Edit 1-8-23: I've updated the Mantano apk file. Seems there were still some issues with the aspect ratio of the default.png (book cover) image. Fixed now at 1.5!
I keep my NSTG on FW 1.2.1 because there are issues with Tasker and plugins on FW 1.2.2. The resulting apps are OK, but development is a problem unless I do it on FW 1.2.1. So that one device has B&N apps removed. AlReader has been my go-to reader app. Until now.
While working on some thorny issues with a Tasker app update I came across a book I wanted to read. Unfortunately it was only available in PDF format and AlReader can't handle that. I soon found that something like EBookDroid really couldn't deal well with a PDF file that begged for text reflow (problematic as that is). I wanted something that was at least as good as the stock reader. I could have just picked up one of my other NSTs and read the book that way, but when you abandon the B&N system you should at least break even, not lose. So I went searching through the forum for some ideas.
Mantano Reader caught my interest. Not only can it reflow PDF text (pretty much like the stock reader-don't get too excited), it can also display PDFs as a continuous scroll, with zoom. It can handle Adobe DRM books! And the TTS works (not a big deal). So I looked around and started with version 2.2.12 from Apkpure. This is the last version for Android 2.1. I found that full-screen reading was broken in this version and I couldn't see why, so I worked my way back until it wasn't broken. That was version 2.2.3.
Not for everyone
Those are some of Mantano's virtues, but it's not for everyone. I think it's chief drawback is the absence of full font support. There is only the default (admittedly not bad) and although there is provision for user fonts, there are issues. More on that later. Then there is the really tiny user interface. The colors render somewhat muddy on the NST also. Those are really tough issues to address, certainly beyond my pay grade. Also, none of the syncing, cloud, downloading of dictionaries, OPDS books, fulfilling of .acsm files, additional fonts, user manuals, etc., works. Can't be fixed. I looked. Finally, the reader options are pretty simple, about what is available for the stock reader (except for fonts). So if you like the hundreds of setting combinations in something like AlReader or FB Reader, this app is not for you. If you want something straightforward so you can just read a book without all the B&N hoopla, Mantano may be worth a look.
Mods
When I started getting serious about this I decided to try to learn by doing. My goal was to remove (or at least hide/disable) stuff that did not work. Almost all of my modifications were in the resources folder of the apk file. There was also one annoying issue with the aspect ratio of book covers that required a minor change in two smali files (thanks to @Renate). Here's a short list:
1. Removed Bookstore (OPDS) tab on home screen (formerly "My Catalogs" as described in User Guide)
2. Removed menu icons for sync and cloud
3. Disabled sections in Settings that don't work (Login, Sync, Dictionary download, Fonts, User Manual download)
4. Corrected font colors in some local dialogs so text is visible
5. Made the page number black, smaller, and with a transparent background for less visual distraction
Also, there were a few dialogs with invisible text that used the system framework to generate the window. The only way to fix this was to make a few very minor changes in framework-res.apk. This worked well and even helped with a few other apps that formerly had invisible text. A win-win. You can update your framework-res.apk using the CWM zip provided below. Despite its filename, it is not an "update" zip. You'll just be installing a zip file with CWM.
Making do
Overdrive Library epubs: No app will be able to fulfill .acsm files on the NST/G. The SSL is just not up to it. So there's no point in registering the device with Adobe. That just wastes one of your allowed devices and so I disabled that first Settings selection. However, the app can read Adobe DRM books, understands due-dates, etc. You just need to introduce your device to ADE running on your PC (ver. 3.0 works well for me on Windows) and transfer fulfilled books from there, just as you would with the stock reader.
Fonts: You can, in theory, supply your own TrueType fonts and place them in /sdcard/Mantano/fonts. When a book is opened, the lower menu options include "Themes". This odd term is for adjusting the appearance of the book (fonts, margins, justification, line spacing, colors). You can make a new theme or edit the default one. Either way, you will get to select a font. You will see the font you added in the folder (you can copy any font you like from /system/fonts or from anywhere else). The problem is that Mantano has no way to deal with font families. For example, I prefer Malabar. Of course, there is the base font, the bold instance, italic, bold italic. Mantano makes you choose one of these. Clearly you choose the base font (no need to copy over the others). If there are italics or bold type in a book, the reader uses the default font. This would not be such an issue for small sections of emphasized text, but the font scales are not the same. Malabar is larger than the default font. So any italics is obviously smaller. I tried a software package for scaling the font but it just turned it into rubbish. I am learning to like the default font. This issue was fixed in version 2.4.6, based on what I've read. But that won't run on the NST, of course.
