Kobo desktop app (v1.7 [Oct 15, 2010]) is slow

kadnium · 10-24-2010, 09:18 AM

I recently purchased the Kobo WiFi and install the desktop app v1.7 (Oct 15, 2010).

Has anyone else been experiencing slowness and unresponsiveness of the desktop? Its nearly impossible to purchase a book as the icons/graphics take several minutes to load. The app also hangs every once in a while. Completing a purchase is painfully slow if it does work. Browsing my own library is somewhat okay but it is definitely slower than v1.4 and the v1.6 (available from the web site .. which their support told me install). Of course v1.4 and v1.6 do not sync with the kobo wifi.

I've tried the following already to fix to no effect:
- reinstall v1.7 (Oct 15, 2010); the one that comes with the device
- tried v1.4 and v1.6 (Aug 25, 2010) ; both are fast but it won't sync with the kobo wifi
- reinstall a new copy of Windows 7 ultimate on a virtual machine and just install the v1.7
- problem occurs with the kobo attached or not
- signing out/in
- disabling antivirus (just to see what would happen)

I've had the first kobo ... so I know how the desktop app is supposed to work.

Overall, I've had a horrible experience, I've wasted many hours of my life trying to get this to work ... doing the kobo team's job of testing their shitty app.

At the moment, I'm running the v1.4 app in a virtual machine to purchase the books and sync'ing with the v1.7 on my main machine.

taming · 10-24-2010, 10:00 AM

What OS is on your desktop? 32 or 64 if Windows? I have seen only one complaint so far about the new desktop app and that was a person using Windows 7 64 bit and it was a failure to install, probably a firewall issue.

kadnium · 10-24-2010, 10:37 AM

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Virtual Machine: Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit

In both environments the desktop app perform horribly (slow and unresponsive when trying to browse the online store). The virtual machine is a fresh install of windows 7 with latest updates. I did this to rule out the possibility that there is something on my main machine.

I do have kaspersky anti-virus running but the v1.4 and v1.6 version of the application run fine on both environments. The kobo support team asked me to install the latest from the web site (v1.6) but of course this doesn't sync with kobo wifi. And just to rule out the possibility, I went back to chapters and swapped hardware devices; small chance but of course, the device wasn't the problem. Overall the kobo support team has not been helpful; likely because its only at 1st level support; I hope it gets bumped up to 2nd/3rd level soon.

The fact that I'm the only one reporting this issue is odd; I can't think of anything else that is odd about my environment. As I said before, I have a fresh install of windows and the previous versions of the desktop app work fine.

zoran · 10-24-2010, 10:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kadnium

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Virtual Machine: Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit

Few of my pals had w7 64 bits installed and had various problems
all along. I'm not adept on w, so could only ponder of developers
working on 32 bit system. Is there any chance you could install 32
bit system and try out? (Just for investigation sake.)

ltr · 10-24-2010, 10:52 AM

I'm using Windows 7 64-bit Home Premium with the new Kobo Wi-Fi and have no problems.

ltr

kadnium · 10-24-2010, 10:57 AM

Zoran .. that's an interesting suggestion but I am not going to waste time to do this; unless the kobo software team pays me my standard rates to do their job. It's bad enough that I had to install another OS just to rule out my hardware and configuration.

Now that I am reasonably sure it is not, I don't want to take the time to do this; installing an OS is time consuming. I spend enough time in front of computer; I'd rather spend time reading on my kobo.

Regardless, if it does work on a 32-bit OS, I'm not about to revert to a 32bit OS just because the kobo developers were shitty programmers.

zoran · 10-24-2010, 11:01 AM

I got it and you are right.
The point that triggers interest is why versions 1.4 and 1.6 are fine
and why 1.7 works on the same system on other poster's node? Maybe
some configuration default that scales it badly?

kadnium · 10-24-2010, 11:12 AM

There are some differentiators.
1.4 and 1.6 were clearly meant for the original kobo. 1.7 is meant for kobo wifi.

The 1.7 build must be using something new that isn't fully compatible my hardware; which in my opinion is bad product quality control. I am a very technical user and I am having issues; imagine a non-technical person experiencing this problem?

And you are right, it is interesting with the fact it is working for the other poster and the fact that no one else has reported any issues leads me to suspect that the issue is a small percentage. Perhaps a small percentage the kobo team will ignore as evidence by the unresponsiveness of their support team so far.

zoran · 10-24-2010, 11:15 AM

I recall post eons ago. User had to connect reader to usb adapter
of computer first, than to fire up the application. Don't ask me why.

kadnium · 10-24-2010, 01:01 PM

Thanks for the reply, Zoran.

I just tried this, same deal. Slow (the pictures of the books haven't even loaded even as I type this) and unresponsive (i.e. I can't even move the window of the desktop app).

taming · 10-24-2010, 01:20 PM

OK so now that we have established that you are running an OS that works for others, it does become an issue with your particular install. It could be on your machine, or something Kobo related.

