Yup, another one of these. Help an open-source vigilante?

[Belle2Be]

Originally Posted by HarryT

This is not the place to discuss vegetarianism. Please take that discussion to the Lounge .

Sorry

[Elfwreck]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Our focus here is really on reading devices, not philosophical debate. You've come here with a set of requirements; people have given you suggestions based on those requirements, but (and I don't mean to be impolite in saying this) you've rejected every piece of practical advice you've been given by people who have an enormous amount of practical experience of using ebook readers, because you dislike the ethics of the companies involved.

I don't see him as rejecting the advice as much as thinking it over out loud, with some frustration over not getting a simple answer to "what device comes closest to what I'm looking for?"

It's not his fault that there is no perfect ebook reader; there is no "accepts content from all ebook stores" reader; there is no "reads all filetypes" reader; there is no "good academic PDF support" reader. And the ereader industries work fairly hard to hide those facts; I can understand being frustrated over what feels like a slap in the face--"you can't have what you're looking for. How about this option instead?"

If it's the former, get any of the mainstream reading devices and I'm sure you'll be happy with it. Readers are devices which generally engender a very high level of user satisfaction.

This, definitely. What I've noticed is that people who love reading, put up with the idiosyncrasies, and love reading on whatever device they have. People who *don't* love reading, but think that a Shiny New Techtoy will make them love reading (or appreciate literature, or become cultured) are going to be disappointed.

[SmokeAndMirrors]

Well, there actually are e-readers that are 100% open-source. I posted a link to one, and I've found a couple more. There's just not very many of them, and they're hard to get.

I get that I will mostly likely have to compromise on something in that regard. And I even let you guys know what I'm willing to compromise on. I was explicit as I could be.

When I was told about the limitations with PDF's, I accepted that, and dropped a criteria of my list. This really leaves me wondering if anyone is reading my replies before responding.

I'm not frustrated that exactly what I want probably doesn't exist. What's actually bugging me is that I'm being told that what I want is stupid. I'm an artist who believes artists should have the rights to their art and customers should have the rights to their possessions. And I'm willing to do a little extra homework to make smart buying decisions that conform to those beliefs as much as possible. Insane, I know. I should just surrender to it, because that will totally make it better (seriously, someone said that... how does that make sense?).

I didn't want a debate about it. I just said that I was looking for open-source. And people acted like I threw sand in their ice cream.

Evidently I'm on my own with this one, I guess.

[HarryT]

You could get a device like that Pixelar reader you posted a link to. It's made by Netronix, and is sold under a dozen different brand names. But, I'd seriously suggest that you don't. The reason that most of us here stick with the big name brands is that they're so much better than the generic Chinese clones.

I've owned them all. Bookeen (three different ones), BeBook, Pocketbook, etc. You know why it is that the reader I actually use every day is the Kindle? It's quite simply because it's the reader that works best for my needs. I've been through all these cheap clones. They're not very good. The firmware is buggy, customer service is non-existent, and construction standards are very poor. I have a Pocketbook 360 with FBReader on it. I don't like it at all (FBReader, that is). But if you like it, go ahead.

Nobody here's calling you stupid, but we're giving you advice based on our experience. If you want to go ahead and make all the mistakes that we've made for yourself, feel free to do so .

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by SmokeAndMirrors

Maybe now that I have gotten some helpful info I should narrow the field.

1. Still want open-source. Not budging on this one. Yes, I know I'll have to occasionally deal with DRM anyway. But I want to see the producer make the effort.

2. Price range is still the same. I can't justify a $200 e-reader. I can only barely justify $150.

3. I'd still greatly prefer touch, and/or just a couple simply buttons.

4. I'd still like some format diversity.

Item 1 you're just not going to find. Yes, I followed the link you found, but over $250 for something without a Pearl screen and menus in Cyrillic and no access to major publishers isn't really a viable option.

And forgive me, but I'm going to tell you that your 4th point is unimportant. If the original ebook doesn't have DRM, calibre will quickly and easily convert from the original format to the format supported by whatever eReader you choose. Wanting an ebook reader that natively reads lots of different (& mostly obsolete) ebook formats is like wanting a washing machine with 50 different programmes, even though you'll only ever use two.

But for 2 and 3 there are two mainstream ebook readers that fit. The Kobo eReader Touch and the nook Simple Touch.

One is $129 and one is $139. I haven't used either, so I can't tell you which one is 'best'. But with your requirements and budget, I'd go for one of them.

[ill_dawg]

You want the Onyx Boox. It is open source, reads anything you can throw at it, and has a touch screen and small buttons. If you don't want wifi, you can get the stripped-down version for cheaper. It is also sold as the bebook neo, but that is tied to a store. If you don't mind the older screen, you can get the last gen model RIGHT NOW for $99. After reading this thread, this thing is exactly what you seem to want. I have one and love it, I read stuff from all over the net with no problems. Go get it, you won't regret it.

[Billi]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I've owned them all. Bookeen (three different ones), BeBook, Pocketbook, etc. You know why it is that the reader I actually use every day is the Kindle? It's quite simply because it's the reader that works best for my needs. I've been through all these cheap clones. They're not very good. The firmware is buggy, customer service is non-existent, and construction standards are very poor. I have a Pocketbook 360 with FBReader on it. I don't like it at all (FBReader, that is). But if you like it, go ahead.