Dictionaries: The reader has the ability to go out to find definitions on the WWW. Big pain. Although you can't download any dictionaries from within the app, Mantano does play nicely with ColorDict and there are plenty of dictionary options for that. Easy fix.
User Guide: I poked around and found a guide labeled "Version 2.1". That was the best I could do. It seems pretty close, although what was the "Bookstore" tab in this version (which I have removed) is referred to as "My Catalogs" in the manual. Either way, it's non-functional and gone. The same goes for references to cloud, accounts and sync. None of it works and all of it has either been removed from view or disabled in this mod.
Extras
Unlike AlReader and FB Reader, Mantano's main activity is the library view. That means there is no simple way to use the "reading now" status bar button to go directly to your current book.
I also like to be able to use the current book cover as a screensaver. AlReader and CoolReader both have this capability. Mantano does not, but it does create thumbnails for each book (if you let it) and one of those is screensaver size (default.png). For some unknown reason, all the thumbnails of various sizes for display in the library have the correct aspect ratio except for default.png. I fixed this in the app with a view to using it as a screensaver image.
To address these issues, I have used Tasker to create two small apps. Mantano_Extras1 enables a listener for when the reader is closed (either by two presses of the back button or simply by pressing the "n" button). When that happens, the Mantano database is queried for the last reading point/book. This is stored in a variable. Accessing Mantano_Extras1 after setup sends a command to open that file. If Mantano is your default app for epubs and/or pdfs, the book will open automatically to the right place without passing through the library. Thus assigning Mantano_Extras1 to the "reading now" button with NookTouch ModManager restores the function of that button.
Mantano_Extras2 does everything described above. During setup it also creates the folder /media/screensavers/CurrentBookCover. When the reader is exited and the database information stored in a variable, it copies the default.png for the current book to that folder. If you select that folder in your NST Settings app for the screensaver, the current cover will be displayed during sleep.
I should add that both apps check to see if the current book has changed before they do anything. If there is no change, they simply stop.
As these are Tasker-generated apps (but don't require Tasker to run), they have a dependency on two small library files. If you don't have one of my other Tasker apps already, you need to copy the two files in the zip as below:
/system/etc/permissions/com.google.android.maps.xml
/system/framework/com.google.android.maps.jar
Set permissions for both files to rw-r--r-- and reboot. Without these files resident, the app will not install.
The apps also use sqlite3 and busybox. If you rooted with NookManager you already have busybox. A few other special packages probably include it. If you have it, you will find it in /system/xbin. If it's not there, copy the file from the zip to that location and set permissions to rwx-rwx-rwx.
If you don't already have sqlite3, move the file from the zip to /system/bin and set the permissions to rwx r-x r-x.
When you have prepared the way, reboot and then install whichever of the two "Extras" apps you want. When you first tap on the app icon there will be a pause while things are set up and then a request for root access. Once that's done they are good to go. Use NTMM to assign the app to the "reading now" status bar button and set your screensaver directory to "CurrentBookCover" (if you installed Mantano_Extras2).
This is nice work. I have heard good thing about Mantano reader before. I believe it still exists although under new name I think. Its sad that you had to remove app options to make it work on NST. Still I am glad that you make some improvement that could if exploited properly make this device better than before. I believe that solving invisible text message is best of what you did and if understood properly can make number of apps that had this problem before usable again for this device. I would not dismiss even TTS working as I remember that someone tried to implement that on NST before yet I do not remember it was solved. So if it work out of box with Mantano reader it might be prudent to see what makes it work if it is fine TTS not some hardly intelligible sound generator. This options you removed how did you confirmed that they are not working? For cloud I believe it was NST lockout and now enforced TLS1.2 it can not reach that gives you hard time. Yet for syncing it is little harder to understand. For the rest like OPDS and such I guess my knowledge is not sufficient to guess how that even work so if you know more than me I am more than ready to listen.
