4 ms·

Haven't been able to use my Kindle with Linux for a while anyway. I regret buying the device.

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
mikece 6y ago
Are there jailbreaks and/or custom ROMs for Kindles? It's a nice little device; would be a lot nicer without it constantly phoning home to Amazon.
- scottlocklin 6y ago
  You can stick koreader on them. Of course you'll have to go through the trouble of de-DRMing your content, but it's not that hard using Calibre. At that point you should just buy a Kobo forma, which is much nicer hardware.
- input_sh 6y ago
  Yes! Jailbreak thread: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=186645 https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=186645 (Note that in some cases it requires opening the plastic and ordering some cable off of Amazon.) The only custom ROM I know about that supports Kindle devices is KOReader (https://github.com/koreader/koreader https://github.com/koreader/koreader). I don't like its interface one bit, but feature-wise it gets the job done just fine. There's also Plato (https://github.com/baskerville/plato https://github.com/baskerville/plato) for Kobo devices, though KOReader works there as well. In my experience jailbreaking a Kobo device is much less painful.
  - se32point1 6y ago
    I've done it before on a really old Kindle... KOReader isn't precisely an alternate firmware. It's just a piece of software you run on the Kindle in place of the default, and it does have its advantages, at least on my old Kindle: for example, I could enable Night Mode and read ePubs. It also supported connecting to Calibre wirelessly which was also convenient-ish (Calibre still eats up MIME types and I was very happy on the day I could finally uninstall it, and KOReader doesn't support using USB to transfer without first stopping KOReader). Other than that, maybe it's because my Kindle was aging, but the battery life seemed to worsen dramatically after jailbreaking, and I had to downgrade to an older firwmare in order to jailbreak it. The Kindle was getting old and I bought a Kobo anyway (in part because I'm tired of contributing to Amazon's empire, and further propelled by the fact that it supports Adobe DRM'ed ePubs [and well, while I don't like DRM, it's nice to be able to have the option of using my local library's ebooks]). I'd think you're correct about the Kobo's jailbreaking (haven't tried it myself, but I do intend on doing it in the future, and perhaps developing software for it), but I know already it's much, much easier to customize, thanks to the wonderful hidden folder with the Kobo eReader.conf file, where you can, for example, set the power button to screenshot (which disables the power button, but I have an aftermarket magnetic sleep cover, so this isn't an issue).
jklinger410 6y ago
What is the best alternative to a Kindle?
- din-9 6y ago
  I've been happy with my Kobo.
- steelbrain 6y ago
  Lookup the Kobo eReader Edit: I see a neighbour and I had the same idea
- bluedays 6y ago
  I was much more happy with my Kobo, as others have said.
- se32point1 6y ago
  I can't say for you, but there are plenty of other options. PocketBook (which recently released a color e-ink ereader), Kobo, Onyx (which I have heard negative things about regarding their unwillingness to comply with the GPL for their Linux kernel), the ReMarkable (which I have heard is incredibly hackable), and the Nook. There's probably even more I'm forgetting, but Kindles are definitely not the only option.
- searchableguy 6y ago
  Remarkable 2
- xenonite 6y ago
  Tolino is also an alternative: https://mytolino.com https://mytolino.com
- johnisgood 6y ago
  I use some product produced domestically. It has all the features I need, and none of the spyware or adware. It was also cheap. I am really happy with this product.
turtlebits 6y ago
Can't you just mount it as a USB drive/mass storage and copy content over? That's how I get my converted ebooks over.
- Spivak 6y ago
  This is my workflow as well. I don't think my Kindle has ever been connected to a network.
fullstop 6y ago
It's literally USB mass storage, and you plop files on there. What isn't working for you?
- bluedays 6y ago
  I just recently bought a Kindle, and this has not been my experience. For whatever reason, perhaps something I am doing wrong, it is not detected as a hard drive by my system.
  - csdreamer7 6y ago
    Have you tried doing a hard restart? Sometimes my kindle gets stuck and needs a reboot, especially if it has been left alone for a while.
  - fullstop 6y ago
    Odd. I've never had this issue -- plug it in and the mass storage shows up. My platform is Linux, but this shouldn't make a difference. What I have seen, however, are plenty of micro USB cables which do not have the data lines connected. They are intended to be used for charging only and have +5V and Ground wires only.
se32point1 6y ago
You can use it with Calibre, if you're looking for a GUI.

