Electronic Publication This is the full name of the now so popular e-book format - ePub. This is a zip-archive file that contains XML descriptions of the book itself and its edition, as well as the text itself, which is in the (x) HTML format or. The archive can also contain other folders. They store graphic materials, images and photographs, as well as embedded fonts, style sheets, etc. Due to this, publishers easily manage to ensure the same display of an e-book on any device and through any viewer for .epub files.

Fortunately, now there is something to open this format, and you can read books by eminent authors on almost any modern device without the slightest difficulty. Let's start with stationary computers.

Windows family systems have the following programs in their arsenal to read the .epub format:

Caliber (Suitable not only for viewing, but also for converting);

ICEReader (also allows you to convert the format);
- STDU Viewer.

As for the equally famous operating system macOS, things with her are somewhat more modest. However, there is a choice: this is a powerful and multifunctional Caliber and a very convenient FBReader.

Linux similar systems are also not distinguished by a special variety of software., the user's choice is all the same Caliber, FBReader and a very good CoolReader.

If you have a need to create your own book and you want to make it in the .epub format, you have the right to use the following software: Sigil, Jutoh, eCub.

As for mobile platforms, there is also something to roam about.

Robust iOS can offer users the following applications:

IBooks (native application set by the standard);
- BookMate (which has its own personal online library);
- i2Reader;
- Stanza.

Android boasts several different readers: mobile FBReader and CoolReader, as well as Aldiko Book Reader.

The conclusion can be made as follows- there are a lot of programs for reading e-books of the ePub format. But, if you use third-party software - a problem, you can get by with a regular browser.

For connoisseurs, there is the following extension - EPUBReader, the purpose of which is to introduce ePub and your browser. Once you install this extension, your browser will get a new button on the toolbar. With its help, you can open a catalog of books, which contains a couple of sections. In one section, we can see a number of free books from popular sites (Archive.org and Feedbook.com). Another section is for your personal books.

There are several ways to add a book to your own extension library. The first way is to add from online resources by clicking on any link of the book in ePub format, it will be added to the library. The second method involves adding books from your hard drive or removable media, you will need to follow to File-> Open[i].

This online "Reader" is not without a number of useful options that allow you to customize the display of text, increase the font, change the background and much more. In addition, all previously added books will be accessible to the user even if there is no Internet connection.

The multi-million dollar army of fans also has a really good extension called MagicScroll. This extension places its own icon in the application tab when creating a new browser page. After the first launch of the application, we will be able to add books to our own library.

By clicking on the cover of a book from the list, you will immediately open it. The upper left corner has become the corner of a row of buttons that will help us in choosing one of the text styles and calling the table of contents for the book. Since by default the text is displayed in the "Reader" as one-page, it is advisable to switch to the multi-screen reading mode, for this there is a special button.

The smart (automatic) scrolling feature deserved special attention, so you can adjust the speed of automatic scrolling of the page to the pace of your reading.

Using one of these extensions, you get a wonderful opportunity to read any ePub books right in your own browser window, without the need to install third-party programs. In this case, reading will also be available offline.

So we have analyzed a number of applications that can help you read your favorite books in the popular electronic format. All that remains is to choose the only application or browser extension, make some strong tea, wrap yourself in a warm blanket and you will be guaranteed a pleasant evening!

This article presents programs with which you can read electronic, digital books in epub format. The publication was prepared by the PR-service of the Publish a Book project together with our authors - Alina Raspopova (selection of information, source text) and Tancho Ivans (selection of information).

The epub format is one of the most common e-book formats. Moreover, this format has recently become an international standard.

According to its technical characteristics, epub is very close to html-pages, which is very convenient for placing such books on the Internet. In turn, we all know that in order to travel on the Internet and read html pages posted on the world wide web, special programs are needed - browsers (from the English browser, which translates as "a visitor viewing goods" or "a program for viewing"). The most famous among them today are Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Safari, Internet Explorer, Opera.