SJT75 said:
I believe it still exists although under new name I think.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Now Bookari.
SJT75 said:
Its sad that you had to remove app options to make it work on NST.
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Click to collapse
I didn't so much remove options to make it work. It worked as-is, but not the login/download components, and they are not necessary for the reading functions.
SJT75 said:
I believe that solving invisible text message is best of what you did and if understood properly can make number of apps that had this problem before usable again for this device
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's possible. I noticed improvement in dialog boxes for ES File Explorer. But there are other types of dialog boxes and I only dealt with what was needed for this app. Spillover is a gift.
SJT75 said:
I would not dismiss even TTS working as I remember that someone tried to implement that on NST before yet I do not remember it was solved. So if it work out of box with Mantano reader it might be prudent to see what makes it work if it is fine TTS not some hardly intelligible sound generator.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, that could have been me. Pico TTS (if not removed) always worked on the NST if you downloaded some voices. I have a post about this somewhere with links. But the quality is really wretched. I looked at this further awhile back and found that Google TTS began with Android 2.2 (of course). There is a "bridge" system involving a custom settings app but each application must include this custom code to work. I did a MOD for AlReader to enable this, but it's not easy and would be (nearly) impossible for Mantano as very few of the smali files have descriptive names. Most are just "a.smali, b.smali", etc. So it's really difficult to track down what you want.
SJT75 said:
This options you removed how did you confirmed that they are not working? For cloud I believe it was NST lockout and now enforced TLS1.2 it can not reach that gives you hard time. Yet for syncing it is little harder to understand. For the rest like OPDS and such I guess my knowledge is not sufficient to guess how that even work so if you know more than me I am more than ready to listen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not all SSL. Or it may be that also. The URLs in the apk file don't go anywhere, even on my PC browser. So far I've gotten up to version 4.5 and still no working URLs. Perhaps when Bookari emerged as the name the old URLs were abandoned and the old Mantano apps became crippled in this way.
Thanks nmyshkin you clarified some things. I agree that change to new platform and abandoning the URL domain for cloud use could be cause for that option not functioning anymore. Yet unless the syncing have not be performed through a same route (login account on the same domain) sync should function fine from one device to another for example. About the rest you are correct I have come to a same conclusion that even slight upgrade of Android on this device would make vast improvement in options available to exploit. Sadly B&N did not go that way. I will look upon PicoTTS to see if something about the way it actually work can be understood to evaluate if it is worth the effort or it maybe can be discarded as irrelevant for this device.
Just crossed my mind... nmyshkin did you tried to hunt down inside apk file exact spot where that URL is written/coded and change it to something else like IP address of your computer/drive/*/*/sync folder ?
SJT75 said:
Just crossed my mind... nmyshkin did you tried to hunt down inside apk file exact spot where that URL is written/coded and change it to something else like IP address of your computer/drive/*/*/sync folder ?
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Click to collapse
No, it didn't occur to me. I only read on one device so that's not the kind of thing that interests me. Also, I just transfer books over from my PC to the Nook when I get them, usually via FTP.
I did see cloud, sync, etc., URLs but I suspect that just changing them would not produce the capability you seem to be hinting at. It's likely a lot more complicated than that. It seems to me that syncing implies active communications from both ends. Teaching your PC to respond to the overtures of the Nook would be a whole other rats nest.
You are correct. Using URLs to connect to PC is not safe. Therefore some home workgroup network or SFTP access are more reasonable way. Maybe if you change cloud sink URL to Dropbox folder you get something?
SJT75 said:
You are correct. Using URLs to connect to PC is not safe. Therefore some home workgroup network or SFTP access are more reasonable way. Maybe if you change cloud sink URL to Dropbox folder you get something?
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Click to collapse
I don't think so. The app innards were designed for negotiating with certain remote servers and expect a certain dialog. Just changing the URL doesn't address these issues. Using Dropbox as an example, there are login credentials to be supplied and other issues to be addressed before files can be freely moved in either direction.
Well yes unless dropbox folder is public shared one what I wrote will not work. What if you link sync/cloud to internal folders on device inside Dropbox application that also initiate script written to execute Dropbox synchronization? Then login credentials would come from Dropbox app I think.
