Native Abiword 2.8.6 for the Kindle Scribe (and possibly other Kindles) - Page 3

kaspar · 07-14-2026, 08:29 PM

Kindle Abiword Alpha 1.0 has been released.

Please see the main post.

mergen3107 · Yesterday, 03:20 AM

Yes, touch is my backup

However, in Find and Replace windows even touch cannot put focus into text fields.

mergen3107 · Yesterday, 06:44 AM

Trying new things in Alpha 1.0.

F2 for screenshot and F9 for rotation work (I think they didn't work in 0.2, I am pretty sure I pressed every button.
Can the rotation orientation be configured? Currently it rotates to landscape so that the wide bezel is on top. I would Like to have on the bottom since this would make the screen be positioned higher. Also my origami case is not so stable in the other landscape orientation.

For screenshots - there is no notification whatsoever that a screenshot was taken, not even a screen flash. Maybe there should be one?

mergen3107 · Yesterday, 06:48 AM

I tested the USB keyboard, it works!! I used the same keyboard I have in 2.4 GHz USB dongle it comes with. Crazy! Finally a working USB OTG keyboard working on a Scribe!

mergen3107 · Yesterday, 07:06 AM

Adding fonts to kindle_abiword/share/fonts/ did not trigger font cache update. Abiwork launched instantly and new fonts did not appear.

Somehow, highlighting the text and choosing its font through Ctrl+D (paragraph options) doesn't work - it falls back to some weird font named "\XKt", where X is a weird symbol looking like curvy small omega with a bar with ticks. See screenshot.

From other news, scrollbars are now much bigger and more usable.

Language selection works! Windows is now scaled much bigger, and usable, including bigger scrollbars. I was able to select Russian - although I need to fix my keyboard layout first to test its spelling.

kaspar · Yesterday, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mergen3107

Adding fonts to kindle_abiword/share/fonts/ did not trigger font cache update. Abiwork launched instantly and new fonts did not appear.

Somehow, highlighting the text and choosing its font through Ctrl+D (paragraph options) doesn't work - it falls back to some weird font named "\XKt", where X is a weird symbol looking like curvy small omega with a bar with ticks. See screenshot.

From other news, scrollbars are now much bigger and more usable.

Language selection works! Windows is now scaled much bigger, and usable, including bigger scrollbars. I was able to select Russian - although I need to fix my keyboard layout first to test its spelling.

I was under the (wrong) assumption that new fonts would be detected automatically when they were added. Last night I added instructions to the main post after I added some fonts myself to test it out. Also, I'm pretty damn sure it checks /mnt/us/fonts, so if you already have some there try just deleting the cache files as outlined below before adding anything to /mnt/us/kindle_abiword/share/fonts. I don't know what, if anything happens if you have the same fonts present in both directories. Out of caution I would delete them from /kindle_abiword/share/fonts if you have them in the other place too.

"I shipped a font cache with the release, because font cache generation takes about 45 seconds. If you already have custom fonts on your Kindle, or want to add some to /kindle_abiword/share/fonts, you will need to delete the font cache files in /kindle_abiword/.cache/fontconfig. Once you delete those files and relaunch Abiword, it will look like the program isn't launching, but really it's building the new font cache silently. Please be patient. Every launch after that is quick and normal. Please don't try to launch Abiword a second time while this process is working. It will open when the process is complete. It's normal to see your home screen until it launches."

mergen3107 · Yesterday, 09:40 AM

Thank you!! It worked!
1) I removed my extra fonts from /mnt/us/kindle_abiword/share/fonts , for a clean experiment.
2) I just renamed the folder /kindle_abiword/.cache/fontconfig and started Abiword.
3) It took solid 50 seconds, however, upon opening ALL my fonts at /mnt/us/fonts got loaded! I tested them, they work fine.

kaspar · Yesterday, 09:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mergen3107

Trying new things in Alpha 1.0.

Can the rotation orientation be configured? Currently it rotates to landscape so that the wide bezel is on top. I would Like to have on the bottom since this would make the screen be positioned higher. Also my origami case is not so stable in the other landscape orientation.

I'll look into it. I actually had it the rotating the other way before I got USB keyboard working, which I agree is nicer in landscape because of the large bezel at the bottom, but that's where the USB port is!

kaspar · Yesterday, 09:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mergen3107

Thank you!! It worked!
1) I removed my extra fonts from /mnt/us/kindle_abiword/share/fonts , for a clean experiment.
2) I just renamed the folder /kindle_abiword/.cache/fontconfig and started Abiword.
3) It took solid 50 seconds, however, upon opening ALL my fonts at /mnt/us/fonts got loaded! I tested them, they work fine.

Nice! Thanks for confirming.

mergen3107 · Yesterday, 10:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kaspar

I'll look into it. I actually had it the rotating the other way before I got USB keyboard working, which I agree is nicer in landscape because of the large bezel at the bottom, but that's where the USB port is!

Ah, indeed

Sorry, I missed that point, while I had my dongle connected xD

mergen3107 · Yesterday, 10:15 AM

For BT keyboard it won’t be a problem though

kaspar · Yesterday, 11:01 AM

On the Scribe, I think I prefer portrait mode with about a size 16 or 18 font (for drafting, resized later). It's like a nice interactive piece of paper. I use the page up/down keys to get the whole second, third, etc page into full view. In landscape, I feel like the interface has to refresh more often. Especially if you don't hit return to give yourself some white space to fill.

mergen3107 · Yesterday, 11:57 AM

Yes, Kindle Scribe's 10 inch screen is a very good "notebook-size" A5 paper sheet. Not too big, but also not big enough for something huge. For reading/writing text is good, but I found it too small to handle drawings.

mergen3107 · Yesterday, 11:57 AM

Err, is it at all possible to make accelerometer work?

kbarni · Yesterday, 02:21 PM

I just tested Alpha 1.0, it's much better than previous versions.

