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4-30

Turning Your Old Kindle into a Smart Dashboard

Intro Hook

Ever wondered what to do with that old Kindle lying around?
How about turning it into a smart dashboard?

Jailbreaking the Kindle

Easy process with a user-friendly guide at kindlemodding.org.
Main Steps:
1. Identify your Kindle model.
2. Install WinterBreak.
3. Setup a hotfix.
4. Install Kindle Unified App Launcher and a package installer.
5. Enable SSH using USBNet.
Troubleshooting: KindModding Discord community.

Network Configuration

USBNet package might not work; try USBNetLite.
Two connection modes:
1. RNDIS/Ethernet gadget.
2. SSH over network using the IP address.
Steps to enable SSH:
1. Enable USBNet from the KUAL Menu.
2. Set the IP address manually (e.g., 192.168.15.201).
3. SSH using the IP address.
4. Enter the password from the /etc/config file.

Creating the Dashboard

Challenge: Kindle OS is a stripped-down Linux version with no package manager.
Approach: Disable the framework and display a PNG image periodically in full-screen mode.
Key Steps:
1. Stop Kindle UI frameworks and screensavers.
2. Check internet accessibility.
3. Fetch the PNG image from the server using curl.
4. Display it fullscreen using the eips command.
Important: Images need to be in 8-bit Grayscale and match the Kindle's display resolution (find using eips -i).

API Server in the Cloud (Cloudflare Workers)

Using Cloudflare Workers, Hono JS, Cloudflare KV, Bun, and TypeScript.
Data Sources:
- Weather: Pirate Weather API (via Merry Sky).
- Public Transport: VBB Berlin API.
- School Timetable: Hardcoded data, future KV/D1 integration possible.

Image Processing

Required: Render webpage, take a screenshot, convert to 8-bit Grayscale.
Tools: Cloudflare Browser rendering (Puppeteer), cf-wasm.
Steps:
1. Capture a screenshot using Puppeteer.
2. Convert the image to grayscale using cf-wasm.

Code Snippet (Grayscale Conversion):

  const gray = Math.round(0.299 * r + 0.587 * g + 0.114 * b);
  grayscaleData[i / 4] == gray;

Final Thoughts

Outline

Turning Your Old Kindle into a Smart Dashboard

Intro Hook

Ever wondered what to do with that old Kindle lying around?
How about turning it into a smart dashboard?

Jailbreaking the Kindle

Easy process with a user-friendly guide at kindlemodding.org.
Main Steps:
1. Identify your Kindle model.
2. Install WinterBreak.
3. Setup a hotfix.
4. Install Kindle Unified App Launcher and a package installer.
5. Enable SSH using USBNet.
Troubleshooting: KindModding Discord community.

Network Configuration

USBNet package might not work; try USBNetLite.
Two connection modes:
1. RNDIS/Ethernet gadget.
2. SSH over network using the IP address.
Steps to enable SSH:
1. Enable USBNet from the KUAL Menu.
2. Set the IP address manually (e.g., 192.168.15.201).
3. SSH using the IP address.
4. Enter the password from the /etc/config file.

Creating the Dashboard

Challenge: Kindle OS is a stripped-down Linux version with no package manager.
Approach: Disable the framework and display a PNG image periodically in full-screen mode.
Key Steps:
1. Stop Kindle UI frameworks and screensavers.
2. Check internet accessibility.
3. Fetch the PNG image from the server using curl.
4. Display it fullscreen using the eips command.
Important: Images need to be in 8-bit Grayscale and match the Kindle's display resolution (find using eips -i).

API Server in the Cloud (Cloudflare Workers)

Using Cloudflare Workers, Hono JS, Cloudflare KV, Bun, and TypeScript.
Data Sources:
- Weather: Pirate Weather API (via Merry Sky).
- Public Transport: VBB Berlin API.
- School Timetable: Hardcoded data, future KV/D1 integration possible.

Image Processing

Required: Render webpage, take a screenshot, convert to 8-bit Grayscale.
Tools: Cloudflare Browser rendering (Puppeteer), cf-wasm.
Steps:
1. Capture a screenshot using Puppeteer.
2. Convert the image to grayscale using cf-wasm.

Code Snippet (Grayscale Conversion):

  const gray = Math.round(0.299 * r + 0.587 * g + 0.114 * b);
  grayscaleData[i / 4] == gray;

Final Thoughts

Fun project with a practical outcome.
Kindle battery lasts about two weeks.
Great hacking device; cheap on eBay.
Code available on GitHub:
- Kindle Dash Client
- [School dashboard backend](https://github.com/samkhawase/school-dash-backend

Script

Mia: So, I’ve got this ancient Kindle gathering dust. I hear you can turn these things into, like, smart dashboards? That sounds like some serious tech voodoo to me. Lay it on me – what’s the deal?

Mars: Haha, yeah, it’s kinda wild, right? Think of it as, like, giving your old e-reader a second act. Basically, you're tricking it into doing things it wasn't designed for. First step: you gotta “jailbreak” it.

Mia: Jailbreak? Woah, hold up. Like, back in the day when people were hacking iPhones? Am I gonna brick my Kindle?

Mars: Okay, good question. There's always *some* risk, but if you follow the guides carefully – and I mean *really* carefully – you should be fine. And there's this awesome Discord community called KindModding. They're like a 24/7 tech support hotline. They can help you out if you get stuck.

Mia: Okay, I’m cautiously optimistic. So, jailbreak done… then what? How does this thing even *get* data? It’s not exactly a Wi-Fi powerhouse, right?

Mars: Right. That's where the network configuration comes in. You install a little package that lets you connect it to your computer via USB and basically…trick it into thinking it’s got an Ethernet cable. It’s like giving it super powers!

Mia: Sounds… intense. So, I'm connected... then how do I *get* a dashboard on that grayscale screen? I mean, it's not exactly high-res.

Mars: You basically tell the Kindle to stop running its normal interface, and then you feed it a grayscale image. Like, a PNG file, super specific resolution…and then boom! Fullscreen dashboard.

Mia: Okay, that’s clever. But what about, like, actual *data*? Weather? Bus times? I doubt my Kindle can figure that out on its own.

Mars: Ah, that’s where the cloud comes in! People are using things like Cloudflare Workers and TypeScript to grab data from APIs – weather data, transit info, even your kid’s school schedule, all hardcoded or stored somewhere. Then they render a tiny webpage, take a screenshot, and beam it down to the Kindle as an image. It’s kinda ingenious.

Mia: So it's like hosting a mini-dashboard in the cloud, and then streaming it as a picture to the Kindle. That's slick.

Mars: Exactly! And because it’s just displaying a static image, the battery lasts for weeks. Plus, you learn a ton about Linux, networking, serverless coding… It’s like a little hacker bootcamp!

Mia: I am seriously tempted to dig out my old Kindle now. Thanks for explaining all this. You’ve demystified the tech voodoo.

Mars: Anytime! And hey, the code for all this stuff is on GitHub. So if you’re feeling adventurous, you can jump right in.

Mia: Awesome! Thanks again, I’m genuinely excited to try this out!