Touch Kobo with Linux

[cutterjohn42]

Originally Posted by Pistos

cutterjohn: Thanks for your detailed reply. Pixel-perfect layout with PDFs is not important to me, I don't have specialized PDF needs. I'll be happy to just be able to read text from most PDFs, and if it looks more or less the same as it would on a computer, I'd be satisfied with that.

I do have a .deb to .tgz converter, and I used that to get at the files inside. But when I run the executable inside, it says it cannot find libzip. It seems easy to fix on Debian/Ubuntu, but not so much on Gentoo. I'm not expert enough at Linux to know how to get binaries to recognize the libs available on my system.

Ah. Ok. You're missing libraries(32 bit). Go read the linux desktop app thread and then you'll have to figure out however Gentoo handles that for 32b compatibility...

[the.Mtn.Man]

Originally Posted by rashkae

If the black flash of e-ink page refresh does not bother you, I would suggest you go to "advanced settings" (which, in another not-so intuative ui design, you can only access from within a a book, by middle-tapping and accessing the menu.) and changing the screen refresh from 6 pages to 1 page. It really makes a large difference with ghosting effects and pixalation if you do a proper screen refresh at every page turn.

I found that a screen flash every page is no more distracting than the turning of an actual page in a book, and since it happens regularly and predictably, I'm to the point where my brain tunes it out and I don't even consciously notice it any more (and that's after owning the Kobo for only a few days).

[pyrokamileon]

I use Linux, I was able to setup my Kobo with just the Linux desktop app. I haven't needed to use Windows with it at all :-)

[zoran]

Originally Posted by MDK

You need to run through the first time setup experience once. Do that however way you wish (Windows, Mac or Debian). That will upgrade the firmware for you. After that for connect to WiFi and tap sync. It's that simple.

I use original device now a whole year. Never connected to something
different than freebsd. Have an idea to get touch in the very next period.
What is this behind initial set-up? Cannot be done with just a reader in
hands?
The time I get my touch, it would be starting firmware no more. Probably
some 2.x or alike, I assume.
Best regards all.

[Pistos]

@pyrokamileon: I'm not running a Debian-based distro, and I couldn't get the desktop app to run under Gentoo because of mismatched libzip versions. I didn't want to go through the trouble to get it working, so I just used Windows for the initial setup. I haven't been back there since (a couple days now). I have a library book and many unread free ePubs, so I don't anticipate needing to go back to Windows for anything Kobo related for a long while, if ever. I believe what I've been told in that future firmware updates can be done over wifi.

@zoran: My understanding is that, at the moment, KTs are still being shipped with old firmware.

[dafrizz]

@Pistos: after I had some issues where I all of a sudden couldn't open books anymore that I had loaded via Adobe Digital editions (DRM book etc. blabla) I now strip the DRM via the calibre plugins after I buy them and before I upload them to my kobo.

I bought the bloody book, I don't want to run into trouble later down the track where I can't read it anymore because of some stupid DRM problems. Removing the DRM should prevent that.

[Pistos]

@dafrizz: Well, I think I will play within the walled garden for now. I haven't had problems with the one DRM book I have so far.

For those following my Kobo Desktop under Linux saga: I managed to compile libzip 0.9 under a 32-bit Gentoo VM (yeah, quite a bit of trouble, just for this), but after I copied that over, I was able to start up the .deb packaged Kobo Desktop software. I haven't tried to move books yet, but I was able to hook up the Kobo, and it detected it alright. It doesn't detect any of my registered accounts on the Kobo, though. It just shows n/a or whatever for each field.

[Dave@Kobo]

Originally Posted by Pistos

Okay, I'm back, with tales of success.

Basically, the only problem was (indeed) your Kobo email and your Adobe email must be the same. Altogether now: "Lame!" I'm not sure who should receive blame here for this silly restriction, Kobo or Adobe. Anyway, I made a fresh Adobe account with my Kobo email, and then the Account settings page showed the device was registered -- after going through a factory reset and re-registering the software (both Kobo and ADE) and the device (KT with ADE). I had to return the book back to the library and re-borrow and redownload it, but anyway, that's not Kobo's fault. Accursed DRM.

So off I go to enjoy some great reads on my brand new Kobo Touch!

This is not true. Who told you this? Do you have the ticket number?

[Pistos]

Originally Posted by Pistos

Basically, the only problem was (indeed) your Kobo email and your Adobe email must be the same. Altogether now: "Lame!" I'm not sure who should receive blame here for this silly restriction, Kobo or Adobe.

Originally Posted by Dave@Kobo

This is not true. Who told you this? Do you have the ticket number?

I'm only going by my experience and empirical evidence. When they were different, it didn't work, despite several resets and retries. As soon as I signed up for an additional adobe account with the same email as my kobo account, it just worked, first try. More than coincidence, to me, unless a Kobo employee wants to step up to explain?