Hard Light Productions Forums
Off-Topic Discussion => Arts & Talents => Topic started by: mikhael on April 07, 2004, 01:34:08 am
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I've been reading obsessively from the Baen Free Library on my Zaurus SL5500 PDA. Its a kickass piece of kit, running Linux and QTopia. It makes me happy. :)
However, as an Ebook reader, it leaves a bit to be desired. Not that the device isn't capable, but because its not designed to be used the way I'm using it. So I decided to take a stab at designing a Zaurus-inspired e-book reader. Click on the pic to go to the directory full of quick renders. I'm still trying to put together proper textures and surface properties for the thing so ignore that stuff. :D
(http://home.nc.rr.com/mikhael/zr/ZReader-01.jpg) (http://home.nc.rr.com/mikhael/zr/)
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35 views and no comments? Man you guys SUCK. I know its not a starship or anything, but come on. ;)
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[color=cc9900]Intriguing... No thumb-actuated scroll wheel? Whenever I'm reading e-books on my Toshiba e740, I use the scrollwheel on the side excessively. It's actually a great little machine for e-books, all I do to it is reassign the button layout then underclock the processor back down to 100 mhz from 400.
I'm following the linux port for the device closely, as soon as it looks stable enough I'll try flashing the RAM with it.
EDIT: I commented as soon as I saw it. I rarely come to this forum for some unknown reason ^_^[/color]
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PDA's are old-hat.
With that new flex-screen **** coming out over the next year or so, PDA's are going to rapidly become extinct.
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[color=cc9900]They still make plastic dinosaurs, don't they? And those cute little fellas became extinct many millennia ago.[/color]
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Originally posted by Odyssey
[color=cc9900]Intriguing... No thumb-actuated scroll wheel? Whenever I'm reading e-books on my Toshiba e740, I use the scrollwheel on the side excessively. It's actually a great little machine for e-books, all I do to it is reassign the button layout then underclock the processor back down to 100 mhz from 400.
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I considered a scroll wheel but decided against it for three reasons.
1. A scroll wheel relies on truly moving parts and a more complex sensor arrangement than a simple four direction D-pad.
2. A scroll wheel is a single axis input device. A D-Pad allowd for 2 axes of motion.
3. A D-Pad gives more positive feedback for page turning/scrolling. Its either pushed or its not. One press translates into one page turn or one scrolled line.
It wouldn't be too difficult to incorporate a scroll wheel somewhere in the design, but it would have to be centered to keep to the ambidexterous design ethic. I know it doesn't show very well, but the screen cover is intended to be used mounted left OR right.
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try adding some more expanding stuff, dunno, make it fold a bit more open.
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[color=cc9900]How about just making it like my Toshiba's scroll wheel, then? In other words, instead of being a true scroll wheel, basically making it a self-centring rocker switch with no tactile feedback. You can also press it down, so there's a third button in there. Very simple sensor arrangement then, just a few microswitches.
It's more the position than the actual mechanism that matters. Placing two buttons where the thumb rests on the side would be perfectly adequate, just slightly less swish.[/color]
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Might be easier / more comfortable to have a scroll whell on the back(?) - i.e. to hold it in both hands and use the wheel on the underside.
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Originally posted by Odyssey
How about just making it like my Toshiba's scroll wheel, then? In other words, instead of being a true scroll wheel, basically making it a self-centring rocker switch with no tactile feedback. You can also press it down, so there's a third button in there. Very simple sensor arrangement then, just a few microswitches.
That's essentially the same as the D-pad, but without the left/right axis.
It's more the position than the actual mechanism that matters. Placing two buttons where the thumb rests on the side would be perfectly adequate, just slightly less swish.
On the Zaurus PDA, the D-pad and seven buttons are on the face of the slide. This is excellent for a proper PDA in a vertical position, but is horrible for an e-text reader, especially in a horizontal arrangement. With the buttons there, the user is forced to hold that end of the device in the tips of his fingers, almost requiring the user to use two hands. By incorporating the slide as a lever arm, the whole thing is cantilevered against the pad at the base of the thumb, giving stability and keeping the controls closer to the center of the (now elongated) long dimension of the device.
I'm curious: am I explaining my reasoning well? Would pictures help?
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pictures always help...
it's probably a good idea to limit the stuff you have to fold open, if i look at it again. stuff could break off, and it takes more time to go read.
btw, is there going to be a stylus in there somewhere?
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Make it metallic silver. The logo (and typeface) is leaning more towards tacky than elegant. Simple shapes (for logo) and an ordinary sans serif typeface out to do it.
If the screen cover could be removed and locked in in on the underside of the thing, that would make life a little simpler. MOst calculators have that function, and its really a simple yet practical solution.
Otherwise, neato.
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Kasperl: No stylus. Its just a reader.