In the same way, to read e-book files in the epub format, you need your own programs, your own specialized book browsers. They are usually called reader programs. There are special requirements for such programs, because reading books requires much more time than reading html pages. The main task of all such products is to create the most comfortable conditions for reading a book by selecting the best parameters for displaying text and viewing modes.

Book browsers are produced by software companies, as well as a large number of enthusiasts, i.e. programmers who, on their own initiative, create certain programs. Therefore, at present, the number of such reading programs is quite large, they differ among themselves in different parameters, are written for different operating systems and for various reading devices - stationary computers and laptops, readers, smartphones, tablets.

This article presents some of these reading programs, which we have selected quite subjectively - from the point of view of personal experience of their use, ease of finding and installation, ease of use. *

In this review, we did not set ourselves the task of detailing the functionality of each program. The purpose of this publication is an initial acquaintance with those programs that can be used by an ordinary user, looking at them through the eyes of another, the same ordinary user.

These programs can be used on stationary computers and laptops.

CoolReader

Convenient program for reading e-books. Interestingly, it was developed by a Russian author, and not even a programmer, but simply a computer lover Vadim Lopatin. And it is designed so well that it was included in the procurement list for the US military department.

The program works under different operating systems (Windows, Android, Linux). It has many different features, for example, setting the size, type and color of the font, setting the color of pages, 6 built-in backgrounds, support for the visual modes "page" and "scroll", support for content with hyperlinks, the ability to create reader bookmarks, etc.

In general, CoolReader has a sufficient number of settings to select the most comfortable text display for the eyes and a simple, clear interface. The program is Russified, does not require installation.

AlReader

Not a bad reader for the Windows operating system. Differs in a more artistic presentation of the text. It also has a lot of settings for displaying text.

The program is Russified, does not require installation.

ICE Book Reader

A powerful program for reading e-books on a computer / laptop. Works under the Windows operating system. It has many settings, which makes it seem more difficult to use at first acquaintance.

Caliber

A powerful and at the same time with a simple, accessible interface a package for reading books on various operating systems (Windows, OS X, Linux). Well supports the creation of your own libraries, is able to download books from various online stores, downloads news and converts them into the desired format for reading.

The program is Russified, requires installation.

FBReader

A convenient program for reading books, works under a variety of operating systems (Windows, OS X, Linux, Android), including platforms for various mobile devices. It has a simple and intuitive interface, automatically detects the text encoding, preserves the author's formatting most correctly, and allows you to create your own libraries from books stored on your computer.

The program is Russified, requires installation.

Adobe Digital Editions

A simple program for reading books. It is not Russified, so it does not always work correctly with Russian fonts, but it has a very simple and intuitive interface.

Requires installation.

STDU Viewer

A simple and practical viewer for files in epub, pdf, fb2 and many other formats, working under the Windows operating system. Perhaps the most compact program for reading books (the size of the installation file is 2.37 MB, the installed program is about 7 MB).

The program is Russified.

Example: What an e-book looks like in one of the reading programs

The screenshot shows the spread of the first pages of one of the recently released books as it appears in the reader.

The picture is clickable, i.e. when you click on it, it will be shown in an enlarged size. And if you then click in the enlarged picture, the icon with four white arrows in the lower right corner, then the picture will open in full screen.

At the top of the window, control buttons are visible, such as increasing the font, changing the background, the number of pages to display on the screen, etc.

The cover is shown on the left side of the screen, and the beginning of the text on the right. Content with hyperlinks is also visible here. By clicking sections of the table of contents, the reader can quickly jump to the corresponding chapters.

*Note

If a program is not mentioned in this review, you can indicate it in the comments.

Hello, friends! In this article we will understand how to open ePub file on your computer. You can open this e-book format in various ways. We will focus on online services and applications for the Google Chrome and Firefox browser. If it is convenient for you to open ePub in programs, then you can use STDU Viewer, AlReader, Cool Reader. These programs have portable versions. I would use them to not install anything on the computer. Since the fewer programs we install, the more stable our system works.

