DR800 Public BETA of the DR800S and SG 2.0 software available

[catharsis]

I got an iRex DR800SG yesterday (in your face iRex Europe, it costed 350€ instead of 500) and I used it for 1-2 hours with the original firmware and after that I installed the beta version. What I can say is that zooming in pdf make a HUGE difference and it's a big step forward. I'm glad I didn't get the reader before the beta version.

Here are my comments, probably some of them were said before:

1. Zooming is useful, but it can be made much better for landscape mode. A fit width to screen option is missing (this can be done manually, no biggie). And also it would be very nice to see the next part of a page when pressing the rocker, not the next page with the same zoom (I think you know what I mean, I can't express is better, or maybe I can: so if I see half of the page and I request the next page, I want to see the other half of the page, not the first half of the next page. Of course, in portrait mode when I zoom in just to skip the margins, I don't need this kind of browsing).

2. When displaying pictures, it would be nice to put a shortcut to browse to the next picture. Now, if I want to see the next picture I have to go to the pictures menu and tap on it. Of course, this is not that important, since displaying pictures is not the main purpose of the device.

3. Powering off is very confusing: the green led blinks and the device seems powered off, but the picture with iRex remains on it. Sleep mode is straightforward, thankfully.

4. Since the eInk screen can be frozen to an image in sleep/power off mode, can you put an option to choose what picture will it display on sleep/power off mode? This way, I can use the reader as a black and white photo frame

5. I checked folder view on advanced settings and I don't see any difference (do I have to edit something in the .ini file also?)

[Mr. Goodbar]

It would be nice to see the margin option set on a book by book basis. Some of my books look better with different margin settings than others. If you read more than one book at a time switching back and forth is cumbersome.

[jm35]

Originally Posted by Mr. Goodbar

It would be nice to see the margin option set on a book by book basis. Some of my books look better with different margin settings than others. If you read more than one book at a time switching back and forth is cumbersome.

Excellent suggestion. If the margin settings were accessible from the same menu as the font sizes, it would be much more convenient. Maybe add the margin choice to the middle section of that menu, something like this:
---------------------
Add Bookmark
Adjust Font Size >
Adjust Page Margins >
---------------------

[Mr. Goodbar]

Originally Posted by jm35

Excellent suggestion. If the margin settings were accessible from the same menu as the font sizes, it would be much more convenient. Maybe add the margin choice to the middle section of that menu, something like this:
---------------------
Add Bookmark
Adjust Font Size >
Adjust Page Margins >
---------------------

That's exactly what I was thinking. Moving the menu would be a simple task, but I don't know how complex it would be to have the margins set by book instead of universally, but I would definitely like to see it. With the 800 supporting many different formats, what looks best for one format may not look best for another format.

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by catharsis

3. Powering off is very confusing: the green led blinks and the device seems powered off, but the picture with iRex remains on it. Sleep mode is straightforward, thankfully.

Technically, you don't power it off, you only put it into sleep mode. The only time it really powers off is when the battery runs low.

Also, the screen should be blank when it's in sleep mode. The iRex picture you're talking about sounds like you rebooted it, not put it into sleep.

You should only push and hold the power switch briefly to put it into sleep mode. The green LED will come on for about a second, and then go out when the screen blanks. If you push and hold the power switch for a couple seconds then it will blink and reboot, which will bring up the iRex splash screen. After 40 - 50 seconds of booting you'll be back at the main menu.

4. Since the eInk screen can be frozen to an image in sleep/power off mode, can you put an option to choose what picture will it display on sleep/power off mode? This way, I can use the reader as a black and white photo frame

This has been requested from time to time. The two schools of thought are that you want the screen to be blank when it's off/sleep so that it's clear the device is not running. The other opinion is to take advantage of eInk's ability to maintain an image without power and do what you suggest by having a static image displayed.

Most eInk devices seem to do the first option, and blank the screen. Traditionally, iRex has done it this way as well. It has been brought up occasionally that it would be nice for the user to have an option to pick either behavior, but it's probably relatively low on the priority list.

