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Kobo can run apps now

bandarlabs.github.io

111–120 of 224 posts

Re: Kobo can run apps now

#111
> Install it once over USB. Every app after that installs, updates and removes on the reader itself, over Wi-Fi. A reboot returns to the stock Kobo reader.

Jesus christ folks. Is it really a big effort to have a human proofread the first paragraph in your product launch?

Re: Kobo can run apps now

#112
post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Even if you want it for just books, there are benefits to installing things like KOReader (way better ebook reader than the default). This allows you to sync with Calibre, etc. Years ago, it was practically a hobby of mine to go to my local Goodwill, and find an extremely cheap old used Kobo and find someone to donate it to. Now I'm thinking of getting old Kobos just for the eink display so I can run simple apps on i…

Why use a Kobo for that? Nook and Boox devices run Android - I've run Ankidroid on both those devices.

I guess I could. I recall I was getting used Nooks as cheap as Kobos. Not sure about Boox.

(I'm talking $15 or less).

Re: Kobo can run apps now

#113

For the unaware, there is an existing solution that integrates with Kobo's native software (Nickel). It has been maintained for years, and it supports every Kobo AFAIK. It's called NickelMenu, and it's great. I'm in the Kobo ecosystem because of NickelMenu and Plato. One note if you're thinking about getting a kobo due its relative openness: consider getting a two-core device. I did not do my homework and got a Clara…

I haven’t had a chance to compare side by side, but people say that if you primarily read books/prose, the BW version is better because the screen is more crisp compared to the color version, which is still a bit blurry when you read books. That’s why I ordered BW. Did anyone compare these two side by side in real life for simple text?

Yes, I replaced a B&W Sage with the Libra Colour, and used them for a bit side-by-side. Contrast (not sharpness) of B&W text is slightly worse with the color one, but not by so much that you'd notice it if you weren't comparing them next to each other. The resolution of actual color is worse, but obviously you can't get color at all on the B&W one, so hard to argue that this is a downgrade.

Unless you're a real contrast freak, I think most people would be slightly happier with the color than the B&W; but it's definitely not worth paying extra for.

Re: Kobo can run apps now

#114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a contingent of enthusiasts who, once they find out a device runs Linux or can run Linux, seems determined to expose a terminal on it. I don't know why someone needs to SSH into their toaster, but damned if they're not gonna do it, just because they can. Me personally, I just want a reliable toaster.

This isn't Normie News! I think you are on the wrong site! The street finds its own use for things is the excitement that we don't know what is possible, and that we ought be free to try. The amazing suite of software here sure looks like self evident proof about how exciting it is when we can go further, to me. I love the LLM prompt sidekick; super neat as an ambient display. It's really sad how HN is so vocally ant…

I think the distaste is more against feature bloat. This sub-thread is reacting to dedicated e-readers succumbing to becoming full-fledged app-running devices. Is the refresh rate on an e-ink display even suitable for general computing?

Plus, isn't it fairly old hat to get root access on a Linux consumer device and then running whatever you want on it? Oh, it makes for a neat party trick you could make an Action Retro YouTube video out of. But perhaps people are just jaded since they've seen it done on a million types of devices by now. Maybe there are more interesting ways, and things, to hack.

Re: Kobo can run apps now

#115
post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Apparently the "Sage" (which is what I have currently) has a quad-core, but Kobo discontinued it. Sigh, too bad - this was my favourite to-date (needs a power-cover though...).

Off topic, but I don't understand Rakuten's current product strategy. They discontinued their two best devices: the 8" Sage and the 7" Libra 2. What's left are two unfortunately sized B&W readers (the tiny 6" Clara and giant 10" Elipsa) and a couple of color readers that no one should buy unless they absolutely NEED color (I've tried them, and the screens look terrible compared to the B&W versions).

I believe that this is your opinion, but my own opinion (having also tried them, and used multiple generations of B&W ones before this) is that the screens look just fine, and that the slight downgrade of contrast isn't a big deal at all.

Re: Kobo can run apps now

#116
I still use my Kobo Glo. I must been working at least 10 years now. I have finished countless books on it.

I like that is a durable single use device. I wouldnt use it as general use computer at all.

Even my old kobo has experimental features like wifi and a web browser. They have been trying to break in to that market since forever.

Re: Kobo can run apps now

#117
post #36

>These are photographs of the device, not simulator captures Thanks for the clarification Claude

the copy on OP's pages is so full of claude-isms that it quickly became unbearable, for me. the claude-ism you quote above at least made me laugh.

Re: Kobo can run apps now

#118

For the unaware, there is an existing solution that integrates with Kobo's native software (Nickel). It has been maintained for years, and it supports every Kobo AFAIK. It's called NickelMenu, and it's great. I'm in the Kobo ecosystem because of NickelMenu and Plato. One note if you're thinking about getting a kobo due its relative openness: consider getting a two-core device. I did not do my homework and got a Clara…

Is there any way to recover a "bricked" Clara color? I bricked mine while trying to install nickel and koreader. Haven't been able to recover it since.

Re: Kobo can run apps now

#120
post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I admire and support your effort, but the title makes it sound like you couldn't run apps in the past. Nickelmenu deserves a mention in the opening paragraph and a differentiation of what this new piece of software brings to the table.

Thank you for the kind words. I will add a page to the project explaining the differentiation. NickelMenu is a mature project and perfect at what it does, we just have different goals. NickelMenu is designed to extend Kobo's stock interface. Cobalt is designed to be an app platform like Android has for example. I wanted app creators to just write their app logic and not build things like a UI toolkit for their apps,…

Awesome

Time to start a F.A.Q section on the website. You could that comment almost verbatims for the question : "How is that different from NickelMenu"

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