KOReader (mentioned in the article, an alternative OSS interface you can install on most ereaders) is really a marvellous piece of software. I was not sure about setting it up at first, fearing it would drain battery out of my Kobo and whatnot, but I never had any issue with it. The amount of stuff you can customize to your liking has no limit and I feel I have reached the endgame of reading comfort. If you own an ereader, I highly recommend installing it. I'm happy and grateful people spend time developing and maintaining it without being paid!

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eddythompson80 43 minutes ago | parent | next [-]

I don’t know man. Maybe it’s a great reader for those who really need to customize everything. However, I found it very hard to use. I can never find settings where I’d expect them to be. Is font or margins or hyphenation under the Gear symbol or the Document symbol or the Wrench symbol or the long-press book settings? Is it then under Typography, Display, Style, Text or Miscellaneous?

I had it on my ereader to check it out, but never got around to it. One time on a long flight I had a Gutenberg Project book that wasn’t rendering correctly and thought I’d give KOReader a try. Spent like 10 minutes trying to find how to disable hyphenation. And even if you get to the right menu, there will be a dozen options to scroll through on 1-3 pages. Maybe if I had internet to check where each setting is to set it up, but it’s not very intuitive to configure. I came from Kobo default reader where all the settings I care about are all front and center and you find them in the first place you look all grouped together.

Also, I realize this is a personal preference, I don’t like the “file explorer” view. I prefer a “library” view like Kobo or Kindle defaults to. If that makes sense.

	▲	dewey 37 minutes ago \| parent \| next [-]
		> Also, I realize this is a personal preference, I don’t like the “file explorer” view. I prefer a “library” view like Kobo or Kindle defaults to. If that makes sense. I'm with you, my reading device is something where I don't want to fiddle or be distracted by settings and options. I just want a stock, opinionated device with good defaults that just works and I have to charge once a month. That's it.
	▲	ZeWaka 21 minutes ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		> I don’t like the “file explorer” view Exact reason why despite having a jailbroken Kindle, I stick to the stock book browser. It's so tough to navigate on an old-gen Kindle with a low refresh rate.

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timvdalen an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

What makes it so good for you? I'm very comfortable with installing stuff like this in general, but I've never felt the need to install KOReader since I don't experience any issues with the basic software.

The only thing I'd maybe like is syncing reading progress with TheStoryGraph, but I can't imagine what else I might want.

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kioleanu 25 minutes ago | parent | next [-]

I’ve only just installed it this week, but for me:

- DRM support (via a Plugin)

- Dark mode on an older device

- SSH Server

- Custom dictionaries

Next on my list is to find a plugin that can transform imperial to metric for when I’m reading American books

Edit: oh and also something that syncs my progress on books not bought from Amazon on multiple devices

	▲	lgvld a minute ago \| parent [-]
		there is even a Syncthing plugin: https://github.com/jasonchoimtt/koreader-syncthing

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globular-toast an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

A few things I like:

- More frontlight options. Ability to toggle on/off easily using corner taps,

- More page layout and typography options e.g. custom fonts,

- Ability to load from Calibre over WiFi (I never plug mine in via USB).

Worth nothing that KOReader doesn't replace the default Kobo firmware. It's easy to install and you launch it from the Kobo firmware so it's easy to quit and go back to normal.

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timvdalen 42 minutes ago | parent [-]

> Worth nothing that KOReader doesn't replace the default Kobo firmware. It's easy to install and you launch it from the Kobo firmware so it's easy to quit and go back to normal.

Ah, that's definitely something I missed, sounds like a good reason to give it a try!

	▲	kioleanu 23 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		Same for Kindle. Nothing changes, you just have a link to open KOReader and you can still use your device as before, if you choose to

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dizhn an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

You can read epubs directly. Cloud storage. It's got like everything so you should check out the features list.

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timvdalen 43 minutes ago | parent [-]

What does directly mean? I can read epubs directly now (but more importantly, kepubs)

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slau 33 minutes ago | parent | next [-]

Going from EPUB to KEPUB requires conversion (I believe KEPUB has XHTML directly embedded into it, right?). It's Kobo's proprietary format to "support" fast scrolling with preview, reading time estimates, etc.

Yes, Kobo can potentially read EPUBs natively, however the support is intentionally gimped to try and push you towards KEPUB/their own store.

	▲	timvdalen 14 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		Ah, I had not considered that the limitations of epubs were due to the device rather than the format. Having said that, Calibre does does the conversion on the fly when I upload my books, so I don't really experience any issues there

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dizhn 35 minutes ago | parent | prev [-]

I think I assumed you have a Kindle. Sorry.

	▲	timvdalen 15 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		Ah, no worries! I keep forgetting that KOReader does more than Kobo!

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j45 an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

The overwhelming thing I hear about KOreader is once people use it for their way of reading (including doing things they coudlnt) they can't use an ereader any other way again.

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dizhn 35 minutes ago | parent [-]

The interface is a bit complicated. Maybe their brains get rewired after figuring it out. :)

	▲	floam 11 minutes ago \| parent [-]
		Pretty sure that’s what happens after adapting to Dvorak. Still not sure why ascended beings bother communicating with us though.

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cavoirom an hour ago | parent | prev | next [-]

KOReader is a must have for Remarkable 2. If you are going to install it on your Remarkable 2, use reManager.m, it's amazing.

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dizhn an hour ago | parent | prev [-]

A similarly awesome ebook reader on Android is Librera. The package on F-Droid is the full version but one may also buy it on the play store the support the Ukranian developer.