicators 744 and a compression code 746. In the preferred embodiment, the compression code is a Huffman coding table. The processor 152 decompresses the plurality of indicators 744 using the compression code 746. The processor then reads the plurality of indicators 744 on the book card 136 and associates each of the indicators 744 with an ASCII sequence representing a word in a dictionary 748. The general dictionary 748 is contained in the memory (internal memory) 154 and contains a plurality of words. The memory 154 also contains a page memory 750. The word is then displayed on a screen (touch screen) 130. A speaker 752 is connected to the processor 152 and is used to "read" the book without loading. Figure 40 is a schematic representation of a modality of a permanent dictionary 760. The permanent dictionary 760 is made of a plurality of entries 762. The entries 762 consist of three columns: an index 764 containing an indicator; an ASCII 766 entry representing a word or control character; and a phonetic code (phonetic representation) 768 used for the voicing of words (that is, to read the book). In one embodiment, the special dictionary 742 follows the same format as the permanent dictionary 760. When a book card 136 is inserted into the electronic book 740, the processor 153 stores the entries of the special dictionary 742 in the associated index or indicator 764. A secure number of indicators 764 in the permanent dictionary 760 is empty and reserved for use by special dictionary 742. Special dictionary 742 contains words that are not found in the permanent dictionary 748. For example, proper names are stored in the special dictionary 742. In another modality, each of the indicators on the book card is preceded by a code. The code tells the electronic book 740 if it looks for the indicator in the permanent dictionary 748 or in the special dictionary 742. The code can also be used to determine if the word should be in upper case. Figure 41 is a schematic representation of a page memory mode 750. After processor 152 associates one of the plurality of indicators 744 with an ASCII word 766, the word ASCII 766 is stored in a page memory 750. When the page memory 750 is full, a text page is displayed on the screen 130. FIG. 42 is a block diagram of a modality of the speech synthesis circuitry for reading the book without loading the user. The processor 152 retrieves the phonetic code 768 from the dictionary. The processor 152 converts the phonetic code 768 into a digital waveform 770. The digital waveform 770 is converted into a 772 analog waveform by a digital to analog converter 774. The analog waveform 172 is connected to an input 776 of the 752 horn. In this way the phonetic code becomes sound. Figure 43 is a flow diagram of one embodiment of the steps used by electronic book 740 to display text. The process is initiated in step 780, by the processor decompressing the information in the book card in step 782. Next one of the plurality of indicators is read in step 784. The processor then searches the permanent dictionary for the associated ASCII word in step 786. When the book card is inserted into the electronic book, the processor transfers the special dictionary entries into the permanent dictionary. When the book card is removed or the book is closed, the contents of the special dictionary are removed from the permanent dictionary. In step 788 the associated ASCII sequence is stored in the page memory. The processor then determines if the page memory is full in step 790. If the page memory is not full, the processor returns to step 782. If the page memory is full, the electronic book displays the characters associated with the pages. ASCII sequences on the screen in step 792. As a result, a subset of a plurality of words in the permanent dictionary is displayed in a predetermined sequence. The plurality of indicators is stored in a predetermined sequence. That is, it allows the electronic book to display a page of a book instead of just random characters. This process is repeated for each book page. In this way, a method and apparatus for compressing and presenting data has been described. Data compression significantly reduces the storage capacity required for the book card. In addition, the compression code acts as a security code that prevents direct playback. The method and apparatus allows the book to be displayed or read without loading. Although the invention has been described in conjunction with the specific embodiments thereof, it is apparent that many alterations and modifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the foregoing description. In accordance with the foregoing, it is intended to cover all such alterations, modifications and variations in the appended claims.

Claims (10)

1. NOVELTY OF THE INVENTION Having described the present invention, it is considered as a novelty and therefore the property described in the following claims is claimed as property. A method of presenting texts, comprising the steps of: (a) reading one of a plurality of indicators stored as computer-readable data in a removable machine-readable storage medium installed in an electronic book; (b) searching for an ASCII sequence associated with one of the plurality of indicators, in a permanent dictionary in the electronic book; ® store the ASCII sequence in a page memory, - (d) repeat steps (a) - (c) until the page memory is full, - and (e) display a character associated with the ASCII sequence on an electronic book screen. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that step (b) further includes the step of searching for a phonetic representation of a word associated with the ASCII sequence. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that step (e) further includes the step of sounding the phonetic representation. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that it includes the steps of: (i) decompressing an information contained in the removable storage media readable by the machine installed in the electronic book (ii) reading a special dictionary stored as computer-readable data in the removable storage medium readable by machine installed in the electronic book; (iii) storing each of a plurality of entries in the special dictionary, in the electronic book; and (vi) proceed to stage (a). 5. An apparatus for presenting texts, comprising: a book card having a plurality of indicators; an interface that receives the book card, -a screen; an internal memory that has a permanent dictionary that has a plurality of words, - and a processor in communication with the interface, the screen and the internal memory and that displays a subset of the plurality of words in the permanent dictionary based on the plurality of indicators. The apparatus according to claim 5, characterized in that the book card also includes a special dictionary having a plurality of entries. The apparatus according to claim 5, characterized in that the permanent dictionary has an index and a phonetic representation for each of the plurality of words. A method for storing texts, comprising the steps of: (a) converting a plurality of text sequences to a plurality of indicators, wherein the indicators comprise a plurality of data bits; and (b) compressing the plurality of data bits used to form the plurality of indicators. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that step (a) further comprises the steps of: (a) determining that each of the plurality of text sequences is contained in a permanent dictionary; (a2) when a text sequence in the plurality of text sequences is contained in the permanent dictionary, convert the text sequence to an indicator, - (a3) when the text sequence is not in the permanent dictionary, determine if the text sequence is in a special dictionary; and (a4) when the text sequence is in the special dictionary, convert the text sequence into an indicator. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that step (b) further includes the steps of: (bl) performing a statistical analysis of the plurality of data bits; (b2) create a code table based on statistical analysis; and (b3) compressing the plurality of data bits using the code table.