As nice as it would be for Kobo to test every piece of hardware--that doesn't happen with any company. I assume you have opened a support ticket. The handoff from level one support to a higher level doesn't happen all that automatically. Kobo knows this and is working on it.

I would suggest that you send a PM to JCKobo--in case he doesn't see this here--with your ticket number, information about not just your OS but also the PC manufacturer, hardware specs etc. It may also be that the 1.7 being released in the coming week will be slightly tweaked from the one that came preloaded on your Kobo. I know that work on the desktop software has continued all along.

PS: I can tell you stories about an HP machine I had not that long ago that seemed to be at war with with a small selection of (essential for me) things. New installs, nope. New drivers, nope. New bios, nope. It almost drove me mad. Never again...HP...never again.

JCKobo · 10-24-2010, 02:23 PM

kadnium,
Sorry for the poor experience with the new software - testing on Windows 7 64-bit is part of our normal testing process, but I will ask the team to do a full re-test of the application on that platform and report back.

kadnium · 10-24-2010, 05:36 PM

Thank you.

May I assume that I am the only unfortunate Kobo user who has experienced this problem?

JCKobo · 10-24-2010, 05:41 PM

This is the first I've heard of it, but as other members have mentioned, this software is only distributed with the Kobo Wireless Reader, so it is limited to a subset of customers.

digital_steve · 10-24-2010, 06:05 PM

It sounds exactly like the same issue we all had with the desktop app that got resolved by connecting the kobo to the computer and having it recognised by the app before you went browsing.

So it's still sucky slow with the reader connected?

10-24-2010, 09:18 AM	#1
kadnium Member Posts: 15 Karma: 16 Join Date: Oct 2010 Device: Kobo WiFi	Kobo desktop app (v1.7 [Oct 15, 2010]) is slow I recently purchased the Kobo WiFi and install the desktop app v1.7 (Oct 15, 2010). Has anyone else been experiencing slowness and unresponsiveness of the desktop? Its nearly impossible to purchase a book as the icons/graphics take several minutes to load. The app also hangs every once in a while. Completing a purchase is painfully slow if it does work. Browsing my own library is somewhat okay but it is definitely slower than v1.4 and the v1.6 (available from the web site .. which their support told me install). Of course v1.4 and v1.6 do not sync with the kobo wifi. I've tried the following already to fix to no effect: - reinstall v1.7 (Oct 15, 2010); the one that comes with the device - tried v1.4 and v1.6 (Aug 25, 2010) ; both are fast but it won't sync with the kobo wifi - reinstall a new copy of Windows 7 ultimate on a virtual machine and just install the v1.7 - problem occurs with the kobo attached or not - signing out/in - disabling antivirus (just to see what would happen) I've had the first kobo ... so I know how the desktop app is supposed to work. Overall, I've had a horrible experience, I've wasted many hours of my life trying to get this to work ... doing the kobo team's job of testing their shitty app. At the moment, I'm running the v1.4 app in a virtual machine to purchase the books and sync'ing with the v1.7 on my main machine. Last edited by kadnium; 10-24-2010 at 10:32 PM.

10-24-2010, 10:37 AM	#3
kadnium Member Posts: 15 Karma: 16 Join Date: Oct 2010 Device: Kobo WiFi	OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit Virtual Machine: Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit In both environments the desktop app perform horribly (slow and unresponsive when trying to browse the online store). The virtual machine is a fresh install of windows 7 with latest updates. I did this to rule out the possibility that there is something on my main machine. I do have kaspersky anti-virus running but the v1.4 and v1.6 version of the application run fine on both environments. The kobo support team asked me to install the latest from the web site (v1.6) but of course this doesn't sync with kobo wifi. And just to rule out the possibility, I went back to chapters and swapped hardware devices; small chance but of course, the device wasn't the problem. Overall the kobo support team has not been helpful; likely because its only at 1st level support; I hope it gets bumped up to 2nd/3rd level soon. The fact that I'm the only one reporting this issue is odd; I can't think of anything else that is odd about my environment. As I said before, I have a fresh install of windows and the previous versions of the desktop app work fine. Last edited by kadnium; 10-24-2010 at 10:39 AM.

