New Irex Reader 1000

[nekokami]

Originally Posted by sanders

The current iLiad has pressure sensitivity. I started a test project around this and got it to work. The main bottleneck to get a draw app is partial screen refreshes.

Does anyone think there'd be a market for 3rd party applications for their iLiad?

I know the current iLiad has the hardware for pressure sensitivity, but there aren't any applications that use it, are there?

Yes, I think there's a market for 3rd party applications for the iLiad, but it's probably not huge. I'd pay a reasonable amount for a pressure-sensitive sketch package or a drawing package. I'd pay substantially more for handwriting recognition on the iLiad itself, even if only in the background and only for search purposes. I use my iLiad as a general-purpose notebook and it can be quite difficult to find "notes" content later.

Originally Posted by zerospinboson

New(?): Text searching in PDFs (with built-in keypad+stylus, so likely not in 1000)

Did you see that on the site somewhere?

Originally Posted by tirsales

@junkyardwillie: I agree, but it goes even farer - the device has to be embedded into an existing workflow and document management structure, including DMS-databases. Bidirectional.

I suppose if the document management system is accessed by a web browser, it might be possible to access them directly from the Digital Reader.

[writ]

Please no one give me the lecture on how these devices aren't for document creation, etc. I'm just looking for info: is there support for an external USB keyboard, or is that possible only with a hack (like with the iLiad)?

If anyone hears word from iRex or an informed user I'd love to know.

[tirsales]

Originally Posted by nekokami

I suppose if the document management system is accessed by a web browser, it might be possible to access them directly from the Digital Reader.

Only if e.g. a PDF could be opened at a certain page and a certain page in an opened pdf could be tagged by e.g. submitting data via HTTP.

[daemon1]

Have you guys noticed the new improved menu?

http://irextechnologies.com/dr1000im..._landscape.jpg

Let's home it is migrated into the firmware for the current illiad!

[bazzz]

Hi,

I almost exclusively read software development ebooks (e.g. from Manning.com), that's regular PDF documents with some graphics, etc. (200-1200 pages)

Currently I almost always print the documents in the company (which is cheaper - at least for me - and quicker on my desk compared to the regular book)

1. Do I need to convert the PDF documents with those IREX devices? Or plain copy them onto an SD card?
2. Are there any keys to jump to the top of a document (e.g. index) and use hyperlinks in PDF? Can you bookmark pages/documents?
3. Would you recommend a touchscreen version or the cheaper variant of the reader for my purposes?
4. Any general problems with the IREX pdf viewer? Showstoppers?

Thank you!

[BlackVoid]

"The device itself has to be able to convert the markups into a useable (ie pdf) format"

Sorry, but PDF is not usable. It is a very poor format for anything except as a final publishing format.

[junkyardwillie]

@Bazzz
1. No
2. yes, page numbers at the bottom of docs. Bookmarks I'm not sure if they work, you can create links on the TOCs and they work
3. Touchscreen is great on the old Iliad, dont know about new
4. Bootup time is show stopper for me. It takes about 60secs to load when you first start and since the battery life is poor you can't just leave it on all the time. I also have the sony 500 and I love that it starts so quickly. Also loading documents takes a long time depending on file size 30 secs is pretty common on mine for textbook type of docs. Also for some reason my Iliad will jump 5 pages in documents when I want it to only jump 1, there is some sort of bug in PDFs that I cant figure out, no rhyme or reason for the jumps just random

@Blackvoid: If you are writing on a document its easier to get a PDF out of the ereader so you can pass it on to someone else. Most handwriting software is terrible and can't recognize many peoples handwriting so I would rather I got a doc that had my words than one that tried to translate it and outputs jibberish.

[Adam B.]

Originally Posted by bazzz

1. Do I need to convert the PDF documents with those IREX devices? Or plain copy them onto an SD card?
2. Are there any keys to jump to the top of a document (e.g. index) and use hyperlinks in PDF? Can you bookmark pages/documents?
3. Would you recommend a touchscreen version or the cheaper variant of the reader for my purposes?
4. Any general problems with the IREX pdf viewer? Showstoppers?

The PDF viewer in the DR1000 is different from the one on your iLiad, so some answer will be speculation.

1. As long as they aren't DRM protected, you can just copy them to the memory card and read. No conversion necessary.
2. This isn't known yet. On the iLiad, internal (within the same document) hyperlinks work. And you can quickly go to the first or last page of a document. There is also back and forward buttons after following hyperlinks. Bookmarking pages is currently only supported by a community version of the PDF viewer.
3. I think that if you're going to be moving around a lot in the document, you should go with the touch screen version. It'll also be useful for taking notes on your document.
4. I for one, think that PDF is the best format on the iLiad. It looks great, the viewer has a lot of functionality, and it's pretty quick. Some people don't like the fact that it doesn't have built in search, dictionary, or bookmarking capabilities, but that may or may not be important to you.

[astra]

Originally Posted by Adam B.

Some people don't like the fact that it doesn't have built in search, dictionary, or bookmarking capabilities, but that may or may not be important to you.

Maybe new one will have some of the features?

[Adam B.]

Originally Posted by astra

Maybe new one will have some of the features?

It seems very likely. Only time will tell...

[axel77]

Further question about the iRex 1000:

* USB: is there a master and a slave USB port? or just the slave one? Or is it one port that can actually switch between behaving as master or as slave?

* Development Kit: Are we sure going to get a dev kit again? Just to be certain iRex doesn't come up with bad ideas regarding this

[astra]

Originally Posted by axel77

* USB: is there a master and a slave USB port? or just the slave one? Or is it one port that can actually switch between behaving as master or as slave?

What does it mean?

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by astra

What does it mean?

The old unit could be a master, meaning you could add devices to the unit as if it were the main computer. Devices might include such items as USB memory, keyboards, mouse, etc.

A slave can only work with a computer that is a master device. It cannot control other devices.

All USB devices are either master or slave. The network is not peer to peer like the old RS232 serial port.

By the way, I just created a wiki page for this device. See iRex Digital Reader.

Dale

[Marina_Ch]

Originally Posted by tribble

So now iRex has the larger screen, though still with a glass based layer.

It's very interesting for me - what was the source of this information?
I think iRex must be on plastic base. I argee with this quote:

With a glass substrate and a screen that size, we could be seeing a LOT of broken screens. I hope the casing is sufficiently rigid to make flexure of the screen difficult.

[acidzebra]

The whole build-up and "new era in digital reading" versus the eventual product specs left me with a distinct "meh" feeling. Pass.

Still, I'm glad big screens are moving into circulation - I would like a big screen for home/professional use. Not so much for travel use. This just doesn't hit my price vs. features sweet spot, and their track record on battery drain leaves something to be desired. I'd like to see some real-life use cases and average battery life.