Taylor & Francis has announced the introduction of an innovative eReader for its eBooks platform, providing a seamless and enhanced experience for all readers. Accessibility was a key priority for the development, ensuring the eReader meets the reading requirements of all users.
The Taylor & Francis eBooks platform previously offered two eReader options, for basic or advanced features. Responding to feedback, the new eReader combines into one application the full range of features, including personalization, powerful search and offline access, as well as enhancements to support students and researchers.
Accessible and inclusive reading experience
Developed in conjunction with Taylor & Francis’ accessibility team, the new eReader is part of a series of updates following the requirements of the European Accessibility Act. This includes support for ePub3, the most accessible eBook format, which is now available for more than 175,000 Taylor & Francis books.
The eReader has ‘read aloud’ functionality, using text-to-speech technology, which enables users to have the content read to them in multiple languages. Readers can also adjust font sizes and styles according to their preferences.
Stacy Scott, Head of Accessibility at Taylor & Francis, said: “A key element of our industry-leading accessibility program is the creation of products and services that are ‘born accessible’. The development team have kept this as a priority throughout the process and we’re delighted that the result is an eReader which is as inclusive as possible.”
State-of-the-art features
Arpit Goel, Senior Product Manager at Taylor & Francis, said, “The Taylor & Francis eBooks platform is used by many different groups of people, from general readers to students and researchers. We wanted to make sure that the new eReader enables everyone to get the most out of the books we publish. We also know that readers engage with eBooks across multiple devices and when they’re on the move, so the eReader has been designed to be incredibly flexible.”
Users of all kinds will benefit from the eReader’s optimized reading experience, with a responsive design that adapts to desktops, tablets and mobile devices. Users can also download content in ePub or PDF format, which will enable them to continue reading when they are offline.
The eReader provides a range of customization options. Readers can bookmark pages for quick access to content they want to return to and they can annotate the text with their personal notes and highlights, all of which are easily managed in one central location.
For students and researchers, the eReader’s advanced search tool enables them to locate specific terms, phrases, or concepts throughout the entire text, streamlining the process of finding relevant information. It also integrates with reference management software like EndNote and RefWorks, allowing researchers to handle bibliographic data and export citations seamlessly.
The eReader is available now for all users of the Taylor & Francis eBooks website on book and chapter pages.