10-24-2010, 01:20 PM	#11
taming Trying for calm & polite Posts: 4,012 Karma: 9455193 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Mostly in Canada Device: kobo original, WiFI, Touch, Glo, and Aura	OK so now that we have established that you are running an OS that works for others, it does become an issue with your particular install. It could be on your machine, or something Kobo related. As nice as it would be for Kobo to test every piece of hardware--that doesn't happen with any company. I assume you have opened a support ticket. The handoff from level one support to a higher level doesn't happen all that automatically. Kobo knows this and is working on it. I would suggest that you send a PM to JCKobo--in case he doesn't see this here--with your ticket number, information about not just your OS but also the PC manufacturer, hardware specs etc. It may also be that the 1.7 being released in the coming week will be slightly tweaked from the one that came preloaded on your Kobo. I know that work on the desktop software has continued all along. PS: I can tell you stories about an HP machine I had not that long ago that seemed to be at war with with a small selection of (essential for me) things. New installs, nope. New drivers, nope. New bios, nope. It almost drove me mad. Never again...HP...never again. Last edited by taming; 10-24-2010 at 02:03 PM. Reason: possibly annoying PS

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10-24-2010, 10:00 AM	#2
taming Trying for calm & polite Posts: 4,012 Karma: 9455193 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Mostly in Canada Device: kobo original, WiFI, Touch, Glo, and Aura	What OS is on your desktop? 32 or 64 if Windows? I have seen only one complaint so far about the new desktop app and that was a person using Windows 7 64 bit and it was a failure to install, probably a firewall issue.

10-24-2010, 10:52 AM	#5
ltr Addict Posts: 399 Karma: 104628 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Canada Device: Kindle PW-2	I'm using Windows 7 64-bit Home Premium with the new Kobo Wi-Fi and have no problems. ltr

10-24-2010, 10:57 AM	#6
kadnium Member Posts: 15 Karma: 16 Join Date: Oct 2010 Device: Kobo WiFi	Zoran .. that's an interesting suggestion but I am not going to waste time to do this; unless the kobo software team pays me my standard rates to do their job. It's bad enough that I had to install another OS just to rule out my hardware and configuration. Now that I am reasonably sure it is not, I don't want to take the time to do this; installing an OS is time consuming. I spend enough time in front of computer; I'd rather spend time reading on my kobo. Regardless, if it does work on a 32-bit OS, I'm not about to revert to a 32bit OS just because the kobo developers were shitty programmers.

10-24-2010, 11:01 AM	#7
zoran himself Posts: 576 Karma: 11226 Join Date: May 2010 Device: Kobo	I got it and you are right. The point that triggers interest is why versions 1.4 and 1.6 are fine and why 1.7 works on the same system on other poster's node? Maybe some configuration default that scales it badly?

10-24-2010, 11:12 AM	#8
kadnium Member Posts: 15 Karma: 16 Join Date: Oct 2010 Device: Kobo WiFi	There are some differentiators. 1.4 and 1.6 were clearly meant for the original kobo. 1.7 is meant for kobo wifi. The 1.7 build must be using something new that isn't fully compatible my hardware; which in my opinion is bad product quality control. I am a very technical user and I am having issues; imagine a non-technical person experiencing this problem? And you are right, it is interesting with the fact it is working for the other poster and the fact that no one else has reported any issues leads me to suspect that the issue is a small percentage. Perhaps a small percentage the kobo team will ignore as evidence by the unresponsiveness of their support team so far.

10-24-2010, 11:15 AM	#9
zoran himself Posts: 576 Karma: 11226 Join Date: May 2010 Device: Kobo	I recall post eons ago. User had to connect reader to usb adapter of computer first, than to fire up the application. Don't ask me why.

10-24-2010, 01:01 PM	#10
kadnium Member Posts: 15 Karma: 16 Join Date: Oct 2010 Device: Kobo WiFi	Thanks for the reply, Zoran. I just tried this, same deal. Slow (the pictures of the books haven't even loaded even as I type this) and unresponsive (i.e. I can't even move the window of the desktop app).

10-24-2010, 02:23 PM	#12
JCKobo Kobo Product Guy Posts: 244 Karma: 36848 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Toronto Device: Kobo Vox	kadnium, Sorry for the poor experience with the new software - testing on Windows 7 64-bit is part of our normal testing process, but I will ask the team to do a full re-test of the application on that platform and report back.

10-24-2010, 05:36 PM	#13
kadnium Member Posts: 15 Karma: 16 Join Date: Oct 2010 Device: Kobo WiFi	Thank you. May I assume that I am the only unfortunate Kobo user who has experienced this problem?

10-24-2010, 05:41 PM	#14
JCKobo Kobo Product Guy Posts: 244 Karma: 36848 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Toronto Device: Kobo Vox	This is the first I've heard of it, but as other members have mentioned, this software is only distributed with the Kobo Wireless Reader, so it is limited to a subset of customers.

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10-24-2010, 06:05 PM	#15
digital_steve Muppet Posts: 240 Karma: 442 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Tasmania Device: Kobo Aura HD, Sony PRS-650	It sounds exactly like the same issue we all had with the desktop app that got resolved by connecting the kobo to the computer and having it recognised by the app before you went browsing. So it's still sucky slow with the reader connected?