PRS+: Enhanced firmware for Sony Reader, Folders, Games & more

[fei-d]

So I recently bought a PRS 650...

Does the custom firmware also work on the PRS 650 like the PRS 600 or are you at least planning on writing it for the 650, too?

I'd be really interested in your great firmware for the 650.

[elcreative]

If you'd looked at the last post from Kartu (#1650), the one before yours, you'd have seen his sig which lists availability of PRS+ versions... includes all x50s

[Halk]

I think (and I am not entirely sure) that it is available for the x50 just now, but Kartu hasn't yet created a flasher for the x50 which makes the process simpler (safer?). I believe he said he was going to do that, and the estimate is around a week or so?

[Halk]

Originally Posted by kartu

To install PRS+ on x50 models:
1) Install CFW from amutin or boroda (found here)
2) Unpack corresponding launcher file into the root of internal memory. You should get test-startup folder if using launcher for boroda (porkupan) or simply test.sh if amutin.
3) Unpack PRS+ installer into the root of internal memory. You should get PRSPInstaller folder with subfolder prsp and some files.
4) Restart the reader
5) Delete PRS+ Installer. (but not the launcher)

To uninstall PRS+ from x50 models:
1) Unpack PRS+ installer as in step 3 above.
2) Delete prsp subfolder in PRSPInstaller folder
3) Reboot
4) Delete PRSPInstaller folder

I attempted to follow these directions... however I noticed a .bat file in the package I downloaded - Boroda's. It Russified my Reader.

So I thought I'd explain what's going on, since I didn't understand until after I had done it.

Amutin and Boroda have produced hacked firmware for the 650 which "Russifies" - in other words makes the Readers more suitable for the Russian language.

The advice to download their flashers is I think a way to get Kartu's PRS+ firmware onto the device without the correct firmware.

There's a Windows batch file which when executed causes the 650 to be flashed, and Russified. You don't even need to manually start it.

However I still can't work out Kartu's instructions for installing his PRS+ using the flasher from Amutin or Boroda. When booting the 650 must see some particular file as a firmware update and will automatically grab it and execute it... at least that's my best guess.

So here's my questions to try and understand his instructions.

1) Install CFW? What is CFW. What is the install process? Do you just mean to download and then unarchive it onto our own computers?
2) I should get test-startup folder and do what with it exactly? Put it at / or should I put the contents at / or should the entire archive go at / ?
3) I believe this to be PRSP_650_2.0.9alpha_Installer.

So at / of my device I have...

database <-- Which was always there
epub <-- That too I think
PRSPInstaller <-- This is Kartu's PRS+ hacked firmware image, I think
test-startup <-- This is part of what Boroda distributes as his Russification hack.
script.log <-- The log generated by running Boroda's .bat file

And that does nothing. I don't know if it does nothing because I accidentally Russified already, or if it's because I'm doing it wrong. The script.log seems to indicate a script called update.sh was called when the update was done. At a guess I'd say it looks for that at root when it powers on, but I don't see any scripts called that.

[elcreative]

Halk... just quick as on the way to work - CFW = Custom FirmWare

[kartu]

Halk,

as elcreative said, CFW is custom firmware. I don't like to call it "hacked firmware" as goals are quite different from typical hacking. There is no DRM circumvention code and neither any attempt to remove 3G browsing restrictions etc, goal is purely to improve device software.

Your problem in short: I guess you've forgotten to unpack the launcher for boroda's firmware. (test-startup with its content. The one you got from installing boroda's firmware is not the one)

Regarding your problems, not sure if I've described it here, so:

"How installing PRS+ works" and why it is done this way:
On older models, 300, 505 it is very easy to experiment with firmware, because you can always put reader in firmware update mode, so there PRS+ is flashed. With 600 onwards there is no such option. On the other hand, PRS+ does quite a lot of things, and it is not possible to foresee all consequences. Flashing it would mean quite a high risk of bricking for developers and not so high but still substantial risk for the users. That's why for newer readers I use the following approach:

1. "Base flash", basically original Sony firmware only slightly modified: updated Fonts, user CSS path for EPUBs, and it includes PRS+ Launcher. This part is actually flashed. It would be very rarely, if at all, updated.
2. Frequently updated PRS+ code, which is not flashed, but simply copied to a (hidden to the user) partition by PRS+ installer.

How does PRS+ launcher work:

1. it checks if reader was connected to USB during startup. If not, it does nothing and stops!
2. (only if reader wasn't connected to USB) it checks if there is PRS+ installer, if yes, executes it.
3. (only if reader wasn't connected to USB) checks if PRS+ code is available in the mentioned hidden partition, if yes, executes it

What do launchers for boroda's / amutin's firmware do?
They call PRS+ launcher.

Why do we need CFW to do it?
Because standard firmware has no suitable "execute someting on startup" feature.

[Halk]

I agree with you that hack is probably a misleading word. However on the about page of my reader the title is "Hack Information" so I'm only going by what they said. I think a better description is enhanced firmware - but I think your CFW is much more appropriate than hacked firwmare.

I guess you've forgotten to unpack the launcher for boroda's firmware. (test-startup with its content. The one you got from installing boroda's firmware is not the one)

I don't understand that.

I think I'm starting to understand that the basic GNU/Linux OS on the device is what you flash, and that you use one that you trust to be correct, by doing that you avoid much of the danger of bricking it. There's an additional partition with the software that runs on the reader, which is not flashed, but the reader copies to it's own special place.

So as I understand I now have PRS+ launcher on my 650. When it boots it'll do a, b or c. I want it to do b in order to put PRS+ on, so I need to feed the installer, to a place where it expects to see it.

What I can't seem to work out, is what needs to be at / in order for it to put the PRS+ image on.

Edit : I've added a screenshot of it.

[kartu]

In the internal memory root folder you should have:

PRSPInstaller with some content (installer.sh and prsp folder with some stuff)
test-startup folder with startup.sh (you should get them from this archive)

That's it.

PS
Just came to my mind, some of the earlier versions of boroda's firmware do not have this "launcher" feature, so get the latest version (which is 1.05k at the moment).

[Halk]

I think what I did wrong was have the 1.05k version of Boroda's firmware test-startup folder, rather than the one you just linked. When I replaced it with the one you just linked... I now have PRS+ alpha installed

[noxx]

a question: is it possible to destroy a x50-reader with the base-flasher? e.g. connection lost between pc and reader or whatever.

[kartu]

Originally Posted by noxx

a question: is it possible to destroy a x50-reader with the base-flasher? e.g. connection lost between pc and reader or whatever.

Checks are performed, to ensure file integrity. How possible it is, that a randomly broken file will have correct md5 hash? Hm, I have no idea about exact numbers, but very unlikely.

[cwappy]

I have a 350 with the 1.05k Boroda firmware and just installed PRS+ and it's working fine, but I can't seem to find instructions anywhere on this forum (or on the PRS+ web site) on how the EPUB user styles feature works. There were instructions for placing an "epub" folder somewhere under a "system" folder, but my 350 doesn't have that folder structure. Am I missing something?

[kartu]

cwappy, check this post.

[ewandeep]

Dear Kartu, thank you for your work,
but I cannot wait to install your software (it is really good).
So I just wonder if you plan to complete your flasher in a few days, on the contrary I will install the boroda software, then the prs+.
Please let me know

[ewandeep]

ok, I russified and installed prs+.
Very easy to do, no problem.