The ePub file opens in a separate tab. At the bottom, with the blue buttons, you can turn pages forward, backward and chapters or frequent. You can also customize the font.

I liked that if your Firefox opens with tabs that were opened the last time, then the book opens where you finished reading it.

I liked the service http://www.epubread.com/en/ and I even regretted that Google Chrome couldn't do that. But it was not long and I quickly turned up a service for my favorite browser, which we will consider in the next part.

magicscroll.net - Google Chrome

What I love about online services is that you can use it in any browser. We go to the site www.magicscroll.net click on the button "Add a Book to Your Library"

In the pop-up window, click "Select File" and add an e-book (ePub file) to your library

To see a prompt with hotkeys, press "H".

At the top left of the page there are 4 more buttons: Return to Library, Open Table of Contents, Settings and Download.

In the settings, you can choose a theme and font size. I like to set the small print (Small)

There are all the functions as in the service http://www.epubread.com/ + there is a scrolling that can be flexibly customized and not pressed any buttons. Naturally, if the "open last opened tabs" settings are set in the browser, then the book will open at the moment where you finished reading it.

Click "FREE" and install MagicScroll eBook Reader in Google Chrome

In the pop-up window, click "Add"

and the application is installed.

MagicScroll eBook Reader is an offline application. That is, you can open ePub files without a network connection.

To start, open a new tab in Google Chrome, click on the "Applications" button and select MagicScroll eBook Reader if you have installed visual bookmarks from Yandex

If you have everything by default, then you can see here https://support.google.com/chrome_webstore/answer/3060053?hl=ru&rd=1 how to get to applications in Google Chrome.

The only drawback is the presence of scrolling at the bottom of the screen. Opera doesn't have that.

A button for calling "Table of Contents" appears at the top left.

You can flip through the pages using the arrows on the keyboard or click on the arrow "Right" or "Left" when you move the mouse to the right or left side of the window.

When you close the book bookmate.com remembers which page you left off and the next time you press the "Read" button it will open the same page for you.

Conclusion

In this article, we have analyzed the question - "How to open ePub files on a computer?". We looked at three online services. I haven't been able to test them yet, but bookmate.com made the best first impression. With the default settings, it is very pleasant to read. I also really liked that all services remember where you stopped reading the book.

Tell us how you open ePub files on your computer and what is the best way to open them on Android. So far, I installed AlReader, everything is fine.

Best regards, Anton Dyachenko

Mass distribution of electronic editions - books, brochures, magazines, brochures and so on - is a sign of our time. The e-book boom almost coincided with the personal computer boom. At the very beginning of the era of computerization, there were many attempts to present information in an easy-to-read form on a computer.

The information was not stored in ordinary text files, but was recorded in a special format that allowed storing not only graphics, but even sound in a document. On 8-bit consumer computers like the Spectrum, amateur publishing flourished. Even now, in archives and disk images, you can find numbers of computer magazines of the past.

To reproduce them, self-written programs in BASIC and assembler were used. Then came the era of Windows and electronic pocket readers. Epub is one of the modern standards for e-books, but you will learn how to open the epub format on Windows from this text.

Books today come in many forms.

Going to the pages of any electronic library, you can find there pdf, djvu, doc, chm, html files and even plain text files with the usual txt extension. Sometimes epub files can also be found here.

If there is no alternative and it is impossible to download a document in a different format, then the problem of reproducing epub documents in Windows immediately arises. First, a little about what these files are:

• From English, epub translates as Electronic Publication - that is, "electronic publication".
• The file format is identical to a regular zip archive, and its content includes an XML document (container.xml) with the structure of the information offered to the reader.
• In separate folders of the EPUB archive there are pdf and html documents with text, as well as pictures and even style sheets. Thus, the information is not presented as a single image or tagged text, but is divided into separate blocks that can be easily edited without affecting the rest of the document.