SJT75 said:
Well yes unless dropbox folder is public shared one what I wrote will not work. What if you link sync/cloud to internal folders on device inside Dropbox application that also initiate script written to execute Dropbox synchronization? Then login credentials would come from Dropbox app I think.
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Click to collapse
1. I am not a Java programmer. What you are suggesting is going to require significant changes in the app. It's not in the same league as the modifications I made.
2. I have no interest in the feature. People who must have synchronization with myriad other devices would be better served by selecting an app that currently has this feature working (like FB Reader).
3. If someone who is a Java programmer and is interested in this feature wants to take a crack at it, more power to them. I personally think it's a dead end. Just about the time you get it figured out, Dropbox will no longer work on the NST. Any modification that relies on exchange with an external commercial server has a built-in self-destruct timer, just waiting for tightening external server access rules. It's over for Android 2.1.
nmyshkin said:
Just about the time you get it figured out, Dropbox will no longer work on the NST. Any modification that relies on exchange with an external commercial server has a built-in self-destruct timer, just waiting for tightening external server access rules. It's over for Android 2.1.
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Click to collapse
Amen to that. Making NST more cooperative with Calibre is much better option anyway. Commercial server could be also a trap. There was an outcry when Remarkable for example started charging access to their services out of blue and without warning.
Related
Einklib is library application for eink devices. please send your recommendations or bugs report to my mail address.
Latest Here(ver 1.1)
web : sourceforge.net/p/einklib/wiki/Home
erbt001 said:
Einklib is library application for eink devices. i tested only my nook simple touch.please send your recommendations or bugs report to my mail address.
web : sourceforge.net/p/einklib/wiki/Home
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried to install it says it require ministro service... Any advice?
Ok I got the ministro app now...I didn't know it was an app thought it was a missing service.
Here's what I've seen the recent is miss spelled.(you spelled it racent)
Are you trying to pull the author and title from the file description? I have all of miner formatted with calibre and I see allot of wrong infoor unknown.
Navigating the menu to have it search for my books was hard to find.. when you select a book to read it no longer asks which reader you want to use it just uses the one at the top of the list.
Hope my info helps you perfect it.
Also I would have rather not had to add a new service to use app. Less is better for battery.
- I get "Database Open Error!. Check Your Permissions" on start. (I have right permissions for SD)
- scanning does not add books. It only displays the number of the books in folder.
- You can move folders in QT file manager. You can potentially screw up your system by doing that.
NST 1.1.0
Re*write Android java
osowiecki said:
- I get "Database Open Error!. Check Your Permissions" on start. (I have right permissions for SD)
- scanning does not add books. It only displays the number of the books in folder.
- You can move folders in QT file manager. You can potentially screw up your system by doing that.
NST 1.1.0
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I re-write this program with android-java. Small and safely.
Now no needed it ministro or qt libs.
Thanks for feedback.
Link: www sourceforge net/projects/einklib
or
Download first message.
Thank for the app, looks really nice!
Is there any way to get it to search for books in the internal memory as well? most of my books aren't on the sdcard.
Also, I'd love to have some sort of filtering or sorting by extension, to seperate pdfs from books and such.
nivieru said:
Thank for the app, looks really nice!
Is there any way to get it to search for books in the internal memory as well? most of my books aren't on the sdcard.
Also, I'd love to have some sort of filtering or sorting by extension, to seperate pdfs from books and such.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
These features can be easily added. I'll do . Thank you for your interest.
nivieru said:
Thank for the app, looks really nice!
Is there any way to get it to search for books in the internal memory as well? most of my books aren't on the sdcard.
Also, I'd love to have some sort of filtering or sorting by extension, to seperate pdfs from books and such.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ver 1.1 is ready. enjoy it.
I'm considering a move from another OS to a Lumia 925, I won't say which one because I tend to find that people have preconceived notions of what iPhone and Android people are looking for and whether they'll be able to deal with the way Windows does it.
Just some questions...
1. I'm entirely in the Windows world for productivity (Word, Excel, Outlook, SkyDrive) so I imagine that will be seamless on a Windows Phone? I mean, is there anything that is actually not doable when operating documents, spreadsheets, etc? I just want to make sure it's not like with Google Drive/QuickOffice where you technically CAN open and work on docs but there are always formatting issues and tiny bugs that crop up from time to time.