[jm35]

Originally Posted by Mr. Goodbar

... Moving the menu would be a simple task, but I don't know how complex it would be to have the margins set by book instead of universally, but I would definitely like to see it. ...

We are definitely thinking along similar lines. However, I'd keep the existing "Page Margins" under Settings, which would set the user's choice globally. Then there would be an additional "Adjust Page Margins" choice in the book menu, which would override that setting for the individual book. Unless someone changes "Adjust Page Margins" in the individual book menu, the display would default to the global setting that the user has specified under Settings.

In other words, I don't want to have to set my margin preference for each book, but I'd like an easier way to change it for some books. As it stands now, it takes 8 taps to go from reading a book, to changing the page margins in Settings, and then returning to the book. With a new margin choice in the individual book menu, it would take only 3 taps.

And as you say, I have no idea how difficult this would be to implement.

[Mr. Goodbar]

Originally Posted by jm35

We are definitely thinking along similar lines. However, I'd keep the existing "Page Margins" under Settings, which would set the user's choice globally. Then there would be an additional "Adjust Page Margins" choice in the book menu, which would override that setting for the individual book. Unless someone changes "Adjust Page Margins" in the individual book menu, the display would default to the global setting that the user has specified under Settings.

In other words, I don't want to have to set my margin preference for each book, but I'd like an easier way to change it for some books. As it stands now, it takes 8 taps to go from reading a book, to changing the page margins in Settings, and then returning to the book. With a new margin choice in the individual book menu, it would take only 3 taps.

And as you say, I have no idea how difficult this would be to implement.

I like your thought better, global setting with local book override would be perfect. Hopefully the developers will "weigh in" with their perspective.

[catharsis]

Originally Posted by Shaggy

Technically, you don't power it off, you only put it into sleep mode. The only time it really powers off is when the battery runs low.

Also, the screen should be blank when it's in sleep mode. The iRex picture you're talking about sounds like you rebooted it, not put it into sleep.

You should only push and hold the power switch briefly to put it into sleep mode. The green LED will come on for about a second, and then go out when the screen blanks. If you push and hold the power switch for a couple seconds then it will blink and reboot, which will bring up the iRex splash screen. After 40 - 50 seconds of booting you'll be back at the main menu.

I have no idea how to power it off, but if I hold the button for a long time, something happens, maybe a reset. Anyway, from now on I'm using sleep mode and I don't care that much how to power it off.

Originally Posted by Shaggy

It has been brought up occasionally that it would be nice for the user to have an option to pick either behavior, but it's probably relatively low on the priority list.

Yeah, I also think that there are way more important issues to be dealt with, but if this is just a matter of few lines of code, it should be implemented as an option (something like when you set the screensaver on PC). I think making the zoom a bit more functional (check the 1st item on my list) would have to be the main priority.

Anyway, I am happy with my purchase and I wouldn't be that happy if the zooming would have not been added. I'll write more about what I think about the device (my first ereader, actually) in the impressions thread.

[christof.s]

I would like to thank the Irex developer team for having taken up suggestions for the firmware update coming from this forum. The reader is now basically exactly what I need, and I don't regret having bought it before the firmware actually came out. Fix a few bugs and this is the best reader for people who want to read epub and pdf files in a reasonably small package.

[OrcaBlue]

First of, thanks to all Irex developers for listening and taking the user's community's inputs in making DR800 a better reader with v2.0 firmware.

Here are some of the problems and suggestions that I have with 2.0-beta firmware.

Problems:

1. Turning pages while in "Reflow" mode is really slow. The infamous "Please wait..." dialog box pops up on every turns and it takes a long time before display the next page (15, 17, 28 seconds). It used to be fast in 1.0 firmware.

2. Turning pages with "Zoom" mode is faster than "Reflow" mode but needs continuous mode. Need ability to use the flipbar when at the bottom of the page so that it will go to the top of the next page on flipping the flipbar.