Rictor: its already going to be metallic silver, like the original Zaurus. The logo as it stands is unimportant, mainly to break up the big flat areas. It is, btw, the standard Zaurus trademark logo (except the circle-Z, that's just something I threw together). The screen cover could be removed entirely very easily (I don't keep mine on my Zaurus), but I don't like the idea of taking it off and sliding it on the back of the device. Mostly, its a personal preference issue. However, it would also interfere with the slide cover for the buttons on the left end, so there's a mechanical reason for it too. Also, now that I think about it, having it flip up in the exat way I have it, also allows it to be used to shade the screen from glare. :)
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MiK: most readers have at least some note taking function, AFAIK. it'd be nice to easily underline **** and/or strike through parts.
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[color=cc9900]Mik, I understand where you're coming from with cantilevering the thing against the palm, and in fact that's one of the other ways I use my PDA (it also has the D-pad etc.), albeit with delicate balancing because mine doesn't have a sliding keyboard cover.
However, I think you're approaching the whole affair from the wrong perspective. The Zaurus is designed to be a highly controllable and versatile device, hence the inclusion of a keyboard etc. into its design. You're trying to turn that incredibly feature-rich device into an e-book reader without fundamentally changing the layout of the thing.
For an e-book reader, you're going to be better off designing from the ground up. Keep a few key aspects in mind - cheap, and comfortable. You don't need an onboard keyboard, neither do you need to elongate the entire device in order to use one pad as the primary method of input and have it positioned in the middle for balance. You'll be wanting the screen to be as much of the device as possible. Just design something that fits nicely in the hand, and give it the minimum necessary to be user-friendly.
If I were in your place, I'd probably get some balsa wood and construct a surround to make the Zaurus less industrially efficient and more hold-for-long-periods ergonomic. If buttons needed to be more ergonomically placed, a simple circuit could be rigged up with some buttons, connections to device inputs, and some basic programming on the device to interpret the signals. Or do it externally with IR. That's the beauty of a device like the Zaurus - you can do what you want with it, every aspect of it is yours to change.
That's my opinion on the matter, anyway. Add to what you have already and get the best of both worlds, or design from the ground up.
EDIT: Or, if you really wanted a D-pad for primary control, then you could go for something like the YOPY (http://www.yopy.com) PDA, and make the whole thing flip-open with the keyboard and pad on the unfolding section. That way your screen cover actually becomes useful rather than an annoying bit of plastic. Having the hinge on the bottom would also eliminate your left/right handed concerns.[/color]
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I see what you mean, Odyssey.
The thing is that I like the Zaurus basic design for a reader. I'm not trying to convert a Zaurus into a reader, I'm trying to use the Zaurus basic design as a stepping stone for what would be the ideal reader. Keep in mind that I am not intending to ever build such a device anywhere but in 3d.
Hinges between functional sections of the design would introduce weaknesses that I dont' want to deal with (ribbon cables passing between encased segments, etc). Everything is encased in one location here.
I agree with your reasoning for the most part. I do, however disagree with your recommendations and the conclusions you come to. A bit of background might be in order, so you'll understand why I settled on this design.
I don't like Ebook readers. Until a few weeks ago, I didn't like ebooks at all. I don't like to read a novel on a computer screen, nor do I want something bigger and bulkier than your average paperback novel to carry.
Given my current state of joblessness, I decided to give the Baen Free Library a shot to satisfy my voracious appetite for reading material. This actually served two purposes: the book are free and the Zaurus is backlit, so I can read in the dark, thus not disturbing my wife whilst I read at night.
I grabbed some etext reader software and found that some would allow me to rotate the screen sideways. This seems more natural to me when reading. I've never been very good at keeping up with narrow columns when reading.
I started reading. at first, I didn't have a problem. I just kind of accepted that the device was a bit inconvenient for reading. Its a PDA, not a novel, after all! However, after a while, I began thinking about how to improve the situation. Normally, I read one handed, with the other hand behind my head. With the Zaurus in its current form, I couldn't do that, because there was no way to comfortably hold the Zaurus securely AND be able to twist a finger around to apply direct pressure to the D-Pad. The D-Pad was too close to the right edge (bottom edge if I'm holding the Zaurus the way it was intended to be used) of the device. What I needed was to move the D-pad and other controls away from that edge.
Further, I hold books with my left hand, not my right. In the interests of non-exclusivity, I figure everything should have bilateral symmetry, so that someone else could use the device the other way 'round.
It didn't take long before I was playing with my Zaurus trying to get a feel for what was 'right'. The slide cover made an excellent cantilever, but it still moved the controls I wanted out of reach. The keyboard was absolutely useless. The screen, however, was the perfect size (albeit not the perfect resolution). Most of these problems could be aleviated by moving the D-pad over to replace the keyboard. The obvious added benefit is that the buttons are all covered, and thus the device can't be accidentally activated in your pocket or in a bag or briefcase.
Basically, I decided to keep the basic design of the Zaurus (and all the benefits the design has) whilst simplifiying the specific details (thus alleviating the problems the design has). No radical redesign, or 'ground up' design need be done. This basic design pretty much represents what I would consider an ideal ebook reader.
