Which version of the firmware are you using?

[Ripplinger]

I think a lot of people don't know how to change the "version" file to avoid an update in the first place. Right now, I never let my Glo update until I get feedback from this forum on what new bugs and problems are introduced. And once they get the update, I don't think they want to risk trying to downgrade the firmware, or bother with it.

So while they may not like it, maybe they feel they're stuck with it while hoping for the next firmware to be better.

[DomesticExtremis]

Either that, or none of the issues identified are so bad that it is worth the effort of downgrading.

[frddgls]

2.6.1 on the Touch -- it updated the first day 2.6.1 was available. 2.6.1b on the Aura it updated many, many days later.

[TechniSol]

I think most people will go for the newest version as long as it's not a big time bomb. Funny how much uproar there was over less space on the screen, but most replies to the poll have landed on the latest, so far.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by TechniSol

I think most people will go for the newest version as long as it's not a big time bomb. Funny how much uproar there was over less space on the screen, but most replies to the poll have landed on the latest, so far.

It is notable that the Touch (at least the older version) no longer gets the 2.6.1 update. Perhaps a bit of a baby with the bath water reaction to the wide blank space at the top of the screen when reading?

Regards,
David

[tshering]

Out of curiosity I put FW 2.6.1b on my Touch (old model). Png images show in epub (16 grey scale with distortion). I did not notice any other changes. There might be some, but I didn't know what to look for. The huge blank space at the top is still there.

After installation, the buttons didn't have a frame and the captions were very small; check boxes were also very small. After power cycling it returned to normal. I saw this under FW 2.5.2 too.

This is how to upgrade an old Kobo Touch from 2.6.1 to 2.6.1b:

Spoiler:

Prepare a KoboRoot.tgz containing these files (with paths) from FW 2.6.1b Mark 4 and copy it to .kobo.

usr\local\Kobo\libnickel.so.1.0.0
usr\local\Kobo\nickel
usr\local\Kobo\plugins\libaccessplugin.so
usr\local\Trolltech\QtEmbedded-4.6.2-arm\lib\libQtGui.so.4.6.2
usr\local\Trolltech\QtEmbedded-4.6.2-arm\lib\libQtNetwork.so.4.6.2
usr\local\Trolltech\QtEmbedded-4.6.2-arm\lib\libQtSvg.so.4.6.2
usr\local\Trolltech\QtEmbedded-4.6.2-arm\lib\libQtWebKit.so.4.6.2

Warning: It is important that FW 2.6.1 is already installed on the Touch, before you upgrade to 2.6.1b. Alternatively, you can make the respective changes to the FW 2.6.1 Mark 3 file itself.

[GeoffR]

I'm using 2.6.1b, I think 2.5.2 was a bit better, but not enough to bother changing back.

[thp1017]

I'm actually one of the odd-balls running 2.1.5 on my glo, along with the plugin from ikarus9999

I think when 2.2.X came out, it broke something for me, so I reverted back. Then for a while, I just didn't see any new features I thought worth upgrading for... and now, I can't decide if I want to mess with figuring out which of the various plugins/tweaks etc I want to install, and the hassle if I decide to revert back.

[roger64]

I am using 2.5.1 (from 2.5.0 when I bought my Kobo Glo) and waiting for the next Sony.

The bugs that matter for me stay unresolved "by design" so I lost all interest for the update process.

[delph]

I'm using 2.6.1. On my Glo, the only things that really bugs me are aesthetic choices, not functionality. The more I use the tiles on the new home screen, the more I dislike them. The shading behind the covers just looks washed out to me. The lighter fonts in the UI, such as the header (Home, Library - that information bar between the home button and the icons on the right) looks cheap to me, not elegant. Even though it's eInk, my brain keeps wondering if they just wanted to cut costs by using less ink to print. Funny how that works.

All the same, these are minor issues in the scheme of things. My device still functions very well for its intended purpose, which is reading my books. So while I'm not precisely 'happy' with 2.6.1, it's not causing trouble and thus not worth the effort to downgrade to me.

2.6.1b on my Aura HD. I haven't used my Touch in a while.

The choices are limited on the Aura HD anyhow. 2.4.2 wasn't meant for public consumption, and the surface differences between 2.5.x and 2.6.1 are trivial. May as well run the latest and hope that there are fewer actual bugs.

[teija]

2.5.1 on my Mini. Right now I'm not interested in updating mine, as it works just fine for what I want now (and many of the more recent update bugs would annoy me too much). The only annoyance is that I pretty much have to keep my Wifi disabled and can't use the Kobo store because I'm paranoid the update will push to my device, and I'm not savy enough to downgrade.

I also thought that there would be a slightly higher percentage on the older (not current) versions...

[buffaloseven]

Between this and the file manager thread, it tells me that the people who hate the new firmwares and database are an extremely vocal minority.

I'm on 2.6.1 myself and think it's the best firmware they've had since I purchased my Glo.

[guma]

Originally Posted by treadlightly

I'm actually surprised by the results. About 1/2 of the MR Kobo Crowd gave version 2.6.1 a rating from 0 to 6 in the pass/fail thread, but about 3/4 of us are using it. I understand the sample of voters may be different, but I expected fewer to be up-to-date.

This is most likely because KOBO does not give you any choice as soon as you want to use any WIFI functionality or connect the device to the desktop application.

... and yes, it might be possible to edit some entries in the SqLite database in order to prevent updates. But you can't expect many people to actually do that, even those who would choose not to update if the there was a easily accessible choice in the GUI.

[Anak]

Originally Posted by treadlightly

I'm actually surprised by the results. About 1/2 of the MR Kobo Crowd gave version 2.6.1 a rating from 0 to 6 in the pass/fail thread, but about 3/4 of us are using it. I understand the sample of voters may be different, but I expected fewer to be up-to-date.

No, I'm not surprised at all. The firmware update is an automated, forced process that updates the firmware to the latest available version. Downgrading is possible but must done manually. Which probably many users don't perform because you'll have to go through the whole setup process again.
If Kobo added an option to downgrade to the latest version minus one (to undo the automated forced update to the latest available version) without losing user preferences, (side) loaded books, fonts etc. then more users would.

The same for the poll "most used font". As the default serif font of Kobo devices is Georgia most users use this fonts. If all books would open with the document default font then that would be the most widely used font.

So don't take polls to seriously. The most likely outcome is always Kobos (forced) default settings and latest pushed available firmware.
This is does not necessarally mean that most users like it.

But Kobo PR probably would say something like: "Our statistics show that most users use <fill in any Kobo default setting>" or "Our statistics show that most users use <fill in latest (pushed) available firmware>."
Followed with something like: "Our users are very pleased with our hard- and software choices."

They won't tell these "choices" are forced: a default setting or the latest available firmwareupdate.