With all my sincere respect to your vast amount of experience I think you're painting it a little bit too black and white here. Bookeen, Onyx/Bebook and Pocketbook are by no means cheap devices (that's the Kindle), firmware is not buggy but very stable (Bookeen with mobi, Bebook Neo), construction standard is the very same (Pocketbook and Kindle and Sony are produced in the same factory), customer service is existent, Pocketbook even offers it here in the forum.
And all these devices give the reader a lot more freedom with configurating and using the device (like folders, sd-cards, use your own fonts in much more sizes, support of many file formats, software developed by the community...).

Of course, buying the mainstream device may be the much safer choice but it may not necessarily be the better choice.

You're right with the FBReader, but both devices who have it installed (Pocketbook, Bebook) have alternatives installed, too, so you don't need to use it.

[HarryT]

Sorry, I didn't express myself very well. I meant that the no-name Chinese clones were buggy, not Pocketbook. I don't like FBReader; I always read using the other reader on the 360. Even that, though, has significant issues - eg you can jump to a hyperlink, but there's no way to get back again. If Pocketbook did a version of the 360, but with a Pearl screen, that would be a very nice reader indeed.

[Billi]

No, you don't have to say sorry because I misread your post. I thought you were referring to the Bookeen, Bebook and Pocketbook devices.

[HarryT]

Bookeen used to be great - I really liked their Mobi firmware. But they really messed up with ePub, I think. Not to allow basic things like bookmarks - there's just no reason for that. The Opus was a very nice device, but I just couldn't live with the firmware.

[SmokeAndMirrors]

Originally Posted by ill_dawg

You want the Onyx Boox. It is open source, reads anything you can throw at it, and has a touch screen and small buttons. If you don't want wifi, you can get the stripped-down version for cheaper. It is also sold as the bebook neo, but that is tied to a store. If you don't mind the older screen, you can get the last gen model RIGHT NOW for $99. After reading this thread, this thing is exactly what you seem to want. I have one and love it, I read stuff from all over the net with no problems. Go get it, you won't regret it.

Whoa, gone already!

Thanks for responding. I will look into that. They seem to be kind of out of my price range, but I'll have a look around.

[HarryT]

The Onyx Boox 60 is the same device as the BeBook Neo, which I have. It's a nice device, but it has the older Vizplex screen, not the newer Pearl screen. There's a very significant difference between the two - Pearl screens have 50% greater contrast (that's the manufacturer's figure) and it makes a real difference. I'd hesitate before buying a new device with a Vizplex screen.

BTW, one correction to the previous poster; the Neo is not "tied to a store". It has a book buying interface, which works via WiFi, but it can be used with ANY store. You can use either the Onyx or the BeBook versions of the firmware on both device; the hardware is identical.

[ProfCrash]

Originally Posted by SmokeAndMirrors

The approach of this one is appealing to me, as an example.

http://www.pixelar.co.uk/ebookdetails.php?ID=1

They have their own bookstore. They allow creators to choose DRM or not. They will keep record of your purchases so you can download them again if need be, but some DRM's only allow 3 downloads. If you reach that limit, you can contact them and they will reset the limit for you.

This shows effort on their part to make sure that when you pay for something, it is actually yours.

It also accepts a large variety of file formats, so it is not trying to lock you into "their" format.

I don't know if the firmware is open-source - probably not. It would probably be hoisting that flag high if it did.

But this is an example of what I am looking for in terms of how they are handling their stores and formats. I have no idea whether the reader itself suits me yet, but I'm definitely paying attention now.

EDIT: It also uses FBReader for most formats, which is an open-source program. More points for them.

EDIT2: And this one comes with open-source firmware is standard. It DOES exist!
http://ereaderguide.info/azbooka_n51...der_review.htm

Amazon and BN allow authors to chose to use DRM or not. It is not something forced on the author.

[p_a_smith]

Originally Posted by HarryT

The Onyx Boox 60 is the same device as the BeBook Neo, which I have. It's a nice device, but it has the older Vizplex screen, not the newer Pearl screen. There's a very significant difference between the two - Pearl screens have 50% greater contrast (that's the manufacturer's figure) and it makes a real difference. I'd hesitate before buying a new device with a Vizplex screen.

I have an original Kobo with a Vizplex screen and a Kobo Touch with a new Pearl screen. For artwork (i.e magazines and illustrations) the Pearl is superior and you really notice the difference. If you just want to read text I personally don't find that great a difference. Yes the Pearl is a superior screen but for just text you can get used to the Vizplex quite easily.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by p_a_smith

I have an original Kobo with a Vizplex screen and a Kobo Touch with a new Pearl screen. For artwork (i.e magazines and illustrations) the Pearl is superior and you really notice the difference. If you just want to read text I personally don't find that great a difference. Yes the Pearl is a superior screen but for just text you can get used to the Vizplex quite easily.

I find that it's in poor light that you really notice the difference. The screen background of the Pearl and Vizplex screens are the same, but the Pearl has much blacker blacks, and that makes it much easier to read. With the Pearl screen I find that I can read in pretty much the same lighting conditions in which I could read a paperback; with Vizplex I often need to use a reading light.