MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Control e-book device screen from PC?

Schnuggel · 11-18-2011, 05:18 AM

Hello everyone,

thanks a lot already for your ideas. I was a bit confused yesterday, maybe it helps when I (try to) explain what I want to do:

I'm working at an university (psychology), and when cleaning up the cellar, we found an old tachystoscope; i.e., an old-fashoined device that enables one to show pictures for very short time intervals. One has to look into a cube of solid metal, and by firing a flash bulb one can see the picture (inserted at the rear side) for, say, 1/1000 of a second (adjustable).

Such short time intervals are impossible to generate with standard TFT/ LCD/ CRT monitors, so using this old device is quite a temptation. We could run experiments that have been conducted some 30 or 40 years ago, and that have never been re-produced ever since because such hardware is hard to get.

However, manually changing pieces of cardboard is a bit too old-school, we'd like to use a display instead. Any device other than an e-book-reader won't work, as soon as any light apart from the flash bulb is emitted into the cube, the picture is visible all the time. Additionally, the flash bulb is very bright, so the "the more light the better readable"-feature of e-ink-displays is great.

Personally, I own a Cybook Opus, just for reading books, but that's how I got the idea of trying an e-ink display.

OK, that was background info, but maybe it helps to understand my problem. And your ideas (using WiFi instead of USB, doing the update via a built-in web browser) are extremly helpful. Do you have suggestions which device (i.e., brand and model) I could try for this?

I love my Cybook, but your suggestions wouldn't work on it, no WiFi, no web browser, no options to run own code. I would need---from all the dozens of available devices---one or two that give a programmer some freedom, and, as you suggest, a web browser with JavaScript support could be an option. And looking at data sheets is one thing; asking people with experience and clever ideas another (and much better) before actually spending some hundred $ / € to try it.

So thanks a lot already; if you have some hints or experience which devices are versatile enough to be used for your suggestions---just drop me a note.

Cheers!

Marius

11-18-2011, 05:18 AM	#5
Schnuggel Junior Member Posts: 3 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2011 Device: none	Hello everyone, thanks a lot already for your ideas. I was a bit confused yesterday, maybe it helps when I (try to) explain what I want to do: I'm working at an university (psychology), and when cleaning up the cellar, we found an old tachystoscope; i.e., an old-fashoined device that enables one to show pictures for very short time intervals. One has to look into a cube of solid metal, and by firing a flash bulb one can see the picture (inserted at the rear side) for, say, 1/1000 of a second (adjustable). Such short time intervals are impossible to generate with standard TFT/ LCD/ CRT monitors, so using this old device is quite a temptation. We could run experiments that have been conducted some 30 or 40 years ago, and that have never been re-produced ever since because such hardware is hard to get. However, manually changing pieces of cardboard is a bit too old-school, we'd like to use a display instead. Any device other than an e-book-reader won't work, as soon as any light apart from the flash bulb is emitted into the cube, the picture is visible all the time. Additionally, the flash bulb is very bright, so the "the more light the better readable"-feature of e-ink-displays is great. Personally, I own a Cybook Opus, just for reading books, but that's how I got the idea of trying an e-ink display. OK, that was background info, but maybe it helps to understand my problem. And your ideas (using WiFi instead of USB, doing the update via a built-in web browser) are extremly helpful. Do you have suggestions which device (i.e., brand and model) I could try for this? I love my Cybook, but your suggestions wouldn't work on it, no WiFi, no web browser, no options to run own code. I would need---from all the dozens of available devices---one or two that give a programmer some freedom, and, as you suggest, a web browser with JavaScript support could be an option. And looking at data sheets is one thing; asking people with experience and clever ideas another (and much better) before actually spending some hundred $ / € to try it. So thanks a lot already; if you have some hints or experience which devices are versatile enough to be used for your suggestions---just drop me a note. Cheers! Marius