This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Your NOOK Color's Controls
Before you get into enjoying content on your NOOK Color, let's go over the controls on your NOOK Color (see Figure 1.4).
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Figure 1.4 Your NOOK Color's controls.
The Power Button
The Power button is the sole button on the top left side of the NOOK Color. In addition to powering your NOOK Color on and off, the Power button can wake your NOOK Color when it's sleeping or put it to sleep when you finish reading.
To put your NOOK Color to sleep or wake it using the Power button, press and release the Power button quickly. To turn off your NOOK Color, press and hold the Power button for 5 seconds. To turn on your NOOK Color again, press and release the Power button quickly.
The Home Button
The Home button is identified by the NOOK Color logo (a lowercase n) and is located in the center of the black bar along at the bottom of the touchscreen display. Like the Power button, the Home button performs more than one function.
You can wake your NOOK Color by pressing the Home button. If the touchscreen is already illuminated, tapping the Home button takes you to your NOOK Color's Home screen.
The Volume Buttons
These two buttons at the top right of the NOOK Color control the volume. If no videos, music, or other sounds is playing, the Volume buttons control the Notification volume (that is, when something new arrives such as subscription content). When video, music, or other sounds are playing, the Volume buttons control the sound of the media.
The Standard Touchscreen Menus
Because you interact with your NOOK Color almost wholly by touch, it is a good idea to become oriented to the basic, consistent menus that you will see. The basics are covered here, but as you move along through the book, the details of each menu and its offerings will be provided.
The Home Screen
The Home screen is the default opening screen (assuming you are not reading a book) and the screen you end up on if you press the Home button. The Home screen has several features (see Figure 1.5).
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Figure 1.5 The Home screen offers many ways to open ebooks.
- The Daily Shelf: The Daily is a row of cover icons just above the Nav Arrow. You can swipe left and right through the covers. These are recently downloaded items such as today's newspaper or books purchased. You can press and hold and then drag one of the icons into the area above the Daily to keep that content readily available. You can also tap the cover to open it.
- Keep Reading: This button at the top right displays the title of the latest item you were reading. Tapping it opens that book or magazine for reading.
- More: This button at the top displays a list of recently read items, divided up into general categories: Books, Periodicals, and Files. You can tap the title to open that content for reading.
- Home Page: This is the area above the Daily and below the Keep Reading and More buttons. This is an area for you to place frequently read items or items you quickly want to access. The Home Page actually is three pages. To switch from page to page, swipe right or left.
The Quick Nav Bar
You access the Quick Nav Bar by tapping the Nav Arrow. The Quick Nav Bar provides access to many features (see Figure 1.6):
- Library: Tapping this button takes you to your library where you can access books, documents, magazines, newspapers, and more.
- Shop: Tapping this button opens the B&N bookstore, from which you can purchase content and see recommendations.
- Search: Tapping this button searches your NOOK Color for the text you enter.
- Apps: Tapping this button takes you to the NOOK Apps installed on the device.
- Web: Tapping this button takes you to the web browser.
- Settings: Tapping this button takes you to the Settings screen.
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Figure 1.6 The Quick Nav Bar is your friend.
The Status Bar
The bar at the bottom of the touchscreen provides a plethora, depending on what you've got active or enabled on your device, of informational items along with a couple of points of quick access (from left to right):
- Wireless Networks: If wireless networks are in the area you can connect to but you are not currently connected to (assuming you have Wi-Fi on), the Wireless icon with a question mark appears. Tapping it, opens up a screen for you to connect to one of those networks.
- Pandora: If you have Pandora on, tapping this button displays the current song playing. Tapping that takes you to the Pandora app.
- Email: When new email arrives, a Mail icon appears. You can tap it to access the NOOK Color's Email app.
- Music Play: If you have Music Player on, tapping this button displays the current song playing. Tapping that takes you to the Music Player app.
- Notifications: If you tap a blank part of this screen, a notification bubble pops up letting you know about any new downloads.
- Reading Now: Tapping this button opens the current content being read (functions like the Keep Reading button at the top of the Home screen).
- Nav Arrow: Tapping this open the Quick Nav Bar.
- Wi-Fi: If you see the Wi-Fi logo, the NOOK Color is connected to a Wi-Fi hotspot.
- Battery: Provides a visual indication of the amount of charge remaining on the battery.
- Time: Provides the current time.
If you tap the area where the Wi-Fi logo and battery items are, a Quick Settings screen opens (see Figure 1.7). Besides seeing the current date and battery charge, you can turn Wi-Fi on or off, mute all sounds, enable or disable automatic orientation of the screen depending on the orientation of your NOOK Color, and adjust the brightness. (Tap Brightness and then adjust the slider by tapping and dragging.) For more information about the orientation setting, see the "Auto-Rotate Screen" bullet in Chapter 2.
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Figure 1.7 The Quick Settings screen provides quick access to several common settings.
If you need to access more settings beyond the Quick Settings, tap the Gear icon.