I'm considering buying a Nook Color, but I have a few concerns.
1. Is the root software-patchable? I've been living in the iPhone Jailbreaking scene lately, and none of the terms (bootrom, userland, etc.) seem to apply here, so I'm having a hard time figuring out if we'll end up unrooted.
2. If B&N does patch the root, can we still load applications? I'm very confused about the correlation between root access and sideloading. Are they one in the same at this point?
3. Again, assuming B&N patches the root, will it be rooted again? I don't want to be stuck with a device that can't run 3rd party applications.
Thanks
root will be reverted with an update, whether or not the update will still allow the current root method to work is up in the air they would have to change how the system sets boot priority which may not be as feasible as one would think depending on the way they plan for updates to work and such (but i havnt looked into this)
root is the only way to sideload apps so when an update comes you'll loose the ability to sideload whether or not your apps that are installed is debatable most of the time an update doesn't wipe the data partition but since this isn't an android phone and data is strictly stored in the data partition who knows
when/if root is fixed it would happen again most likely i don't know of any android device that wasn't re-rooted after an update especially if the smart folks that got root in the first place can find a way to flash roms that arnt singed by B&N
I'm pretty sure that we can just disable automatic updates first and there are already successes at installing stock froyo for example.
/mr
A better question is "When will the new hardware revision that locks down the current root method come?"
Buy a dart set and a calendar.
I think pokey9000 mentioned that the unit will always boot off of SD card if installed and bootable, before the units ROM - This means you will always have some method of fixing any issue. Don't quote me, but I think he also said only thing B&N can really do is make it annoying... (something along the lines).
-CC
EugeneKay said:
A better question is "When will the new hardware revision that locks down the current root method come?"
Buy a dart set and a calendar.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry, what "new" hardware that locks down the current root? That I am aware of this was only an issue with the Original Nook and does not apply to the Nook Color...
-CC
mrintegrity said:
I'm pretty sure that we can just disable automatic updates first and there are already successes at installing stock froyo for example.
/mr
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
At the moment nobody knows how OTA's are applied and which system application is responsible for them. So currently we cannot disable automatic updates... I've been playing around with the data partition for quite some time now to figure it out from various database files, and it seems like the device manager application does the updating as FOTA (firmware over the air) entries exist in that app's DB.
There is a setting that is currently at "auto" and I changed it to "manual". Whether this actually has any effect on a possible future upgrade remains to be seen though.
clockcycle said:
Sorry, what "new" hardware that locks down the current root? That I am aware of this was only an issue with the Original Nook and does not apply to the Nook Color...
-CC
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The inevitable hardware revision change that will not boot from the SD by default, or introduces some sort of checksum requiring a signed image in order to boot from the SD.
Question is, does B&N really care that much whether or not we have root access ? I wonder what the total percentage of sold NC's are "rooted". It might not even be worth it for them to hassle with.
stwallman said:
Question is, does B&N really care that much whether or not we have root access ? I wonder what the total percentage of sold NC's are "rooted". It might not even be worth it for them to hassle with.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And it seems like B&N is pretty chill about it anyways. They have the SD card boot before ROM for Christ's sake haha
heads up: i got word the update is coming very soon. fixes some wifi issues and who knows what else.
cabbieBot said:
heads up: i got word the update is coming very soon. fixes some wifi issues and who knows what else.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Who'd you hear that from? Or is it don't ask don't tell?
As a Series 2 Tivo user I can speak of this "enhancement."
Series 2 DVRs produced after a certain date used a new EPROM, which had a factory default on it so that if the power went out everything in the linux OS, which was not in the original kernel was wiped clean!
And of course this EPROM was soldered to the motherboard. There was a side industry of a few very good solderers who you could ship your Tivo unit to and they would remove the EPROM, install a socket and then there were modified EPROMS out there which allowed you to install things like telnet, ftp, etc.
Personally, I never tried it, but knew some who did.
later,
Robert
-----------------------------------------
clockcycle said:
Sorry, what "new" hardware that locks down the current root? That I am aware of this was only an issue with the Original Nook and does not apply to the Nook Color...
-CC
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Robertjm said:
As a Series 2 Tivo user I can speak of this "enhancement."
Series 2 DVRs produced after a certain date used a new EPROM, which had a factory default on it so that if the power went out everything in the linux OS, which was not in the original kernel was wiped clean!
And of course this EPROM was soldered to the motherboard. There was a side industry of a few very good solderers who you could ship your Tivo unit to and they would remove the EPROM, install a socket and then there were modified EPROMS out there which allowed you to install things like telnet, ftp, etc.
Personally, I never tried it, but knew some who did.
later,
Robert
-----------------------------------------
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds like a lot of extra work, testing, etc. to implement something like this for a $ 250 eReader. Can't see B&N going to all that hassle. As long as they are at least breaking even on the NC (which I'm sure they are), they probably don't care that much about nooters.
It's a business decision, really.
1) If they think they're losing money because of the root, then they'll try to shut it down. The hardware isn't losing them money I think, it just doesn't make any money, so people who buy it only to root and never buy from B&N probably aren't costing them any money. It's just that if no one buys books and magazines from, B&N, they'll get worried.
2) Or, B&N might not care. The more people using the Nookcolor, the more word gets around, the more people use the NC, maybe some of them will even buy content from B&N.
Or they might a take a middle path and try to lock it down, but then not worry too much about people rooting it again.
I don't think B&N is to concerned as they release the source code for the device.
Ypocaramel said:
It's a business decision, really.