2. How does file management work? I'm referring to copying files, music, pictures to and from the phone.
3. Can one save email attachments, attach anything one wants to an email, open any kind of file (pdf, office, images, audio, video, etc)
4. Can I use my own music files and set them as ringtones and notifications?
5. Will the email app allow for an IMAP account from my own email server and let me see all of its folder and subfolder structure?
6. If my wife and I both have Windows Phones and I assume we each will have our own accounts on our phones, how can we each connect to our PC at home? Will it mean having to have two different profiles of Windows on the tower?
7. Is there a way to know which phones will get the 8.1 update? I want to make sure the Lumia 925 gets it.
If anyone can help with these things, I'd really appreciate it. Unfortunately, mobile phone customer service reps in stores simply don't know these things well enough to give any kind of help and these are the kinds of things that really matter to me, not how many apps there are in the market or whether a phone's camera has a certain number of megapixels.
Thanks!
Here are some answers to the questions you have.
1. The Office suite on WP8 is obviously a stripped-down version compared to the desktop counterparts. However as long as you don't use anything advanced you should be fine. On the phone you will have Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote available. OneNote is especially useful on a phone.
2. It's different. Once you connect the phone to the PC you will find the following pre-defined folders:
- Documents - for Word, Excel, Powerpoint files
- Music - for.. well, music
- Pictures
- Ringtones - for ringtones and notification sounds
- Videos
There is no file manager on the phone itself, however there are apps, which handle files from each of these folders, through which you can rearrange or delete these file types. The system has an API (thus some apps developed as well) for handling new file types like zip, rar, ebook types, etc., which can be registered. You may attempt to open any file type you just downloaded, if an app on your phone is registered to it, it will open the file using it.
Copying the files into the folders I just listed is as straightforward as copying any file using your favorite Windows file manager.
3. Saving email attachments isn't supported out of the box - however you can open them if an app is registered for that file type, and if the app supports saving the file, then you may do that there too (this will save the file to the app's work folder). Once you're in the email app you can only attach photos, but I'm pretty sure you can attach other file types using their own apps and the share button (if any).
4. The short answer is yes. I haven't actually tried this, but I know music ringtones are supported and custom notification sounds are/will be supported with GDR3 (which is an update you can already download if you're a developer or will be getting soon through OTA updates). The way to actually do it is by copying the files to the Ringtones folder, but I think there are some apps, which automate this process (I'm not sure).
5. I'm currently using 2 google IMAP email accounts. I'm pretty sure you should be fine here.
6. Yes, you will have different accounts on the phones, but you don't HAVE to have different ones. I never actually tried sharing accounts, but I know logging in from the same account on several phones is possible, this way you'll get synced contact list, app list, you'll only need to purchase an app once for both of you, and some other benefits. No, you won't necessarily need two different accounts for it on the PC. I use the same account on my phone and on my home (and work) PCs (running Windows 8 and 8.1) and I haven't really seen much syncing between the phone and the computer other than the contact list and account list (email accounts, facebook, twitter, linkedin, microsoft accounts).
7. We're in the same ballpark here, I'm currently enjoying my Lumia 925, I personally think it's a great phone. All of the current devices running WP8 were promised to get 8.1, however we don't really know much details about the update.
People coming from a different major OS generally experience Windows Phones differently, than people coming from feature phones. Android users usually miss the Notification Center and Multitasking, which works differently here (the Live Tiles are your notification center and multitasking works by different rules), and iOS users might miss Siri? Actually I have no idea, since I've never actually owned one.
The sheer number of apps in the store is considerably lower, however there are hardly any apps, which don't have a counterpart in the WP8 store, some are even better than the originals on Android/iOS.
I wish you the best and I hope I helped. Choose wisely
That's a great overall description! A few more comments:
1) The phone should be able to *open* any Office document just fine, but you won't have anything close to the full Office suite's power to make changes; it's mostly basic edits only. For example, you can add or delete slides to a Powerpoint deck, and edit their text, but I don't think you can create or edit custom themes.
