I am a huge fan of electronic book readers – and this free B&N's NOOK app makes it even sweeter.

First, you should know that eBooks are cheaper, because there’s no logging and paper milling, printing, shipping and storage fees to pass along to the reader. Just an electronic download, and you’re good to go.

They’re better for the environment for much the same reason, and I like the fact that I don’t need to build another bookshelf to store my eBook collection. Storage is a non-issue.

The Barnes & Noble eReader is called the Nook, and it’s a lovely device. My good friend Clay owns one, and he swears by it. But did you know you don’t need to buy a Nook to get all the benefits?

It’s true. The Barnes & Noble Nook software is completely and totally FREE. You can install NOOK onto your iPad or iPhone, your Android phone, or your PC/laptop. The download takes only a few seconds, and just that fast you’ll have access to over a million eBooks – tens of thousands of them also totally free!

You can download the first chapter or two (depending on the book) for free, to see if you like it before you buy… and you can loan your books to a friend. That’s a huge bonus, and I wish my Kindle did the same.

Your friend needs the NOOK software or device, and for 14 days your book will appear on his virtual shelf. After that, it returns to your collection automatically. Shoot, I wish real books would do that!

They also claim that there are over 500,000 free eBooks for you to enjoy. And I plan to do my best to read everyone of them.

What’s more, you can install the software on multiple devices, and they’ll automatically sync with each other. Read a few chapters on your Nook device in the morning, and go to work. Read another chapter on your iPhone over your lunch break, and maybe another couple of chapters on your PC during a particularly long and boring meeting. Each time, your device will pick up on the page you left off on!

There are more features, too, but you don’t need me to point them out. Since the software is free, you can just download it and explore it for yourself. Why not? It’s not like it’ll cost you anything to try it out, right?