1) If they think they're losing money because of the root, then they'll try to shut it down. The hardware isn't losing them money I think, it just doesn't make any money, so people who buy it only to root and never buy from B&N probably aren't costing them any money. It's just that if no one buys books and magazines from, B&N, they'll get worried.
2) Or, B&N might not care. The more people using the Nookcolor, the more word gets around, the more people use the NC, maybe some of them will even buy content from B&N.
Or they might a take a middle path and try to lock it down, but then not worry too much about people rooting it again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would say it is almost null.
Even if we load kindle, there isnt much from kindle which I cant get from B&N. Even if the free books are more common there, google books (which even noted nook in the ad's...) had many of the same free books as kindle, and B&N has many classics for free themself. Also kindle app cant beat out the actual E-Reader functions that the nook has (atleast in my opinion)
Its clear that a lot of the root concept matches their plans. With the appstore coming its clear that they wanted to make the nook more than an E-Reader... Also with that no matter how poor next to the root many will just complain for a nook version over risking it to hack. If anything it will be buzz and is easy marketing for them.
I think there is one more reason that B&N will leave rooting alone. Even if rooters never buy a book from B&N, the volume of units sold tends to keep the cost down. For B&N, this is just a window of opportunity until more solid, Google-supported Android tablets become ubiquitous. Volume sold will be key for B&N remaining in the market for single purpose eReaders against Amazon. Moreover, if B&N has any aspirations of staying in the tablet market, the rooters are key early adopters.
If I were them, I would quietly support the rooter community. Any improvements they choose to adopt can be freely taken back by them with Open Source. One senior level engineer tracking the community will find ample opportunity to recover stuff to improve B&N's product. That could really help B&N to compete.
If they leave it alone it might actually GAIN them some sales from people like me(and other hackers) that wanted a tablet but didn't want to drop $600 or be stuck with a contract. When I found out the NC could be rooted and apps could be loaded and I bought one the same day. It's just an added bonus that this is also a nice e-reader as I was looking for one of those as well. I got both things I wanted for $249. Maybe they made it easy to root because they WANTED the word to get out that its pretty easy to root(which makes it like a tablet) to boost sales for people like us
Withfeeling said:
I think there is one more reason that B&N will leave rooting alone. Even if rooters never buy a book from B&N, the volume of units sold tends to keep the cost down. For B&N, this is just a window of opportunity until more solid, Google-supported Android tablets become ubiquitous. Volume sold will be key for B&N remaining in the market for single purpose eReaders against Amazon. Moreover, if B&N has any aspirations of staying in the tablet market, the rooters are key early adopters.
If I were them, I would quietly support the rooter community. Any improvements they choose to adopt can be freely taken back by them with Open Source. One senior level engineer tracking the community will find ample opportunity to recover stuff to improve B&N's product. That could really help B&N to compete.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont mean to sound like an ass, but we would be trend setters =P not early adopters
Related
From Engadget:
You had to know the hacking community was going to have a field day with the Nook Color -- a $249 Android Tablet hiding behind with a thin e-reader coating. Indeed it didn't take long to get rooted nor for Android 2.2 to get installed on there, but that particular hack comes with an interesting potential side-effect: small-scale thermonuclear explosions. Enabling FroYo requires disabling the device's battery monitoring process, the very one that would be responsible for shutting down the device before the cells start overheating and, ultimately, going critical. Yeah it's unlikely, but it could happen. Meanwhile, another hack has enabled the Android Market, but those instructions begin with a very daunting warning: "Very smart people have failed at this. If the following instructions confuse you, you might want to wait until an easier method has been developed."
And, thankfully, there is a much easier way coming, with Barnes & Noble confirming that Android 2.2 will be officially coming to the Nook Color in January. Yes, Android 2.3 is what's happening, but this is still an exciting upgrade as it will finally also allow access to a traditional Android home screen and even enable the Android Market. In other words, it should work just like an Android tablet, Kindle app and all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And here I was thinking I would return my NC to B&N tomorrow. What to do what to do..
Assuming the report is accurate, I guess B&N really is embracing Android. A happy surprise. If you read the original link, then it says it'll also have the 2.2 launcher, switchable between B&N and stock Android.
Hopefully there is a leak soon I am an impatient person
great great great news. Wow, i might have to pick up a spare. going to get very interesting come January. Also hoping for a nice leak soon
This means I will be buying a Nook Color as soon as this is available in January. It will do everything I want a tablet to do right now.
I still can't get it to run smoothly. My EVO scrolls home screens and web pages much smoother than my NC. Even with SetCPU set to performance, it's just a tad slow. I wonder how it would run with 2.2 on it, sucking more power.
I've debated the two avenues that BN can take with this with friends. Either lock it down like Apple and try to stay ahead of the hacker community and force people to use their products or open it up and cater to all and potentially lose a little profit from forced content purchasing. I personally think the later will actually spur more content sales as the positive reaction to how they are handling all this will spur more device sales and ultimately more content.
I don't think they are loss leading this device, even if it's a very small profit margin. Most people I know buying it are older and they don't care at all about android. They are buying BN books and content and using it like BN planned. I'm assuming here, but it's probably a small percentage of users rooting it and clamoring for full functionality. BN, seemingly to me, are open to this and catering to that smaller percentage. In doing so, they are creating so much more positive hype for their machine leading to probably a WHOLE lot more device sales and publicity overall which will probably get them even more content sales.
The few things I wanted with the device have been unlocked. I'm as happy as can be with it now. If this is true, most likely they are going to implement those changes officially in some form down the road. Better for everybody.
