SD card firmware (1.4) image links for AU/NZ - Page 2

zoran · 08-17-2010, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by billingd

I'm struggling with this. No problems formatting an SD card and copying files to it. I can't work out what I should I have on the SD card?

The file I have downloaded - bordersau-full-1.4.tgz - is gzipped file of 129064442 bytes. If I gunzip it I get gzipped tar file called bordersau-full-1.4.tar of 129068160 bytes.

What should I have on the SD card:

the intermediate gzipped tarball bordersau-full-1.4.tar, or
a directory tree obtained by untarring bordersau-full-1.4.tar

I have tried both and can't get either to work, but that may be another problem.

I didn't personally open that file, but someone posted that it was gzipped
twice. Maybe yes, maybe no. I see no reason to do it twice, since no gain
on it. If you gunzipped once, you have just to open the container, which
tar, in fact, is. It handles a number of directories and files, the usual way
to manage in unix world. If it says "tar", simply do "tar -xvf filename.tar".
If you see directory tree, here you go.
My best bet is that you should not unpack it all on hard drive and copy to
the SD card file system. Do it all in just one step. Mount the card and use
tar utility to copy file to it. Flag p preserves original perms etc. Like:
tar -C /dev/sda1 -pzxvf /home/name/filename.tgz
I like to change the directory to the card first. Your mileage may wary.
So, don't do blind tries, ask if you're in doubt.

billingd · 08-17-2010, 06:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by billingd

The file I have downloaded - bordersau-full-1.4.tgz - is gzipped file of 129064442 bytes. If I gunzip it I get gzipped tar file called bordersau-full-1.4.tar of 129068160 bytes.

Found my first problem. The file was munged during download.

If I use wget - which does what I tell it, and not what it thinks I really want -

Code:

wget http://www.borders.com.au/uploads/bordersau-full-1_4.tgz
--2010-08-18 08:24:30--  

http://www.borders.com.au/uploads/bordersau-full-1_4.tgz
Resolving www.borders.com.au... 117.53.173.179
Connecting to www.borders.com.au|117.53.173.179|:80... connected.
HTTP request sent, awaiting response... 200 OK
Length: 129068160 (123M) [application/x-gzip]
Saving to: `bordersau-full-1_4.tgz'

... so all my babble about files compressed twice was just some artifact of the original download using firefox. Somehow the download had added the second layer of compression.

Now I can do a "tar -pzxvf /path/bordersau-full-1_4.tgz" and get a directory tree structure on the SD card.

The firmware upgrade then proceeded as advertised and all seems well.

sabredog · 08-17-2010, 07:37 PM

Well done gents. My bolted on rusty Linux knowledge is improving a tad.

zoran · 08-17-2010, 11:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sabredog

Well done gents. My bolted on rusty Linux knowledge is improving a tad.

If your laptop is old and has no resources to do any usb work, you
are not lost. Simply get knoppix live cd/dvd. Put tgz file on the usb
stick and you are in the same game as it was installed. Simply use
hardware of desktop. Just one thing to have on your mind: be aware
how easily usb devices may be named strangely. Usually sda and b.
But, they might be d and up. So, before putting usb device to the
node, check what is in /dev directory. Check again after you connec-
ted. Cannot say if knoppix mounts automatically. Before making file
system to the SD card, you must to have in unmounted!

rischa · 08-18-2010, 12:15 AM

Wow, this sounds pretty complex for an ordinary slob like me. I guess non-techies need to stick to the potentially risky method of updating via the desktop app? I've been holding off because I don't want to screw up my Kobo before the trip I have planned in a few weeks.

zoran · 08-18-2010, 12:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rischa

Wow, this sounds pretty complex for an ordinary slob like me. I guess non-techies need to stick to the potentially risky method of updating via the desktop app? I've been holding off because I don't want to screw up my Kobo before the trip I have planned in a few weeks.

K, you statement stands still. But, I assure you that you invest time
to learn how to upgrade even via kobo desktop app. You take some
effort for everything in life, so using live cd is nothing of surprise.
I see no-one having a single problem after upgrading with SD card.
What could speak better as an argument for?

rischa · 08-18-2010, 12:24 AM

Well I'm not a Linux user, so the whole thing is going right over my head.

sabredog · 08-18-2010, 12:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zoran

K, you statement stands still. But, I assure you that you invest time
to learn how to upgrade even via kobo desktop app. You take some
effort for everything in life, so using live cd is nothing of surprise.
I see no-one having a single problem after upgrading with SD card.
What could speak better as an argument for?

