Interested in ereaders

[Molly Tournquist]

> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Scott Elcomb
> Sent: 09/20/13 08:14 PM
> 
> On Fri, Sep 20, 2013 at 5:16 PM, Molly Tournquist
> <mollytournquist-ifvz4xmYPRU at public.gmane.org> wrote:
> >> ----- Original Message -----
> >> From: Scott Elcomb
> >> Sent: 09/19/13 02:36 PM
> >> A thick-ish pocket-size notebook with a flip open cover and colour
> >> e-paper. Use the available depth to hold the electronics and for
> >> keeping bluetooth earbuds in storage - similar in concept to a book
> >> safe.
> >>
> >> Use Linux & FOSS, preferably on Open Hardware. Most importantly
> >> though, let users customize their covers (also e-paper).
> >
> > Actually, using linux is questionable. Rockbox is already optimized for portable music players. Color E-paper is an issue of how good that technology is.
> 
> Hmm, according to Wikipedia Rockbox is based on µClinux. That's pretty close :-)
> 
> The idea was simply to have an open & extensible platform to reuse
> available software (speech synthesis, voice recognition, etc) instead
> of recreating wheels. (I'm glad to see that Rockbox has a
> voice-capable UI.)
> 
> Interestingly the article also mentions: "Daniel Stenberg, a founder
> of the Rockbox project, envisions the project evolving away from a
> standalone Rockbox operating system to Rockbox as a media player
> application that runs under mobile operating systems, such as Android,
> iOS, Sailfish OS or Tizen"...
> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rockbox#Future>

With that general type of niche, rockbox running on an ereader's stock OS would also fall into the category.

Maybe there's a bit of a question of quantity of code versus something highly optimized for a particular platform and function, particularly in terms of interface?

One potential use for a hacked ereader would be any apps needed to be used at night / in the dark. though this would require it to be fitted/refitted with a red frontlight.

The potential suitable extra uses for an ereader could vary based on which of the afforementioned types it was, compact 5" or large "HD", like the specialty version of the Aura.

For open hardware of that type, would one with an expansion card slot seem like a worthwhile early step?
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