Just got my NC / first post on Nook Forum

[melrowgo]

After some excellent advice from @xaueious on another Forum, I took the plunge last night and purchased the NC from BestBuy, getting a free cover with the deal. (I got the Industriell Easel Cover, but the jury's still out on whether I'll keep it.) Played around with the NC a bit and got this far (observations preceded with **):

• charged it fully and went through the Getting Started video
• ** screen clarity and color is much better than I expected. Very impressive
• connected successfully to our home network and registered with B&N
• ** surprised at how much slower web browsing is on NC than Droid X
• ** accessed GMail okay, but it looks like I'll have to get used to the NC window (different from both my laptop (Firefox) and my DroidX)
• ** realized how much I'm looking forward to using my DX apps on my NC!
• upgraded to latest version on B&N, now running 1.1.0
• read through the entire thread on rooting
• downloaded appropriate software for rooting from 1.1.0
• ** the micro USB tip didn't seem to connect properly to the NC; I had trouble getting it to go all the way in
• had to stop because I didn't have a microSD adapter
• read about adding a custom ROM, but I'm not understanding the purpose of this yet
• looked at info about flashing Nookie Froyo or Honeycomb to the NC. Not sure which is best to do
• ported my library of eBooks from my laptop to the NC and was able to open them
• ** still having problems with the USB tip "seating" or connection properly. Seems to be getting worse
• ** I like the way the easel cover lets me keep the NC sitting upright for reading or to refer to, but when I'm using the NC in landscape mode, the cover flap seems to move under my hands quite a bit
• ** the "flick" scrolling on the NC is much slower than my DX. Can this be modified?
• ** touch-typing on the NC keyboard was okay, tho it was a bit strange to be looking down on the screen while I was typing on it. Are there other virtual keyboards that one can run besides the stock one, perhaps similar to the one on the DX? Also, I know there are external keyboards that hook into the iPad, effectively making it into a laptop. Is it possible that something like that could be developed for the NC, either tethered or via Bluetooth? I actually have an old IR mini keyboard that I used with a Palm that would be perfect size-wise, but the NC doesn't have an IR
• tested another microUSB tip in the port to see if it was a problem with the port or the tip, and decided it's a little of both. My other tip goes into the port a little better than the NC tip but it's still stiff, and the NC tip is a little trickier to get into my DX. Maybe it's just the nature of the beast, so to speak, but I'm a little leery to go through the whole rooting process and then find out the USB is faulty...
• ** was surprised to find that the NC will only charge while plugged into a wall, not a computer. Any ideas why? Also noted that it won't charge using the microUSB I have for my DX. Its battery status changes from "discharging" to "not charging", so I know it recognizes that it's been plugged in to the wall, but it will not charge.

Enough posting for now; I'm off to get a microSD adapter and card. I'm also going to take my receipt with me to see if BB will honor the coupon I just received where I get a $25 gift card if I spend $250.

Looking forward to any and all replies from this Forum. I know I will learn a lot from you.

melrowgo


______________________________________________________
Early adopter of Palm PDAs (Palm Pro through Palm Centro)
Converted to Android (Droid, Droid X)
Loved my Sony Reader until it died; just bought a Nook Color

 

[melrowgo]

Got back from BB (got my $25 GC!) armed with the microSD adapter and card, went through the rooting procedure smoothly using autonooter 3.0.0, and everything went swimmingly except for two things:

• GMail never did sync
• the Market app I tried to install got stuck on "starting download"

Does this occur frequently or am I just being a dipstick?

TIA, melrowgo

 

[idontknow]

Wellcome to the forum, the" gurus" as somebody called them are going to come to your rescue, don't worry. Did you remember to register onB&N site with your gmail account? Check if it says so in your setting-device information-about
your nook color- account. If you are not properly registered,you cannot download from the market.
I opened a thread: -my battery doesn't charge- ,check it out, you will find most of the answers to your questions about the battery of your nook . Unfortunately that's all I can do for you but you are going to he in much better bands soon.
Enjoy your nook
gloria

 

[RaVenJ]

I can't offer much, but I can help on the "download starting" thing.. Mine did the same thing, and I found a thread somewhere that said to power off the NC, then go back to the market, cancel that download, then restart it. Should start right up.

Welcome to a massively addicting hobby!

 

[faceman]

Got back from BB (got my $25 GC!) armed with the microSD adapter and card, went through the rooting procedure smoothly using autonooter 3.0.0, and everything went swimmingly except for two things:

• GMail never did sync
• the Market app I tried to install got stuck on "starting download"

Does this occur frequently or am I just being a dipstick?

