Glo Opinions on different reader programs

[Helcat13]

So I've lurked on the forum for a while looking at what I could do to upgrade the usability of my Glo HD. I've already upgraded the storage space but am still undecided with what reader program to change to.

It seems that my choices are KOreader and Cool Reader but I haven't seen what the programs would look like on the Glo HD itself. Can I get some opinions on the pros and cons for each because although I've had my GLo HD for awhile, I haven't used it as much because of the native UI. Thanks.

[MGlitch]

KOReader is supposed to be better with handling PDFs, it's also got a directory based system. I only played with it for a very short time but I found it wasn't for me. That's not to say it isn't a good reader, but I wasn't thrilled with the controls. Perhaps if I gave it more time I'd have grown used to it. But I like the default reader app enough that I don't really care to change.

I haven't used cool reader at all.

[Ken Maltby]

Adding KOReader and/or Coolreader (along with some games & utilities) to the stock software has no impact on the existing Kobo software, so you can try them all.

Luck;
Ken

[Telemachus]

I've just finished customizing my Glo (Non-HD) and now have CoolReader and KOReader in addition to the native reader software.
I'd say install both because even if you don't use CoolReader the vlasovsoft/Kobo Launcher package which includes CoolReader comes with a nifty file manager, very useful if you download eBooks from the Kobo web browser and want to move those files from internal memory to the SD card without having to connect to a computer. You can also create folders to keep everything organized.
CoolReader doesn't support PDF files which makes KOReader essential, plus KOReader adds some very useful features for viewing PDF eBooks.
Manual, auto and semi-auto page cropping.
Scroll mode.
PDF text reflow.

I'm delighted with the added functionality which takes me one step closer to my goal of a perfect ereader. Though being a newbie I only half new what I was doing and at times my head was spinning with all the things I had to consider but I managed somehow to pull it off and turned a good ereader into a great ereader. I couldn't get my head round the whole FMON installation thing, I don't know if it's necessary, I didn't install it and all seems fine.

I'm not going to try playing around with my Aura One, I don't feel confident enough and besides even with the native software the large screen size lets me zoom into scanned ebooks allowing me to read quite small fonts without having scroll left to right to read a fixed line of text.

Here's an overview of what I did to my Glo today...

I was running firmware 4.3.8966 with patches installed. So first I returned my ereader to its original unpatched state.
I installed Kobo Start Menu 08.
I installed the Kobo Start Menu 08 patch (necessary for any model running firmware 4.2.8432 or higher.)
I installed KOReader.
I installed the vlasovsoft/Kobo Launcher package which included CoolReader.
I reinstalled the patch for 4.3.8966

I'm very new to the whole shebang and don't feel qualified to give advice but these are my observations. Apologies if I have made any errors and/or omissions.

[Helcat13]

Originally Posted by Telemachus

I've just finished customizing my Glo (Non-HD) and now have CoolReader and KOReader in addition to the native reader software.
I'd say install both because even if you don't use CoolReader the vlasovsoft/Kobo Launcher package which includes CoolReader comes with a nifty file manager, very useful if you download eBooks from the Kobo web browser and want to move those files from internal memory to the SD card without having to connect to a computer. You can also create folders to keep everything organized.

Thanks for the feedback. My main concern was more about organization really. Besides some videos I looked up on how download CoolReader, I couldn't find what people liked about each.

I have a lot of ePUBs on my computer, could you tell me how each handles from there? I would like to know if I could make my own folders and have it appear on the readers.

[mathil]

I installed KOReader once on my H2O. I would say it's a must-have if you read a lot of PDFs -- it's faster than nickel (Kobo's default software) and as far as I remember it has way more options for cropping margins, zooming etc., which makes it useful if you don't want the hassle of having to modify your PDFs before sending them to the reader. Files are organized with a folder structure, and that is a dealbreaker for some users, especially those with very large libraries. I eventually removed it because I don't read many PDFs at all and have Calibre already set up to create Collections, which is enough for me. Also -- and I wonder if that was just me, as I'm very nitpicky -- I thought the font rendering on KOReader was worse than on nickel.

[Ken Maltby]

Originally Posted by Helcat13

Thanks for the feedback. My main concern was more about organization really. Besides some videos I looked up on how download CoolReader, I couldn't find what people liked about each.

I have a lot of ePUBs on my computer, could you tell me how each handles from there? I would like to know if I could make my own folders and have it appear on the readers.

Sure, you can even make the directory/folder subfolder structure you want on your PC and just drag&drop it onto your device. If you want to hide your file structure from Kobo's processing, just start your file structure with a "hidden" folder (one with a name that starts with a dot/period, like .Books) then put your subfolders/categories into that "hidden" folder.

Luck;
Ken