Why jailbreak the Kindle? - Page 3

ViTALiTY34 · 01-25-2021, 07:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

But we don't know when that will change. It could change at any time. So you are taking a risk.

Bought a PW4 last week from Amazon Spain, came with 5.12.4.

Pajamaman · 01-25-2021, 07:32 PM

Koreader and book organization of sideloaded books. With koreader I can organize books using system folders.

JSWolf · 01-25-2021, 08:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pajamaman

Koreader and book organization of sideloaded books. With koreader I can organize books using system folders.

My question is why? Why did you spend more money on a Kindle when you could have spent less on a Kobo and done exactly the same thing?

ilovejedd · 01-25-2021, 09:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

My question is why? Why did you spend more money on a Kindle when you could have spent less on a Kobo and done exactly the same thing?

Why would you assume someone spent more money on the Kindle? You can find Kindles on sale more often than Kobo (practically every month). One of my PW4s, I only paid $65 with Mother's Day sale and Amazon Prime CC cashback.

Pajamaman · 01-25-2021, 10:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

My question is why? Why did you spend more money on a Kindle when you could have spent less on a Kobo and done exactly the same thing?

I bought a used pw2. Also, IME Kindle hardware > Kobo hardware. I've never been impressed by Kobo hardware. However my experience is dated, and I understand that the two brands now have comparable hardware. Certainly if I was to buy now, it would more likely be a Kobo. I would never buy a Kindle I could not jailbreak. Also the developer community had abandoned kindle due to Amazon's policies.

JSWolf · 01-26-2021, 07:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pajamaman

I bought a used pw2. Also, IME Kindle hardware > Kobo hardware. I've never been impressed by Kobo hardware. However my experience is dated, and I understand that the two brands now have comparable hardware. Certainly if I was to buy now, it would more likely be a Kobo. I would never buy a Kindle I could not jailbreak. Also the developer community had abandoned kindle due to Amazon's policies.

It's not Amazon's policies. It's because the Oasis and the PW3/4 with the current firmware cannot be jailbroken and once Amazon are selling the PW4 with the current firmware, game over.

Most will not do a serial jailbreak and that means game over.

Pajamaman · 01-26-2021, 08:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

It's not Amazon's policies. It's because the Oasis and the PW3/4 with the current firmware cannot be jailbroken.

Yes, exactly. This is what I mean by Amazon's policy.

JSWolf · 01-26-2021, 08:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pajamaman

Yes, exactly. This is what I mean by Amazon's policy.

What policy would that be?

j.p.s · 01-26-2021, 12:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

What policy would that be?

To aggressively seek out and destroy third party developer keys.

melksnor · 01-26-2021, 02:40 PM

to go back to OP's question. I just started looking into KOReader's gestures. They are powerful! My favorite is swiping two fingers up or down to control the front light intensity.

ViTALiTY34 · 01-27-2021, 04:10 PM

I've tried KOreader but I still can't get used to all the functions. I like them, but I like to read on the default reader.

HLS · 01-27-2021, 06:00 PM

I do not get it myself. Seems pointless

haertig · 01-27-2021, 07:08 PM

On some devices, running 3rd party firmware gives you a ton more control and a ton more features. Running 3rd party firmware is not "jailbreaking", but the end result is similar (more user control, more features).

However, jailbreaking a Kindle appears to give you so little in return that I see no need to do it. Screensaver changes? A screensaver is what comes up when you're NOT using the device. So why would anyone care all that much about what is displaying on screen when they're not using it? Font changes? In general, you already have quite a few fonts to choose from on a Kindle. There are certain rare circumstances when you may not be able to change to a font you like. You can fix that by editing the book in Calibre for those rare times this occurs. Getting rid of ads? If you're too cheap to pay for that, then just put the Kindle in airplane mode (that saves battery too BTW) and within a short time it will run out of ads to display. Plus, when you're reading a book ads never display. So does it really matter? Then there's the constant diligence required so that your Kindle doesn't accidentally get updated. Maybe an update adds new features that you'd love to have, but you can't get to those because you're too worried about unjailbreaking your jailbreak, so you don't do the update. The reason I really laugh at is so the Kindle can run Kobo software. Why didn't you just buy a Kobo in the first place? Especially with Calibre being able to change books from one format to another.

