Troubleshooting
Try the simple things first. If nothing helps, see the last section.
The reader does not start
Unplug the cable, wait a moment and plug it in again. After installing, this wakes a screen that does not change.
Hold Back while you switch the reader on (on the X4 Pro hold Home). PaperPaw then starts in safe mode, without plugins that have code. It does this by itself after two starts that failed. In Manage plugins, switch the plugins on again one at a time to find the one that causes it.
Install PaperPaw again on the install page.
To go back to the firmware the reader came with, open the install page and choose Go back to the firmware it came with. That needs the backup you saved before installing.
If the install stopped halfway, unplug the cable, plug it in, reload the page and start again.
The memory card
At the start PaperPaw can show one of these messages:
| The reader says | What to do |
|---|---|
| No memory card found | Put in a FAT32 card and restart. |
| The memory card cannot be read | Try another card. |
| The memory card is exFAT | Format it as FAT32 on a computer. exFAT does not work yet. |
| The memory card is not FAT32 | Format it as FAT32 on a computer. |
Formatting erases the card. Copy your books somewhere safe first.
The library is empty or a book is missing
- No books here yet: the books must be in the folder
bookson the card (folders inside it are fine) and be a format PaperPaw opens. - Press Look for new books in the library.
- You swapped the card? Restart the reader.
- Couldn’t read the books folder: check the card. PaperPaw tries again by itself.
The text looks wrong
A book in a script PaperPaw does not carry shows question marks. The reader then asks This book needs more letters to show its text. Download them? Choose Download: it needs Wi-Fi. Packs exist for Arabic, Hebrew, Greek, Cyrillic and Korean letters.
Bold and italic words look regular? Add Literata bold and italic in More plugins.
Faint ghosts of the last page? Lower Full refresh (see Reading). On the X4, Fast changes set to Panel's own is the cleanest.
Power and sleep
Press Power once to sleep and again to wake the reader. Hold it for a menu with Sleep, Switch off and Restart.
The X4 switches itself off a while after it went to sleep: Switch off after sleeping is 30 minutes at first, and you can change it. The X4 Pro switches off at once.
To save battery, set Power mode to Saving or Auto in the quick panel. Turn Wi-Fi off when you do not need it: PaperPaw switches it off by itself after a while.
Wi-Fi
- Wrong password: enter it again. The X4 and X4 Pro only use Wi-Fi at 2.4 GHz.
- Not in reach or did not answer: move closer to the router and try again, or choose another network.
- Typing a long password is hard: choose Set up with a phone and type it on your phone. If the page does not open, turn off mobile data on the phone.
To copy books over Wi-Fi, open Wi-Fi transfer in the tools. Scan the code or open the address on a computer in the same network (paperpaw.local works on many networks). Without a router makes the reader its own network.
Few plugins fit on my X4
An X4 that got PaperPaw through the memory card's update menu has room for only about 600 KB of plugins with code. Installing with the install page gives about four times as much. The X4 Pro is not affected. Save a backup before you install again. Switching a plugin off frees its room after the next restart.
Still stuck?
Open Diagnostics in the tools and run the Device check. It tests the screen, buttons, touch, battery, card, Wi-Fi and more, and writes the result to the card.
Tell us what happened: report a problem or a wish, or write to us. Say which reader you have and the PaperPaw version, and attach .paperpaw/crashes.txt from the card if it exists.
Not answered here? Ask us