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View Full Version : Reader problems w/ Dell x50v


OneAngryDwarf
12-28-2004, 11:04 PM
In MS Reader, the program stops responding to stylus clicks and only responds to the hardware buttons... This happens every time it is used so its not a once in a while annoyance... basically means i can't change any settings in the program and I can't use things like bookmarks and such... anybody know how to fix this or what the heck is going on?
Thanks
PS - i downloaded the latest version of reader from MS

newst
12-29-2004, 01:08 AM
This isn't the fault of your Axim. It has become apparent that Microsoft hasn't updated Reader to work well with WM2003. There have been many suggestions in a number of forums on how to cope with this.

I've come up with an approach that is problem free on my hx4700. I have Reader installed in RAM, and keep my ebook files in a subdirectory under my My Documents folder in the file store (user available ROM).

yankeejeep
12-29-2004, 01:23 AM
Reader is not fully ready for WM2003SE and, like many QVGA apps, behaves as if it is taking up only the upper left quarter of the screen even though it displays on the entire screen. The solution is to apply the hi-res aware hack to msreader.exe. Twaeks2k2.Net makes this (along with many other helpful registry hacks) available through an easy-to-use interface. I haven't had any 'dead tap' experiences with Reader since applying the hi-res hack.

Janak Parekh
12-29-2004, 02:18 AM
I'm assuming you're using the latest version of Reader (2.3) available from Microsoft's site, BTW... that one is less quirky than the others.

But yankeejeep is correct: it's still quirky. :( I've been trying to alert the right Microsoft folks about this, but it seems the Reader team doesn't have VGA devices or something, because I'm having a tough time convincing them it's not my problem and that it's theirs. In the meantime, either the hi-res hack or OzVGA/SE_VGA will work well.

newst: Interesting... did rearranging the way Reader is stored make taps more reliable?

--janak

Darius Wey
12-29-2004, 03:36 AM
newst: Interesting... did rearranging the way Reader is stored make taps more reliable?

Janak, I was under the impression that for complete reliability, Reader has to be installed in RAM. I tried it before on a storage card and shortcut links are dead (although easily rectified), and some fonts aren't utilised properly either. I've had to resort to installing Reader in its default location and accessing eBooks on a storage card.

Janak Parekh
12-29-2004, 05:24 AM
Janak, I was under the impression that for complete reliability, Reader has to be installed in RAM. I tried it before on a storage card and shortcut links are dead (although easily rectified), and some fonts aren't utilised properly either. I've had to resort to installing Reader in its default location and accessing eBooks on a storage card.
Well, I've always installed it in RAM myself, and I've managed to simulate the tap problem even there. Thanks for the heads-up. ;) I'll continue to collect data and forward it to the MS folks, but the guy handling my case on this subject must be out on vacation -- I haven't heard back from him. If I don't hear anything in early January, I'll start bugging my MS contacts again.

--janak

newst
12-30-2004, 10:42 AM
Janak,

I installed se_vga on my hx4700 even before I installed reader, So I never did experience the tap issue. My choice to install reader in RAM and my books in file store, was based on an article here in thoughts that was posted shortly after WM2003 was released.

While that article was far more technically advanced than I could fully comprehend, I did understand that WM 2003 changed how the Os handles retaining filenames of open files when you turn off the PPC. Apparently where the 2002 Os would retain the filenames on powering down, the current OS does not. My reader problems with WM2003 involved lock-ups where reader would just lose track of the document I was reading. This generally occurred after a power down cycle.

I don't know whether my practice has any effect on how reader actually works. I do know that it has worked flawlessly since I started. By the way, this started happening when I bought an HP 2215, so the problem was based on WM2003, not VGA.

Jereboam
12-30-2004, 11:47 AM
I'm going to jump in and just say that MS Reader is an orphan application that is more of an advertising hook than anything else ("wow, look, you can read books on a Pocket PC, now buy one!"), as witnessed by a complete lack of development since inception, no new features worth talking about, and overbearing DRM that has already cost me dear in books that I can no longer read. Further confirmed by the fact that they can't even update it to work with their own operating system.