However, some people may see a good reason to jailbreak. Or, just the thrill of succeeding at jailbreaking something might be a worthwhile entertainment goal on its own. More power to them. To each their own. Nothing wrong with jailbreaking if that's what you really want to do. Back to my initial comparison of jailbreaking to 3rd party firmware: All of my WiFi routers run 3rd party firmware. Because that gives me oodles more functionality than the OEM firmware. It's like moving from a limited consumer toy to a full blown commercial device. In this case, the gains of going to different firmware are so massive that there's definitely a good case to do it (for the technically oriented, maybe not so much for a normal user).

j.p.s · 01-27-2021, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by haertig

The reason I really laugh at is so the Kindle can run Kobo software.

What Kobo software would that be?

melksnor · 01-27-2021, 07:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by haertig

A screensaver is what comes up when you're NOT using the device. So why would anyone care all that much about what is displaying on screen when they're not using it?

Same could be said for a physical book. When I am reading a book, it's part of my world for a while, and seeing the actual cover of it was something I was missing. Every time I pick it up, put it down or walk by I see it, and I like that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by haertig

The reason I really laugh at is so the Kindle can run Kobo software. Why didn't you just buy a Kobo in the first place? Especially with Calibre being able to change books from one format to another.

Are you referring to KOReader? KOReader is a rewrite of "kindlepdfviewer". The name "KOReader stands for Kindle/Kobo Open Reader. It's not Kobo software ported to Kindle.

I personally liked staying with Kindle as they proved to have excellent hardware and battery life.

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01-25-2021, 07:32 PM	#32
Pajamaman Wizard Posts: 2,827 Karma: 10700629 Join Date: May 2016 Location: Canada Device: Onyx Nova	Koreader and book organization of sideloaded books. With koreader I can organize books using system folders.

01-26-2021, 02:40 PM	#40
melksnor Goodest E-Reader Posts: 62 Karma: 300094 Join Date: Jul 2007 Device: PRS 500 / Kindle 5th / Kindle PW4	to go back to OP's question. I just started looking into KOReader's gestures. They are powerful! My favorite is swiping two fingers up or down to control the front light intensity.

01-27-2021, 04:10 PM	#41
ViTALiTY34 Member Posts: 16 Karma: 49656 Join Date: Nov 2020 Device: Kindle PW4	I've tried KOreader but I still can't get used to all the functions. I like them, but I like to read on the default reader.

01-27-2021, 06:00 PM	#42
HLS Wizard Posts: 2,027 Karma: 15107670 Join Date: May 2017 Device: Sage, Scribe, Boox Note 2 Plus, iPad Pros and Samsungs S6,S7,S8	I do not get it myself. Seems pointless

01-27-2021, 07:08 PM	#43
haertig Wizard Posts: 1,738 Karma: 26006874 Join Date: Sep 2017 Device: PW3, Fire HD8 Gen7, Moto G7, Sansa Clip v2, Ruizu X26	On some devices, running 3rd party firmware gives you a ton more control and a ton more features. Running 3rd party firmware is not "jailbreaking", but the end result is similar (more user control, more features). However, jailbreaking a Kindle appears to give you so little in return that I see no need to do it. Screensaver changes? A screensaver is what comes up when you're NOT using the device. So why would anyone care all that much about what is displaying on screen when they're not using it? Font changes? In general, you already have quite a few fonts to choose from on a Kindle. There are certain rare circumstances when you may not be able to change to a font you like. You can fix that by editing the book in Calibre for those rare times this occurs. Getting rid of ads? If you're too cheap to pay for that, then just put the Kindle in airplane mode (that saves battery too BTW) and within a short time it will run out of ads to display. Plus, when you're reading a book ads never display. So does it really matter? Then there's the constant diligence required so that your Kindle doesn't accidentally get updated. Maybe an update adds new features that you'd love to have, but you can't get to those because you're too worried about unjailbreaking your jailbreak, so you don't do the update. The reason I really laugh at is so the Kindle can run Kobo software. Why didn't you just buy a Kobo in the first place? Especially with Calibre being able to change books from one format to another. However, some people may see a good reason to jailbreak. Or, just the thrill of succeeding at jailbreaking something might be a worthwhile entertainment goal on its own. More power to them. To each their own. Nothing wrong with jailbreaking if that's what you really want to do. Back to my initial comparison of jailbreaking to 3rd party firmware: All of my WiFi routers run 3rd party firmware. Because that gives me oodles more functionality than the OEM firmware. It's like moving from a limited consumer toy to a full blown commercial device. In this case, the gains of going to different firmware are so massive that there's definitely a good case to do it (for the technically oriented, maybe not so much for a normal user).