2) Documents, music, and pictures are no problem. The phone connects via Media Transfer Protocol (MTP), same as most modern Android phones do; all major OSes can access it, but it is *not* the same as USB Mass Storage. You can't just use it as a USB drive. Additionally, this kind of access only works for the built-in "Libraries" (in the Windows "My Documents", "My Music", etc. sense) on the phone; if you, for example, use a third-party app to handle a file type, that won't show up. One example is ebooks; you can open ebook files on the phone if you download them from the web or open them from attachments, but you can't just copy a bunch of .MOBI files into (or out of) the Kindle folder, for example. Note that this assumes no special hacks; we've been able to get full filesystem access on Samsung phones (such as the ATIV S, which I have).
3) Generally, opening any kind of attachment is possible. If the phone doesn't have an app to do it yet, it will offer to search the Store for compatible apps. If it has multiple compatible apps, it will ask which one to use. However, where attachments get saved is up to the app. The built-in Office programs and image viewer can save to the system libraries. Not so sure about videos or music, although they will open using the built-in apps (for recognized formats, at least).
4) Yes, using your own music works fine. Copy the clips to the Ringtones "folder" over USB, or use one of the many apps (they can do things like trim the file for you, too). Some notification types require GDR3, which your phone may or may no come with but which you can upgrade to easily.
5) IMAP works great. Switching folders is a *bit* more annoying than I'd like - three taps - but it works, and you can control which ones automatically sync to the phone. I use a private IMAP server without any trouble.
6) You really *should* have different user profiles on the PC (for unrelated reasons), but the phone OS doesn't require it. I don't know for sure how well the "Windows Phone App" handles the situation, but I do all the stuff manually anyhow (using Windows Explorer and other tools) and that works fine with multiple phones.
7) No way to know for sure. It's pretty well guaranteed that a phone released so recently as the 925 will get the update, though, and these days Microsoft allows developers and enthusiasts to get updates without waiting for them to finish carrier testing and customization (you'll get the customizations once they're released too). T-Mobile US is pretty good about releasing updates anyhow, though, and the phone's specs are easily good enough.
If it helps, the Samsung ATIV S (SGH-T899M, not the other models) works great on T-Mobile frequencies. The only problem I've had is with the WiFi tethering (USB tethering is unofficial but works fine and is built in if you can find it; instructions are on the forum) and everything else works including LTE. Can't get the loan from TMo for it, but you can find a SIM-unlocked one online for cheaper than the 925 anyhow.
Many people asked me to be more specific on these questions on a WP forum I found so I'll paste those more specific questions here just in case someone can help further...
I'm coming from 3 years on Android after 3 years on Windows Mobile. I've rooted every phone I've ever had, principally to be able to flash a different ROM to the stock version on the phone. There are any number of features you can play with on a custom ROM but my only concern was to get rid of Touchwiz, HTC Sense, and other ROMs I hated in favour of a more pure Android experience. So, no I wasn't rooting my phone for access to millions of "hack-y" applications.
I'm concerned about burdening people with a long post but I'll try to expand on my questions.
1. Office - Aside from the obvious limitations of not being able to put an ENTIRE version of the Office programs into app form on a phone (cause you'd need a computer) do all the Office apps offer view, edit, create, email, save to phone/cloud, share to other apps.
2. Files - Basically, can I take (non-DRM) an ebook file, music, video, document, pdf, photo on and off the phone by using a USB cable and Windows File Explorer on my PC/laptop.
3. Email attach - Can I get an email with any doc, pdf, photo, image and open/save it. Can I attach any file from my phone into an email? Even if it means doing it from within the adjoining app. A PDF by sharing through a PDF viewer, a photo(s) through the WP gallery app or other camera/photo apps, an Office document through Word.
4. Ringtones - I think I got the answer I wanted but I have several ringtone mp3s I've used for years for specific people, SMS, Email, Whatsapp that I'd like to keep using by copying to the phone. Yes? No?
5. Email - I have a private email server on bluehost. I have found very often that some email clients that are too basic will let me add these accounts with IMAP but won't let me define the IMAP Path Prefix for folders and subfolders to appear correctly. If you've done this and you have slightly nerdy email organisation, you know what I'm talking about. It comes down to all the email folders appearing as they do on your Windows email programs/clients as opposed to appearing as though all those folders are floating within the phone's inbox. It looks like hell and creates a very messy email experience.