One can gather together all the Linux commands and instructions as a tutorial which could be pinned.

That ought to be of assistance to those wanting to go down the safer SD card update path.

billingd · 08-18-2010, 07:07 AM

Here is one way to set up an SD card from a windows PC. I prepared a linux rescue image on a USB stick then use it to format and write to an SD card.

Hardware requirements

A PC with at least two USB slots
An SD card reader. I used an el-cheapo USB device that cost AUD 4
An SD card. I used a 4 GB SDHC card, but a 256 MB card should be adequate
A USB stick of at least 512 MB capacity

Software requirements

A PC running Windows. I am running Windows XP SP3
Software to prepare a bootable USB stick from a linux ISO image. I used this one from pendrivelinux.com.
A linux rescue disk image. I used the Ubuntu Rescue Remix 10.04
image ubuntu-rescue-remix-10-04.iso (177 MB)
A Kobo SD card image file. I used bordersau-full-1_4.tgz

Preparation

Make sure you have the three files given above:
1. Universal-USB-Installer
2. ubuntu-rescue-remix-10-04.iso
3. Kobo .tgz image
Format the USB stick as FAT32.
Run Universal-USB-Installer and install the Ubuntu Rescue Remix image on the USB stick
Copy the Kobo .tgz file to the USB stick

There is plenty of help available on the web sites above.

Doing the linux stuff

The main issue users will have is working out what linux has called the USB stick and the SD card reader. This depends on both the hardware and the software.

These instruction use the conventions:

the USB stick is file system /media/usb0 on device /dev/sdb1
the SD card is file system /media/usb1 on device /dev/sdc1
my Kobo image is bordersau-full-1_4.tgz

Your system may be different. Adjust the instructions accordingly.

Insert the USB stick in the PC
Restart the PC and boot from the USB stick. You may need to adjust your BIOS boot order settings to boot from the USB stick rather than the hard drive.
PC should boot to a linux command line
Now we need to work out where linux thinks your USB stick is.
Enter the command "mount".
There will be several lines of output. You want to find a vfat file system on a USB port. For me the file system is /media/usb0 on device /dev/sdb1.
Enter the command "ls /media/usb0" and confirm that the Kobo disk image is present
Insert the SD card into the card reader. PC should think for a few seconds and respond.
Enter the command "mount" and look at the output. It should have changed
You should see the SD card as a new USB device with a vfat file system. For me it was file system /media/usb1 on device /dev/sdc1
Unmount the SD card with the command "sudo umount /dev/sdc1"
Format the SD card with an ext3 file system using the command "sudo mkfs.ext3 /dev/sdc1". Be careful here. Do not make a mistake on the device name. You not want to format your hard drive.
Remount the SD card "sudo mount /dev/sdc1 /media/usb1"
Copy the Kobo files to the SD card with the command "sudo tar -C /media/usb1 -pzxvf /media/usb0/bordersau-full-1_4.tgz"
Have a look at the SD card: "ls /media/usb1"
Unmount the SD card "sudo umount /dev/sdc1"
Turn off the PC and remove the USB stick and the SD card.

You can reformat the USB stick and SD card under windows when finished.

-------------------------------------------------

Notes

I could not get USB rescue creator from http://people.canonical.com/~evand/usb-creator/lucid/ to work.

sabredog · 08-18-2010, 09:42 AM

Nice work, karma for you!

zoran · 08-18-2010, 11:41 AM

I was also thinking about Kobo making live CD, that makes
needed SD card. There is a lot of small footprint linux distros.
One just has to add a script to the booting process. That file
should call user to insert usb card reader with the card in it.
When user confirms that it was done, script finds it in /dev as
a proper device, formats it to one partition, makes file system
on it, mounts it and lets tar to do the rest. Few shell script li-
nes. Nothing more. Upgrade files are already on the medium.
So, no need to read manuals, to say "I'm newbie" or alike.
One point has to be addressed: how to know what device is
called? Script might first make "ls /dev" and repeat it after SD
card insertion. App named "diff" finds different lines and re-
port the name to the script.
My opinion is that it would be easier for all users to have card,
ready for upgrade.

ue14 · 08-20-2010, 03:09 AM

Hi, I just joined this forum to post my gratitude to the community and to billingd especially. After trying to update the firmware on my Kobo using Borders desktop application the device got completely messed up (not recognized as USB decice when plugged-in, hard reset required after sending the device to stand-by, pre-installed books not showing although in memory, constantly drawing power, and some more issues; same behavior was reported by others).

