MobileRead Forums
Register Guidelines E-Books Today's Posts Search

Go Back   MobileRead Forums > E-Book Readers > Android Devices
Reload this Page Interoperability between Android and Windows

Notices

Reply
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old 08-14-2011, 06:11 AM   #1
arslonga
Connoisseur
arslonga began at the beginning.
 
Posts: 59
Karma: 10
Join Date: Jul 2011
Device: none
Interoperability between Android and Windows
Dear Forumites,

I am considering buying an Android device to use almost exclusively as an ebook reader. I was wondering if somebody could comment on the following issues:

1. If such a device is plugged to a PC via USB, will the computer recognize it as an external storage device, so that ebooks may be transferred from the PC to the reader?

2. Ditto #1 above, but with reference to ereader software. I am aware of the existence of programs such as Aldiko, CoolReader and FBReader, and I was wondering if these programs can be installed by downloading the corresponding .apk files on the PC and, once again, transferring them to the Android device via USB, or perhaps the installation process is not so straightforward.

3. Finally, are these pieces of software capable of displaying the ebooks as green text on a black background? I have found this combination to be the least stressful for long uninterrupted reading.

Thank you for your insights!
arslonga is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-14-2011, 07:49 AM   #2
Jabby
Jr. - Junior Member
Jabby ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Jabby ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Jabby ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Jabby ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Jabby ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Jabby ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Jabby ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Jabby ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Jabby ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Jabby ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Jabby ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Posts: 586
Karma: 2000358
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Alabama
Device: Archos, Asus, HP, Lenovo, Nexus and Samsung tablets in 7,8 and 10"
Quote:
Originally Posted by arslonga View Post
1. If such a device is plugged to a PC via USB, will the computer recognize it as an external storage device, so that ebooks may be transferred from the PC to the reader?
My four tablets do. (Pocketbook IQ, HeroTab M816, Ainol Novo8 and Coby 7024). Should have my Toshiba Thrive arrive by 8/16. Am looking forward to full size SD cards. I'll bet I have at least a half dozen micro SD cards hiding in cushions or other strange places.

Quote:
2. Ditto #1 above, but with reference to ereader software. I am aware of the existence of programs such as Aldiko, CoolReader and FBReader, and I was wondering if these programs can be installed by downloading the corresponding .apk files on the PC and, once again, transferring them to the Android device via USB, or perhaps the installation process is not so straightforward.
All of my apps (APKs) are transfered from my PC to the tablet either via a USB connection or by putting them on an SD card and inserting the SD card into the tablet. Since none of my tablets have access to the Android Market they all came with a pre-installed app that allowed APK installations.

If you buy a tablet that has the Android Market just download a file manager such as Astro which will let you install APKs.

Quote:
3. Finally, are these pieces of software capable of displaying the ebooks as green text on a black background? I have found this combination to be the least stressful for long uninterrupted reading.
I have all three set up that way. I find it much easier on the eyes. BTW, I also have the Kindle ereader installed which gives me complete coverage. Kindle for mobi DRM (Amazon) and Aldiko for epub DRM (Barnes & Noble)

Note: CoolReader and FBReader can share both font and book folders.

I do have one suggestion: Make sure the tablet you purchase has at least Android 2.2.

Regards - John
Last edited by Jabby; 08-14-2011 at 09:55 PM.
Jabby is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-14-2011, 12:03 PM   #3
DaleDe
Grand Sorcerer
DaleDe ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DaleDe ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DaleDe ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DaleDe ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DaleDe ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DaleDe ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DaleDe ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DaleDe ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DaleDe ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DaleDe ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DaleDe ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
DaleDe's Avatar
 
Posts: 11,470
Karma: 13095790
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Grass Valley, CA
Device: EB 1150, EZ Reader, Literati, iPad 2 & Air 2, iPhone 7
Quote:
Originally Posted by arslonga View Post
Dear Forumites,

I am considering buying an Android device to use almost exclusively as an ebook reader. I was wondering if somebody could comment on the following issues:

1. If such a device is plugged to a PC via USB, will the computer recognize it as an external storage device, so that ebooks may be transferred from the PC to the reader?

2. Ditto #1 above, but with reference to ereader software. I am aware of the existence of programs such as Aldiko, CoolReader and FBReader, and I was wondering if these programs can be installed by downloading the corresponding .apk files on the PC and, once again, transferring them to the Android device via USB, or perhaps the installation process is not so straightforward.

3. Finally, are these pieces of software capable of displaying the ebooks as green text on a black background? I have found this combination to be the least stressful for long uninterrupted reading.

Thank you for your insights!
1. Most if not all Android device will mount on a pc as memory devices. Some will use Windows Media player to sync music. I believe Calibre also supports some devices.
2. Yes, any program can be installed by copying over or downloading directly the .apk file. There are also lots of market apps and web site for downloading apps. See our wiki for Android for more details.
3. I suspect so but I haven't researched this topic. If the reader has customized color and background then this can be accomplished.

Dale
DaleDe is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-14-2011, 06:07 PM   #4
Stormchild
Evangelist
Stormchild ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Stormchild ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Stormchild ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Stormchild ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Stormchild ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Stormchild ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Stormchild ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Stormchild ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Stormchild ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Stormchild ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Stormchild ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Stormchild's Avatar
 
Posts: 466
Karma: 878943
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Cornwall UK
Device: BeBook 1. BeBook Mini. BeBook Neo and Club. BeBook Live. BeeBook Pure.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Jabby View Post
I do have one suggestion: Make sure the tablet you purchase has at least Android 2.2.

Regards - John
All the other points have been answered but I want to reinforce this piece of advice from Jabby. DO NOT buy any device with less than Android 2.2. You will quickly regret it if you do.
Stormchild is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-15-2011, 07:44 AM   #5
Dopedangel
Wizard
Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.Dopedangel ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
Dopedangel's Avatar
 
Posts: 1,759
Karma: 30063305
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Singapore
Device: Boyue
If you are not in hurry I would recommend waiting a month or two as quad core android tablets are around the corner and even if you don't purchase one of those the prices of current devices are bound to come down.
Dopedangel is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-17-2011, 06:47 AM   #6
arslonga
Connoisseur
arslonga began at the beginning.
 
Posts: 59
Karma: 10
Join Date: Jul 2011
Device: none
Thank you all for your replies!
arslonga is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

« Previous Thread | Next Thread »

Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Android Android news stumbles upon not-yet-released Amazon Android App store sarah11918 enTourage Archive 7 03-22-2011 01:07 PM
calibre, windows index, android and covers koskol Calibre 2 02-28-2011 04:56 PM
Amazon making Kindle Appls tailored for Android and Windows Tablets =X= News 7 01-07-2011 12:33 PM
EU forcing DRM interoperability Hadrien News 100 01-13-2008 03:07 PM


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 04:42 PM.

Contact Us - FAQ - Guidelines - Privacy - Top

MobileRead.com is a privately owned, operated and funded community.