This seems to be win win for everybody. Hopefully when they officially update their software, they take into account many of the elements that have been unlocked and why people are unlocking those functions.
I think that the day they release 2.2 with a vanilla launcher option we should all buy a book or 2 from the b&n ebook store to show our appreciation.
I think this is important to note:
" I was told that Nook users may not have access to the full market."
(This is a quote from the SmartPhoneMag.com article referenced by Engadget).
I don't believe it will have the standard market on it - it will still be B&N's proprietary market.
I hope they enable my location.
stwallman said:
I think this is important to note:
" I was told that Nook users may not have access to the full market."
(This is a quote from the SmartPhoneMag.com article referenced by Engadget).
I don't believe it will have the standard market on it - it will still be B&N's proprietary market.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure about that. I think it will be a non-copy protected market, or no paid apps. Unless they make users do the normal Android setup wizard, you don't tie your Nook to a particular account.
We'll just have to see though, as we can speculate anything (and often do!)
thecalip said:
I hope they enable my location.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How would they do that? Off a WiFi location? No GPS, and no cell function kind of limits the feature.
For Pete's sake B&N! Just give us 2.2 with a home switcher to your B&N home Screen and FULL Market Access, gmail app, etc....
Enough already with this proprietary garbage!
Capt Picard: "Number One.. Make it so!"
HeroHTC said:
For Pete's sake B&N! Just give us 2.2 with a home switcher to your B&N home Screen and FULL Market Access, gmail app, etc....
Enough already with this proprietary garbage!
Capt Picard: "Number One.. Make it so!"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm pretty sure it's Google limiting market access, not B&N. According to Android's use, you can't have the Market (or any other Google apps) installed without 3G access, which the Nook doesn't have. The other companies who have skirted this requirement have gotten into trouble over it.
Marketing 101: How do you win the Tablet wars, market it first as a $250 ereader/tablet, then 2 months later release the update that turns it into a full Tablet/ereader right after CES which this year is all about Tablets all costing twice as much tied to carriers.
Bunch of BS! Google gives a crapload of stuff for free and they cover this tiny little 3g thing. I don't get it... the more users out there the more downloads and the more revenue for Google. Granted with the 3G access they can somehow figure out who did what, but there isn't a single person here who's used the market to download only free stuff.
devis said:
but there isn't a single person here who's used the market to download only free stuff.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sure about that?
I can say for one I have never paid for an app.
Never pirated one either.
There are plenty of free things out there...I have no need for anything paid.
To say nobody downloads only free stuff is just plain wrong.
Not to say I won't ever buy something, but haven't needed to yet.
I think I am going to wait and see with this market thing. Full market...I will buy for sure. Something else...will think about it after root for the new version is out.
danbutter said:
Sure about that?
I can say for one I have never paid for an app.
Never pirated one either.
There are plenty of free things out there...I have no need for anything paid.
To say nobody downloads only free stuff is just plain wrong.
Not to say I won't ever buy something, but haven't needed to yet.
I think I am going to wait and see with this market thing. Full market...I will buy for sure. Something else...will think about it after root for the new version is out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
as they said in "Life of Brian" - there's always one
I spoke today with a Barnes & Noble representative who showed me the forthcoming update on his company Nook which is slated for this January. The 2.2 Android update is a game changer and literally turns the e-reader into a near full Android tablet device.
The 2.2 update, or overhaul if you prefer, will give you access to a retooled Android Market, the typical Android home screen and even has pinch zooming with the browser. The Android Market app was still under development and was not on the device to see. I was told that Nook users may not have access to the full market. The Nook I looked at had apps loaded via the SD card slot and seemed to run fine. The device will still give you access to all of your Nook material via the current interface that will be swicthable for the user.
The update addresses performance and battery life concerns according to the rep I spoke to. The update on his Nook was still in beta so it lacked some polish but seemed to work smoother than the stock device. The graphics performance still seemed sluggish even with 2.2 when scrolling through magazines and web pages.
The best news is that Nook Color owners will be able to use their new Nooks as a full tablet device that rivals any other Android tablet currently in the consumer arena. Even iPad users may turn envious at the smaller form factor and $249 purchase price.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nook Color Getting Android 2.2 Treatment in January
Sirchuk said:
I still can't get it to run smoothly. My EVO scrolls home screens and web pages much smoother than my NC. Even with SetCPU set to performance, it's just a tad slow. I wonder how it would run with 2.2 on it, sucking more power.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
2.2 doesn't suck more power. Its actually more power efficient and at the same time faster. Froyo has JIT amongst other things that gave it a significant performance boost over Eclair.
stwallman said:
I think this is important to note:
" I was told that Nook users may not have access to the full market."
(This is a quote from the SmartPhoneMag.com article referenced by Engadget).
I don't believe it will have the standard market on it - it will still be B&N's proprietary market.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Who cares. We already have a full market with the hacks available based on Droid X. But Vanilla 2.2 with a kernel source changes the game.
bluetooth
If the rumors are true about bluetooth hardware being there, then Google could open the full market to us Nookers. All they would have to do is enable pairing between the nook and a cellphone via bluetooth, and now you have 3G.
So, I am somewhat knowledgeable (can follow directions without bricking other devices), and have searched these forums, but I think they noise has gotten to be too much. Here is what I am looking for:
What, if any, functionality is lost by rooting?
I just want to make sure I do not lose any abilities or features that I am not expecting.
No functionality is lost.
Pinesal said:
No functionality is lost.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, many people have reported that the B&N In-Store functionalities are lost (i.e. 1 hour free reading per book per day in store, free book/cafe offers, etc.)
