Kobo Start Menu

[trekk]

Originally Posted by tshering

Were you able to stop the boot loop? (Was it really a boot loop? Or just the dancing squares? ... If you can access the menu, you can simply install the new version of the menu (see next post).

I did stop it, but I had to to a factory reset. Maybe it were just the dancing squares.

Your new package works fine with 3.3.0 (tested on 6" Aura) . Thanks a lot for your work!

[tshering]

Originally Posted by trekk

I did stop it, but I had to to a factory reset. Maybe it were just the dancing squares.

I am sorry to hear this.

Originally Posted by trekk

Your new package works fine with 3.3.0 (tested on 6" Aura) . Thanks a lot for your work!

Thank you for testing and reporting.

[firehawk12]

I just installed the launcher, but the "start nickel" option doesn't do anything. Do I need to reinstall nickel reader somehow?

Ah, it looks like it tries to load the nickel reader the first time I click it and shows the little boxes loading the reader, but it crashes and returns to the Kobo Start Menu. At that point, clicking "start nickel" does nothing and the only way I can get back in is to restart the device (since it is set to alternate with nickel at the moment).

[tshering]

Originally Posted by firehawk12

I just installed the launcher, but the "start nickel" option doesn't do anything. Do I need to reinstall nickel reader somehow?

This should not be necessary.

Originally Posted by firehawk12

Ah, it looks like it tries to load the nickel reader the first time I click it and shows the little boxes loading the reader, but it crashes and returns to the Kobo Start Menu.

Are you running the most recent version of the Kobo Start Menu? Which firmware version are you running? Actually it should not make a difference, but anyway.

Originally Posted by firehawk12

At that point, clicking "start nickel" does nothing and the only way I can get back in is to restart the device (since it is set to alternate with nickel at the moment).

Do I understand correctly that at this point (I mean after returning to the start menu) the start menu is totally unresponsive (you can not select info, restart or power off, and so on)? It is not clear to me whether you restart the device via the menu or by forcing a power off with the power slider.

If you restart after a failed trial to start nickel via the menu, does this launch nickel (the standard Kobo user interface)? Or are there only the dancing squares, a restart after some seconds and then the Kobo Start Menu again?

Another thing: Did you perhaps downgrade from firmware 3.3.0 to another firmware without doing a factory reset?

[firehawk12]

I used the version on the last page (that was linked in the alternate reader thread) and my Aura was on 3.2.0. I haven't done anything to it, so everything is "fresh" with the exception of installing the two packages in the alternate reader thread.

Here is what happens when I restart the device and it boots into Kobo Start Menu.

I click on start nickel reader. The screen changes to the five boxes in the middle to show loading. The system "crashes" when it hits 3 black boxes and returns back to Kobo Start Menu.

If I click on start nickel reader again, nothing will happen. No matter how many times I click on it, nothing will happen.

The only way I can get into nickel reader is to reboot my device, using the reboot option, because it is set to alternate (by default).

KOReader still works and all other options still work after nickel crashes, but the only way to get into nickel is to reboot the device.

Then, of course, the only way to go back from nickel to Kobo Start Menu is to restart the device again.

[tshering]

Originally Posted by firehawk12

I used the version on the last page (that was linked in the alternate reader thread) and my Aura was on 3.2.0. I haven't done anything to it, so everything is "fresh" with the exception of installing the two packages in the alternate reader thread.

I tested the version only with FW 2.6.2 and 3.3.0. Evidently my approach to determine whether 3.2.0 is running is faulty. Until I have time to look into this we can make an experiment. I upload the 3.2.0 specific script for loading nickel. Replace .kobo\kbmenu\onstart\startreader.sh by the version that you find in the archive I upload to this post. Then restart and try whether it works. Keep the original startreader.sh (for instance by renaming it to _startreader.sh). You will need it when you upgrade the firmware.

[Ken Maltby]

The Kobo Start Menu links in the alternate reader thread, bring you to the first post in this thread. With your running the 3.2.0 FW, that would give you two options for install downloads. The FW 3.2.0 one and the "most recent version" (#4, I think).

Luck;
Ken

[tshering]

Ken, I think firehawk12 meant this post and installed the latest version.

[firehawk12]

Yes, I downloaded the version specifically for 3.2.0 on the previous page.

Originally Posted by tshering

I tested the version only with FW 2.6.2 and 3.3.0. Evidently my approach to determine whether 3.2.0 is running is faulty. Until I have time to look into this we can make an experiment. I upload the 3.2.0 specific script for loading nickel. Replace .kobo\kbmenu\onstart\startreader.sh by the version that you find in the archive I upload to this post. Then restart and try whether it works. Keep the original startreader.sh (for instance by renaming it to _startreader.sh). You will need it when you upgrade the firmware.

I just tried this and it didn't work unfortunately. Is the only way to fix this to upgrade to 3.3.0? I wonder why the Kobo didn't update itself to the latest firmware.

