An Engineer/Scientist's first 24-hour review

I would like to throw in my 2cents regarding my first 24 hours with my Entourage eDGe. I recognize that some of these issues may be addressed in the forums, but I want to emphasize my initial end-user experience.

I am a Biomedical Engineer (Instrumentation design, biomaterials), and work in an academic laboratory where the databasing of pdfs (easiest), annotations/bookmarks (should be easy), notetaking (outside pdf ref), and data/results, and the cross-references between all these is essential to be able to proceed efficiently through your research and discovery. As such, my primary desire is to use the eDGe as a laboratory notebook replacement as well as a literature management device. It's not too hard to think of some interesting connections you can make between your lab notebook (your record), your acquired data, and the literature/references that inform your work, your decisions, and your plan.

As an academic, I am also interested in the eDGe for novel interaction with our instrumentation. So I would like to develop/use solutions that meet my needs and do not lock up my generated content/hard work into some data silo (i.e. not like apple stuff). I have an iPhone, I demoed an iPad, and I immediately loved them both. You have to admit, to be successful, the interface must be smooth because the interface is key.

Turning on the eDGe was a pleasure. The recycled/recyclable quick start booklet was a nice touch. Network set-up was flawless. Registration didn't initially work. Updating the software right away was not terribly difficult. Thereafter, registration worked. No big whoop.

It was genius to put the User Guide in the e-ink display. I haven't before used an e-reader other than to demo a friend's kindle for about 30 seconds or to push a couple buttons on a display model in a store somewhere. Except for a slight delay that I already expected, the eDGe's e-ink display worked well for annotating.

I love the way both screens play off one another with regards to information management, but I couldn't figure out an intuitive way to delete annotations in the e-ink display.

I do have some additional comments/gripes, some (or maybe all) have been noted before, but I'm going to share them anyway. I'll even number them. I realize that Entourage isn't necessarily responsible or should be tasked with all these, but perhaps some could be Google Summer of Code projects or something?

Gripes:
1- I have to have SD card to move files with miniUSB. Why can't I transfer directly to available filesystem?

2- LCD Display-- So, I've had experiences similar to others (devseev, etc...) that the interaction with the lcd display leaves much to be desired.

3- How do I increase sensitivity of lcd? Is the LCD resistive or pressure-sensitive? I thought it was supposed to be resistive, but I have to press firmly and deliberately/slowly to get a response. I find that licking my finger (yeah, I know it's gross), wiping it first with a tissue, and then using the lcd screen resulted in a better response/signal. I can't keep doing that.

4- How do I increase the accuracy of the lcd? Sometimes what I press ain't what I get. period. and don't spout re-calibrate. i've gone down that road at least 5 times. I don't want to resort to the stylus. I like the prospect of keeping my stylus in my hand for the e-ink display and my non-stylus hand free for interacting with the lcd display. The inaccuracy of the lcd is particularly annoying when trying to type on the virtual keyboard.

5- Add apps-- I can't figure out how to add new apps to the device. It doesn't seem to be in the eDGe User Guide. how do i access them?

6- Handwriting to text-- where is it? If I'm taking notes at a meeting or at a seminar or at a conference, I would like to be able to *at least* search those notes for later reference/perusal. Also true for notes I'm making in pdfs or in "notebook".

7- Network shares-- how can i mount a network share? samba, nfs, either work for me.

8- Cross platform interface-- Is there some interface for a regular computer/laptop through which I can access the pdf database? From the computer I would like to have access to the complete library, tags, *searchable* annotations and all. This is imperative when it comes time to author a new manuscript for a conference or scientific journal.

9- How do I easily remove annotations to pdf with e-ink tools?

10- Terminal access-- How do I get access to terminal mode? Android is derived from Linux is it not? How can I get to a blasted terminal so I can at least work at a lower level? mount devices etc...

11- Synch-- I don't do Microsoft Exchange. I would like to synch my filesystem with unison. I realize this prob does not have a high demand for most people. Indeed, it would be trivial if I had terminal access.

12- Why presentation software? There's no way to video-out the device, right? How can I give a standard presentation using a projector without a video out? I know there may be some usage that doesn't require a video-out, but it doesn't meet my (and most academic scientists) requirements.

