NickelMenu: An integrated launcher for Kobo eReaders

[geek1011]

NickelMenu
The easiest way to launch custom scripts, change hidden settings, and run actions on Kobo eReaders.
___



NickelMenu adds custom actions the main, reader, browser, and library menus. It works on firmware 4.6+, and persists between firmware upgrades.

Installation:

1. Connect your Kobo eReader to your computer over USB.
2. Download KoboRoot.tgz (release notes) into KOBOeReader/.kobo. You may need to show hidden files to see the folder.
3. Safely eject your eReader and wait for it to reboot.
4. Ensure there is a new menu item in the top-left main menu entitled NickelMenu (it will appear in the bottom-right on firmware 4.23.15505+).
5. Connect you Kobo eReader to your computer again and create a new file (of any type) named KOBOeReader/.adds/nm/config, and follow the instructions in KOBOeReader/.adds/nm/doc to configure NickelMenu.

Features:

• A built-in failsafe will automatically remove NickelMenu if any fatal error occurs, and will never result in an unbootable Kobo. Non-fatal errors will appear as a menu item with more details.
• Multi-version compatibility (even for future versions).
• Can add items to the main, reader, browser, library, and selection menus.
• Can use the currently selected text in selection menu actions, with optional transformations and escaping.
• Many built-in actions:
  • Debug messages (dbg_syslog, dbg_error, dbg_msg, dbg_toast).
  • Nickel settings (nickel_setting:{toggle,enable,disable}:{invert,da rk_mode,lockscreen,screenshots,force_wifi,auto_usb _gadget}).
  • Nickel browser with support for showing as a pop-up (e.g. for a reference site while reading) and adding custom CSS (nickel_browser:{modal:,}<url>{ <css>,})
  • Nickel extras (nickel_extras:{unblock_it,sketch_pad,solitaire,su doku,word_scramble}).
  • Nickel views (nickel_open:{discover:storefront,discover:wishlis t,library:library,library:all,library:authors,libr ary:series,library:shelves,library:pocket,library: dropbox,reading_life:reading_life,reading_life:sta ts,reading_life:awards,reading_life:words,store:ov erdrive,store:search}).
  • Nickel WiFi (nickel_wifi:{autoconnect,autoconnect_silent,enabl e,disable,toggle}).
  • Nickel orientation, even on devices without a sensor (nickel_orientation:{portrait,landscape,inverted_p ortrait,inverted_landscape,invert,swap}).
  • Other Nickel stuff (nickel_misc:{home,force_usb_connection,rescan_boo ks,rescan_books_full}).
  • Gracefully exit Nickel (power:{shutdown,reboot,sleep})
  • Launch system commands and optionally display the output (cmd_spawn{,:quiet},cmd_output:timeout{,:quiet}).
  • KFMon (kfmon, kfmon_id).
• The web_browser action has additional features such as opening a pop-up window, opening a custom URL instead of the homepage, or adding custom CSS styles to the webpages.
• Action chaining (chain_{success,failure,always}).
• Dynamically generated menu items (generator:kfmon).
• Simple configuration format with support for multiple configuration files.
• Configuration files and item generators will be updated instantly without a reboot.
• Comprehensive logging to syslog (view over telnet or SSH with logread, or enable developer options and see the syslog files in KOBOeReader/.kobo).
• No system files are ever touched directly, and no patching is required.

Troubleshooting/FAQ:

