Manybooks.net Site News

Finally found some spare time to look into ePUB generation; the options include Daisy Pipeline, creating the ePUB from scratch, Calibre, and not doing it at all. After a little fiddling (and a little time off for a bug report and an update), Calibre is generating ePUB files on demand.

Manybooks is using the command-line script html2epub, which is just one small part of the Calibre arsenal - there are OS X, Windows, and Linux desktop applications that can create ebooks in many different formats and will help keep your digital library organized, too.

The irregular disconnection troubles our DSL modem was having seem to have been fixed by something our local utility company did on Friday — everything is working as well as it can, at this point, though the site is still hampered by a lack of bandwidth.

Update: scratch that — the DSL modem was the problem. Aren’t you glad I’ve told you all this? Thanks to Casey at Speakeasy.net for helping clear this up.

Our ADSL line is having some troubles (router? modem? ISP?) and seems to be going offline periodically. I’m working on tracking the problem down, but we’re right in the middle of a move to California, so please be patient.

Anyone have a co-location facility to recommend? Please tell me about it!

Update: As if the trouble with the DSL modem wasn’t enough, the electric company is in the neighborhood, turning the power and and off as they repair storm damage. The site seems to be working OK so long as we’ve got power — and EPUB testing is going alright.

The iPhone site now has ePub available for Stanza users, using the epub:// URL format.

eReader for iPhone and iPod touch version 1.1 (web | iTunes) includes the following new features:

* The ability to download eReader PDB files from web sites other than eReader.com and Fictionwise.com, as well as personal content in eReader PDB format. For details see the Personal Content FAQ.

* New options to: lock screen orientation, tap instead of swipe to turn pages, choose white text on black background, turn off page animation, and turn off full justification of text.

* Ability to sort the on-device bookshelf by author, title, or download date.

* Better error messages and several bug fixes.

That means you can download eReader books from this site — just select eReader format from the Download menu (or from the list if you’re browsing via iPhone view) and that’s it… you’re ready to read.

There’s a demo video on YouTube, a list of iPhone compatible stores on eReader.com, and some helpful information on moving personal content into eReader.

Looks like a really solid update!

Update: The plain Palm Doc format is also supported by eReader v 1.1

Update: Some interesting comments on Teleread.org.

The BookZ text reader for iPhone (web | iTunes) is simple: you can download text (.txt) files from the web and read them on your iPhone.

The interface is clean and responsive, and the preferences are accessible, and easy to use. Ease of use isn’t always at the top of the list in iPhone applications, and BookZ stands out with two preference screens:

First off, font sizes are displayed actual size, so there’s no guessing. Seems simple, but lots of applications get this wrong. I don’t want to have to guess — just show me the font size!

The font faces are also shown using the font face itself, so there’s no question about what “Zapfino” really means.

Manybooks.net doesn’t currently offer plain text files (various reasons, none of which are really top of my list right now), but most titles have links back to Project Gutenberg in the download menu. If you’re browsing this site with BookZ’s built in web browser just select “Project Gutenberg” from the dropdown and you’ll be sent directly to the page for that title. Click on the plain text link and you’ll be reading in no time!