I can also confirm that the loss of in-store and cafe offers is something I have experienced.
Lost functionality....
So I guess for now I will delay rooting until a way is discovered (if ever) to avoid not being able to get the free hour per day. I work near a B&N location, so it is convenient to spend my lunches there reading stuff I don't have to buy.
I've got that issue
peiziyu said:
Actually, many people have reported that the B&N In-Store functionalities are lost (i.e. 1 hour free reading per book per day in store, free book/cafe offers, etc.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
After rooting, I cannot get Barnes and Noble "Shop" application to do anything. It just sits and spins.
When I look at Settings -> About Your NOOKcolor, it says both Owner and Account is "Unavailable"
Not sure how to get that part working. Would like to look at the ebooks and mags available from BN
rlkelley said:
So I guess for now I will delay rooting until a way is discovered (if ever) to avoid not being able to get the free hour per day. I work near a B&N location, so it is convenient to spend my lunches there reading stuff I don't have to buy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Note that "many" people have reported the in-store problem, but "not everyone" ... I for one, still have full in-store access and no problems with the "Shop" B&N features and downloading. Thus, there is something "funny" going on in the rooting process or differences in Nook Color versions of software or hardware that is causing various rooting quirks ... all the more reason, I mentioned in another thread, that auto-nooter or other rooting packages should be kept simple, e.g., a Vanilla version without add on keyboards, laychers, live wallpaper, etc, as it would be a lot easier to track any bugs
Silly question but, how do you know if in-store function is working? How can I choose, in my Nook, to read a book on my free one hour a day?
Sent from my rockin' rooted Nook Color using XDA App
Quick question:
I have rooted and everything is working fine (except YouTube, but that's not the reason for this post). I wondered if I installed LauncherPro on my NookColor if I would still be able to add books from my library to the home screen like the default home.
Thanks!
rsptexas said:
Note that "many" people have reported the in-store problem, but "not everyone" ... I for one, still have full in-store access and no problems with the "Shop" B&N features and downloading. Thus, there is something "funny" going on in the rooting process or differences in Nook Color versions of software or hardware that is causing various rooting quirks ... all the more reason, I mentioned in another thread, that auto-nooter or other rooting packages should be kept simple, e.g., a Vanilla version without add on keyboards, laychers, live wallpaper, etc, as it would be a lot easier to track any bugs
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Could you enter the discussion on this thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=860830
TO maybe help give some insight into why yours works and others do not?
argh, thanked the wrong post due to a browser glitch!
meant to thank rsptexas post and mention that i too have no issues launching the B&N store after rooting and agree that simpler is better for auto-rooting.
one thing these 'many people' don't mention is what firmware they were running originally, what method they used to 'root' their device, and what extra addons they put after cracking the thing open. way too many variables there to just say rooting breaks B&N store functionality.
Something is brewing @ B&N me thinks....
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20030475-1.html?part=rss&subj=news&tag=2547-1_3-0-20
and...speculate...........
Official Honeycomb to NC!
yeah right
I hope they're not going to close the loopholes we've been using to boot off the SD and get root.
My theory would be a quiet recall for defects.
Can't be for updates as that would require opening packages.
You can't tell me their inventory system is so bad that they have to send them all back.
Seems lots of folks are having problems with the microUSB, (one of mine is OK, the other kind a flaky) suspect the mfg made a 'running change' and now has run out of parts (the new USB part or something associated) .. but it could be almost anything
I would lean towards a hardware issue - I've had a few screen problems like burnt pixels and then off color spots on the screen. Add in that I'm afraid the microUSB connection will break off the mainboard because of it's angle (it's rather oddly angled, but just a few degrees.)
There cant be that many of us running android os's on this device. it certianly would stink if they removed the ability to boot off sd. im assuming tho that would only effect new nooks and not ours.
That same article has an update.
Update: The latest rumor, once again courtesy of Good E-Reader, is that the reason for the temporary unavailability is that Barnes & Noble is in the process of installing an anti-rooting "fix" for the Nook Color because people have been hacking the device to run a custom version of the Android-based firmware. That custom firmware allows users to access and download apps from the Android Marketplace, including competing e-reading apps such as Kindle and Kobo. If a significant percentage of Nook Color buyers are doing this, it presents a problem for Barnes & Noble (Sony doesn't like to talk about it but it had major issues with the PSP being hacked). Good E-Reader cites a "Barnes & Noble source" in mentioning the rumor, but to be clear, we don't know if there's any truth to it or not, and we're not sure how Barnes & Noble would truly be able to lock the device down.
Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20030475-1.html#ixzz1CuIaHL20
one4thewings said:
That same article has an update.
Update: The latest rumor, once again courtesy of Good E-Reader, is that the reason for the temporary unavailability is that Barnes & Noble is in the process of installing an anti-rooting "fix" for the Nook Color because people have been hacking the device to run a custom version of the Android-based firmware. That custom firmware allows users to access and download apps from the Android Marketplace, including competing e-reading apps such as Kindle and Kobo. If a significant percentage of Nook Color buyers are doing this, it presents a problem for Barnes & Noble (Sony doesn't like to talk about it but it had major issues with the PSP being hacked). Good E-Reader cites a "Barnes & Noble source" in mentioning the rumor, but to be clear, we don't know if there's any truth to it or not, and we're not sure how Barnes & Noble would truly be able to lock the device down.
Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20030475-1.html#ixzz1CuIaHL20
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That would suck for B&N as most people I knew who bout the Nook over other options bought it on the premise that it could be rooted.
