Live data from Hacker News

Bookworm: A Simple, Focused eBook Reader

babluboy.github.io

201–210 of 271 posts

Re: Bookworm: A Simple, Focused eBook Reader

#201

Earlier quoted context omitted.

However, it's all static HTML. An HTML rendering library will use less CPU and RAM than a full fledged web browser, and will be much easier to maintain. Calibre's e-book reader uses ~100MBs when opened. It runs independent of the main Calibre app, in its own process. Again, an Electron app will be heavier here.

> However, it's all static HTML No it isn't. For example EPUB 3 supports all kinds of dynamic content including music and video and javascript.

Honestly, I wasn't aware. I'm just an old-school guy who uses EPUB to read novels and tech books :)

But again, I'd just include libwebkit (or similar) with a JS engine into my app and be happy.

Re: Bookworm: A Simple, Focused eBook Reader

#202

The problem is not the ebook reader. The problem is trying to buy a commercial ebook from anywhere other than Amazon, and having to use someone's stupid DRM scheme. I tried once to not buy a Kindle book, and I just had to end up installing someone's other app just to decrypt the book so I could read it. You can make all the ebook readers you want. Until we find an easier way to make non-Amazon ebooks easier to read,…

Calibre with Apprentice Alf does a great, seamless job of DRM removal. Works for everything except iBooks, I think.

I was under the impression that Amazon drm v3 wasn't cracked?

Re: Bookworm: A Simple, Focused eBook Reader

#203

The problem is not the ebook reader. The problem is trying to buy a commercial ebook from anywhere other than Amazon, and having to use someone's stupid DRM scheme. I tried once to not buy a Kindle book, and I just had to end up installing someone's other app just to decrypt the book so I could read it. You can make all the ebook readers you want. Until we find an easier way to make non-Amazon ebooks easier to read,…

How is Amazon's drm scheme any easier to deal with? Do you mean in order to read on a kindle device?

Re: Bookworm: A Simple, Focused eBook Reader

#204
I just started using Elementary yesterday, I will certainly check this out!

As an aside (and also as a small request), I miss the Kindle for PC app's ability to easily display a book in a 2-up view. To get two pages to show now, you have to change it into multi-column view and then mess with the page width and the window size until it looks good. I'd love to have another eBook reader on my computer that has a nice two-page view. Kindle Cloud Reader shows a perfect two-page view, but you can only use it for books you've bought from Amazon.

Re: Bookworm: A Simple, Focused eBook Reader

#205

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Security is a spectrum not an on off switch. The question is whats the risk profile/benefit. The ppa like many other is hosted on launchpad.net owned by canonical. If Canonical is compromised you are probably boned any way you slice it. If the developer is compromised you are probably boned. This leaves the fact that the devs account on launchpad could be taken over and used as an attack vector which quite frankly se…

On PPA you need to trust a random individual instead of trusting an official distribution. Some distribution requires multiple pair of (skilled) eyes to vet a package.

The point is you do the same when you build the source. In many cases the ppa is provided by the same person providing the source.

Re: Bookworm: A Simple, Focused eBook Reader

#206
post #172

Oh, pity, I thought that was about hardware. (I keep buying up the good old Amazon Kindle 5 (with the hardware keys) on ebay and other sites - I lose it all the time, and don't want this annoying expensive newfangled stuff with touch screen that frequently switches to some random page).

I have a touchscreen Kindle that's a few years old now and I've never had the problem where it switches to a random page. My next Kindle will probably be the Oasis model as it has hardware buttons for page turn. It's an expensive upgrade, but these things tend to last me a long, long time.

> switches to a random page

Yeah, I should have been more precise. I meant "randomly switches to the next or previous page", and of course it's not random either, it's because a fly landed on it (seriously happened to me regularly in some regions), or a drop of sweat fell on it, or the scarf gently brushed over it (different locations, obviously), etc.

Also, it's just nice when I can hold it in the middle (not only the edge) without it switching page. The hardware side buttons were perfectly fine, and (as the other poster observed) are now a ridiculously expensive premium feature!

Unfortunately, a used Kindle 5 is now sometimes offered more expensively than it used to cost new.

> tend to last me a long, long time

Yes, they do - lamentably I tend to lose them. That's why I'm stacking up on the old one :-)

Re: Bookworm: A Simple, Focused eBook Reader

#207
post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Yes, its already there and quite organized in directories. So you do understand the general concept of a library. Then you also understand the limitations of directories and how much work goes in maintaining this system. > Now ebook readers came along and pressed those hierarchical data flat, with long waiting times, because it needs to index first. I don't think Ebook-readers started this. ITunes had this first I…

Maybe I should make myself a bit clearer here: I am not against an index or library in addition to the file hierarchy, but I am against a library or index replacing a directory listing. Both perspectives are very valuable! Also a full text search (grep) or (more or less simple) file search (find) are useful in addition to a library. To reiterate, for me it seems that itunes and ebook reader generation of devices and…

At the very least you need the title and author metadata. This can be done in the filesytem, but it's unweildy. I use Fbreader and run a Calibre server to manage my collection and epub metadata.

Fbreader lets me browse the filesystem, or search by different metadata.

Re: Bookworm: A Simple, Focused eBook Reader

#208
post #14

i love elementary OS. but gahd Calibre is just ugly and for some (probably noob) reason, can't get it to work on my machine. i'll try this one out.

You could probably also give BookFusion a try. You will be able to read on iOS, Android and Web(Linux,Windows,OSX). All your eBooks will be synced across all devices, comments, highlights and reading progress.

More at https://www.bookfusion.com/reading/cloud-library . We also plan to release a native app later this year for desktops.

PS: I am the founder of BookFusion

Re: Bookworm: A Simple, Focused eBook Reader

#209
post #30

Neat! As a long time calibre user I'm always up for new options.

As a Calibre user you might be interested in BookFusion. We have a Calibre plugin that allows you to easily sync your eBooks acros, iOS, Android and Web

More at https://www.bookfusion.com/reading/calibre

PS: I am the founder of BookFusion

Post reply on HN