Alex and MacBook don't talk

NNolan · 04-21-2010, 09:15 PM

The instructions say I should get a "Notifications" screen when I hook the Alex up through USB and then I have to mount the SD card. No "Notifications" screen

, no sign of the Alex as a device on my laptop.
It's too late to get anyone at Spring Design on the phone tonight, too.

This had some potential; it cold-starts faster than the Nook, the page turns are a wee bit faster and it's got a (very slow) "Go To Page" function, but overall it's not as zippy as my Kindle 2, Sony 300 or my iPod/iPad combo. I think I may bite the 10% restocking fee bullet and send it back, like I should have done with the Nook 2 months ago.

grooks · 04-21-2010, 09:23 PM

Are you trying to mount the SD card from the Mac or from the Alex. With Android, the "Notifications" will slide down from the top. I'm only speaking from experience using Android and not the Alex.

Nate the great · 04-21-2010, 09:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NNolan

The instructions say I should get a "Notifications" screen when I hook the Alex up through USB and then I have to mount the SD card. No "Notifications" screen

, no sign of the Alex as a device on my laptop.
It's too late to get anyone at Spring Design on the phone tonight, too.

This had some potential; it cold-starts faster than the Nook, the page turns are a wee bit faster and it's got a (very slow) "Go To Page" function, but overall it's not as zippy as my Kindle 2, Sony 300 or my iPod/iPad combo. I think I may bite the 10% restocking fee bullet and send it back, like I should have done with the Nook 2 months ago.

This is an Android quirk, and most (all?) Android devices share it. I just tried the following, and it worked:

Turn on the Alex. Plug in the USB. On the LCD screen, grab the white bar across the top and drag it down. If you see something that says USB, click it. When the menu pops up, select "Mount".

The Alex should now appear to be a USB drive on your computer.

NNolan · 04-21-2010, 09:35 PM

Yeah, I finally got that to drop down right after I posted my anguish. Now I can't get ADE to see the Alex, so I can't copy any of my ePub books over (yet). So far, this has been a lot more work than most of my other ereaders.

Nate the great · 04-21-2010, 09:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NNolan

Yeah, I finally got that to drop down right after I posted my anguish. Now I can't get ADE to see the Alex, so I can't copy any of my ePub books over (yet). So far, this has been a lot more work than most of my other ereaders.

Mount the Alex, and then turn on ADE.

NNolan · 04-21-2010, 09:44 PM

I tried that, and ADE first then Alex. Neither seems to be working.
My Sony isn't recognized in ADE on my Mac either, but I can copy books over and read them just fine. When I tried that just now on the Alex it seems to have bunged up the SD card. I'm factory-resetting again right now.

NNolan · 04-22-2010, 05:19 AM

And now it's a brick. It froze last night around 10:08 and there's nothing in the manual that tells how to reset it when that happens. I'm going to send this back; it wasn't $400 worth of impressive even when it worked.

SCION · 04-22-2010, 12:08 PM

Is there an email for support? Perhaps you can inquire about how to reset the device. I'm sure it's disappointing to have issues with something you were anxiously awaiting.

NNolan · 04-22-2010, 05:08 PM

I just talked to Customer Support at Spring Design: they suggested trying to recharge the battery again when the little reset button on the back isn't working, because sometimes the battery drains if/when the reader locks up.

A few hours from now, when it finishes charging, I'll take another crack at getting ADE and Alex on speaking terms.

grooks · 04-22-2010, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NNolan

I tried that, and ADE first then Alex. Neither seems to be working.
My Sony isn't recognized in ADE on my Mac either, but I can copy books over and read them just fine. When I tried that just now on the Alex it seems to have bunged up the SD card. I'm factory-resetting again right now.

I think the device not being recognized in ADE is a problem between the Mac and ADE.

NNolan · 04-22-2010, 08:38 PM

I've got it working, finally, and all my books copied over. YAY!

jen6060 · 04-23-2010, 02:42 AM

Hi NNolan,
Pls post a review when you hv time- i'm really curious abt it. does it work now as you'd like it? how's browsing , speed etc..

NNolan · 04-23-2010, 06:27 AM

I still haven't had a lot of time to play with it, but last night with a full battery charge its response time was approaching Kindle speeds for everything but a cold start. It puts my Nook to shame. It's kind of like a Kindle with a little iPod Touch where the keyboard would be.

kejia · 04-26-2010, 10:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NNolan

And now it's a brick. It froze last night around 10:08 and there's nothing in the manual that tells how to reset it when that happens. I'm going to send this back; it wasn't $400 worth of impressive even when it worked.

That happened to me. I sent them an email and they responded. there is a reset button on the back -- above and to the left of the sd card. Use a ball point pen or paper clip and push in. Then turn alex over and press and hold the power button. Mine turned on.

This reset button does not make you lose your settings or erase anything on the alex.

Frankly, I think a lot of initial frustration is because the alex is new. When my ipod froze up, I went to the web and found instructions for unfreezing it. There just isn't that information out there yet. As soon as I unfroze my screen, I fell in love, so you might want to give it another chance.

kejia · 04-26-2010, 01:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NNolan

I've got it working, finally, and all my books copied over. YAY!

