Status - Page 3

cloggy · 08-10-2009, 06:09 PM

Hi, many thanks for the snapshots links!! Much appreciated.

Moe The Cat · 08-10-2009, 06:34 PM

The newest (August) snapshots have not been officially announced yet. They feature a new-look Madshelf, among other things. There are no numbers on Madshelf, so you have to count to figure out what number to press, but that's not too hard. That's probably Madshelf for the Hanvon N516, which has hardware number buttons on the left side. Also, the fonts in my "Fonts" folder on the SD card aren't available. I'm not sure if the new snapshots are ready for "prime-time" yet (Slayda's words). One of the OI guys will announce when they're ready.

That said, I'm using 20090809 now and love it. It seems much faster to me.

Moe The Cat · 08-10-2009, 06:50 PM

Oh, and the much-anticipated, eagerly awaited "Recent Files" is now available.

And, I just discovered, there is a new Madshelf "home" screen, with numbers. For some reason, my BeBook booted to a Madshelf screen without numbers. But, a quick press on the "back" key (next to the "OK" key), brought up a new lovely-looking home screen.

idle · 08-11-2009, 02:52 AM

I'm just trying the new version too and it seems to me that there is no CoolReader there - all books allow only opening in FBReader.
Also, navigating with "go to page" function is terribly slow, at least in the one file I've tried so far. I'll try it more when I'm back from work.

grega_g · 08-11-2009, 03:06 AM

where do they officially announce snapshots? last entry in their blog is dated march 09 :S

idle · 08-11-2009, 03:14 AM

I think there wasn't an "official snapshot" since march, so it't quite likely that they'll announce the next one there as well.

Dave_S · 08-11-2009, 04:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by idle

I think there wasn't an "official snapshot" since march, so it't quite likely that they'll announce the next one there as well.

dottedmag has also used this forum in the past to announce snapshots along with a summary of what to expect in the new snapshot.

fjtorres · 08-11-2009, 08:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by idle

I'm just trying the new version too and it seems to me that there is no CoolReader there - all books allow only opening in FBReader.
Also, navigating with "go to page" function is terribly slow, at least in the one file I've tried so far. I'll try it more when I'm back from work.

I tried it, with the full understanding that it is essentially pre-beta code.

Found a few things to like.
Found a few things that *appear* to step away from the strengths of the may snapshot.

Not panicking; I know its unofficial and all that.

First boot was absurdly slow--had me thinking I had a corrupt install. Just as I was about to give up waiting, it came up. At that point I remembered the question about using onboard storage for OI and the mystery of the slow boot was clear; it had partitioned and formatted the storage space. Nothing lost there I cared about--all backed up--but that's what curiosity buys you.

The lack of numbers on the menu bars is disconcerting; hadn't realized how much I depended on those in the "classic" UI. Also disconcerting was seeing more than 8 bars. Took a bit to realize that, "Hey, we have ten number buttons! And its okay to navigate the UI solely with the side arrow buttons." As long as the 9-0 buttons still page inside the books its a good design decision to maximize resources; I like.

The home screen is... interesting... It suggests OI developers have ambitions into the webpad space. (A CrunchPad type device with an SD card slot would be killer. Too bad the real CrunchPad apparently won't have any local user storage.)

Only FBReader available; hopefully not a final design decision. I've grown mildly fond of the coolreader two page landscape mode.

FBReader itself?
The good: more font sizes, a full spread from 6 to 24 points. Yay! An 18point cap was a tad low on the may release. I was sorta hoping for a 20 point option for my mother's future Hanlin.

The...not-so-good: I rather liked the compact dialog-box and fine-grained typographical controls in FBReader in the may snapshot. The new list-based approach feels... spawled... I felt my eyeballs drawn all over the place. And the fine-grain settings for the Indicator are gone? No margin settings? I know, work-in-progress. Just... a worrisome direction...

I'm hoping the new UI is merely experimental; there are some good ideas there but one that just isn't quite to my liking. I *liked* the compactness of the older UI. Just because you have a six-inch screen to play with doesn't mean you have to use *all* of it.

There is a lot to be said compact, understated UI design.
But that is a matter of taste, I suppose.

It *was* an interesting experiment.
I'm back to the May snapshot.

Oh, on my way back to the May OI snapshot I stopped by the current Hanlin firmware to confirm that ADE on Hanlin *still* sucks rivets. (But I was curious and I needed to reformat the onboard storage to FAT, which took forever.)

I'm going to make sure I have copies of the May snapshot safely stashed all over. Just in case.

An educational experience, all-in-all.

Xachariah · 08-11-2009, 09:00 AM

Thanks for the review, sounds like the new release has some pros and cons.

I like the use of the 9 and 0 keys to select books in Madshelf, but beyond that it seems to be a small departure from what I want. They seem to be trying to fix some things that arnt broken. I just want a keylock (and the 9-0 buttons available to select books in madshelf now) on the May snapshot and itll be perfect.