13- I would also like to use the eDGe as a laptop replacement (for which it was not designed, I realize). I've attached a keyboard, which worked, and a mouse which I guess "worked". There's no pointer. I realize the reason for that is primarily the touch screen, but perhaps a "mouse mode" is in order. I can be fairly efficient with a mouse when I'm at my desk, and you eDGe guys can detect a mouse, so why not?

14- I would like Flash.

Finally, I do want to say that I love the concept. Though things may be off to a rough start, I believe there is vast potential in the product. I love carrying all my references with me in an interactive "book". I also believe the eDGe could make a big difference in the laboratory and general research settings. I hope no one gets discouraged by my griping; I just believe you can't make anything better without honest criticism.

Keep it up!

Hey there,

I can answer a couple of the gripes and will follow up with the others hopefully later today, depending on what time permits.

Issue:
"I have to have SD card to move files with miniUSB. Why can't I transfer directly to available filesystem?
You are able to transfer files directly to your computer without using a SD card. The knowledge base article https://www.entourageedge.com/suppor...kbarticleid=83 details how to do this. To make life a little easier I will post the steps below.

To connect the enTourage eDGe to a PC:

1. Make sure both your PC and your enTourage eDGe are powered on. Locate the mini-USB-USB cable included with your enTourage eDGe.
2. Connect the standard-sized USB connector to a USB port on the PC.
3. Connect the mini-USB connector to the enTourage eDGe through the port on the top of the device next to the Wi-Fi switch.
4. On a Windows PC, you will see the notice New hardware detected. Do not allow Windows to search for a driver (select Cancel on the prompt).
5. On the enTourage eDGe, the Notification bar will indicate a new notification indicating a USB connection. Pull down the notification bar to open the notification.
6. Choose Mount to connect the enTourage eDGe to the PC. You should now be able to transfer files to the enTourage eDGe from your PC.
7. After you have moved the files to the enTourage eDGe, you need to pull down the USB notification at the top of the LCD and select Turn Off.
8. Disconnect the mini-USB cable from the enTourage eDGe.
9. To locate your files, open the Library. Select Storage--> Internal Storage-->Public.

Issue:
"Cross platform interface-- Is there some interface for a regular computer/laptop through which I can access the PDF database? From the computer I would like to have access to the complete library, tags, *searchable* annotations and all. This is imperative when it comes time to author a new manuscript for a conference or scientific journal."
For this issue, you can use the process for the previous issue to connect your device to your computer. Unfortunately your computer will be unable to see items that are in your library but you can export these from your library to the internal storage, which your computer can see. This is done by checking the box to the right of an item in your library (multiple items can be selected at once), and then selecting the Export button that appears at the bottom of the screen once an item is selected. Once the guide is exported to a storage medium, you can connect your eDGe to your computer you will be able to see the your files and copy them over.
Another way, though more of a work around, as you can only do one at a time, is to export your document from the eInk side. It can export a document as a PDF to email as well as internal or removable storage.

Issue:
"I would like Flash."
Flash will be available in a future software update.

Issue:
"Add apps-- I can't figure out how to add new apps to the device. It doesn't seem to be in the eDGe User Guide. how do i access them?"
An eDGe App store will be available in the future, until then you can check out the Android Apps Forum ( http://www.entourageedge.com/forums/...8-Android-Apps ). Android applications discussed within this forum that are not downloaded from the eDGe App Store, or approved by us, are not officially supported or sanctioned by enTourage Systems. Users should be aware that installing and/or using these applications may have adverse affects on the operation and battery life of their eDGe.

Originally Posted by jacalope

1- I have to have SD card to move files with miniUSB. Why can't I transfer directly to available filesystem?

The SD card is optional, you can transfer your files to the eDGe's internal memory using the bundled miniUSB cable.
The procedure is well explained in the user guide.

7- Network shares-- how can i mount a network share? samba, nfs, either work for me.

To connect to your departmental server (or to a NAS) you have to install a freeware utility call "ES File Explorer".
Visit this page from your eDGe to download it: http://slideme.org/application/es-file-explorer
I only tried on SMB shares and i don't know if it works on NFS.