TIA, melrowgo

sounds like your account isn't linked properly to the market. go through these steps again to Enable Market (not the whole rooting process):
NookColor Rooting - nookDevs

 

[Abb0nz]

The NC will charge when connected to PC but a lot slower than when using the plug-in wall adaptor.

 

[crenita]

Welcome to the site.. Lots of fun things to learn and share ... and some really, great, SMART helpers here..

 

[Abb0nz]

Oh, and welcome to the forum.

 

[melrowgo]

Many thanks for the helpful info and hearty welcomes. This forum, like those for Android and Droid forums (fora?), are a wonderful source of support and information.

Since I last posted, I’ve made significant headway with my new NC. My goal has been to add to its native functions such that it, basically, becomes a big-screen Droid X without the phone. I’m getting pretty close, and I’m thrilled with the results.

I’ve been successful with:

1. Gmail sync
2. Android Market load
3. Downloading most of the apps on my DX
4. Configuring Zeam as my launcher
5. Configuring SoftKeys
6. Changing my “n” button and boot to launch Zeam instead of native home screen
7. Populated my home screen with several of my favorite widgets, including the indispensable Executive Assistant
8. Imported the ebooks on my laptop that were from my Sony Reader
9. Downloaded a couple of books from bn.com for my upcoming trip
10. Set up Dolphin Browser as my default
11. Changed the number of icon columns and rows on my home screen using Zeam

Still outstanding:

1. Getting my wallpaper to not be grossly over-zoomed on the screen
2. Getting live wallpapers to work
3. Importing my bookmarks into Dolphin
4. Changing Zeam’s dock bar to include my preferred apps
5. Getting Zedge ringtones to download properly
6. Configuring Executive Assistance to launch my preferred apps instead of stock
7. Issues with screen taps not being recognized at times, especially on the edges
8. Repagination issues with one of the books I got from bn.com. Sometimes a “page” contains 40 lines and other times I’ll get page after page of 1-2 lines each. Since this particular book is one I need for my upcoming trip, it’s really annoying

Questions for the forum:

1. I’ve seen links to adding Custom ROM to a NC. What does this mean, and should I do it?
2. What are CWR and OC? Do I need them?
3. Should I mess with Nookie Froyo or Honeycomb?
4. Why does one need to do a “complete wipe”? How does one do it?
5. What is your favorite keyboard app? The native one is okay, but I really miss Swype that I use on my DX. I installed SlideIT Demo Keyboard but could not get it to work
6. What are your can’t-live-without NC apps?
7. What is the easiest way to install non-Market apps? Download to the NC or to my laptop? If laptop, how do I then install to the NC?
8. Do I need to convert a PDF to epub before I can read it? If so, what do you use to convert? If not, will the readers handle repagination and font size changes with a PDF?
9. Should I add a screen protector? If so, recommendations? I’m wondering if it will also help with the screen reflectivity in bright light
10. When a dark background is used in an app, I’ve noticed a faint “oscillation” flickering on the screen, almost like the way a ceiling fan will cause a faint flicker on a glass-topped table. Or like the old TVs that you had to fiddle with to get the screen to stop moving. It’s hard to describe, but it’s definitely there. Has anyone seen anything like this?
11. Has anyone bought an extra power USB with wall adapter set? I got one when I went to get the microSD adapter I needed to root (with my free GC!), but it doesn’t seem to charge properly. When I connect it to the NC, it changes the battery status from “discharging” to “not charging”. The regular charger changes the status to “charging”. Is it faulty or is this normal for the add-on kit?
12. Has anyone purchased one of the protective skins? Even though the Industriell Easel Cover is very nice, I’m thinking of selling it and getting a sleeve and a skin. I’d be interested in others’ experiences with these
13. Probable dumb question: does this thing have a GPS in it?
14. If it turns out that there’s an issue with my NC and I have to exchange it, can I back up what I’ve done onto a microSD that I can then put into the replacement NC? Also, how do I reset everything back to the way it came out of the box?
15. What things (if any) do you wish you’d done differently in setting up your NC?

Okay, enough for now. If I don’t stop typing and post this, I’ll never get any feedback! Many thanks in advance for any and all advice.