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

Are there jailbreaks and/or custom ROMs for Kindles? It's a nice little device; would be a lot nicer without it constantly phoning home to Amazon.

scottlocklin 6y ago
You can stick koreader on them. Of course you'll have to go through the trouble of de-DRMing your content, but it's not that hard using Calibre. At that point you should just buy a Kobo forma, which is much nicer hardware.
input_sh 6y ago
Yes! Jailbreak thread: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=186645 https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=186645 (Note that in some cases it requires opening the plastic and ordering some cable off of Amazon.) The only custom ROM I know about that supports Kindle devices is KOReader (https://github.com/koreader/koreader https://github.com/koreader/koreader). I don't like its interface one bit, but feature-wise it gets the job done just fine. There's also Plato (https://github.com/baskerville/plato https://github.com/baskerville/plato) for Kobo devices, though KOReader works there as well. In my experience jailbreaking a Kobo device is much less painful.
- se32point1 6y ago
  I've done it before on a really old Kindle... KOReader isn't precisely an alternate firmware. It's just a piece of software you run on the Kindle in place of the default, and it does have its advantages, at least on my old Kindle: for example, I could enable Night Mode and read ePubs. It also supported connecting to Calibre wirelessly which was also convenient-ish (Calibre still eats up MIME types and I was very happy on the day I could finally uninstall it, and KOReader doesn't support using USB to transfer without first stopping KOReader). Other than that, maybe it's because my Kindle was aging, but the battery life seemed to worsen dramatically after jailbreaking, and I had to downgrade to an older firwmare in order to jailbreak it. The Kindle was getting old and I bought a Kobo anyway (in part because I'm tired of contributing to Amazon's empire, and further propelled by the fact that it supports Adobe DRM'ed ePubs [and well, while I don't like DRM, it's nice to be able to have the option of using my local library's ebooks]). I'd think you're correct about the Kobo's jailbreaking (haven't tried it myself, but I do intend on doing it in the future, and perhaps developing software for it), but I know already it's much, much easier to customize, thanks to the wonderful hidden folder with the Kobo eReader.conf file, where you can, for example, set the power button to screenshot (which disables the power button, but I have an aftermarket magnetic sleep cover, so this isn't an issue).

jklinger410 6y ago

What is the best alternative to a Kindle?

din-9 6y ago
I've been happy with my Kobo.
steelbrain 6y ago
Lookup the Kobo eReader Edit: I see a neighbour and I had the same idea
bluedays 6y ago
I was much more happy with my Kobo, as others have said.
se32point1 6y ago
I can't say for you, but there are plenty of other options. PocketBook (which recently released a color e-ink ereader), Kobo, Onyx (which I have heard negative things about regarding their unwillingness to comply with the GPL for their Linux kernel), the ReMarkable (which I have heard is incredibly hackable), and the Nook. There's probably even more I'm forgetting, but Kindles are definitely not the only option.
searchableguy 6y ago
Remarkable 2
xenonite 6y ago
Tolino is also an alternative: https://mytolino.com https://mytolino.com
johnisgood 6y ago
I use some product produced domestically. It has all the features I need, and none of the spyware or adware. It was also cheap. I am really happy with this product.

turtlebits 6y ago

Can't you just mount it as a USB drive/mass storage and copy content over? That's how I get my converted ebooks over.

Spivak 6y ago
This is my workflow as well. I don't think my Kindle has ever been connected to a network.

fullstop 6y ago

It's literally USB mass storage, and you plop files on there. What isn't working for you?

bluedays 6y ago
I just recently bought a Kindle, and this has not been my experience. For whatever reason, perhaps something I am doing wrong, it is not detected as a hard drive by my system.
- csdreamer7 6y ago
  Have you tried doing a hard restart? Sometimes my kindle gets stuck and needs a reboot, especially if it has been left alone for a while.
- fullstop 6y ago
  Odd. I've never had this issue -- plug it in and the mass storage shows up. My platform is Linux, but this shouldn't make a difference. What I have seen, however, are plenty of micro USB cables which do not have the data lines connected. They are intended to be used for charging only and have +5V and Ground wires only.

se32point1 6y ago

You can use it with Calibre, if you're looking for a GUI.