Of course as a loyal customer at first I approached Borders customer service. My experiences were not too good though. After some emails and the information that a support ticket was opened absolutely NOTHING happened for days except that some more information were requested. Even after me asking when a preliminary response can be expected there was no reaction.

Figuring that no help was to be expected from customer support I decided to try the SD card firmware update myself. Again, the instructions for updating the Kobo reader (for Linux users) as described on the Borders (Australia) homepage did not work for me (see entry #17). But with the instructions given in #17 and #24 (thanks again billingd) I was able to produced a SD card which did the firmware update just fine using an Ubuntu live system.

Now I'm a happy Kobo user again as the device fits me perfectly - just reading and no other fancy stuff. I do have the SD card with me and in order to return the favor to the community I can offer to ship it to a Kobo user in my vicinity (I live in central Europe - Austria that is) on a first come basis just drop me a private message with details.

billingd · 08-20-2010, 10:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ue14

Hi, I just joined this forum to post my gratitude to the community and to billingd especially.

I am glad I the instructions worked for you.

David

sabredog · 08-20-2010, 10:56 AM

David

He is right, your and Zoran's instructions have been most helpful.

JPenguin · 09-08-2010, 11:23 PM

I suppose the 3 different links means the updates are slightly different for each store?

Does anyone know if the difference between them? Do they have different branding or is it something less visible?

08-20-2010, 03:09 AM	#27
ue14 Junior Member Posts: 1 Karma: 10 Join Date: Aug 2010 Device: Kobo	Hi, I just joined this forum to post my gratitude to the community and to billingd especially. After trying to update the firmware on my Kobo using Borders desktop application the device got completely messed up (not recognized as USB decice when plugged-in, hard reset required after sending the device to stand-by, pre-installed books not showing although in memory, constantly drawing power, and some more issues; same behavior was reported by others). Of course as a loyal customer at first I approached Borders customer service. My experiences were not too good though. After some emails and the information that a support ticket was opened absolutely NOTHING happened for days except that some more information were requested. Even after me asking when a preliminary response can be expected there was no reaction. Figuring that no help was to be expected from customer support I decided to try the SD card firmware update myself. Again, the instructions for updating the Kobo reader (for Linux users) as described on the Borders (Australia) homepage did not work for me (see entry #17). But with the instructions given in #17 and #24 (thanks again billingd) I was able to produced a SD card which did the firmware update just fine using an Ubuntu live system. Now I'm a happy Kobo user again as the device fits me perfectly - just reading and no other fancy stuff. I do have the SD card with me and in order to return the favor to the community I can offer to ship it to a Kobo user in my vicinity (I live in central Europe - Austria that is) on a first come basis just drop me a private message with details. Last edited by ue14; 08-20-2010 at 03:31 AM.

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08-17-2010, 07:37 PM	#18
sabredog Geographically Restricted Posts: 2,629 Karma: 14933353 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Perth, Australia Device: Sony PRS-T3, Kindle Voyage, iPad Air2, Nexus7v2	Well done gents. My bolted on rusty Linux knowledge is improving a tad.

08-18-2010, 12:15 AM	#20
rischa Member Posts: 23 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jun 2010 Device: Kobo	Wow, this sounds pretty complex for an ordinary slob like me. I guess non-techies need to stick to the potentially risky method of updating via the desktop app? I've been holding off because I don't want to screw up my Kobo before the trip I have planned in a few weeks.

08-18-2010, 12:24 AM	#22
rischa Member Posts: 23 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jun 2010 Device: Kobo	Well I'm not a Linux user, so the whole thing is going right over my head.

