How to change your Kindle 4's screen saver.
So, I got tired of usual Kindle's backgrounds (they are quite nice, but there are only 20 of them, and they are for everyone, and you can find/do more interesting ones).
I googled the problem, but solutions haven't been complete at one place, so here is step by step instruction. I have not touch Kindle 4 with 4.1 software version, but it can work for Touch as well as for any other Kindle I think.
I. Enable dialog mode.
1) You need to enable debug mode first of all. To do this you need to create an empty file named ENABLE_DIAGS. (Root is the first directory you see, when you plug your Kindle through usb).
2) After creating it, you need to unplug and to restart your Kindle. (home->menu->settings->menu->restart). It will take smth close to 30 seconds for Kindle to do it.
II. Create network connection
3) After restart you will see a kind of menu, you need to come to the following: Misc individual diagnostics -> Utilities -> Enable USBnet.
4) Remember your IP adress if it isn't 192.168.15.244 and go to levels back.
5) Now plug your Kindle to your computer. If Windows will find drivers for your device - you are luckier then I'm, because even Windows' phone lib hadn't helped me. (win 64).
6)If you have the driver - skip this step. If you not - you need to download the xerox driver. It's self extracting, so choose a place for it, and then go to devices menu of your Windows and install it manually. (On devices menu you will find unsupported RNDIS device, click on it -> click install manually -> select a folder with the driver on your computer)
7)Now, when your computer can see your Kindle, go to networks menu. Here you will find something like "Local Area Connection 3", it must be usb. Go to it's settings-> TCP/IPv4 settings -> use custom ip address -> set IP as 192.168.15, mask as default 255.255.255.0, save and close.
III. SSH connection
8) You are connected to your Kindle! Now you just need to install simple SSH client utility to login to your device. Putty is such application.
9) Run it and write into Host Name box your Kindle's IP number (192.168.15.244 it supposed to be)
10) The console window will open, with "log in" text. If it is not, check your connection, wait a little and retry.
11) Login can be little tricky. For log in write "root" and press Enter. When it will ask you for password. Type mario. If it isn't working use this simple app for finding out your password. (You will need your Kindle's serial number for it. You can find it without breaking the procedure by finding it on your amazon's profile. It will be written for your Kindle)
IV. Commands playing.
12)Kindle has a Linux heart. So it won't be too difficult to do something inside. First of all we need to mount the device:
mntroot rw
13) Next mount the file share:
mount /dev/mmcblk0p1 /mnt/base-mmc
14) Create a new folder for your screensavers:
mkdir /mnt/us/screensaver
15) Now there are two ways: some guys creating a software link to this new folder, but it hasn't work for me. And another problem is, that your default wallpapers will be used too, so if you want too change all of them, you can read further, without typing this command:
ln -sfn /mnt/us/screensaver /mnt/base-mmc/opt/amazon/screen_saver/600×800
16) Whatever you have you chosen, you need to reboot your Kindle because we need to download to it some new wallpapers. I have number of them here, also you can find this page useful, and you can always find the in the internet. There won't be any problems with png, jpg or gif images (not animated ones), and, I think, there won't be any problems with color images, but I haven't tried yet. If they will be of a different size Kindle'll resize them, and this won't be dreadful, may be just not as beautiful as you want it to be.
V. Coming back to line.
17) You need those steps for coming into the normal mode from the debugging mode. Just print exit on your computer's putty's console.
18) Go into the main dialog Kindle's menu and follow this:
Exit diagnostics mode and reboot -> Disable Diagnostics
Exit diagnostics mode and reboot -> Disable Diagnostics
VI. Coping and pasting
19) After your device's reboot, paste your images into screensaver folder you created. If software link to this folder has been enabled, you'll see your wallpapers after 20 turn's on/off of the Kindle (there are 20 default images). If you haven't and/or it hasn't worked for you - do not be despaired. Just do the following:
20) One more time enable kindles dialog's and reboot it (Follow steps from phases I and III. Phase II commands won't be needed)
21) After logging in to your Kindle mount the device and enable file sharing.
22) Check were default images are by typing the following command:
ls /mnt/base-mmc/opt/amazon/screen_saver/600×800
23) If they are not there, find them using both cd and ls commands. (cd /folder_name will bring you into the folder with name /folder_name. cd ../ will bring you one level back. ls /folder shows files inside the folder named as folder. You can google linux cd command if this isn't enough for you ;)
24) Once you find them, if you want delete them, type:
rm /mnt/base-mmc/opt/amazon/screen_saver/600×800/*
25) For using your images as screensavers, you need to copy them into the default screensaver's folder by typing the command:
cp /mnt/us/screensaver/* /mnt/base-mmc/opt/amazon/screen_saver/600×800
26) Finally this is it! Now just follow phase V steps. Enjoy your reading (;