How to open ePub file?

This format was originally conceived as multiplatform. The developers expected it to be supported by all hardware and operating system manufacturers. This is approximately how it happened - almost every Axis has in its composition a toolkit for visualizing the contents of these files.

The matter is somewhat complicated by the fact that in different operating systems the format is interpreted in its own way and there is some incompatibility, but, in general, the situation is not so bad. The Windows Opening Toolkit includes the following programs:

In addition to the reading task, you may want to edit the document or convert it from \ to another representation. Therefore, our plate contains not only reader programs, but also writers, as well as well-known converters for Windows. Try something from the list and pick the best.

23.04.2017

When working with a book in electronic format, it is quite common that it has the ePub extension, which is not recognized by standard programs of the Windows operating system. In this case, you have to resort to the help of third-party utilities in order to open the file.

What is ePub

EPub (Electronic Publication) is an open format for books in electronic version. Unlike simple text formats such as txt and the like, ePub is a markup document, which, in addition to simple text, can contain notes and additional information about the text, which makes it easier to work with the file (indicating headers, highlighting, lists, etc.) ).

How to open ePub

It is possible to obtain the information contained in a file of this format in different ways. This can be either installing a full-fledged program on a computer, or a simple browser extension.

If you do not want to overload the system with unnecessary programs, then a simple web browser may be enough for you to read an e-book.

Method 1: using a browser

To work with e-books, there are special browser extensions. Let's consider the main ones.

Opening ePub in Google Chrome

For the Google Chrome browser, the MagicScroll eBook Reader will be a suitable extension. The interface is simple and contains a minimum number of settings that do not overload the general view of the extension. The book can be read directly in the next tab, while you can choose the font and its color, there is the possibility of autoscrolling.

When you open full-screen mode, unnecessary elements are hidden and the book itself is displayed on the screen without distracting elements. There is a small settings menu on the side to adjust the book to your preference.
It is possible to download books directly from your computer. If you have a registration on the site, then all files are subsequently saved in your personal library. Adding books to the extension looks like this:

Opening ePub in Mozilla Firefox

In the Firefox browser, a suitable extension is EPUBReader... It has a very simple design and settings. The user is given the opportunity to change the font, operating mode, add bookmarks, download books to a computer or open them in an extension directly from a personal device. Working with files is done as follows:

Method 2: Caliber

This reader is a cross-platform program for working with text files. Supports a large number of formats, including ePub. Allows you to convert books from one format to another. It is possible to create a cloud library on a personal PC with the ability to work with it on other devices. Books in the created library can be either uploaded independently or purchased through online stores.

With the help of the settings, you can choose the style of displaying the book that is optimal for reading. So you can edit the font, the color of the background and letters, the number of displayed pages. Opening books is easy enough. The next time you open the book, the page on which the work was completed will be shown.

Method 3: FBreader

This free ePub reader is cross-platform. It is possible to create your own library with files sorted by topic or author. Thanks to this program, you do not need to search for the desired book on the device or on the network from time to time. It is enough to open it once in here, and it will be saved in your personal library.

Method 4: CoolReader

This utility for working with e-books, supports formats: FB2, EPUB, DOC, RTF, HTML, CHM, TXT, TCR, PDB, PRC, PML, etc.

Working with the program is quite simple. It has a pleasant design, comfortable for reading and long-term work. It is also possible to change the design style for yourself.

Method 4: STDUviewer

A small program for working with files. It has a multi-window interface that allows you to work with several documents at once. The sidebar displays thumbnails of the pages.

Method 5: ALReader

Utility for working with e-books. It was originally used on mobile devices, but is now supported on Windows as well. Supported formats other than ePub include FB2, mobi, doc, docx, odt, txt, etc.

There are many programs that can open an ePub file, many of which are free. Moreover, it is not necessary to install the new utility on your computer, since you can work with a document even in a browser.