I know that many apps are playing VGA-catchup at the moment, but you would think that MS Reader, at the very least, would have been made compatible...especially if they are going to take up ROM space with it and then not offer a XIP update, which forces us to use up valuable RAM for the update (for what usually amounts to a DRM fix, nothing actually new).

Nuff said. Appalling, and I can't recommend switching to the competition enough, who are better in almost every way. If for no other reason that to send MS a message that we do not appreciate being baited.

J'bm

Janak Parekh
12-30-2004, 06:31 PM
By the way, this started happening when I bought an HP 2215, so the problem was based on WM2003, not VGA.
OK - so you (were) experiencing a different problem than the one I'm currently experiencing. ;)

--janak

Janak Parekh
12-30-2004, 06:33 PM
I know that many apps are playing VGA-catchup at the moment, but you would think that MS Reader, at the very least, would have been made compatible...especially if they are going to take up ROM space with it and then not offer a XIP update, which forces us to use up valuable RAM for the update (for what usually amounts to a DRM fix, nothing actually new).
Actually, Reader is built by another team, and it's not strictly under the auspices of Mobile Devices, and I suspect that's the reason it feels like a "cast-aside". From day one Reader has had problems interacting with Pocket PCs (anyone remember the DRM Level 5 incompatibilities with Pocket PC 2000?) and I switched away some time ago (I use mostly MobiPocket right now as it's supported on both Pocket PC and Smartphone; Microsoft believes "no one" is interested in reading ebooks on a Smartphone :roll:). The one thing I really liked about MS Reader was its typography, which in my opinion was better than the rest of the market.

Nevertheless, an MVP is a "support" role, and I know people have investments in MS Reader, so I'm trying to sort it out and get to the bottom of it. Let's hope at least the immediate issues can be resolved so that Reader remains a viable tool, even if you choose not to use it.

--janak

Jereboam
12-30-2004, 07:26 PM
I made large investments into .lit format books through Amazon and B&N, only to see one quit the business entirely and the other refuse to allow me to re-download any of my books after changing to a new Pocket PC, citing DRM violations. What violations? They're my books - I bought them - and now I can't read them...ridiculous.

I switched to Mobipocket and eReader. Their revenue streams are directly tied to the quality of their software and range of books - so they have a vested interest to continually improve both.

I'm not knocking your attempts to help solve issues at all Janak - somebody has to, as neither the Reader team or Mobile Devices teams seem particularly concerned themselves. Or at least the corporate beast that they work for hasn't stirred yet...

J'bm

gwinter
01-09-2005, 06:03 AM
I have the same screen tap problem on my X50v. As has been explained, the screen is responsive in the upper left quarter only. However, this only happens when Reader is paginating a book. Once it has finished paginating, everything returns to normal.

Janak Parekh
01-09-2005, 08:20 AM
I have the same screen tap problem on my X50v. As has been explained, the screen is responsive in the upper left quarter only. However, this only happens when Reader is paginating a book. Once it has finished paginating, everything returns to normal.
Ha! Interesting observation. Thanks for the info, I'll see if that helps them narrow down the problem.

--janak

grimzo
03-02-2005, 08:13 PM
so now, what alternatives are there to MS Reader?

Janak Parekh
03-02-2005, 09:28 PM
You mean, a Reader that properly supports VGA? Shockingly few.

- MobiPocket does with the VGA tweak (i.e., using Tweaks2k2 or similar);
- Palm Reader does, but only v2.4.1 (you have to Google for it) with the VGA tweak;
- uBook may, but I have not checked.

Mind you, all of them will work okay with SE_VGA or OzVGA (so, for example, you could use Palm Reader 2.5.x this way), it's just a pain to switch back and forth.

Hopefully this'll get rectified soon.

--janak