[tshering]

Originally Posted by firehawk12

Yes, I downloaded the version specifically for 3.2.0 on the previous page.

Did you? I thought you downloaded the most recent version, which I hope(d) to work for FW 2.6.0 up to 3.3.0.

Originally Posted by firehawk12

I just tried this and it didn't work unfortunately.

This is easy to explain. Since I thought you downloaded the most recent version of the Kobo Start Menu, I gave you the startreader.sh of 3.2.0 package, which is identical with the version you already had.

Originally Posted by firehawk12

Is the only way to fix this to upgrade to 3.3.0? I wonder why the Kobo didn't update itself to the latest firmware.

I don't know. I don't understand why the 3.2.0 version is not working on your device under FW 3.2.0. Therefore, I have even doubts whether the 3.3.0 version will work on your device. In any way, before you upgrade to 3.3.0, don't forget to uninstall the 3.2.0 specific version of the Kobo Start Menu.

If you like we could try another experiment. Extract startreader330andbelow_log.sh from the archive and copy it to .kobo/kbmenu/scripts. Then select in the Kobo Start Menu "scripts" and then select "startreader330andbelow log.sh." The script will try to launch nickel, and possibly fail to do so. If it works as expected, it will create a log file in .kobo\kbmenu\txt. Maybe this gives us a hint what is happening.

[firehawk12]

Edit:

Just nuking the old post. Basically, cleaned out all the readers and whatnot, synced it which forced it to update to 3.3.0, reinstalled everything, and now it works as expected.

So, for anyone having any problems, I would recommend making sure your device is at 3.3.0.

Thanks for your help guys!

[Ken Maltby]

Originally Posted by firehawk12

Edit:

Just nuking the old post. Basically, cleaned out all the readers and whatnot, synced it which forced it to update to 3.3.0, reinstalled everything, and now it works as expected.

So, for anyone having any problems, I would recommend making sure your device is at 3.3.0.

Thanks for your help guys!

That may be an issue for the Aura 6" I am still using FW3.2.0 and everything is working as expected, on my AuraHD.

Luck;
Ken

[Markismus]

I installed it on Aura and it's working with a small defect: the icon for returning to Start menu from Nickel doesn't work. Is this to be expected or should I be able to fix it.

I have koreader and Kobolauncher and both can be lauched via png-files from Nickel. Does the Start Menu icon use another way to activate the png-files than KoboLauncher? (The latest versions seem to change the directory name to vlasoft-whatever-something. Could that have messed things up?)

[Ken Maltby]

Basically you need to run the KoboRoot.tgz from the start menu download after you have nickel recognizing the Icons in the kbmenupns folder, as full page images. After you copied the folder into the root, nickel should see the image files and add them to the database and library. If they didn't get processed that way you may need to try again.

For my AuraHD 3.2.0, using that icon to return works, but the menu is displayed upside down, so I just use the slide switch to power off and then start back up in the menu.

Luck;
Ken

[tshering]

Originally Posted by Markismus

I installed it on Aura and it's working with a small defect: the icon for returning to Start menu from Nickel doesn't work. Is this to be expected or should I be able to fix it.

I have koreader and Kobolauncher and both can be lauched via png-files from Nickel. Does the Start Menu icon use another way to activate the png-files than KoboLauncher? (The latest versions seem to change the directory name to vlasoft-whatever-something. Could that have messed things up?)

Do I understand correctly that you are saying that (1) you have installed the Start Menu, (2) you cannot exit nickel by selecting exit_nickel.png, (3) you can launch koreader and Kobolauncher vie pngs from nickel? If this is the case, then something went wrong.

Usually Sergey's package uses the etc/init.d/on-animator.sh script to call .kobo/on_start.sh, and on_start.sh calls all script files in .kobo/fmon. These scripts call fmon and associate distinct pngs with distinct script files or other executables.

If you call nickel via the Start Menu, on-animator.sh is skipped. Therefore, ... and you should not be able to launch koreader and so on via a png file.


The Start Menu feeds fmon in this way: On selecting "start nickel", .kobo/kbmenu/onstart/feedfmon.sh loops through all script files located in .kobo/kbmenu/fmonsh. For each script file it looks whether there is a corresponding png file in kbmenupngs (same file name, different extension). If there is one, it checks if the png file has already been processed by nickel. If this is the case, it calls fmon and associates the concerned png file with its script.
In order to make your own association between png files and scripts, take kbmenupngs/run_test_script.png and .kobo/kbmenu/fmonsh/run_test_script.sh as an example. (run_test_script.sh is actually empty. I insert code whenever I need running ad hoc a script from nickel.)

Maybe with this information you can find, why exit_nickel.png does not work on your device.

Edit: Admittedly, I forgot that there is actually a problem with Aura HD when exiting form nickel via exit_nickel.png. This problem is mentioned in post #1. You can find sort of a solution in the startreader.sh provided in this post. But I think, this is not the problem you were referring to, but rather that after selecting exit_nickel.png nothing at all happens. Right?