OK, how did you get ADE to recognize Alex? Got a recipe?

04-21-2010, 09:15 PM	#1
NNolan Compulsive Gadget Geek Posts: 395 Karma: 4219324 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Almost Canada Device: One of each, and two in some cases	Alex and MacBook don't talk The instructions say I should get a "Notifications" screen when I hook the Alex up through USB and then I have to mount the SD card. No "Notifications" screen , no sign of the Alex as a device on my laptop. It's too late to get anyone at Spring Design on the phone tonight, too. This had some potential; it cold-starts faster than the Nook, the page turns are a wee bit faster and it's got a (very slow) "Go To Page" function, but overall it's not as zippy as my Kindle 2, Sony 300 or my iPod/iPad combo. I think I may bite the 10% restocking fee bullet and send it back, like I should have done with the Nook 2 months ago.

04-21-2010, 09:44 PM	#6
NNolan Compulsive Gadget Geek Posts: 395 Karma: 4219324 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Almost Canada Device: One of each, and two in some cases	I tried that, and ADE first then Alex. Neither seems to be working. My Sony isn't recognized in ADE on my Mac either, but I can copy books over and read them just fine. When I tried that just now on the Alex it seems to have bunged up the SD card. I'm factory-resetting again right now. Last edited by NNolan; 04-21-2010 at 09:50 PM.

04-22-2010, 05:08 PM	#9
NNolan Compulsive Gadget Geek Posts: 395 Karma: 4219324 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Almost Canada Device: One of each, and two in some cases	It's Alllliiiiivvvveeee!! I just talked to Customer Support at Spring Design: they suggested trying to recharge the battery again when the little reset button on the back isn't working, because sometimes the battery drains if/when the reader locks up. A few hours from now, when it finishes charging, I'll take another crack at getting ADE and Alex on speaking terms.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
The most extensive corpus about the PAPYRE 6S ALEX (ALEX SPRING DS-11)	LARdT	Spring Design Alex	0	08-26-2010 01:50 PM
Free - Freaks Talk Back: Tabloid Talk Shows and Sexual Nonconformity	nboshart	Deals and Resources (No Self-Promotion or Affiliate Links)	1	06-05-2010 10:27 AM
PP on a MacBook?	UchihaNaru	Astak EZReader	5	10-30-2009 11:11 AM
What We Talk About When We Talk About Reading	Dr. Drib	Reading Recommendations	1	05-17-2009 07:37 PM
Macbook Air	astrodad	Alternative Devices	56	02-10-2008 02:04 PM

04-21-2010, 09:23 PM	#2
grooks Wizard Posts: 1,326 Karma: 30250 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Fort Myers, FL Device: Pocketbook Era, Kobo Forma	Are you trying to mount the SD card from the Mac or from the Alex. With Android, the "Notifications" will slide down from the top. I'm only speaking from experience using Android and not the Alex.

04-21-2010, 09:35 PM	#4
NNolan Compulsive Gadget Geek Posts: 395 Karma: 4219324 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Almost Canada Device: One of each, and two in some cases	Yeah, I finally got that to drop down right after I posted my anguish. Now I can't get ADE to see the Alex, so I can't copy any of my ePub books over (yet). So far, this has been a lot more work than most of my other ereaders.

04-22-2010, 05:19 AM	#7
NNolan Compulsive Gadget Geek Posts: 395 Karma: 4219324 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Almost Canada Device: One of each, and two in some cases	And now it's a brick. It froze last night around 10:08 and there's nothing in the manual that tells how to reset it when that happens. I'm going to send this back; it wasn't $400 worth of impressive even when it worked.

04-22-2010, 12:08 PM	#8
SCION Séduisant Posts: 4,706 Karma: 2107018 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Texas, USA Device: Boox Note Air2+; Kobo Libra2; Kindle Scribe, Oasis3; iPad Mini6	Is there an email for support? Perhaps you can inquire about how to reset the device. I'm sure it's disappointing to have issues with something you were anxiously awaiting.

04-22-2010, 08:38 PM	#11
NNolan Compulsive Gadget Geek Posts: 395 Karma: 4219324 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Almost Canada Device: One of each, and two in some cases	I've got it working, finally, and all my books copied over. YAY!

04-23-2010, 02:42 AM	#12
jen6060 Connoisseur Posts: 62 Karma: 10 Join Date: May 2009 Device: sony prs505 (given away); Sony prs300; Nook	Hi NNolan, Pls post a review when you hv time- i'm really curious abt it. does it work now as you'd like it? how's browsing , speed etc..

04-23-2010, 06:27 AM	#13
NNolan Compulsive Gadget Geek Posts: 395 Karma: 4219324 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Almost Canada Device: One of each, and two in some cases	I still haven't had a lot of time to play with it, but last night with a full battery charge its response time was approaching Kindle speeds for everything but a cold start. It puts my Nook to shame. It's kind of like a Kindle with a little iPod Touch where the keyboard would be.

Advert

Advert