Questions re: Aura HD, Kobo

randomzombie · 01-17-2014, 11:51 PM

Hello - as I didn't see them touched on in the FAQ, I have a couple general questions....
I'm an Amazon Kindle reader, or have been, for a while. I have a flawed 1st-gen paperwhite that's been jailbroken for a while. Has much as I like the Kindle, I've been toying with the Aura HD. Having casually demoed them in a couple indie bookstores, I think it is far and away the best of this current generation of readers screen and light quality-wise.

So I'm looking to be sold. A couple of things I like about Kindle: its support - I use Send to Kindle, Instapaper, and Clippings Converter - I'm a big fan of clippings (highlights and notes, essentially)... I also like the ease in e-mailing .doc files etc, via e-mail to my Kindle.

How easy are these things with the Aura HD/Kobo system? Do you get a Kobo e-mail address a la Kindle? Can you send yourself documents? I know at least with Instapaper, the site can export as epubs. What about notes and highlights? Are they exportable or easily accessed?

For what its worth, I'm not adverse to hacking, and I use Calibre for organization and conversion. If what I want isn't offered out-of-box, can I do the things I want to do via hacks?

Thanks for any input - the screen's a beaut!

meeera · 01-18-2014, 03:25 AM

Hi - I can only address a little bit of your post, as I don't use highlights/annotations and there is no send-to-kobo via email that matches the Kindle feature. However sideloading works perfectly (and content loading can be done via Dropbox, Calibre content server, etc and not just via sideloading), so it's not like there's no other way to get a variety of documents on to your device.

However I can tell you that the Instapaper type features are done via Pocket on the Kobo, so perhaps you could check that out while waiting for others to address the hacks-and-workarounds side of things: getpocket.com

I also suggest checking out the Kobo Developer's Corner subforum here at mobileread.

Bandi-T · 01-18-2014, 08:19 PM

A new, 300 DPI Kindle is said to come in April, so you might consider waiting for that if you like the broad support available for Kindle and just want a better screen.

Said by someone who's been on Kindle 3 since 2011 and just got their Aura HD delivered... :P

DrAtomic · 01-19-2014, 12:17 PM

You can use getpocket to email worddocs, me thinks...

RobertJSawyer · 01-19-2014, 09:35 PM

DrAtomic, I don't think that's true. If you know a way to do it, I'd be pleased to hear about it. Sending an email to add@getpocket.com adds a hyperlink to your Pocket library, and if the HTML in that link can be rendered by Pocket, Pocket will display it. But I'm unaware of any way to email a Word document to a Kobo (something very easy to do on a Kindle).

Trying to send a Word document to Pocket via email results in this error message autoreponder from Pocket:

=============

Greetings from Pocket!

It looks like there was a problem with the email you just sent.

The message did not contain a valid URL. Make sure you send us a proper link (like http://google.com) so we are able to send it to your account.

For more information about how to save via email, click here: http://getpocket.com/email

If you think there is a problem, please let us know at http://help.getpocket.com/

=============

Here's the full scoop on what you can and cannot add to Pocket via email: http://help.getpocket.com/customer/p...rticles/482759

randomzombie · 01-20-2014, 05:27 PM

Yeah, I was aware of the new kindle possibility, though I like the increased size of the Aura HD.
SO! I ended up buying one. Playing around with it, I like everything quite a bit right off the bat - BUT! my frontlight slider is kinda wiggy. And the buttons only go up and down in ten percent increments, correct? Is there any way beside the slider for refined adjustment?
Also, the light in my model jumps in intensity around 28%. It's like - smooth gradation, LARGE JUMP in BRIGHTNESS, then smooth gradation again. Kinda wonky when I was trying to adjust it to read in the dark. Is that large jump normal? Are there variations amongst units?

Thanks!

doubleshuffle · 01-20-2014, 05:38 PM

Patch it, baby. In addition to many other tweaks I couldn't imagine doing without, you will get the option to set the light adjustment to 1 percent increments. (Although I can't remember any unusually big jumps on my Aura HD before I patched it - but it has been so long, I can't be sure.)

randomzombie · 01-20-2014, 07:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doubleshuffle

Patch it, baby. In addition to many other tweaks I couldn't imagine doing without, you will get the option to set the light adjustment to 1 percent increments. (Although I can't remember any unusually big jumps on my Aura HD before I patched it - but it has been so long, I can't be sure.)