6. Accounts - This is something that comes from being an Android user that never sat well with me for various reasons. For those that don't know, the entire Android experience is based on your phone being constantly connected to one gmail account at a time which is tied to your all apps and basically all other user info on the phone. Logout, everything is gone. The question is... at home we like using Windows without having to keep two different profiles/accounts/etc. except for in Outlook. Android doesn't really play well directly with the Windows productivity world (one of the reasons we don't want Android anymore). But now that Office and other elements of Skydrive will sync for us beautifully, we want the link to be easy as possible. So, to that end, does Windows Phone have the same concept of signing into your phone to operate it and how does that affect BOTH of us having instant access to all of Windows on our PC and Laptop? Will we each have to sign in to Word when we're sitting here? Will only the profile logged into in Windows see their files? Will we be constantly logging into and out of Windows? If I'm logged in will my wife not see her files? Hope that makes it clear?
Additional things...
- I'm going to the Lumia 925 from the Galaxy S3. I was on a Google AOSP ROM so there is nothing TouchWiz that I'll be missing. I don't even know what was on there to be honest. It was flashed pretty quickly. Anyway, if there are any opinions about the 925, limitations, problems.
- Most important, crucial must-haves for us on a phone are: strong camera quality, photo apps, phone call quality, good maps app, email and web browsing. Pretty much nothing else.
- My use is about 95% camera, ebook reading, web browsing, Twitter, light gaming, Whatsapp, SMS, note taking, recipe saving and working on documents. I never use mobile phones for any kind of music or video playing. I don't watch video on anything smaller than a TV, and I only listen to music on a dedicated audio media player that plays specific file formats.
Thanks for taking the time to read this, if you do. I appreciate it.
Nevermind.. mistake post
tinpanalley said:
1. Office - Aside from the obvious limitations of not being able to put an ENTIRE version of the Office programs into app form on a phone (cause you'd need a computer) do all the Office apps offer view, edit, create, email, save to phone/cloud, share to other apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes you can. Currently I could use the Share feature for email or bluetooth, but I suppose it's possible for other apps to show up there if installed.
tinpanalley said:
2. Files - Basically, can I take (non-DRM) an ebook file, music, video, document, pdf, photo on and off the phone by using a USB cable and Windows File Explorer on my PC/laptop.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The answer is: no, yes, yes, yes, yes(only through the office application if placed in the documents folder), yes; but remember, these answers are for STRICTLY using the Windows File Exporer.
The easiest ways to handle file transfer for ANY file type is either SkyDrive or downloading the file from the internet(for example: through a web-browser using an ftp server over local Wi-Fi). Pocket File Manager is a great app for downloading stuff (and opening) from anywhere including ftp, SkyDrive, GDrive, Dropbox, etc.
tinpanalley said:
3. Email attach - Can I get an email with any doc, pdf, photo, image and open/save it. Can I attach any file from my phone into an email? Even if it means doing it from within the adjoining app. A PDF by sharing through a PDF viewer, a photo(s) through the WP gallery app or other camera/photo apps, an Office document through Word.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can attach anything if you have a handler app for the specific file type, which supports sharing through email (like the Office app for office documents).
tinpanalley said:
4. Ringtones - I think I got the answer I wanted but I have several ringtone mp3s I've used for years for specific people, SMS, Email, Whatsapp that I'd like to keep using by copying to the phone. Yes? No?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have the option to select ringtones and SMS sounds for individuals using the People hub. I haven't used Whatsapp, so I can't help you there.
tinpanalley said:
6. Accounts - This is something that comes from being an Android user that never sat well with me for various reasons. For those that don't know, the entire Android experience is based on your phone being constantly connected to one gmail account at a time which is tied to your all apps and basically all other user info on the phone. Logout, everything is gone. The question is... at home we like using Windows without having to keep two different profiles/accounts/etc. except for in Outlook. Android doesn't really play well directly with the Windows productivity world (one of the reasons we don't want Android anymore). But now that Office and other elements of SkyDrive will sync for us beautifully, we want the link to be easy as possible. So, to that end, does Windows Phone have the same concept of signing into your phone to operate it and how does that affect BOTH of us having instant access to all of Windows on our PC and Laptop? Will we each have to sign in to Word when we're sitting here? Will only the profile logged into in Windows see their files? Will we be constantly logging into and out of Windows? If I'm logged in will my wife not see her files? Hope that makes it clear?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think the limitation here is the computer/laptop. I just read up on having multiple SkyDrive accounts and it seems it's not officially possible without logging in/out for each switch. HOWEVER you can actually choose which SkyDrive account you want to log in to from the phone(using the official SkyDrive app or the Pocket File Manager app, or others), it doesn't necessarily have to be the same as your phone's microsoft account.