08-18-2010, 07:07 AM	#24
billingd Enthusiast Posts: 42 Karma: 8616 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Melbourne, Australia Device: Kobo	Here is one way to set up an SD card from a windows PC. I prepared a linux rescue image on a USB stick then use it to format and write to an SD card. Hardware requirements A PC with at least two USB slots An SD card reader. I used an el-cheapo USB device that cost AUD 4 An SD card. I used a 4 GB SDHC card, but a 256 MB card should be adequate A USB stick of at least 512 MB capacity Software requirements A PC running Windows. I am running Windows XP SP3 Software to prepare a bootable USB stick from a linux ISO image. I used this one from pendrivelinux.com. A linux rescue disk image. I used the Ubuntu Rescue Remix 10.04 image ubuntu-rescue-remix-10-04.iso (177 MB) A Kobo SD card image file. I used bordersau-full-1_4.tgz Preparation Make sure you have the three files given above: Universal-USB-Installer ubuntu-rescue-remix-10-04.iso Kobo .tgz image Format the USB stick as FAT32. Run Universal-USB-Installer and install the Ubuntu Rescue Remix image on the USB stick Copy the Kobo .tgz file to the USB stick There is plenty of help available on the web sites above. Doing the linux stuff The main issue users will have is working out what linux has called the USB stick and the SD card reader. This depends on both the hardware and the software. These instruction use the conventions: the USB stick is file system /media/usb0 on device /dev/sdb1 the SD card is file system /media/usb1 on device /dev/sdc1 my Kobo image is bordersau-full-1_4.tgz Your system may be different. Adjust the instructions accordingly. Insert the USB stick in the PC Restart the PC and boot from the USB stick. You may need to adjust your BIOS boot order settings to boot from the USB stick rather than the hard drive. PC should boot to a linux command line Now we need to work out where linux thinks your USB stick is. Enter the command "mount". There will be several lines of output. You want to find a vfat file system on a USB port. For me the file system is /media/usb0 on device /dev/sdb1. Enter the command "ls /media/usb0" and confirm that the Kobo disk image is present Insert the SD card into the card reader. PC should think for a few seconds and respond. Enter the command "mount" and look at the output. It should have changed You should see the SD card as a new USB device with a vfat file system. For me it was file system /media/usb1 on device /dev/sdc1 Unmount the SD card with the command "sudo umount /dev/sdc1" Format the SD card with an ext3 file system using the command "sudo mkfs.ext3 /dev/sdc1". Be careful here. Do not make a mistake on the device name. You not want to format your hard drive. Remount the SD card "sudo mount /dev/sdc1 /media/usb1" Copy the Kobo files to the SD card with the command "sudo tar -C /media/usb1 -pzxvf /media/usb0/bordersau-full-1_4.tgz" Have a look at the SD card: "ls /media/usb1" Unmount the SD card "sudo umount /dev/sdc1" Turn off the PC and remove the USB stick and the SD card. You can reformat the USB stick and SD card under windows when finished. ------------------------------------------------- Notes I could not get USB rescue creator from http://people.canonical.com/~evand/usb-creator/lucid/ to work. Last edited by billingd; 09-02-2010 at 10:23 AM.

08-18-2010, 09:42 AM	#25
sabredog Geographically Restricted Posts: 2,629 Karma: 14933353 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Perth, Australia Device: Sony PRS-T3, Kindle Voyage, iPad Air2, Nexus7v2	Nice work, karma for you!

08-18-2010, 11:41 AM	#26
zoran himself Posts: 576 Karma: 11226 Join Date: May 2010 Device: Kobo	I was also thinking about Kobo making live CD, that makes needed SD card. There is a lot of small footprint linux distros. One just has to add a script to the booting process. That file should call user to insert usb card reader with the card in it. When user confirms that it was done, script finds it in /dev as a proper device, formats it to one partition, makes file system on it, mounts it and lets tar to do the rest. Few shell script li- nes. Nothing more. Upgrade files are already on the medium. So, no need to read manuals, to say "I'm newbie" or alike. One point has to be addressed: how to know what device is called? Script might first make "ls /dev" and repeat it after SD card insertion. App named "diff" finds different lines and re- port the name to the script. My opinion is that it would be easier for all users to have card, ready for upgrade.

08-20-2010, 10:56 AM	#29
sabredog Geographically Restricted Posts: 2,629 Karma: 14933353 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Perth, Australia Device: Sony PRS-T3, Kindle Voyage, iPad Air2, Nexus7v2	David He is right, your and Zoran's instructions have been most helpful.

09-08-2010, 11:23 PM	#30
JPenguin Connoisseur Posts: 90 Karma: 42 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Toronto Device: Kobo EReader, Kobo for Palm Pre	I suppose the 3 different links means the updates are slightly different for each store? Does anyone know if the difference between them? Do they have different branding or is it something less visible?

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