13- I would also like to use the eDGe as a laptop replacement (for which it was not designed, I realize). I've attached a keyboard, which worked, and a mouse which I guess "worked". There's no pointer. I realize the reason for that is primarily the touch screen, but perhaps a "mouse mode" is in order. I can be fairly efficient with a mouse when I'm at my desk, and you eDGe guys can detect a mouse, so why not?

As you can imagine, Android OS don't have mouse support cause it's designed to work on touchscreen enabled mobile phones.
I guess it's possible to add that support but it would probably require some work.
Take a look here:
http://code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=1147
http://groups.google.com/group/andro...b229d7ae?pli=1

Bye

Take a look at my web site for some insight on adding apps. That may also help you with your Terminal mode questions. I think there are apps for that.

There is no handwriting to text. Search the threads for discussions on this.

You don't have to have a SD Card but sometimes that makes it faster to transfer files. I would suggest Droidbox (Dropbox for Android) It makes it super easy for me to share files between my PC's and my eDGe, iPhone and whatever else I can think us. If you don't have a Dropbox account please click this link and I will get some free additional storage. https://www.dropbox.com/referrals/NTI2NjcxOTg5 Also, you don't have to use the app. DropBox can be accessed from the browser. The app is just a time saver.

DropBox is awesome and so useful for many other applications like Calibre.

Be patient on some of your requests because we all think they can be address with software updates. The more I use the device the more I like it. I am making a lot of annotations/bookmarks with some of my company manuals to make it easier to find stuff.

#8 sounds like a nice idea

#9 is answered in the help video and documentation. There are several methods.

For #9 you can also delete the book and re-download it. You can also back up a copy of your book w/ the annotations before doing deleting it from your library by using the Archive feature.

Nice review! For # 10 - command prompt, you can download and install the Better Terminal Emulator Magic APK from the URL below. I have not tested it, but am pretty sure others have said it works well. If not, I am sure there is some other app that will work.
http://handheld.softpedia.com/progDo...oad-84558.html

That terminal software works pretty good! Unfortunately, it does not work full screen. In any case I'm feeling quite diabolical now.

Originally Posted by jacalope

8- Cross platform interface-- Is there some interface for a regular computer/laptop through which I can access the pdf database? From the computer I would like to have access to the complete library, tags, *searchable* annotations and all. This is imperative when it comes time to author a new manuscript for a conference or scientific journal.

This doesn't totally answer your question, but it is a step in the right direction. Here are some "best practices" I've discovered for using the device.

I already had a library of e-books--a combo of PDFs and EPUBs--organized in a directory hierarchy. Initially, I tried importing all of this into the library, but realized that it would take me hours to go through and tag all of this stuff--and that the library couldn't infer tags from folder hierarchies, etc.

So I decided to leave all of my e-books in a folder called "Books" under "Internal Storage" categorized the way I have them now (accessed when you switch from the "Library" to the "Storage" view in the Library application's drop-down in the upper right corner). Then I've been importing individual books that I access often into the Library, tagging them, etc.

This keeps all of my e-books in a structure that's easily searchable when my Edge is mounted from one of my other PCs.

The other thing I'd pretty strongly suggest if you want to search across all your books is to prefer EPUB files over PDFs. An EPUB file is really just HTML packaged up inside a ZIP with a few manifest files added to describe the book's metadata, table of contents, etc. This is Waaayy easier to search than PDF, which is a page description language.


Dave

Originally Posted by dvorme

The other thing I'd pretty strongly suggest if you want to search across all your books is to prefer EPUB files over PDFs. An EPUB file is really just HTML packaged up inside a ZIP with a few manifest files added to describe the book's metadata, table of contents, etc. This is Waaayy easier to search than PDF, which is a page description language.


Dave

I agree with this. Most PDF books are formatted for 8.5 x 11 paper which means you have to use the zoom feature a lot or PDF reflow which can be hit and miss. The reflow function on the eDGe is much better than the Nook. I believe just because of the large screen. I am getting to the point where I will not buy any PDF books. If I can get them for free from my public library or other legal source then I will give them a try.

I recognize this is an older thread, but I was wondering if the OP felt they needed any citation abilities within the eDGe software, and what their solution was. Thoughts/suggestions?