I just did. Interestingly, the jump in brightness remains. It also bypasses the 29% as an option. Using the 1% increments, it goes from 30% to 28% and vice versa. The jump in brightness occurs there, too - at 30%...

Also, do the patches affect kepubs and epubs differently? Just sideloaded an epub, and the line spacing has no effect on it...

doubleshuffle · 01-21-2014, 11:35 AM

The patches are for epubs, not kepubs. Probably something in the epub's stylesheet that prevents the patch from working on it. have you tried on others?

I have no jumps in the brightness, but I don't have 29% either. Never noticed that before, since I hardly ever go above 20%. It doesn't jump straight from 28% to 30% though - it goes 27-28-28-30.

CORRECTION: Just tested it in the dark, and the jump from 28 to 30 is indeed a bit bigger than the others. Can't say that it bothers me, but it's there...

randomzombie · 01-21-2014, 09:10 PM

Thanks for confirming my unit is not an outlier, doubleshuffle! I dunno - I kinda miss the light levels that would be between 28 and 30% - its how I noticed it in the first place. I wonder if it's always been that way - or if its update specific? I should add that my Aura HD updated to 3.1.1 before I'd ever used it... Is yours at 3.1.1 as well?

DNSB · 01-22-2014, 01:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by randomzombie

I just did. Interestingly, the jump in brightness remains. It also bypasses the 29% as an option. Using the 1% increments, it goes from 30% to 28% and vice versa. The jump in brightness occurs there, too - at 30%...

Also, do the patches affect kepubs and epubs differently? Just sideloaded an epub, and the line spacing has no effect on it...

YES!!! It's not just me seeing the percentage going 27 28 28 30!

The patches should affect both. For epubs, the line spacing will not work if the epub styling defines the line spacing. If the epub has margins set in it's style, they will become the minimum margins and the slider will only increase them (i.e., if the left/right margins are set to 1em, that's the minimum margin.)

Regards,
David

01-17-2014, 11:51 PM	#1
randomzombie Enthusiast Posts: 38 Karma: 9490 Join Date: Dec 2012 Device: current: Aura HD	Questions re: Aura HD, Kobo Hello - as I didn't see them touched on in the FAQ, I have a couple general questions.... I'm an Amazon Kindle reader, or have been, for a while. I have a flawed 1st-gen paperwhite that's been jailbroken for a while. Has much as I like the Kindle, I've been toying with the Aura HD. Having casually demoed them in a couple indie bookstores, I think it is far and away the best of this current generation of readers screen and light quality-wise. So I'm looking to be sold. A couple of things I like about Kindle: its support - I use Send to Kindle, Instapaper, and Clippings Converter - I'm a big fan of clippings (highlights and notes, essentially)... I also like the ease in e-mailing .doc files etc, via e-mail to my Kindle. How easy are these things with the Aura HD/Kobo system? Do you get a Kobo e-mail address a la Kindle? Can you send yourself documents? I know at least with Instapaper, the site can export as epubs. What about notes and highlights? Are they exportable or easily accessed? For what its worth, I'm not adverse to hacking, and I use Calibre for organization and conversion. If what I want isn't offered out-of-box, can I do the things I want to do via hacks? Thanks for any input - the screen's a beaut!

01-18-2014, 08:19 PM	#3
Bandi-T Member Posts: 10 Karma: 1000 Join Date: Sep 2013 Device: K3gb, Kobo Aura HD	A 300 DPI Kindle is said to come in April A new, 300 DPI Kindle is said to come in April, so you might consider waiting for that if you like the broad support available for Kindle and just want a better screen. Said by someone who's been on Kindle 3 since 2011 and just got their Aura HD delivered... :P