 

[LocalStain]

Greetings and welcome live wallpapers are 2.2, sooooon, the touch screen issues can be solve by turning the screen on then off after you boot up. Just click the power button to turn it off for a second and click it back on. usually solves ts issues. the screen is a little wonky around the edge I have noticed just be a little patient until you get used to it. A custom ROM is a custom build of andrioid and is usually "flashed" or copied to the internal memory and becomes the default os. Currently I wouldn't worry about custom roms until CyanogenMod7 comes out then, let the good time roll. CWR is Clockwork Mod Recovery and yes you should install it. But be careful and follow the instructions EXACTLY. Trust me on that. CWR allows you to boot into a recovery framework to backup your entire system (nandroid) so if any goes wrong you csan return to exactly where you were before the bork. Think Time Machine(osx) or windows system recovery. Th OC kernal allows you to significantly over-clock the processor. I am currently at 1.1ghz. Like buttah. This should be installed in concert with Setcpu, as you can precisely control the cpu. Side loading is instlling apps not directly from the market. Plug in your NC copy the apk to the /root of you sd, and the use a file manager(Astro Rocks) navigate to the .apk and Bob's yer uncle. Convert all your ebooks/pdfs to NC friendly with this calibre - Download calibre . You can always recover to a stock unrooted NC if you have to instructions abound.
Well I didn't answer all of them but I hope I help. and agai Welcome. This is an awesome forum populated with great and helpful peeps. You will enjoy yourself and your NC that much more for having come here.

Cheers,

Local Stain

 

[LocalStain]

Oh and to answer #15 I wouldn't have almost completely bricked my NC within moments of taking out of the box. But thanks to this forum and a hep cat nook ninja named Faceman my world is nook colored with unicorn wallpaper.

 

[jonesygirl]

Hi melrowgo! Can't help with all your concerns, but:

Regarding wallpapers, try the app called Backgrounds. Simple and easy. I haven't had any problems with sizing.

I am still on rooted 2.1 and live wallpapers seem to work for me. I downloaded a set from the market to see if they'd work and they do. Just have not used them much because they eat up battery faster.

I don't plan on messing with Froyo or Honeycomb yet because multiple experts on here report it to not be stable enough yet. And I'm currently satisfied with rooted 2.1.

There are plenty of posts on here regarding great apps. Also check out the nook color owners sticky and you'll find some screen shots of what others have on their NCs. One that I've found and love is Pulse. Great news reader, looks and runs wonderful on NC.

GPS- No.



Sent from my rooted NookColor using Android Tablet Forum App

 

[faceman]

Still outstanding:
Getting my wallpaper to not be grossly over-zoomed on the screen

Checkout the Wallpapers thread on this forum for tips to get that worked out. http://www.androidtablets.net/forum/nook/7222-wallpapers-nookcolor.html

Getting live wallpapers to work

Checkout the Wallpapers thread on this forum for tips to get that worked out. http://www.androidtablets.net/forum/nook/7222-wallpapers-nookcolor.html

Importing my bookmarks into Dolphin
Changing Zeam’s dock bar to include my preferred apps

This is just a matter of dragging the apps you want there onto your desktop, then drag them to the dock bar. I have mixed success trying to drag them there directly from the apps list. But it works easy when I move one from the desktop to the dock, it just replaces whatever app was in that slot before you released the new app.

Getting Zedge ringtones to download properly

I will have to look into this one, I have Zedge on my G1 but haven't tried for the NC. What error are you getting?

Configuring Executive Assistance to launch my preferred apps instead of stock
Issues with screen taps not being recognized at times, especially on the edges

Known issue/quirck with the NC. There are some 'Screen Sensitivity' thread and tips but there are mixed results. no harm in trying from what I can tell though.

Repagination issues with one of the books I got from bn.com. Sometimes a “page” contains 40 lines and other times I’ll get page after page of 1-2 lines each. Since this particular book is one I need for my upcoming trip, it’s really annoying

If it's an actual purchased book, maybe ask B&N about it. Are you using the stick reader app or an after market one. If using a different app, try loading it up in the stock reader (press the soft nook menu button "U" and click Library and open from there.)

Questions for the forum:
I’ve seen links to adding Custom ROM to a NC. What does this mean, and should I do it?

Custom ROM is a custom packaged version of the Android OS. Right now there are a few version of Froyo, Gingerbread, and Honeycomb floating around. None are completely stable and ready for mass release yet. So I stamp all of those as "Testing Purposes Only" and not to be used as your daily OS. Believe me, when a solid one is available, you will know because EVERYONE will be talking about it here. (I mean the big posters at this forum will have an article about how to install it.)

What are CWR and OC? Do I need them?

