Kobo Firmware 2.4.0

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by jackastor

Hey Been using the 2.4.0 firmware and noticed that when you hit the center of the screen, the top bar flashes the time and title of the book your reading. Its the first time I noticed Is this a new feature?

Regards

Jack

It's been there at least since 2.3x.

Regards,
David

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by jhuynh

I don't see how it's a feature in this case compared to the car analogy. When you open the sleep cover you expect to just be able to read it like a book. If you stopped near the top of the page and have a relatively small font there is no way you will be touching the screen before it times out and locks. I'm not sure but I haven't seen any official sleep cover from Kobo that doesn't have a strap to keep the cover from opening up. Also, why duplicate the functionality of the timeout setting? What you described is exactly what the timeout setting is for!

I know it's a really small thing to have to touch the screen when you open the cover but it is a very annoying bug when you don't do it and have to turn it back on.

Think about it. If you don't have a sleep cover it takes 1 step to turn it on(use the power switch). If you have the sleep cover it takes 2 steps (open cover and touch the screen to prevent sleep). Why would anyone want to get a sleep cover in this case?

At this point in my life, I don't do small font sizes and haven't had an issue with the timeout before I'm ready to go to the next page when reading for entertainment. The only time I find it annoying is when I open a tech manual and going from ereader to computer monitor and back goes over the timeout.

And please note that that short timeout applies whether you wake the ereader up by opening the sleep cover or sliding the power switch. So your "Think about it" is not, IMO, a valid point.

Timeout setting? That's for when I fall asleep reading. The short timeout is for when I have the ereader in my gadget bag and the cover gets moved so it turns on. At that point, I really don't want the screen and light staying on for 15 minutes.

Sleep cover functionality? That's a bonus. For me, the reason for having a cover is to protect the screen when I'm not reading.

One man's fish is another man's poisson.

Regards,
David

[John F]

Originally Posted by DNSB

... The short timeout is for when I have the ereader in my gadget bag and the cover gets moved so it turns on. At that point, I really don't want the screen and light staying on for 15 minutes.

...

That seems like a little stretch. If the it is in your bag and gets activated, isn't it also likely that something will touch the screen, so it won't go into Sleep?

Same with accidentally sliding the switch: if the switch gets activated by accident, it seems likely that the screen will get touched accidentally.

If this is why Kobo made the change, I would rather have them make it option, ESPECIALLY with the switch.

[John F]

Originally Posted by jhuynh

...

If you have the sleep cover it takes 2 steps (open cover and touch the screen to prevent sleep). Why would anyone want to get a sleep cover in this case?

Actually takes multiple steps:

1) Open cover
2) decide whether it will likely timeout
3) if it will likely timeout
3a) touch the screen (which will either advance a page or bring up a menu)
3b) touch the screen again to go back to the page you were reading

[jhuynh]

David,

I never had an issue with the screen timing out on me when not using a sleep cover. It was only after I purchased a sleep cover that I discovered it would go to sleep before I was ready to go to the next page.

I just did a test. I waited at least 20 minutes between each test to see how the device acts after waking up from sleep.

Using the power switch to turn on the device: It did not sleep after over 5 minutes of waiting
Using the sleep cover: went to sleep between 65-70 seconds

So your theory on the short timeout happening regardless of how the device is turned on is invalid here as it only occurs when using the sleep cover(with firmware 2.3.1). Using the strap it is nearly impossible to accidentally open the cover. The argument of preventing accidental wake up is decent but I don't buy it given the above fact(with an official kobo sleep cover). At the very least there should be an option to set the sleep cover timeout to something longer.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by John F

That seems like a little stretch. If the it is in your bag and gets activated, isn't it also likely that something will touch the screen, so it won't go into Sleep?

Same with accidentally sliding the switch: if the switch gets activated by accident, it seems likely that the screen will get touched accidentally.

If this is why Kobo made the change, I would rather have them make it option, ESPECIALLY with the switch.

Not really. The cover even with a strap can slide enough so the magnet is no longer in position to trigger sleep. The only time I accidentally hit the power switch was when I was stuffing an iPad back into my gadget bag so it's not that likely to happen.

I have the feeling that this is a 'feature' that some will like and others will consider as cold pancakes without honey.

Regards,
David

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by jhuynh

David,

I never had an issue with the screen timing out on me when not using a sleep cover. It was only after I purchased a sleep cover that I discovered it would go to sleep before I was ready to go to the next page.

I just did a test. I waited at least 20 minutes between each test to see how the device acts after waking up from sleep.