I was on the phone with B&N concerning an RMA of my NC, the CS agent spoke to me about the delay. Saying:
"We got in a shipment of Nooks that was all but unusable, so while I am sorry for the delay, I would say that the wait is worth it. You couldn't do much of anything with the ones we got in."
Which seems more likely than anything to me. If you ask in store they will have very low stocks as well.
computerpro3 said:
I hope they're not going to close the loopholes we've been using to boot off the SD and get root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Easily done in HW unfortunately, but they couldn't do it in SW. However, if they're doing a hardware change they could very well make this change.
It would change the way we do some things but it would NOT block root. People would find a way, in fact I think z4 works as-is today.
DTgreat said:
I was on the phone with B&N concerning an RMA of my NC, the CS agent spoke to me about the delay. Saying:
"We got in a shipment of Nooks that was all but unusable, so while I am sorry for the delay, I would say that the wait is worth it. You couldn't do much of anything with the ones we got in."
Which seems more likely than anything to me. If you ask in store they will have very low stocks as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What does that even mean? They're not usable or rooting? For general use?
one4thewings said:
That same article has an update.
Update: The latest rumor, once again courtesy of Good E-Reader, is that the reason for the temporary unavailability is that Barnes & Noble is in the process of installing an anti-rooting "fix" for the Nook Color because people have been hacking the device to run a custom version of the Android-based firmware. That custom firmware allows users to access and download apps from the Android Marketplace, including competing e-reading apps such as Kindle and Kobo. If a significant percentage of Nook Color buyers are doing this, it presents a problem for Barnes & Noble (Sony doesn't like to talk about it but it had major issues with the PSP being hacked). Good E-Reader cites a "Barnes & Noble source" in mentioning the rumor, but to be clear, we don't know if there's any truth to it or not, and we're not sure how Barnes & Noble would truly be able to lock the device down.
Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20030475-1.html#ixzz1CuIaHL20
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If true, I would be going down to the store with my torch and pitchfork.
khaytsus said:
What does that even mean? They're not usable or rooting? For general use?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
General use makes more sense. Why would they recall Nooks for something they can OTA and save hundreds of thousands of dollars? It'd be a bit insane from a business standpoint. IMHO anyway.
khaytsus said:
Easily done in HW unfortunately, but they couldn't do it in SW. However, if they're doing a hardware change they could very well make this change.
The trick that lets us run the sd card image is the boot device order, usb>sdcard>internal memory. They should be able to change that in a software update, no?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
dougp.me said:
I would lean towards a hardware issue - I've had a few screen problems like burnt pixels and then off color spots on the screen. Add in that I'm afraid the microUSB connection will break off the mainboard because of it's angle (it's rather oddly angled, but just a few degrees.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We bought two NC yesterday at BN. One of the microUSB connections was skewed pretty bad. We couldn't connect the USB at all.
I checked several online vendors, including B&N and Amazon, and they say nothing about the Nook Color being out of stock. In fact, I went through the purchase proceedure at B&N (but didn't finish checkout), and nowhere was there a message saying there would be a delay on shipment.
Balls_Mcafee said:
khaytsus said:
Easily done in HW unfortunately, but they couldn't do it in SW. However, if they're doing a hardware change they could very well make this change.
The trick that lets us run the sd card image is the boot device order, usb>sdcard>internal memory. They should be able to change that in a software update, no?
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No. It would require a hardware change to take USB or SD out of the boot order.
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one4thewings said:
That same article has an update.
Update: The latest rumor, once again courtesy of Good E-Reader, is that the reason for the temporary unavailability is that Barnes & Noble is in the process of installing an anti-rooting "fix" for the Nook Color because people have been hacking the device to run a custom version of the Android-based firmware. That custom firmware allows users to access and download apps from the Android Marketplace, including competing e-reading apps such as Kindle and Kobo. If a significant percentage of Nook Color buyers are doing this, it presents a problem for Barnes & Noble (Sony doesn't like to talk about it but it had major issues with the PSP being hacked). Good E-Reader cites a "Barnes & Noble source" in mentioning the rumor, but to be clear, we don't know if there's any truth to it or not, and we're not sure how Barnes & Noble would truly be able to lock the device down.
Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20030475-1.html#ixzz1CuIaHL20
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Boo!!! Hiss!!!
Sent from my SGH-T959 using Tapatalk
cameraz said:
I checked several online vendors, including B&N and Amazon, and they say nothing about the Nook Color being out of stock. In fact, I went through the purchase proceedure at B&N (but didn't finish checkout), and nowhere was there a message saying there would be a delay on shipment.
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When you get shipping information, you'd see the order would ship on the 15th as opposed to soon-ish.
There would have to be a hardware change.
The Ti Omap has a gpio bootstrap option. Tie a pin a certain way and it can boot from SD, etc. They aren’t going to remove the option. They use the option in manufacturing to image the device in the first place.
How do you think the Nook manufacturer installs the basic OS??
They boot from SD or USB to then dump the contnets to the internal memory.
I searched the forums for this, but I never found any straightforward (or in plain and simple English) answers that helped me. I don't know how to root or how to mod my devices or even some of the terminology. I also know that some of you might laugh at me for my lack of knowledge, but I get that anyway for how I walk sometimes (I have MS) LOL.
I just bought a New Nook Color today (yay for me!). I have a Samsung Epic 4g. I used an app called Application backup that gets all of the APK files into a zip file on the SD card. I have a 16gb SD card. I transferred my info from my 16 GB card to another 16 GB card via my computer. I put the 2nd SD card into my Nook and the Nook did not recognize any of the Apps from my phone. I figured that since they are both running Froyo, that it would work. What did I do wrong?
