Aura HD Any way to get Overdrive directly on reader?

[Thrasher]

I am getting super frustrated with transferring library books to my Kobo. I have the Aura HD, so I have to do it through PC. Most of the times the books will not open due to DRM conflict or whatnot. I have to to the whole deauthorize - authorize thing, and most of the times that does not work either.

Is there any way to flash firmware from the newer Kobos to mine so I can have built in Overdrive directly to my device?

[PeterT]

Originally Posted by Thrasher

Is there any way to flash firmware from the newer Kobos to mine so I can have built in Overdrive directly to my device?

Nope.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Thrasher

I am getting super frustrated with transferring library books to my Kobo. I have the Aura HD, so I have to do it through PC. Most of the times the books will not open due to DRM conflict or whatnot. I have to to the whole deauthorize - authorize thing, and most of the times that does not work either.

Is there any way to flash firmware from the newer Kobos to mine so I can have built in Overdrive directly to my device?

When you download from Overdrive are you doing it with the same copy of ADE? Your Kobo should never need to be deauthorized once authorized witht he same account used to authorize ADE.'

[Thrasher]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

When you download from Overdrive are you doing it with the same copy of ADE? Your Kobo should never need to be deauthorized once authorized witht he same account used to authorize ADE.'

I don’t quite understand your question. I have one version of ADE installed and I am always signed in to just one account. However , frequently after transferring to Kobo the library books don’t open. It’s like playing Russian roulette. Sometimes deauthorization, deletion, reauthorization , redownload works, but often it does not. I don’t get what the problem is. Is it with ADE , Overdrive, Kobo or all of the above?

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by Thrasher

I don’t quite understand your question. I have one version of ADE installed and I am always signed in to just one account. However , frequently after transferring to Kobo the library books don’t open. It’s like playing Russian roulette. Sometimes deauthorization, deletion, reauthorization , redownload works, but often it does not. I don’t get what the problem is. Is it with ADE , Overdrive, Kobo or all of the above?

For me, I had issues when I reset my Kobo ereaders and needed to re-authorize. After a few times, this required calling Adobe since I ran out of authorizations. I finally realized that in the .adobe-digital-editions directory on the device, there are two files. The device.xml file is specific to the device but the activation.xml file was the same on all my devices. Now when I reset my Kobos, I put a saved copy of the activation.xml file in the .adobe-digital-editions directory and ADE happily says my Kobo is authorized. No need for re-authorization for quite a few years now.

As long as ADE is able to download the library ebook and my Kobo shows as authorized, I haven't seen any issues with library books not opening on my Kobos.


As usual, YMMV.

[Uschiekid]

Also make sure the time is right on your device. Having the incorrect date/time can cause issues with library books.
Also what firmware are you on for your Kobo?
I had problems with library books and ADE on one or two of the firmwares. For example, if I tried to open a book that was expired, any book I tried to open afterwards would also say it was DRM protected, etc. Another problem was if I left an expired book on my kobo and added a new one, the new one wouldn't work. But if I deleted all the expired books, then added the new book, it would work. This was years ago and I haven't had similar problems for a very long time, but I mention this in case you are on a very old firmware. I don't even think these were problems encountered by the majority, but I know I wasn't the only one that would get a frequent "DRM authorization" message on books that shouldn't have caused that message.

[Thrasher]

I see I am not the only one still experiencing this issue: https://community.adobe.com/t5/digit...9790918?page=1
The problem with the solution on that page is that you have to download a new book, which I have tried before and that often works and solves the problem. However, the problem is that the issue eventually returns, sooner than later in my case. And when I currently have books borrowed in my Overdrive Account that I want to read now, downloading a new book is not an option for me, since I am not interested in reading a new book.
This is super frustrating and I wonder why Kobo just doesn't flash their old readers with built-in Overdrive?
Any idea if this will ever happen?

[Thrasher]

Originally Posted by Uschiekid

Also make sure the time is right on your device. Having the incorrect date/time can cause issues with library books.
Also what firmware are you on for your Kobo?
I had problems with library books and ADE on one or two of the firmwares. For example, if I tried to open a book that was expired, any book I tried to open afterwards would also say it was DRM protected, etc. Another problem was if I left an expired book on my kobo and added a new one, the new one wouldn't work. But if I deleted all the expired books, then added the new book, it would work. This was years ago and I haven't had similar problems for a very long time, but I mention this in case you are on a very old firmware. I don't even think these were problems encountered by the majority, but I know I wasn't the only one that would get a frequent "DRM authorization" message on books that shouldn't have caused that message.

I am currently on software 4.22.15190, which seems to be dated for 6/22/20. That means that Kobo is still supporting this device and updating it! Why don't they just add Overdrive to the software?

