A: I know of no plans by Barnes & Noble to release a new Nook Color. Yes, the Nook Color can surf the Web, but it's the lesser, and older, of the company's two color Nooks. The newer Nook Tablet is lighter, has longer battery life, a faster processor and comes in two models, one with greater built-in memory. The Nook Color costs $30 less than the Nook Tablet with the same built-in memory.

A: For years, I have stressed that digital devices should be treated like any other appliance you buy -- if they malfunction, take them back, or send them back, to the merchant. There may be a simple way to get your iPad 2 working properly, but I can't diagnose it remotely. And you don't sound like the kind of tinkerer who would relish searching the Web for solutions and fiddling with it.

So, I would reboot the unit, plug it into a PC or Mac running iTunes to make sure the operating system is up-to-date, and, if it's still not working right, take it to an Apple store or wherever you bought it for fixing or a replacement, especially if you bought a warranty. If you want to troubleshoot it yourself, try this website: http://www.apple.com/support/ipad/getstarted/.