Astak Mentor eBook readers with WiFi and Touchscreen (read-only)

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by emellaich

Robertb, someone had a question for you in another forum. Check it out here:

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=52056

Dear emellaich:

THANK YOU very much. I owe you a favor.

I did go to the link and posted on that thread and gave the same info as above.

I appreciate your watchful eye!!

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by photon17

The addition of Adobe Digital Editions capability is good news.

Does that include the ability to read the version used on public library ebooks?

Not likely without an OS patch and perhaps hardware changes. The problem is that Public Libraries need a clock and calendar on the device to support time limited checkouts. This needs a clock battery to keep the clock running while the device is turned off. There is a work around available that will keep the clock and calendar going so long as the unit is powered up or on standby but all the data has to be reset if the unit is powered down or a reset is applied.

Dale

[photon17]

Thanks for the explanation!

[Musicman]

Originally Posted by Robertb

Astak has been Approved to sell eBook Reader Devices with Adobe Digital Editions

We hope, by tomorrow, to provide a website where ALL EZ Reader end users can do a Firmware Upgrade to load Adobe Digital Editions onto their EZ Reader. IF you presently have Mobipocket and want to keep Mobipocket on your device... simply do nothing with this firmware upgrade. However, we think this is a very exciting addition to the capabilities of those who purchased EZ Readers! I will POST on this thread!

This is great news!

I will be looking for the Official Notice (But I think I already know the site).

Does this also mean that your Ebook site will be selling current books with Adobe Digital Editions DRM?

[Musicman]

Originally Posted by DaleDe

Not likely without an OS patch and perhaps hardware changes. The problem is that Public Libraries need a clock and calendar on the device to support time limited checkouts. This needs a clock battery to keep the clock running while the device is turned off. There is a work around available that will keep the clock and calendar going so long as the unit is powered up or on standby but all the data has to be reset if the unit is powered down or a reset is applied.

Dale

I understand the problem, but wouldn't you think that Adobe would have work around to this? Like updating the date within ADE everytime you connect to the computer?

[brudigia]

Originally Posted by Robertb

Astak has been Approved to sell eBook Reader Devices with Adobe Digital Editions

........
the EZ Reader ... displaying in 12 formats and 20 languages.
...
ALL EZ Reader end users can do a Firmware Upgrade to load Adobe Digital Editions onto their EZ Reader. IF you presently have Mobipocket and want to keep Mobipocket on your device... simply do nothing with this firmware upgrade. ....

One question quickly springs to mind. Will users be able to read non DRM mobipocket beside epub, or the epub automatically takes the place of mobi ? Which would mean you actually have two different (in software) products, which still read 12 formats, that is:

• product nr. 1) read 11 formats + mobi

• product nr. 2) reads 11 formats + epub

Did I sum it correctly ?

[wallcraft]

Originally Posted by Musicman

I understand the problem, but wouldn't you think that Adobe would have work around to this? Like updating the date within ADE everytime you connect to the computer?

This isn't Adobe's problem. It is just using the standard date from the operating system, and Linux is perfectly capable of running a clock. The Hanlin's firmware does not have an accurate clock (or perhaps no clock advance at all) because it wants to turn it off when it sleeps. I think OpenInkPot is running a clock on the same hardware, but I'm not certain of this. In any case, there is no need to have an accurate clock to support lending library ebooks. All you need is a way to set the time, see post #2722. This definitely works for MOBI ebooks and probably works for Adobe as well. With this approach, you have to manually set the time every time you power up the device, but there is rarely a reason to turn off a Hanlin.

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by Musicman

This is great news!

I will be looking for the Official Notice (But I think I already know the site).

Does this also mean that your Ebook site will be selling current books with Adobe Digital Editions DRM?

Dear Musicman:

We are trying to work this out now. Our new website is by Fictionwise and they want only eReader eBooks on our site.

We are working now with alternative sites that will provide ADE DRM. All of this takes time. In the interim, Powells Books in Portland, Oregon sells ADE DRM and they are great people! They will likely carry our eBook Readers as well. Give us a little time. Your question is a good one and we anticipated it.

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by brudigia

One question quickly springs to mind. Will users be able to read non DRM mobipocket beside epub, or the epub automatically takes the place of mobi ? Which would mean you actually have two different (in software) products, which still read 12 formats, that is:

• product nr. 1) read 11 formats + mobi

• product nr. 2) reads 11 formats + epub

Did I sum it correctly ?

Dear brudigia:

Mobi Non-DRM is PRC format. Yes, the EZ Reader already supports PRC so it will read non-DRM Adobe and will continue to read them.

Thank you. Good question!!

[slayda]

Originally Posted by wallcraft

This isn't Adobe's problem. It is just using the standard date from the operating system, and Linux is perfectly capable of running a clock. The Hanlin's firmware does not have an accurate clock (or perhaps no clock advance at all) because it wants to turn it off when it sleeps. I think OpenInkPot is running a clock on the same hardware, but I'm not certain of this. In any case, there is no need to have an accurate clock to support lending library ebooks. All you need is a way to set the time, see post #2722. This definitely works for MOBI ebooks and probably works for Adobe as well. With this approach, you have to manually set the time every time you power up the device, but there is rarely a reason to turn off a Hanlin.

There appears to be some type of clock function that you can set in OI but you clock time that you set disappears whenever you turn the reader off so you have to reset the time when you turn it back on.

[wallcraft]

Originally Posted by Robertb

We are working now with alternative sites that will provide ADE DRM.

Powells seems to be selling only Adobe PDFs. Generally Adobe ePubs are better when they are available. In the US, the best store for Adobe ePub (and PDF) is Books on Board. They have an Adobe-only portal which is supposed to be for the Bookeen Opus but is equally applicable to other devices with mobile ADE, see Books on Board has an Opus Portal. Many UK titles are available in ePub, and I buy from WHSmith. Note that UK ebook stores do not lock out US customers and even sell VAT free to the US.

[Robertb]

Originally Posted by wallcraft

Powells seems to be selling only Adobe PDFs. Generally Adobe ePubs are better when they are available. In the US, the best store for Adobe ePub (and PDF) is Books on Board. They have an Adobe-only portal which is supposed to be for the Bookeen Opus but is equally applicable to other devices with mobile ADE, see Books on Board has an Opus Portal. Many UK titles are available in ePub, and I buy from WHSmith. Note that UK ebook stores do not lock out US customers and even sell VAT free to the US.

Dear Wallcraft:

Thank you! I have been trying to get the attention of BooksOnBoard for a while as we knew we need to have an ADE link at minimum for a good source of ADE eBooks. Powells is going to enormously ramp their library up.

Regarding BooksOnBoard, I cannot find the city even, no less the phone number, for these folks. General Emails to admin have no effect. Anybody got any contacts or at least a location for their offices?

[cvkemp]

Robert B
Books on Board is located in the Austin, Texas
I sent you the address and phone number for Books on Board to your gmail address.

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by Musicman

I understand the problem, but wouldn't you think that Adobe would have work around to this? Like updating the date within ADE everytime you connect to the computer?

That would be a good start but there is still the problem with a reboot if the unit locks up. Jinke uses the Adobe API and installs the ADE library. It would be up to Jinke to solve the problem. I have reported it to them and BeBook already must to as well as they did the work around I believe. There are ways they could make this work better than it does. But this is probably not the place to design it.

Dale

[Andybaby]

here is the contact info for BOB.
http://www.manta.com/coms2/dnbcompany_0dgllr

small company, only 4 people. gross ~110,000 a year. there is a phone number at the above link

edit. seems I'm slow. I loaded this page a while ago. just got around to reading it.