[4691mls]

Not a fix for your Kobo, but if Overdrive books are your top priority you could consider a Tolino. I got my used Shine 2 for around $35 on eBay. It has direct library access.

However, ability to get books directly from a store is iffier if you're not in Tolino's intended European market. There's a thread in the Tolino forum where Rcentros reported on some ebook stores he had tried and whether they did or didn't work.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by Thrasher

I am currently on software 4.22.15190, which seems to be dated for 6/22/20. That means that Kobo is still supporting this device and updating it! Why don't they just add Overdrive to the software?

It's a differentiator for their newer devices? There is a cost to Kobo for having that capability on the device? It's their software and hardware and they get to make the decisions? What financial benefit to Kobo is there in adding Overdrive to a 7 year old device?

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by 4691mls

Not a fix for your Kobo, but if Overdrive books are your top priority you could consider a Tolino. I got my used Shine 2 for around $35 on eBay. It has direct library access.

However, ability to get books directly from a store is iffier if you're not in Tolino's intended European market. There's a thread in the Tolino forum where Rcentros reported on some ebook stores he had tried and whether they did or didn't work.

I'm experimenting with an older PocketBook now (Touch Lux 3, the older version, heavier than the updated version, with Pearl screen instead of E-Carta). The PocketBooks seem better for Overdrive than the Tolinos because the browser will save your password and keep you logged in. Also, because the browser is better, it allows me to download from certain sites (Kobo and Google Books, for example) that I can't download from with the Tolino (the PocketBook supports the "triple dot menu" needed for downloading — I can't get the Tolinos to do that). I haven't experimented with all sites, but (at this point) I think the PocketBook can download and open DRM ePubs from any site that sells them. And it definitely works with Overdrive.

That said, my particular Touch Lux 3, seems to use the battery incredibly fast when the WiFi is turned on. I've replaced the battery the used one I bought (which is turning out not to be that good of a bargain) and the battery drain still seems incredibly fast with WiFi. (It may just be the gauge is measuring current power output and estimates the time to a dead battery, but last night it dropped from 96% to 79% in about ten minutes of online usage, though it may have jumped back up when the WiFi was turned off — I'll have to check for that.)

I'm also looking at something I wanted to avoid on the Tolinos, using ADB to install a different browser (one that might keep you logged in and would be able to download books from Kobo and Google Books, and others.) I'm not exactly sure how that will work, but now that I'm home again, I'm going to invest some time into experimenting with it. I'll report on that in the Tolino forum.

Should mention, should anyone be looking at the PocketBooks for using Overdrive, the PocketBook Basic 3 and Lux Basic 2, don't have touch screens (or browsers) and won't work for this. You'll need at least a Touch Lux 4 and above (or an older used PocketBook with a touch screen).

Also, back on topic, the important point is that both the Tolinos and PocketBooks have Adobe ADE built in, so they can both open ASCM files directly on the device. I use Linux and don't have Adobe ADE at all on my computer, which is why this subject is important to me.

[Thrasher]

Originally Posted by DNSB

It's a differentiator for their newer devices? There is a cost to Kobo for having that capability on the device? It's their software and hardware and they get to make the decisions? What financial benefit to Kobo is there in adding Overdrive to a 7 year old device?

Good point. But I could argue what financial benefit is there to Kobo for having a the feature to borrow library books? Or is it just a marketing strategy to get people into their ecosystem and sell them books later?

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by DNSB

It's a differentiator for their newer devices? There is a cost to Kobo for having that capability on the device? It's their software and hardware and they get to make the decisions? What financial benefit to Kobo is there in adding Overdrive to a 7 year old device?

I still think it would be a nice gesture to their customers. Older Kobos wear out sooner or later anyhow, so loyal Kobo customers will (eventually) be buying a new Kobo whether the Overdrive feature is on the old Kobo or not.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Thrasher

I see I am not the only one still experiencing this issue: https://community.adobe.com/t5/digit...9790918?page=1
The problem with the solution on that page is that you have to download a new book, which I have tried before and that often works and solves the problem. However, the problem is that the issue eventually returns, sooner than later in my case. And when I currently have books borrowed in my Overdrive Account that I want to read now, downloading a new book is not an option for me, since I am not interested in reading a new book.
This is super frustrating and I wonder why Kobo just doesn't flash their old readers with built-in Overdrive?
Any idea if this will ever happen?

After you have a successful download, copy the activation file. Make multiple copies on different drives. That way if you ever need reactivate, you can just copy the activation file back to the Adobe Digital Editions directory.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by DNSB

It's a differentiator for their newer devices? There is a cost to Kobo for having that capability on the device? It's their software and hardware and they get to make the decisions? What financial benefit to Kobo is there in adding Overdrive to a 7 year old device?

But given that the firmware works, all Kobo has to do is allow Overdrive. It's not that difficult.