Also, I figured that since I upgraded the Nook to B&N's new Froyo, that I would be able to get onto the Android Market, not just B&N's somewhat crappy App store. How can I access the Market from my new Nook Color?
Also, can I run Google Voice and make calls from my new Nook? Just wondering, it's not necessary, but I would like to at least text message from it, if possible. Also, can I really get that Playon app and play Netflix and Hulu content as well? That would be amazing!
Thank you in advance for taking the time to help this big ol' dummy!
There's plenty of easy to follow guides about how to root, flash custom ROMs, etc all over this part of the forum, just gotta go looking. You'll need root to watch the Netflix app on your NC, same with getting the market.
There's an easier way to install the apps on your NC. Just download the Appbrain app on both NC and your phone, then you can see the list of apps on your phone and install them on your NC as well.
I've got a rooted NC with phiremod installed, so I can't tell you how to access the market on any unrooted device. Hope someone else can help you with that.
holgalee said:
There's an easier way to install the apps on your NC. Just download the Appbrain app on both NC and your phone, then you can see the list of apps on your phone and install them on your NC as well.
I've got a rooted NC with phiremod installed, so I can't tell you how to access the market on any unrooted device. Hope someone else can help you with that.
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A completely stock NC can't access the marketplace.
OP, look for the "manual nooter" thread, probably in the Dev subforum. Nootering is the closest to stock you can be and use the non-B&N marketplace.
so i just got a gtab and was playing around with it. got a custom mod on there(vegan 5.1.1, love it) and my mom saw me saying "is that an ipad?". told her no, showed her some of the features and she suggested we get something like that for my grandma. without knowing really much about the nook color at all i do know this would probably be a better option for her than an ipad or gtablet.
just wondering if there are stable enough roms out there where i could do everything at once when i buy it and kind of show her how to navigate websites, email, watch videos, etc(pretty much basic computing, shes old lol) over a weekend when shes here(she lives 6 hours away and coming to visit next week)? because once she leaves i won't be able to update or help her troubleshoot it till like Christmas.
nuttybardude said:
so i just got a gtab and was playing around with it. got a custom mod on there(vegan 5.1.1, love it) and my mom saw me saying "is that an ipad?". told her no, showed her some of the features and she suggested we get something like that for my grandma. without knowing really much about the nook color at all i do know this would probably be a better option for her than an ipad or gtablet.
just wondering if there are stable enough roms out there where i could do everything at once when i buy it and kind of show her how to navigate websites, email, watch videos, etc(pretty much basic computing, shes old lol) over a weekend when shes here(she lives 6 hours away and coming to visit next week)? because once she leaves i won't be able to update or help her troubleshoot it till like Christmas.
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This might be better in its own thread if you want more replies, but I can tell you my own experience with customized tech devies as gifts to people who aren't tech savvy and can't or have no interest in learning. Never works out well, for me.
If your grandma likes to keep up with and learn about the latest gear, or if she's interested in starting, a rooted or moded NC would be good. But if she's not, you need a device you can set up for her once and have it run without need for updates or maintenance for a long period of time. Something she can just use. In that case the extra expense is worth it.
Also, a screen larger than the NC's would probably be easier for her, depending on her sight.
Nora D said:
Also, a screen larger than the NC's would probably be easier for her, depending on her sight.
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This is a very good point. I thought about getting a tablet for my dad, and the same considerations occurred to me. If your grandmother is using it primarily to read books, then the small screen isn't as much of an issue, since the fonts can be sized up in the reader app without much detrimental effect. But scaling up a large font in the web browser will likely make the web browsing experience painful, since many websites are so tightly formatted. "Zoom in and pan around" is a horrible way to use the web... Also, the smaller the screen is, the finer the motor control necessary to operate the touch screen controls, which may be another issue for an older person.
I came to the conclusion that a 7-inch tablet just isn't going to be very useful for an elderly person, and the Nook has enough little quirks when used as a tablet that it would likely be a frustrating experience for a non-techie person.
I really would not recommend CM7 NC or even rooted stock NC for an elderly person or technologically illiterate person for a couple of reasons:
1. The default UI is nowhere near as non-techy-user-friendly as iOS (I'm OS-agnostic, hate proprietary software, but hey, it's true) and there's no locking down of features (admin mode vs limited user, etc) to prevent someone accidentally damaging the install or removing something they shouldn't. Maybe you could find a heavily modded theme to be friendlier.
2. The screen is, at 7", perfect for me as a reader but my (elderly) mother complained about the small screen size (needing much bigger fonts). You can fix that somewhat by (obviously) using bigger fonts in CM7 and also by editing the lcd density, but the latter can cause issues with some apps. It's not exactly difficult to fudge fingering through the menus and opening apps by accident, or just mistyping because of the smaller keyboard.
I told my mother, who was liking my (CM7) Nook despite complaining about eye strain and fingering issues, that she was probably better off spending $100 more on the upcoming 9.7" Amazon tablet this fall if she could wait. While it's probably going to be as locked down as the iPad to begin with, I won't have to worry about bugs in nightlies (or even stables, e.g., no deep sleep in pre-.32 releases) or whether or not she'll accidentally break some app etc. While it sucks to be limited to 1 ereader store (technically), if Amazon allows generic ereader apps like Bluefire or Aldiko she could still have access to epubs from competing stores if she needed it. If it ends up being rootable to allow 3rd-party apps and Google Android Market then it's a win-win with a polished, user-friendly modded android OS from Amazon.