• I don't see any menu items in the main menu
  Try re-installing NickelMenu. If it still doesn't appear, please reboot and post the contents of the syslog.
• I rebooted, and NickelMenu suddenly disappeared
  You probably triggered the failsafe (if you rebooted within 20 seconds after first turning it on).
• I want to uninstall NickelMenu
  Create a new file named KOBOeReader/.adds/nm/uninstall, then reboot your Kobo.
• I want to update NickelMenu
  Follow the installation process again. Your configuration files will be preserved.
• When I press one of the actions, I get an error message about dlsym
  Something has probably changed in your firmware version. Try updating NickelMenu, and if it still doesn't work, please post your current version and the action you are trying to use.
• When I try to open a file in KOBOeReader/.adds/nm, I get asked what I want to open it with
  Open it with a text editor, for example, Notepad, Notepad++, or Visual Studio Code.
• When I open a configuration file, everything is jumbled in one long line
  Open it with a different text editor which supports unix line breaks. If you are trying to view the documentation, it is also available online.
• I need help writing a configuration file
  There is an example configuration file in the documentation. If you still need help, feel free to post in this thread.
• I found a bug in NickelMenu
  Try re-installing NickelMenu. If that still doesn't work, please post your syslog, your configuration file, and a description of the issue in this thread or on GitHub.
• I found a bug in Nickel (i.e. Kobo's reader itself)
  Before you report it, first reboot and confirm the issue is still reproducible without using any menu items.
• I would like to request a new feature
  Please post it in this thread or open an issue on GitHub.
• I receive an error message when trying to launch a KFMon action
  Make sure the launcher name you specified is correct. It should look like action.png or something similar. Also, make sure you have installed the latest version of KFMon and try re-installing NickelMenu.
• How do I configure NickelMenu
  Read the instructions above again, and see the documentation.

Credits (initial version):

• pgaskin (@pgaskin): Original idea, reverse engineering, implemented core functionality, implemented most actions.
• sherman (@shermp): Implemented action chaining, tested everything, provided feedback and ideas.
• NiLuJe (@NiLuJe): Implemented kfmon action, tested everything, provided feedback and ideas.
• jackie_w (@jackiew1): Did some testing, provided feedback and ideas.

Contributors:

• Patrick Gaskin (@pgaskin)
• NiLuJe (@NiLuJe)
• Sherman Perry (@shermp)
• Bastien Dejean (@baskerville)

Screenshots:
See here.

Download | Website | Documentation | Source Code | Release Notes

[sherman]

Yes, this works! And it's awesome!

I'm working with supporting this with my Kobo-UNCaGED program in the near future.

Huge thanks to geek1011 for all the hard work on this one.

[NiLuJe]

It is indeed mighty cool .

----

Right, to expand a bit on the current possible interactions with KFMon: currently, that involves a bit of manual labor, in that you'll have to tell NickelMenu which bits of KFMon you'd like to run, and you have to make sure to do so in a way that matches your actual current KFMon setup.

A quick look at the example should make it obvious, but, say, given KOReader's KFMon config:

[watch]
filename = /mnt/onboard/koreader.png
action = /mnt/onboard/.adds/koreader/koreader.sh
label = Start KOReader

The matching NickelMenu entry for the main menu would be

menu_item : main : Start KOReader : kfmon : koreader.png

(i.e., you want to use the plain filename of the png as the argument ).

----

Ultimately, you'll just be able to say in your NickelMenu config "build me some menus out of the stuff registered in KFMon", and magic happens!
But that's for later .

----

Also, this requires KFMon 1.4.0, released a few minutes ago .

[NiLuJe]

Oh, and now I remember why I chose KOReader as an example .

Because I know someone is going to try this: you can perfectly well ask to launch KOReader via a NickelMenu cmd_spawn... as long as you're running KOReader >= 2020.05 (right now, that means a current nightly).

Otherwise, stuff may be subtly broken (inside OR outside of KOReader).

[geek1011]

Random facts, tips and tricks:

• Unlike other methods, enabling invert screen through NickelMenu takes effect instantly.
• You can use cmd_spawn to add an action to remove screenshots and prevent them from being imported.
• rescan_books is useful for software which transfers books wirelessly (and if you chain it after cmd_output, it waits for it to complete first).
• The config file ignores whitespace, so you can make everything nicely aligned if you want.
• If you write tools and apps for Kobos, you can include a NickelMenu config file in the installation package, and it will be automatically picked up.
• If you want to learn more about ELF injection, C++ vtables, Nickel's design, and so on, take a look at the source code on GitHub.

More coming soon...

[John F]

Thank you for this great work.

Are you taking requests?

Could you add the capability to set light levels? What I'd like to do is have one menu item for invert AND set light level to 30 and one menu item for invert and light level set to 8.

