Aura HD it's HERE! gawd the stock firmware sucks.

[sambo.]

my first e-reader, a Kobo Aura HD finally arrived today.

initial setup has been, well, annoying. wifi setup crashed & sent device into a boot loop which was solved by factory reset & downloading the kobo desktop software.

sideloaded a couple of books, grabbed a cup of coffee & headed into the garden to test it out.

dear iDoch* what a beautiful screen for reading. LCDs give me a headache, will report back on how I get along with e-ink but initial testing is positive.

once that's been done, it's accepted a large swodge of e-pubs i've dumped onto the internal SD card and is currently processing them.

i'm already unimpressed with the kobo software and will be looking to get android onto it shortly.

but wow, what a nice screen.

*iDoch = insert Deity of choice here.

[Ken Maltby]

You might want to give the alternative readers a try: a guide to installing them so you can launch them from within the Kobo software.

I no longer use the Kobo software (Nickel) myself I prefer the simpler Kobo Start Menu

And - I hide my ebooks from Nickel's processing and database:
For those who are trying the Alternate readers because you prefer a "File Manager" approach over the corruptible database book management approach that Kobo uses; you can easily hide your ebook files from Kobo's database and processing. All that is neccessary is to place the files and folders of your ebook collection in a hidden directory/folder. For a Linux device "hidden" files folders or directories are those that are named with a dot/period before the name ( like .kobo or perhaps for this use .library ) To make such a folder/directory using Windows Explorer you just name the folder with a dot/period both before and after the name (like this ".Library.") the trailing dot/period will disappear leaving the "hidden" name you want (like ".Library")

It can also be done using the commandline command MD.

[I have all my ebook files on my external uSD card within a "hidden" directory, ~7000.]

Luck;
Ken

[TechniSol]

Hey Ken,

Any data or even impressions on how the battery life is with android or other readers running vs. the Kobo firmware?

[sambo.]

Well, a book & a bit later, still amazed by that screen. I held off buying an e-reader for a long time. Looks like I chose a nice one! Software is, coping, if uninspiring thus far

[Ken Maltby]

Originally Posted by TechniSol

Hey Ken,

Any data or even impressions on how the battery life is with android or other readers running vs. the Kobo firmware?

No actual data, this is an area that could really use some addressing though. Not that I have noticed any rapid depletion of the battery, or anything. Since I no longer do any reading using the Kobo software and don't even enter Nickel anymore, as I am using tshering's Kobo Start Menu instead, I would not be the one to provide a valid comparison. Having played with a number of devices I would say that getting any really good charge level data is a pain for devices like these, not an easy chore for a programmer.

The "Power Off" function of the Kobo Start Menu seems to work well, so I am not loosing much when it is not in use (all Li batteries have some self discharge, not that I have noticed any so far.) I also use a "Sleep" function that works almost all the time for me on my AuraHD but that others have found troublesome.

Luck;
Ken

[SHunter101]

Originally Posted by Ken Maltby

For those who are trying the Alternate readers because you prefer a "File Manager" approach

Interesting, which of the alternative readers uses a file manager? Oh God, is it a simple file manager that allows me to select ebooks from directories I made to store ebooks on my uSD card? Is this built into the Kobo Start Menu?

Thank you in advance!
Shunter

[TechniSol]

Thanks, Ken. I was wondering since the code is borrowed and often "two things that are the same" are not always equal...

[Ken Maltby]

Originally Posted by SHunter101

Interesting, which of the alternative readers uses a file manager? Oh God, is it a simple file manager that allows me to select ebooks from directories I made to store ebooks on my uSD card? Is this built into the Kobo Start Menu?

Thank you in advance!
Shunter

Both Koreader and Coolreader use a simple file manager. I made mine with directories for the categories like "Mysteries", "Action", "SciFI", "Fantasy", ect... the book files are named to sort the files by Author, then Title. I have ~7000 ebooks in about 40 categories, on my external uSD card (in a hidden directory).

It is a function of the reading software not the start menu.

Luck;
Ken