I'm not bashing the Nook or CM7 - I love mine and I love being able to tweak and experiment with it, but it's not something that a non-techy would be able to tread fearlessly in -- look how many threads here are posted with people being lost about doing a basic SD CM7 install or following one of the step-by-step rooting guides.
Responding to the grandma tangent, I think everyone is underestimating the appeal of the stock Nook Color for people who don't know what they're doing. There are plenty of non-tech-savvy people over at mobileread (well, tech savvy enough to post on a forum, but otherwise...) who are thrilled with their stock NCs. Three-million-plus of these things have sold, and most of those people are not rooting them or putting on custom ROMs.
Someone familiar with Android devices who goes into it expecting an Android device might find it limiting, but for someone with no clue, the fact that it only does a few things is a pro, not a con.
Skunkeye said:
But scaling up a large font in the web browser will likely make the web browsing experience painful, since many websites are so tightly formatted. "Zoom in and pan around" is a horrible way to use the web...
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I don't remember just how the NC stock browser works, but most Android browsers are smarter than that. Often a double-tap on a column of text will get it centered at a manageable size, and if not you can zoom to the desired text size and double-tap again to reflow it just like a book. Whenever I come to an article of more than a few paragraphs on my PC, I stop and pick up the NC for a more comfortable reading experience (or send the link to the NC for later, depending on what I'm doing).
I don't think anyone is underestimating the stock Nook Color for what it is. But the original question was about "stable ROMs" and the comparison of the Nook vs. a full Android tablet or iPad. I'd have no problem giving almost anyone a Nook Color if it was left as an unrooted, stock device (because tech support would then be B&N's problem!), with the understanding that it was going to be used as intended: as an excellent e-reader that happens to do a little bit of internet stuff sort of passably well.
But if you're talking about putting Cyanogen or something on the thing and sending it to grandma's house six hours away and hoping for everything to go smoothly (which was, I think, nuttybardudes's intent), I think that's very likely to end up in frustration for everyone involved.
Agreed. I'm saying he's overthinking it--just buying a NC and handing it to her (well, maybe helping her register it) may be his best option. .
Hello everyone!
Thought i'd register an account finally and share a little project I've been working on for the past few months at my job. I'll try to keep this short, and answer technical questions about the process, if anyone is interested of course
I've been flashing various WinMo and Android devices for years, and had just recently picked up a Nook Color at the time. Well within a hour I was running CM7 on it, and just couldn't believe how much potential was unlocked on this cheap little tablet!
Months back at work, we were trying to figure out a better/more portable way to display product demonstration videos to our customers. We used TV's and DVD player to demo product videos, but that made it a pain to show specific items to customers, without changing the DVD chapter for the whole showroom. So we started tossing around the idea of a portable DVD player or tablet, and it took off from there.
Eventually we had the idea of doing a trial run of tablets in the showrooms with a video player and videos of the product formatted for the tablet. Initially we tried using Acer Iconia tablets, but they were way too bulky to carry around all day. So we settled on using Nook Colors because of the size and the fact that we could hook a lanyard on so the sales associates wouldn't drop them! Those features sealed the deal and we did a trial run of 7 Nooks in the Florida showrooms. Needless to say, being able to show products video demos on demand were a huge hit for our customers and ended up deploying about 300 nooks to all our nation wide retail locations!
It was a crazy few months, and we had a lot of technical hurdles to overcome, but the last of the 300 Nooks arrived in the showrooms at the beginning of the week, and they have had nothing but RAVE reviews from customers.
I think using these Nooks running CyanogenMod as a retail selling tool is a huge milestone for mobile computing use in the retail environment.
Would love to have hear feedback and like I said if anyone is interested in how we accomplished this technically i'll gladly provide details!
----
(Combined this from below)
I took a Nook and did the initial flash to CM7. Then I completely locked down everything but the Video Player, Calculator, and Screen Brightness Widget. This including disabling many APKs / processes that were not needed that would just sit in the background, wasting battery. Any other applications that couldn't be disabled such as the settings menu are locked down with a password app. Since we're using this as a selling tool, we didn't want anyone browsing the internet or playing Angry Birds, so Play and wireless settings were also passworded. Then I cleaned up the interface and used the launcher to hide all the applications that are either for diagnostics or were simply locked down.
Next I took a CWM Backup of our master Nook and copied that image to a CWM bootable card. I opted to leave the stock Nook recovery on there and go with the bootable to prevent... Tampering.
So basically once I got the process down to a science, we ramped up production and started flashing them in bulk.
For the last step, I put hundreds of product videos formatted for the Nooks native resolution onto a separate SD card and we used a card duplicator to create 300 cards that were installed into each device before we shipped them out.
So in a nutshell we take a Nook, pop in the ClockworkMod Recovery card, restore the Backup, and within 5 to 10 minutes I have a fully customized nook that just needs the admin password changed, video card, and then it's ready to go.
Ray Detwiler
WOW! I am impressed. What a great use of our Nook Colors. Thank you for sharing that with us.
Thanks!
Nice work! I bet you love your job. It must be great getting to play with all of those tablets, not to mention the innovating involved. Sounds like a real hoot!
This sounds awesome, I would love to buy one, in fact.
Awesome!!!! Are you at the Phantom in Kenosha? I'm making a Wisconsin trip (from Chicago) tomorrow for beer, cheese, and fireworks.
a1cshowoff said:
Awesome!!!! Are you at the Phantom in Kenosha? I'm making a Wisconsin trip (from Chicago) tomorrow for beer, cheese, and fireworks.