As answered, CWR is ClockworkMod Recovery. This is an application that you can download from the market (Clockwork ROM) and allows you to flash (ie install) custom roms, etc. It also allows you to FLASH CLOCKWORK RECOVERY (which is outlined in the sticky thread in the Technical Forum). Flashing CWM Recovery will replace the B&N stock recovery partition with a custom one. The custom one will allow you to boot into a 'recovery mode' (think Windows System Restore) and from there you can do all sorts of good and dangerous stuff. Most important is the ability to create a backup (called a nand backup) of your entire system. This is good once you have the rooted NC set the way you like it, make a nand just in case something goes wrong, and then all you have to do is restore that backup and the NC is back in business!OC is overclocking the internal processor just like you would a pc. This requires a custom kernel (which is low level android hardware interaction files) that changes what the NC sets the processor to. You need something like CWR installed in order to install custom kernels, again see the sticky in the Technical Subforum

Should I mess with Nookie Froyo or Honeycomb?

As stated above, only mess with them from a bootable SD card since it won't affect your stable internal OS. And then, still be careful. There are many many threads about these, just don't mess with these before you have a complete backup of a stable os to fall back on just in case.

Why does one need to do a “complete wipe”? How does one do it?

There are many definitions of "complete wipe" and most apply to someone who messed up their nook in some way and needs a clean slate in order to build back to where they were before the issue. This is too broad a question to answer yet. If you have a more specific intention, please ask.

What is your favorite keyboard app? The native one is okay, but I really miss Swype that I use on my DX. I installed SlideIT Demo Keyboard but could not get it to work

This is on my checklist eventually, and I know that Swype is sorely missed by many, but I think that's only because it is a 2.2 required app and we'll have it soon as we have 2.2 on the NC. Other's will likely answer this better than I.

What are your can’t-live-without NC apps?

Easy: ClockworkMod (for backup); Root Explorer (for file management with ability to do things to the internal memory other apps can't do - not for rookies); fbReader (for all my reading needs); Angry Birds (for very effectively killing time between real work)

What is the easiest way to install non-Market apps? Download to the NC or to my laptop? If laptop, how do I then install to the NC?

Well, once the NC is rooted, you can go into NookColor Tools app and enable non-market installs by unchecking then rechecking the "Allow..." box. It's a known bug that it looks enabled but you have to do this to really enable it. Once that's done, you can install apps in any shape or fashion you so choose. I prefer to push them to my device from the online Market now available or by simply placing the .apk into my /extra_apps folder i have on my Sd and just opening them via a good file manager app (Astro, ES File Explorer, Root Explorer, etc).

Do I need to convert a PDF to epub before I can read it? If so, what do you use to convert? If not, will the readers handle repagination and font size changes with a PDF?

Install any of the many pdf reader apps and you're fine.

Should I add a screen protector? If so, recommendations? I’m wondering if it will also help with the screen reflectivity in bright light

Personal preference again.

When a dark background is used in an app, I’ve noticed a faint “oscillation” flickering on the screen, almost like the way a ceiling fan will cause a faint flicker on a glass-topped table. Or like the old TVs that you had to fiddle with to get the screen to stop moving. It’s hard to describe, but it’s definitely there. Has anyone seen anything like this?

I haven't noticed, but will look.

Has anyone bought an extra power USB with wall adapter set? I got one when I went to get the microSD adapter I needed to root (with my free GC!), but it doesn’t seem to charge properly. When I connect it to the NC, it changes the battery status from “discharging” to “not charging”. The regular charger changes the status to “charging”. Is it faulty or is this normal for the add-on kit?

I don't think many aftermarket items have worked so far.

Has anyone purchased one of the protective skins? Even though the Industriell Easel Cover is very nice, I’m thinking of selling it and getting a sleeve and a skin. I’d be interested in others’ experiences with these
Probable dumb question: does this thing have a GPS in it?

Nope.

If it turns out that there’s an issue with my NC and I have to exchange it, can I back up what I’ve done onto a microSD that I can then put into the replacement NC? Also, how do I reset everything back to the way it came out of the box?

See CWR thread. Also, see my thread (in progress) about creating a full backup and recovery SD for yourself. Rest assured that it is a simple process to restore your device to factory. I've done it WAY too many times to count. And as far as a backup - that's what CWR is for, it creates a folder that is your entire system backed up. You can move that folder anywhere and recover from it when needed. I recommend keeping a copy on your pc just in case your SD goes bad for some reason.

What things (if any) do you wish you’d done differently in setting up your NC?

LOL, well since I seem to be restoring and setting it up again every couple days this list is just too much for one post.

Okay, enough for now. If I don’t stop typing and post this, I’ll never get any feedback! Many thanks in advance for any and all advice.