Using the power switch to turn on the device: It did not time out after over 5 minutes of waiting
Using the sleep cover: timed out between 65-70 seconds

So your theory on the short timeout happening regardless of how the device is turned on is invalid here as it only occurs when using the sleep cover(with firmware 2.3.1). Using the strap it is nearly impossible to accidentally open the cover. The argument of preventing accidental wake up is decent but I don't buy it given the above fact. At the very least there should be an option to set the sleep cover timeout to something longer.

But a theory backed by experimental verification with firmware v2.4.0. I noticed it when I had a tech manual open and when I looked back from the computer screen about a minute later, the Glo was returning to sleep mode. I had not noticed this prior to the 2.4.0 upgrade but with 2.4.0, the short timeout behaviour is consistent with either method of waking up my Glo.

Regards,
David

[GeoffR]

Originally Posted by samhy

Oh, bad news then. I'm running Linux so I have a version of ADE, but it can't detect my reader. Yesterday, I also gave a try to Kobo desktop (through wine), it got the new version but it's stuck trying to load contents and once again the reader is not detected. I'll wait to see if the books can be downloaded in a couple of weeks, once the servers will be done with the new firmware.
I guess that's one more reader I won't be able to use to rent library books

I'll stop here with the off topic

I use Debian (Wheezy) and and old ADE version 1.7.2, it works with Wine as long as I plug the e-reader in and, before starting ADE, run wine-configuration to set the e-reader's drive letter in Drives-->ShowAdvanced-->Type to "Floppy disk". Sounds bizarre, but everything works including authorise/deauthorise devices and download/return library books.

[treadlightly]

Originally Posted by DNSB

I have the feeling that this is a 'feature' that some will like and others will consider as cold pancakes without honey.

If there was enough time to actually read a page before the device went back to sleep, I would buy that it is a feature. Since I cannot finish a page before it shuts off, I consider it a bug.

[taming]

I don't know what build you are using, but although I had this problem with the last build, I am not seeing it (perhaps yet) with an official release of 2.4. The thing that stopped it was doing a page turn as soon as it woke up. Not pleasant, but as I said, I am not seeing it with the official 2.4.

[jiminrussell]

I too am not seeing this "yet" on 2.4.0, but did have the bug/feature in 2.3.x of the reader going back to sleep about 60 seconds after opening the sleep cover if I didn't tap the screen in that first 60 seconds.

I think it is a good idea, it is just set to go back to sleep too fast for me. If it was 90-120 seconds I would have more than enough time to read that first page and then it wouldn't matter to me. So I agree that if they are going to include it as a feature it is something that should be a config setting that I can adjust to something that allows me to read the first page.

If this feature has been removed from 2.4.0 then it should be stated in the release notes but it certainly isn't. Unfortunately that seems to be the norm for Kobo, they never list all of the changes so we are all guessing what was fixed/changed etc.

[jiminrussell]

I spoke too soon, I just had my kobo go back to sleep about 60 seconds after opening the sleep cover (with fw 2.4.0)

Considering this seems to be random now I would have to consider myself in the bug camp rather than look at this as a feature.

[jackastor]

Originally Posted by DNSB

It's been there at least since 2.3x.

Regards,
David

Thanks, just never noticed it before.

Jack

[robko]

Originally Posted by jiminrussell

I spoke too soon, I just had my kobo go back to sleep about 60 seconds after opening the sleep cover (with fw 2.4.0)

Considering this seems to be random now I would have to consider myself in the bug camp rather than look at this as a feature.

I think I can explain the randomness factor (at least for those without a sleep cover). From my testing (no sleep cover) if you allow the device to sleep automatically after time X it will have the 60 second timeout when you wake it from sleep. If you use the SWITCH to SLEEP it then you don't get the 60 sec timeout when you use the switch to wake it again.

[jusmee]

Originally Posted by Uschiekid

If you are using ubuntu, you might want to try this:
(under the section: Using an eReader with ADE)
http://appdb.winehq.org/objectManage...estingId=43373

In my case, I'd installed ADE using winetricks and the basic way didn't work, but I followed the advice of Carl Hage (1st comment in the comments below) and that worked for me....which for the same reasons made me extremely happy.

I don't know much about other versions of linux, but considering it's probably the same reason that it can't find it mounted...you could always try a similar thing.

Oh, and after that process, always be sure you plug in your kobo before opening ADE...it finds it if you do that, but iirc, it doesn't find it if you plug it in AFTER you've started ADE. So I dl the library book, close ADE plug in my reader and reopen ADE. Though obviously plugging in your reader first off would also work...I just never think to.

The floppy disk trick does work well. I use it all the time.