Switched On: Competing by hook or by Nook

Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about consumer technology. Microsoft has a long history of supporting bitter rivals - even those that have long publicly disparaged the company, offering funds to Nokia, Corel and, most famously, Apple. It also has a long history of supporting e-reading. Prior to ending development last year, the company offered its Microsoft Reader software for about a decade - first on handheld devices using Windows CE and Windows Mobile and later on desktop Windows.

Engadget, Switched On: Competing by hook or by Nook