3. Needs "fit-by-width" for Landscape mode while in Original Layout.

4. Scribbling within PDF doesn't work very well. Lines do not match the location of the stylus tip. They're off and sit below the stylus's contact point.

5. Erasing markup within PDF is not accurate as within "Notes" tool. It took many erease attempts to remove all scribblings even if erased several times over and over again. It also required

that I popup the menu in order to refresh and update the screen. There is no way to tell which area will be erased upon refresh.

6. Indexing take a long time. I don't even have alot of books on the reader. I believe the reason is it was indexing files within the "Programs" and "Personal" folders as well.
Some suggestions such as "status bar" to tell how long it will take and/or selective indexing are a great suggestions.

7. Pen doesn't work in Landscape mode within Notes. I tried to scribble but the scribblings are not even close to handwritting. Recalibriate stylus in Landscape didn't help.

8. Sometimes, scribblings will lockup the "Menu" button and flipbar. I experienced this in Photos Mode. A reboot is needed to resolve the problem. I believe I experienced this in "Notes" as well.

Needed features:

1. Need ability to switch between "panning mode" and "pen mode" from the status bar.

2. Don't need Download or 3G/Airplane Icon. Please remove them from the status bar while reading or making note.

3. Highlight feature within PDF and Epub.

4. Need ability to annotate notes within document using on screen keybaord for other documents as well.

Other issues:

1. Notes will draw upsided down and from right to left when using "Screen Flip" (180 degrees)

2. I can't add more notes even the SD still have 72% free space available. The error was "can't create new notes because your SD card might be full." The problem went away after reflashing with the 2.0-beta firmware.

3. Xournal crashed when trying to jump to certain page of "annotate pdf" mode.

I think the items listed in problem sections are major problems. We hope it get fix before the final release. Thanks!!!

[Kolenka]

Originally Posted by OrcaBlue

4. Scribbling within PDF doesn't work very well. Lines do not match the location of the stylus tip. They're off and sit below the stylus's contact point.

This seems to be a problem with the Wacom touch screen used. Changing the angle of the pen as it gets near the screen will change the point. You can adjust the calibration to help, but I found the only way this is truly accurate is if you hold the pen exactly the same way every time, including when you calibrated it.

This was true even on the old firmware.

[5staro]

I just finished reading a 400+ page ePub book which is the longest book I have read so far on the Irex. The last 100 pages or so (approximately the point where I installed the new beta firmware) were really laggy. Page turns were taking 5 to 8 seconds to happen after I hit the flipbar, and the lag seemed to be getting worse as I got to the end of the book. I just started a new book and the page turning speed is back to normal. Has anyone else experienced this? I tried resetting but that did not seem to have any effect.

[Kolenka]

Originally Posted by 5staro

I just finished reading a 400+ page ePub book which is the longest book I have read so far on the Irex. The last 100 pages or so (approximately the point where I installed the new beta firmware) were really laggy. Page turns were taking 5 to 8 seconds to happen after I hit the flipbar, and the lag seemed to be getting worse as I got to the end of the book. I just started a new book and the page turning speed is back to normal. Has anyone else experienced this? I tried resetting but that did not seem to have any effect.

Do you know if this ePub might only have one big HTML file inside for the bulk of the content? It would certainly explain the behavior.

I've not seen it myself, but I do know low HTML files are a bit of a no no for ePub.

[5staro]

Originally Posted by Kolenka

Do you know if this ePub might only have one big HTML file inside for the bulk of the content? It would certainly explain the behavior.

I've not seen it myself, but I do know low HTML files are a bit of a no no for ePub.

I bought the book from Kobo. It was labeled as an ePub, as far as I can tell that is all it is.

[Mackx]

Originally Posted by OrcaBlue

Other issues:
3. Xournal crashed when trying to jump to certain page of "annotate pdf" mode.

I also noticed this (and other problems), I need the R2.0 SDK, which will only be released after the final R2.0, to fix this.