However I still have some bugs:
- The menubar is not displayed at all (note: it was present in previous versions)
- The input widgets in the dialogs don't get focus (for example I cannot type in the "Find" dialog, what I type is added to the document.
- The font combo box exceeds the screen size, so when I go down, it won't scroll.

Hope these bugs will be soon ironed out so I can test the rest of the application.

P.S. It's great that you managed to put the USB port in host mode. I wonder if it can take other peripherals, like a mouse?
I think it would be great to release it separately as a scriptlet, just like the BT HID Passthrough.

Yesterday, 06:44 AM	#33
mergen3107 Wizard Posts: 1,650 Karma: 5000564 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Cape Canaveral Device: Kindle Scribe	Trying new things in Alpha 1.0. F2 for screenshot and F9 for rotation work (I think they didn't work in 0.2, I am pretty sure I pressed every button. Can the rotation orientation be configured? Currently it rotates to landscape so that the wide bezel is on top. I would Like to have on the bottom since this would make the screen be positioned higher. Also my origami case is not so stable in the other landscape orientation. For screenshots - there is no notification whatsoever that a screenshot was taken, not even a screen flash. Maybe there should be one? Last edited by mergen3107; Yesterday at 06:50 AM.

Yesterday, 07:06 AM	#35
mergen3107 Wizard Posts: 1,650 Karma: 5000564 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Cape Canaveral Device: Kindle Scribe	Adding fonts to kindle_abiword/share/fonts/ did not trigger font cache update. Abiwork launched instantly and new fonts did not appear. Somehow, highlighting the text and choosing its font through Ctrl+D (paragraph options) doesn't work - it falls back to some weird font named "\XKt", where X is a weird symbol looking like curvy small omega with a bar with ticks. See screenshot. From other news, scrollbars are now much bigger and more usable. Language selection works! Windows is now scaled much bigger, and usable, including bigger scrollbars. I was able to select Russian - although I need to fix my keyboard layout first to test its spelling. Attached Thumbnails

Yesterday, 02:21 PM	#45
kbarni Zealot Posts: 116 Karma: 289266 Join Date: Feb 2025 Device: Kindle PW5	I just tested Alpha 1.0, it's much better than previous versions. However I still have some bugs: - The menubar is not displayed at all (note: it was present in previous versions) - The input widgets in the dialogs don't get focus (for example I cannot type in the "Find" dialog, what I type is added to the document. - The font combo box exceeds the screen size, so when I go down, it won't scroll. Hope these bugs will be soon ironed out so I can test the rest of the application. P.S. It's great that you managed to put the USB port in host mode. I wonder if it can take other peripherals, like a mouse? I think it would be great to release it separately as a scriptlet, just like the BT HID Passthrough. Last edited by kbarni; Yesterday at 02:31 PM.

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07-14-2026, 08:29 PM	#31
kaspar Connoisseur Posts: 56 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2024 Device: Kindle Scribe	Kindle Abiword Alpha 1.0 has been released. Please see the main post.

Yesterday, 03:20 AM	#32
mergen3107 Wizard Posts: 1,650 Karma: 5000564 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Cape Canaveral Device: Kindle Scribe	Yes, touch is my backup However, in Find and Replace windows even touch cannot put focus into text fields.

Yesterday, 06:48 AM	#34
mergen3107 Wizard Posts: 1,650 Karma: 5000564 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Cape Canaveral Device: Kindle Scribe	I tested the USB keyboard, it works!! I used the same keyboard I have in 2.4 GHz USB dongle it comes with. Crazy! Finally a working USB OTG keyboard working on a Scribe!

Yesterday, 09:40 AM	#37
mergen3107 Wizard Posts: 1,650 Karma: 5000564 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Cape Canaveral Device: Kindle Scribe	Thank you!! It worked! 1) I removed my extra fonts from /mnt/us/kindle_abiword/share/fonts , for a clean experiment. 2) I just renamed the folder /kindle_abiword/.cache/fontconfig and started Abiword. 3) It took solid 50 seconds, however, upon opening ALL my fonts at /mnt/us/fonts got loaded! I tested them, they work fine.

Yesterday, 10:15 AM	#41
mergen3107 Wizard Posts: 1,650 Karma: 5000564 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Cape Canaveral Device: Kindle Scribe	For BT keyboard it won’t be a problem though

Yesterday, 11:01 AM	#42
kaspar Connoisseur Posts: 56 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2024 Device: Kindle Scribe	On the Scribe, I think I prefer portrait mode with about a size 16 or 18 font (for drafting, resized later). It's like a nice interactive piece of paper. I use the page up/down keys to get the whole second, third, etc page into full view. In landscape, I feel like the interface has to refresh more often. Especially if you don't hit return to give yourself some white space to fill.

Yesterday, 11:57 AM	#43
mergen3107 Wizard Posts: 1,650 Karma: 5000564 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Cape Canaveral Device: Kindle Scribe	Yes, Kindle Scribe's 10 inch screen is a very good "notebook-size" A5 paper sheet. Not too big, but also not big enough for something huge. For reading/writing text is good, but I found it too small to handle drawings.