Kasperl, the stylus represents a special problem: I had intended to remove the touch screen as an input device. No touch screen, no stylus. The emphasis is on pure reader functionality, storage capacity and battery life on the technical side and useful industrial design on the physical side. I wanted to avoid the temptation toward inclusive designs, which I consider to be a failing of PDAs as Ebook readers. A reader doesn't need an address book or a keyboard. All it needs is a way to open a file, close a file, bookmark a file, page through the file, and maybe (MAYBE) follow links to other related files.
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[color=cc9900]Okay, my misunderstanding. I didn't realise that you were intending the device to be used in landscape orientation. In that format, the D-pad makes perfect sense, as does the cantilever (since it'd be very uncomfortable to hold it in the palm of the hand while it's landscape).
Does the Zaurus, or the reader software you use, have any capability for something similar to Microsoft's "ClearType"? While the feature annoys me in most aspects of a PDA, when it comes to e-book reading I'm glad the reader has it turned on - it smooths the edges of fonts in order to make it seem like a much higher resolution is being used than the screen can actually handle. It starts making less and less sense to have as physical screen resolution goes up, however.[/color]
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I am reading e-books on my laptop for quite a while now, in long periods too, since i am at home due to illness. my main complaint is that the screen is backlit. it makes my eyes hurt. I don't know if a PDA's screen is any use without the backlight, but this si the main reason why I'd want any real reader to have one of those e-paper screens Philips is working on. I don't care about colour, plain ole B&W will do, and the moment those things go below €50,-, I'll buy one.
and yeah, Bean is awesome. A pity none i already read all of the Weber Honorverse books. The stuff from other writers is a lot less interesting.
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What's the scale of that reader, Mik?
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It's a book...that works electronically...
not meaning to sound like an asshole, but what's so special about it? It just sort of looks like a box with a "Z" on it to me.
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Steak, its 14cm by 7.5 cm by 2cm and about 185g including battery. (a little more with memory cards and CF card).
Corsair, the idea here is that the box with the Z on it serves a purpose: its an electronic text reader based on a simple PDA design. Think of it as a prototype for a product to be put on the market.
Originally posted by Odyssey
Okay, my misunderstanding. I didn't realise that you were intending the device to be used in landscape orientation. In that format, the D-pad makes perfect sense, as does the cantilever (since it'd be very uncomfortable to hold it in the palm of the hand while it's landscape).
Glad I finally made myself clear. :) I guess having the logo and the 'Zaurus' script printed portrait adds to the confusion.
Does the Zaurus, or the reader software you use, have any capability for something similar to Microsoft's "ClearType"? While the feature annoys me in most aspects of a PDA, when it comes to e-book reading I'm glad the reader has it turned on - it smooths the edges of fonts in order to make it seem like a much higher resolution is being used than the screen can actually handle. It starts making less and less sense to have as physical screen resolution goes up, however.[/color]
The Zaurus (stock) doesn't have FAA (Font Anti-Aliasing, or Font Smoothing as it is properly called). I suppose if I boot into X-windows I could use the X server's FAA extension, if I wanted. I wouldn't do that though, since that would be a drain on the limited system resources. If I had one of the Zauri with a 400mHz XScale processor, I might consider it. On the new version of the Zaurus, this won't even be an issue. Its a 640x480 screen (instead of 320x240) but the physical dimensions remain the same. :)
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YOU AND THAT DAMNED COLOR TAG, ODYSSEY! ;)
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[color=cc9900]What can I say, I'm a colourful character.
I'm not too sure what you mean by FAA being a drain on limited system resources. My XScale 400mhz (PXA250, hence not that much faster than the old 206mhz StrongARM's anyway), underclocked to 100mhz, still renders pages fine with ClearType on. I can't imagine many OSes would conduct FAA slower than PocketPC, so platform isn't much of an issue either.
That is, unless you mean booting X-Windows being a drain on resources. Still, I see no reason not to, as you don't seem to be hinting at using a particularly slower processor for this job. If you just ran everything console you could probably get away with using one of the Motorola Dragonball's of yore.[/color]
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I don't even want to think about running pure console on my Zaurus. Sure its got a great keyboard, but its not optimal. ;)
FAA does eat a few more CPU cycles than running without it. X Windows is also a bit more resource intensive (but not much) than QTopia. Either way, I've got a lowly 206mHz ARM and indeed, I try not to put too much of a load on it, more from superstition than anything else.
Now, if I could underclock that thing back down to 100mHz, we'd be in business. The power savings alone would rock my world, I'm sure. As it is, with the sidelight down to minimum (which is perfect for me in most situations) I can get around six straight hours of continuous use. I would love to see how much more I could get with the processor underclocked. ;)
As for the reader design, I'm going to swap the logo and the signature and put them both landscaped. I'm also going to get started on that damned surfacing.
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Originally posted by mikhael
Steak, its 14cm by 7.5 cm by 2cm and about 185g including battery. (a little more with memory cards and CF card).
Hmmm, okay, I can picture it better now. That thing's pretty stylish, Mik. Maybe I'll get one of them these days so I can read Honorverse without printing out swathes of paper. :)
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Funny you should say that, Steak. That's EXACTLY what led to me throwing this model together. ;)