[NiLuJe]

Given that the fl is accessible over sysfs, you might able to cobble something together with a cmd_spawn and a chain...

Note that Nickel won't be able to track a frontlight level change made via sysfs, though. (It could, on Mk. 7 only, but I've never bothered to check if it actually did so).

EDIT: Well, it might not even be accessible via sysfs *at all* on Mk. 6 w/o NaturalLight, anyway, so, never mind me .

[geek1011]

Originally Posted by John F

Could you add the capability to set light levels? What I'd like to do is have one menu item for invert AND set light level to 30 and one menu item for invert and light level set to 8.

Yes, that's a pretty simple change to make. I'll do it for the next version.

[Carmelocotonto]

Hi, this is a great idea, it is fine.
I have tried usb conection, reboot with a 'sh', and I have tried this in the config file

menu_item :main :Coolreader :cmd_spawn :/bin/sh -c mnt/onboard/.adds/vlasovsoft/launcher.sh > /dev/null 2>&1

The problem is that when I exit from vlasovsoft program, the items have disappeared and I must install NickelMenu again.

Thanks

Do you know what can be happened?

[sherman]

Originally Posted by Carmelocotonto

Hi, this is a great idea, it is fine.
I have tried usb conection, reboot with a 'sh', and I have tried this in the config file

menu_item :main :Coolreader :cmd_spawn :/bin/sh -c mnt/onboard/.adds/vlasovsoft/launcher.sh > /dev/null 2>&1

The problem is that when I exit from vlasovsoft program, the items have disappeared and I must install NickelMenu again.

Thanks

Do you know what can be happened?

I think vlasovsoft triggered the failsafe, because it kills Nickel. Try reinstalling NickelMenu, then wait at least 20 seconds before launching vlasovsoft.

@geek1011 you may want to shorten the failsafe time, or make it configurable.

[geek1011]

Originally Posted by Carmelocotonto

The problem is that when I exit from vlasovsoft program, the items have disappeared and I must install NickelMenu again.

You've probably run into the failsafe. Try waiting a few seconds longer after turning on your Kobo. I'll probably half the failsafe time for the next version (it was longer during development to make things easier).

Edit: looks like sherman responded at the same time .
Edit 1: Here's a test build with the timeout halved: https://github.com/geek1011/NickelMe...ifacts/5490309.

[NiLuJe]

@geek1011: Actually, does anything ever delete the .failsafe if the "loaded from .failsafe" check is tripped after a reboot?

(I seem to recall rebooting a couple times and it still being there when I tripped it after my Lucky Luke incident, if you recall . I basically renamed it manually to fix it.).

Because if it's still here, even after a reinstall, that check'll probably still get tripped, I suppose?

[geek1011]

Originally Posted by NiLuJe

@geek1011: Actually, does anything ever delete the .failsafe if the "loaded from .failsafe" check is tripped after a reboot?

(I seem to recall rebooting a couple times and it still being there when I tripped it after my Lucky Luke incident, if you recall . I basically renamed it manually to fix it.).

Because if it's still here, even after a reinstall, that check'll probably still get tripped, I suppose?

It gets deleted on the next successful run, but it's harmless to have around, since both plugins will still be loaded without conflicts after the failsafe exits itself. I figured it was safer and simpler to leave it as, since it'll get cleaned up anyways.

[NiLuJe]

@geek1011: But is there a successful run if both the .so and .failsafe are loaded?

EDIT: Okay, tried it for fun, yeah, that works, :+1: .

[Carmelocotonto]

Originally Posted by sherman

I think vlasovsoft triggered the failsafe, because it kills Nickel. Try reinstalling NickelMenu, then wait at least 20 seconds before launching vlasovsoft.

@geek1011 you may want to shorten the failsafe time, or make it configurable.

Hi Sherman and geek1011. Yes. I have waited more than 20 seconds before running coolreader from NickelMenu and indeed everything has worked fine. Items have not disappeared.
Am I to understand that the same can not be done with Koreader v.2020.4 (initial)?. Should I install the latest version of koreader?