01-19-2014, 09:35 PM	#5
RobertJSawyer Guru Posts: 735 Karma: 3911762 Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Toronto Device: Kobo Libra 2, Clara 2E, and Clara HD; Kindle PaperWhite	DrAtomic, I don't think that's true. If you know a way to do it, I'd be pleased to hear about it. Sending an email to add@getpocket.com adds a hyperlink to your Pocket library, and if the HTML in that link can be rendered by Pocket, Pocket will display it. But I'm unaware of any way to email a Word document to a Kobo (something very easy to do on a Kindle). Trying to send a Word document to Pocket via email results in this error message autoreponder from Pocket: ============= Greetings from Pocket! It looks like there was a problem with the email you just sent. The message did not contain a valid URL. Make sure you send us a proper link (like http://google.com) so we are able to send it to your account. For more information about how to save via email, click here: http://getpocket.com/email If you think there is a problem, please let us know at http://help.getpocket.com/ ============= Here's the full scoop on what you can and cannot add to Pocket via email: http://help.getpocket.com/customer/p...rticles/482759 Last edited by RobertJSawyer; 01-19-2014 at 09:38 PM.

01-21-2014, 11:35 AM	#9
doubleshuffle Unicycle Daredevil Posts: 13,944 Karma: 185432100 Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Planet of the Pudding Brains Device: Aura HD (R.I.P. After six years the USB socket died.) tolino shine 3	The patches are for epubs, not kepubs. Probably something in the epub's stylesheet that prevents the patch from working on it. have you tried on others? I have no jumps in the brightness, but I don't have 29% either. Never noticed that before, since I hardly ever go above 20%. It doesn't jump straight from 28% to 30% though - it goes 27-28-28-30. CORRECTION: Just tested it in the dark, and the jump from 28 to 30 is indeed a bit bigger than the others. Can't say that it bothers me, but it's there... Last edited by doubleshuffle; 01-21-2014 at 11:38 AM.

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01-18-2014, 03:25 AM	#2
meeera Grand Sorcerer Posts: 5,808 Karma: 68407974 Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Australia Device: Kobo Libra 2, iPadMini4, iPad4, MBP; support other Kobo/Kindles	Hi - I can only address a little bit of your post, as I don't use highlights/annotations and there is no send-to-kobo via email that matches the Kindle feature. However sideloading works perfectly (and content loading can be done via Dropbox, Calibre content server, etc and not just via sideloading), so it's not like there's no other way to get a variety of documents on to your device. However I can tell you that the Instapaper type features are done via Pocket on the Kobo, so perhaps you could check that out while waiting for others to address the hacks-and-workarounds side of things: getpocket.com I also suggest checking out the Kobo Developer's Corner subforum here at mobileread.

01-19-2014, 12:17 PM	#4
DrAtomic Member Posts: 15 Karma: 12050 Join Date: Jan 2014 Device: Kobo Aura	You can use getpocket to email worddocs, me thinks...

01-20-2014, 05:27 PM	#6
randomzombie Enthusiast Posts: 38 Karma: 9490 Join Date: Dec 2012 Device: current: Aura HD	Yeah, I was aware of the new kindle possibility, though I like the increased size of the Aura HD. SO! I ended up buying one. Playing around with it, I like everything quite a bit right off the bat - BUT! my frontlight slider is kinda wiggy. And the buttons only go up and down in ten percent increments, correct? Is there any way beside the slider for refined adjustment? Also, the light in my model jumps in intensity around 28%. It's like - smooth gradation, LARGE JUMP in BRIGHTNESS, then smooth gradation again. Kinda wonky when I was trying to adjust it to read in the dark. Is that large jump normal? Are there variations amongst units? Thanks!

01-20-2014, 05:38 PM	#7
doubleshuffle Unicycle Daredevil Posts: 13,944 Karma: 185432100 Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Planet of the Pudding Brains Device: Aura HD (R.I.P. After six years the USB socket died.) tolino shine 3	Patch it, baby. In addition to many other tweaks I couldn't imagine doing without, you will get the option to set the light adjustment to 1 percent increments. (Although I can't remember any unusually big jumps on my Aura HD before I patched it - but it has been so long, I can't be sure.)

01-21-2014, 09:10 PM	#10
randomzombie Enthusiast Posts: 38 Karma: 9490 Join Date: Dec 2012 Device: current: Aura HD	Thanks for confirming my unit is not an outlier, doubleshuffle! I dunno - I kinda miss the light levels that would be between 28 and 30% - its how I noticed it in the first place. I wonder if it's always been that way - or if its update specific? I should add that my Aura HD updated to 3.1.1 before I'd ever used it... Is yours at 3.1.1 as well?

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