Use of Kindle Paperwhite as an Instrument Repeater

Original source:

https://github.com/digitalyacht/ikommunicate

It is also on the Signal K app library.

Key things you need to know:

Uses Kindle’s Experimental Web Browser
You will likely need to edit code.
App won’t display data if you lack some instrument measurements. Emulation is your friend.
Disable the screensaver by searching ~ds from kindle’s search
Create a new text document: WIFI_NO_NET_PROBE with no file extension in the root of the device so that it will stay connected to an access point that may lack internet.

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20181111/37c52266cd44211ff3cf3323ecdbde9f.jpg

Kindle Benefits:

It's cheap, you can read it in full sunlight, and best of all kids want nothing to do with it.

Great displays: low cost, very high contrast, work fantastic in bright sunlight, and very low power.

Low power, Waterproof, sunlight readable, portable, inexpensive, multipurpose.

Adjustable backlight, touchscreen.

Still useful for reading books

Waterproof cases available for older models not yet waterproof.

Kindle limitations

http://html5test.com/compare/browser/kindle.html

"Newer e-ink Kindle devices, like the PaperWhite, Oasis and Voyage running firmware 5.x support the ES5 version of JavaScript and some HTML5 layout features, similar to an original iPad running iOS 5.0. You can inspect the source code for the browser, which Amazon supplies in their open source compliance download package. It is based on the WebKit sources circa 2009 with some customizations for e-ink rendering. The browser passes the Acid 3 standards compliance test with 100 out of 100 tests passing and almost totally matching the reference rendering."

Lag

Screen refresh times on e-ink devices are somewhat slow. However, we have used this application for about a year racing on Lake Pontchartrain, and both the captain and the tactician have been very pleased.

On my config:

http://10.10.10.1:3000/kindle/iKommunicate-API-Kindle.html

You must change the url settings in file to the 10.10.10.1 setup.

Alternative variants

Mine -

Larger font

US default units. it was handy to change the hard coded defaults in the settings file to those I prefer. Much less fiddling around when accessing it from different devices.

Combine heading and speed on one screen

Did I mess with update timing?

Small bugfixes

When Feet units are selected for Depth, other Depth sentences work properly but Depth Below Keel does not. Value is shown in feet but is labeled Meters. All displayModes.

Kindle: Mag Heading duplicates Depth value in 2 line mode

In the html file he references a variable called value1 when he means value and this causes a bug in the two-line display mode where it shows depth in the heading field. Easy fix.

http://forum.openmarine.net/showthread.php?tid=1558&page=2&highlight=kindle

Post 16

Max Speed, COG

http://forum.openmarine.net/showthread.php?tid=1558&page=3

Post 27

Gives index5 and Settings5.html

Remembers maximum speed

Adds reading of COG

Not sure what this one does - maybe support for older Kindle 4

the good code its index2 you take the kindle folder in usr lib nodeṣmodules signalk.server public

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1vON2bW4nsG_9cpSWuIgC3BSWy88XbEp4

Someone mentioned a night setting on kindle for reverse video?

Stay connected to a wifi access point that has no internet access

Plug USB connector to PC

Browse to the root directory of Kindle

Create a new text document:

WIFI_NO_NET_PROBE

No file extension.

Click on edge of screen to change pages

Wind angle, with bar showing it is coming from starboard

Night View

Disable Screen Saver

In the Kindle’s search function, initiate a search for ~ds

Home, search bar: ~ds and then tap the arrow to submit.

This will disable screensaver for the session

It won't appear to do anything, it will just no longer display the screen saver.

(Please note that is a tilde and not a dash in front of the letters ds the forum seems to be changing it.)

https://wiki.mobileread.com/wiki/Kindle_Touch_Hacking#Search_Bar_Shortcuts

The Kindle webapp is now available as @digitalyacht/sk-on-kindle in the App Store

https://www.npmjs.com/package/@digitalyacht/sk-on-kindle

After installing, Signal K server must be restarted before use.

Save a bookmark with the URL

10.10.10.1:3000/@digitalyacht/sk-on-kindle/index.html

emulate a sentence that iKommunicate gave lower priority - so that it would use the emulated Depth Below Keel = 0 value only when my actual Depth Below Surface value wasn't present

Emulate values:

environment.depth.belowSurface 0m

environment.wind.angleApparent 0

environment.wind.speedApparent 0

navigation.speedThroughWater 40 (why?)

Wish List

Ability to edit the sk server address from the front end.
Display even with depth data missing.
A home for the source (Github etc) that allows better collaborative coding. Currently it is in a zipfile within a broader Github library.
Many wish we could reorder and resize a grid of instrument data in the manner of mxtommy’s KIP.
Disable the zooming of the browser by interacting with the display.
GPS time display with seconds to help with race starts (even if there is a bit of lag).
Support for temperature, barometer, humidity

Forum Threads

http://forum.openmarine.net/showthread.php?tid=1558

http://forum.openmarine.net/showthread.php?tid=324&highlight=kindle

http://forum.openmarine.net/showthread.php?tid=880&highlight=kindle

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35Q8_7nxMiQ

https://github.com/digitalyacht/ikommunicate

https://digitalyacht.net/2016/09/28/read-anything-good-lately/’