MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - My Perfect E-Book Reader

|2eason · 07-16-2007, 05:41 PM

I'm unimpressed by the current selection of ereaders out there at the moment, because most seem to be geared towards fiction readers. Whilst there's nothing wrong with that per say, I think there is (or would be) a much greater demand for eInk readers designed for academic use.
The reason behind this is down to just the sheer volume of literature your average university student has to trawl though to learn their particular field. Ebooks, I believe, can significantly improve the efficiency of the study process. So whilst your keen fiction reader may have a strong desire to read books in digital format, there is a clear need for more accessible digital media in academia (at least there would be, if such a need were demonstrated.. by aggressive marketing

)

Currently, tablet PCs are being touted as the 'must have' learning aid. They're good, I've got one myself. There invaluable as a reference aid and for taking notes etc, but for hardcore study, they're useless. You just can't concentrate and absorb the information because of the eye fatigue they cause.

So, I think my perfect eInk device would be a cross between a tablet pc and an eInk device. So;

Hardware Specs

Screen: Minimum of 10" EInk.

Processor: Maximum of 500Mhz - It needn't be any bigger imo. Most current readers, except the Iliad, use the Samsung 200mHz chip. It's the same chip PVI supply in their dev kit. Surely that can be improved on?

RAM: 128MB? Whatever is needed for smooth operation

Flash Memory: Minimum of 1GB. 500 for the OS, the rest for 3rd party programs.

File storage: Removable solid state, with the ability to support the latest and largest disks.

Coms: Wifi g/n, 10/100 wired, usb. The important aspect of connectivity is in the software.

Human Interface: Stylus is a must for annotation and navigation.

Sound: No! None. If I want music I'll use an mp3 player. Save on the expense and weight by remove the sound circuitry completely.

Power: Obviously soft power, soft sleep/suspend, aggressive cpu throttling, intelligent hardware control. The works.

Software Specs:

OS: Linux, totally open source. Whoever makes this device should be able to concentrate on hardware and support. Since this is aimed primarily at academia, there should be a raft of comp-sci students willing to get their hands dirty with the software.

Reader software: Some default apps, but mostly 3rd party, with an easy install method.

Interface: Give the user what they're used to; Windows, icons, the works. A simplified/modified KDE or Gnome desktop is perfectly feasible with the hardware, imo.

Network connectivity: To be really useful, it should have the software required for exploring the network FS. Picture the scene; student walks into Uni library, takes a seat, connects to the libraries Wifi, searches for and find a book, studies for a hour or so and then walks out of library with the book still on their ereader. The ereader then naturally disconnects from the LAN and the DRM in the book activates. 2 weeks? use before the book needs to be returned or renewed else it deletes itself. Simple. With a system like that, University would buy up ereaders and offer them cheap to their students, the money they'd save on paper books would more than cover the costs.

Drivers: For usb hard drives etc. Sure, they require some power, but they are useful keeping personal libraries on.

Well, I could could go on. To sum up; the functionality of a simple PC, with the readability of EInk. All of this technology is readily available and I'm pretty sure it can be implemented on a low weight, long battery life basis. So why isn't it available? Am I the only one that wants something like this?

07-16-2007, 05:41 PM	#1
\|2eason Connoisseur Posts: 61 Karma: 56 Join Date: Jul 2007 Device: Tatung Tablet	My Perfect E-Book Reader I'm unimpressed by the current selection of ereaders out there at the moment, because most seem to be geared towards fiction readers. Whilst there's nothing wrong with that per say, I think there is (or would be) a much greater demand for eInk readers designed for academic use. The reason behind this is down to just the sheer volume of literature your average university student has to trawl though to learn their particular field. Ebooks, I believe, can significantly improve the efficiency of the study process. So whilst your keen fiction reader may have a strong desire to read books in digital format, there is a clear need for more accessible digital media in academia (at least there would be, if such a need were demonstrated.. by aggressive marketing) Currently, tablet PCs are being touted as the 'must have' learning aid. They're good, I've got one myself. There invaluable as a reference aid and for taking notes etc, but for hardcore study, they're useless. You just can't concentrate and absorb the information because of the eye fatigue they cause. So, I think my perfect eInk device would be a cross between a tablet pc and an eInk device. So; Hardware Specs Screen: Minimum of 10" EInk. Processor: Maximum of 500Mhz - It needn't be any bigger imo. Most current readers, except the Iliad, use the Samsung 200mHz chip. It's the same chip PVI supply in their dev kit. Surely that can be improved on? RAM: 128MB? Whatever is needed for smooth operation Flash Memory: Minimum of 1GB. 500 for the OS, the rest for 3rd party programs. File storage: Removable solid state, with the ability to support the latest and largest disks. Coms: Wifi g/n, 10/100 wired, usb. The important aspect of connectivity is in the software. Human Interface: Stylus is a must for annotation and navigation. Sound: No! None. If I want music I'll use an mp3 player. Save on the expense and weight by remove the sound circuitry completely. Power: Obviously soft power, soft sleep/suspend, aggressive cpu throttling, intelligent hardware control. The works. Software Specs: OS: Linux, totally open source. Whoever makes this device should be able to concentrate on hardware and support. Since this is aimed primarily at academia, there should be a raft of comp-sci students willing to get their hands dirty with the software. Reader software: Some default apps, but mostly 3rd party, with an easy install method. Interface: Give the user what they're used to; Windows, icons, the works. A simplified/modified KDE or Gnome desktop is perfectly feasible with the hardware, imo. Network connectivity: To be really useful, it should have the software required for exploring the network FS. Picture the scene; student walks into Uni library, takes a seat, connects to the libraries Wifi, searches for and find a book, studies for a hour or so and then walks out of library with the book still on their ereader. The ereader then naturally disconnects from the LAN and the DRM in the book activates. 2 weeks? use before the book needs to be returned or renewed else it deletes itself. Simple. With a system like that, University would buy up ereaders and offer them cheap to their students, the money they'd save on paper books would more than cover the costs. Drivers: For usb hard drives etc. Sure, they require some power, but they are useful keeping personal libraries on. Well, I could could go on. To sum up; the functionality of a simple PC, with the readability of EInk. All of this technology is readily available and I'm pretty sure it can be implemented on a low weight, long battery life basis. So why isn't it available? Am I the only one that wants something like this?