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That's great to hear! I'm at the corporate office in Youngstown, Ohio but if you're stopping in at the Racine showroom (looks to be about 20 mins from Kenosha) They'll have a couple of nooks on the floor for you to take a look at.
phatwila said:
It was a crazy few months, and we had a lot of technical hurdles to overcome, but the last of the 300 Nooks arrived in the showrooms at the beginning of the week, and they have had nothing but RAVE reviews from customers.
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If you don't mind expanding a bit, what are some of the technical hurdles you encountered?
Sure thing!
I took a Nook and did the initial flash to CM7. Then I completely locked down everything but the Video Player, Calculator, and Screen Brightness Widget. This including disabling many APKs / processes that were not needed that would just sit in the background, wasting battery. Any other applications that couldn't be disabled such as the settings menu are locked down with a password app. Since we're using this as a selling tool, we didn't want anyone browsing the internet or playing Angry Birds, so Play and wireless settings were also passworded. Then I cleaned up the interface and used the launcher to hide all the applications that are either for diagnostics or were simply locked down.
Next I took a CWM Backup of our master Nook and copied that image to a CWM bootable card. I opted to leave the stock Nook recovery on there and go with the bootable to prevent... Tampering.
So basically once I got the process down to a science, we ramped up production and started flashing them in bulk.
For the last step, I put hundreds of product videos formatted for the Nooks native resolution onto a separate SD card and we used a card duplicator to create 300 cards that were installed into each device before we shipped them out.
So in a nutshell we take a Nook, pop in the ClockworkMod Recovery card, restore the Backup, and within 5 to 10 minutes I have a fully customized nook that just needs the admin password changed, video card, and then it's ready to go.
Do they have the Nook Colors at the Herculaneum, MO store? I may have to check them out when I go down that way to play underground Disc Golf.
mogators1 said:
Do they have the Nook Colors at the Herculaneum, MO store? I may have to check them out when I go down that way to play underground Disc Golf.
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Yep, they do
Out of curiously did you talk to the cyanogen team about this? or donate any money to them?
For 300 retail nooks running cyanogen I hope you donated a good chunk of money to them.
As far as I know its for private use, not a retail company.
You guys need any more? I'm looking to let mine go on Swappa http://swappa.com/listing/GNP935/view
Great job!
were any of these nooks the "blue dot"? the newer ones with the partitions so that there is only a gig for "SideLoad"? i have been fighting with one for a long time...
phatwila said:
Sure thing!
I took a Nook and did the initial flash to CM7. Then I completely locked down everything but the Video Player, Calculator, and Screen Brightness Widget. This including disabling many APKs / processes that were not needed that would just sit in the background, wasting battery. Any other applications that couldn't be disabled such as the settings menu are locked down with a password app. Since we're using this as a selling tool, we didn't want anyone browsing the internet or playing Angry Birds, so Play and wireless settings were also passworded. Then I cleaned up the interface and used the launcher to hide all the applications that are either for diagnostics or were simply locked down.
Next I took a CWM Backup of our master Nook and copied that image to a CWM bootable card. I opted to leave the stock Nook recovery on there and go with the bootable to prevent... Tampering.
So basically once I got the process down to a science, we ramped up production and started flashing them in bulk.
For the last step, I put hundreds of product videos formatted for the Nooks native resolution onto a separate SD card and we used a card duplicator to create 300 cards that were installed into each device before we shipped them out.
So in a nutshell we take a Nook, pop in the ClockworkMod Recovery card, restore the Backup, and within 5 to 10 minutes I have a fully customized nook that just needs the admin password changed, video card, and then it's ready to go.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Very cool. Thanks for responding!
Wow!
phatwila said:
Hello everyone!
Needless to say, being able to show products video demos on demand were a huge hit for our customers and ended up deploying about 300 nooks to all our nation wide retail locations!
Ray
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Ray:
It's great to see that B.J. Alan is innovating in 1.4g sales. As you know, it's a weird business, and I have to congratulate you on an ambitious project that will doubtless help see more of the high-end 200g and 500g items. I am an APA member that does mostly 1.3g stuff, and I admire your foresight and hard work. Keep it up and thanks for sharing!
Best,
David Lynch
Berserk87 said:
Out of curiously did you talk to the cyanogen team about this? or donate any money to them?
For 300 retail nooks running cyanogen I hope you donated a good chunk of money to them.
As far as I know its for private use, not a retail company.
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While I can't comment on finances, I will say that CM is released under the Apache 2.0 and GPLv2 licenses, which allow for this type of deployment. Think of it this way: Tens of thousands of people over the next few months who have never been exposed to CyanogenMod and OSS are going to see these devices. That amount of free marketing is priceless. I do believe that either way, it is a win-win for all parties involved.
Pale_Flyer said:
were any of these nooks the "blue dot"? the newer ones with the partitions so that there is only a gig for "SideLoad"? i have been fighting with one for a long time...
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While all our nooks were pre-blue refurbs, our initial test run devices were blue dotted. There's scripts you can run to revert back to the original partition schemes if needed. For us, 95% of the data was on our 16GB SD cards so we weren't that concerned about the partitions, but I did test the re-partitioning scripts and they worked fine. That thread is located here if your interested:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1094371
Hope that helps!
dlynch said:
Ray:
It's great to see that B.J. Alan is innovating in 1.4g sales. As you know, it's a weird business, and I have to congratulate you on an ambitious project that will doubtless help see more of the high-end 200g and 500g items. I am an APA member that does mostly 1.3g stuff, and I admire your foresight and hard work. Keep it up and thanks for sharing!
Best,
David Lynch
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Thank you for the kind words David! It is really appreciated!