Ill hold off on updating to the unofficial firmware.

Moe The Cat · 08-11-2009, 09:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fjtorres

No margin settings?

I found margin settings. Open a book in FBReader, press the "Menu/OK" key and it's the third or fourth item down the list (I don't have my BeBook in front of me right now.)

Agreed, the boot up was slow, but that's a one time thing. Notice that the power button quick-press brings you back to the new "home" screen (your "Crunchpad" screen). Button 1 then takes you back to your opened book.

lunohod · 08-11-2009, 09:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moe The Cat

Also, the fonts in my "Fonts" folder on the SD card aren't available.

AFAIK, the new name for the fonts directory should be ".fonts".

Dave_S · 08-11-2009, 09:53 AM

Has anybody noticed that the file management functions seem to be gone?
Or, am I just doing something wrong?
I load new books with WinSCP, but I have been using the file management functions to delete a book once I have finished reading it.

lunohod · 08-11-2009, 09:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave_S

Has anybody noticed that the file management functions seem to be gone?

Not implemented yet.

Dave_S · 08-11-2009, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lunohod

Not implemented yet.

GREAT! Thank you!!

fjtorres · 08-11-2009, 10:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lunohod

AFAIK, the new name for the fonts directory should be ".fonts".

My fonts all showed up fine from the original SD card folder: /fonts
Just lucky, I guess.

08-10-2009, 06:50 PM	#33
Moe The Cat Bear Melt Posts: 919 Karma: 5433051 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Toronto Device: Google Pixel 6, Moto G9 Power (both with Fbreader) & Kindle PW2	Oh, and the much-anticipated, eagerly awaited "Recent Files" is now available. And, I just discovered, there is a new Madshelf "home" screen, with numbers. For some reason, my BeBook booted to a Madshelf screen without numbers. But, a quick press on the "back" key (next to the "OK" key), brought up a new lovely-looking home screen. Last edited by Moe The Cat; 08-10-2009 at 07:15 PM.

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08-10-2009, 06:09 PM	#31
cloggy Connoisseur Posts: 75 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Amstelveen, NL Device: Kobo Aura HD, Sony PRS-T1	Hi, many thanks for the snapshots links!! Much appreciated.

08-10-2009, 06:34 PM	#32
Moe The Cat Bear Melt Posts: 919 Karma: 5433051 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Toronto Device: Google Pixel 6, Moto G9 Power (both with Fbreader) & Kindle PW2	The newest (August) snapshots have not been officially announced yet. They feature a new-look Madshelf, among other things. There are no numbers on Madshelf, so you have to count to figure out what number to press, but that's not too hard. That's probably Madshelf for the Hanvon N516, which has hardware number buttons on the left side. Also, the fonts in my "Fonts" folder on the SD card aren't available. I'm not sure if the new snapshots are ready for "prime-time" yet (Slayda's words). One of the OI guys will announce when they're ready. That said, I'm using 20090809 now and love it. It seems much faster to me.

08-11-2009, 02:52 AM	#34
idle I Do Like Ebooks Posts: 145 Karma: 1006 Join Date: May 2009 Location: Prague, Czech rep. Device: Pocketbook Ultra 650	I'm just trying the new version too and it seems to me that there is no CoolReader there - all books allow only opening in FBReader. Also, navigating with "go to page" function is terribly slow, at least in the one file I've tried so far. I'll try it more when I'm back from work.

08-11-2009, 03:06 AM	#35
grega_g Member Posts: 24 Karma: 10 Join Date: Aug 2009 Device: hanlin v3	where do they officially announce snapshots? last entry in their blog is dated march 09 :S

08-11-2009, 03:14 AM	#36
idle I Do Like Ebooks Posts: 145 Karma: 1006 Join Date: May 2009 Location: Prague, Czech rep. Device: Pocketbook Ultra 650	I think there wasn't an "official snapshot" since march, so it't quite likely that they'll announce the next one there as well.

08-11-2009, 09:00 AM	#39
Xachariah Junior Member Posts: 8 Karma: 30256 Join Date: May 2009 Device: Bebook	Thanks for the review, sounds like the new release has some pros and cons. I like the use of the 9 and 0 keys to select books in Madshelf, but beyond that it seems to be a small departure from what I want. They seem to be trying to fix some things that arnt broken. I just want a keylock (and the 9-0 buttons available to select books in madshelf now) on the May snapshot and itll be perfect. Ill hold off on updating to the unofficial firmware.

08-11-2009, 09:53 AM	#42
Dave_S What Title ? Posts: 1,325 Karma: 1856232 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Bavaria Germany Device: Sony Experia Z Ultra	Has anybody noticed that the file management functions seem to be gone? Or, am I just doing something wrong? I load new books with WinSCP, but I have been using the file management functions to delete a book once I have finished reading it.

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