This is a very long story. I hope maybe one of you can give me a hint to get back on track, but I also understand if you'd rather read a different novel ;-) With this post, I'm trying to show what I've done so far and that I've tried a lot before starting to ask things immediately.
So, my question is: I can't get KFMon and/or NickelMenu to work. Does anyone have an idea how I can get this working? I've read and tried so much, but I just can't figure it out.
My situation:
I have a Kobo Libra 2. I flashed a new microSD card (the old one was corrupt) with the Kobo Libra 2 revision E image (thanks to DNSB!)
After flashing, the e-reader immediately tried to update but failed. It then started a loop where it appeared to update, but after rebooting I had to set the language and WiFi again. After the third cycle, I decided to set up the Kobo via Kobo Desktop for Mac. That did get me to the Nickel homescreen.
Through pgaskin.net, I downloaded the latest firmware for the Libra 2. The installation of that update seemed unsuccessful at first, because the version number didn't change > 4.32.19501 (oe55e3f620, 14-04-22). However, when I checked the release notes through the settings, I did see the notes that belong to the October 2024 update > version 4.38.23171. The same menu also shows the serial number as "Noooooooooooooooo." I tell this just for troubleshooting reasons. This behavior is normal because from the filename of the Revision E image that I flashed, it already says that no serial number is attached to it.
Previous experience with custom software:
I jailbroke a Kindle using Winterbreak and installed KOReader on it without any trouble.
What I've already tried:
- Downloaded the one-click install: OCP-KOReader-v2025.04.zip
- I placed it in a folder on my Mac, along with install.command (from kfm_mac_install.zip, which I unzipped manually).
- Connected the Kobo Libra 2 via USB to my MacBook Air M1.
- Ran install.command (granted Gatekeeper permission) and selected option 0.
- The process took about a minute with no errors according to the script.
- Unmounted the device as instructed.
- It looked like Kobo processed the files and it appeared to detect the .tgz, as it triggered an 'update'.
- Back in the Nickel homescreen, I saw the KFMon log and KOReader books, but tapping them just opens an image, nothing else.
I repeated this process several times, after doing a factory reset via the dev menu in between. Each time, I changed one small thing:
- After one "successful" install, I also unplugged the USB cable right after unmounting.
- Another time, I fully powered off the e-reader before starting the process > no menu interaction at all, except one tap to connect the Kobo to my Mac. I tried this both with and without removing the cable after unmounting.
- and one time I tried launching KOReader right after installation.
- Another time, I restarted the e-reader after installation, but even then, tapping the KOReader book just opens an image. It doesn't launch KOReader.
By the way, I keep mentioning opening a book via KFMon, but NickelMenu doesn't show up either.
Other things I've tried:
- Installing the package with KOReader and Plato combined (both via the script and manually)
- Installing NickelMenu separately
- Installing KFMon separately
- Added a trigger to the nm folder (although there was no sign of the menu in the Nickel UI)
I hope someone recognizes some kind of pattern here. I love to use KOReader on my kindle, but I miss the page turning buttons on that one