The Lumia 925 is an awesome phone, has great camera quality, has included navigation with offline maps, has lens apps(for photo modifications), has photo post-processing apps in the store, it has 4G LTE for quite a few networks. Overall, I love this phone and I hope you'll love it just as much
GoodDayToDie said:
You can open ebook files on the phone if you download them from the web or open them from attachments, but you can't just copy a bunch of .MOBI files into (or out of) the Kindle folder, for example.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So is there not an ebook app that will read any .mobi or .epub files you place on the phone somehow? There's really no way to do this at all?
Not without hacks, no. I use Bluetooth to transfer them, rather than USB; the phone accepts files via BT and opens the appropriate app to handle them, and there are several apps that can do that handling. However, while the apps can save the files to their local folders, those files can't be subsequently accessed either from the PC or from other apps.
The exception to this limitation is SD cards. Apps can open files on SD cards if those files are of the same extension that the app registered for (such as .MOBI, .PRC, .EPUB). You can also load up the phone's SD card over USB from the PC. Of course, if your phone doesn't *have* an SD card, that's not much use.
GoodDayToDie said:
Not without hacks, no. I use Bluetooth to transfer them, rather than USB; the phone accepts files via BT and opens the appropriate app to handle them, and there are several apps that can do that handling. However, while the apps can save the files to their local folders, those files can't be subsequently accessed either from the PC or from other apps.
The exception to this limitation is SD cards. Apps can open files on SD cards if those files are of the same extension that the app registered for (such as .MOBI, .PRC, .EPUB). You can also load up the phone's SD card over USB from the PC. Of course, if your phone doesn't *have* an SD card, that's not much use.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So strange, I just read about 2 apps that can read epub and mobi files off SkyDrive and Dropbox and without the need to use sd cards. Freda and Raccoon Reader.
That's not on the phone in any way, shape, or form. Of course any app that wants to (assuming the ubiquitously declared ID_CAP_NETWORKING) can open a TCP socket to dropbox.com and send some HTTP traffic over it and download files. That has nothing to do with the OS capabilities, though. The question was about "files you place on the phone somehow" and my butt doesn't count.
There are any number of things that annoy me about the stock B&N reader.
I've been writing my own reader app from the ground up.
It's missing a lot of features, but it's still become my standard reader.
I have a lot of technical references in PDF.
At least my reader will allow me to see them in landscape mode fit to width.
The app has adjustable overscan to get rid of the paper margins.
For EPUBs, there are 17 font sizes, 30 margin sizes, 21 line spacings.
EPUBs or PDFs can be viewed in either orientation.
The app is eInk smart but runs on standard cell phones too.
I assume that you plan on making this app available to the community at some point. When you are ready for other users to test, I would be glad to volunteer.
Yes, as soon as I get rid of the worst bugs, I'll let this loose.
It doesn't have text search or word lookup or annotations or bookmarks.
From MY perspective, bookmarks would be priority #1, followed by dictionary look up. I have never used annotations or word search, though I am sure others have.
Just my $0.02. Other's opinions will vary.
From MY perspective, dictionary look up would be priority #1, and never bookmarks, as I am Russian speaking person. I have never used annotations or word search.
Just my $0.02. Good luck in your efforts.
I'm still working on this.
One of the things I found most lacking was good navigation on large PDFs.
It can get a bit hairy dealing with the table of contents on some PDFs.
Sometimes a page number is more specific than a TOC entry and sometimes it's the other way around.
Will you be supporting mobi files as well ?
It seems it's hard to find a nice reader that support both epub and mobi ...
No, it will not read MOBI.
MOBI is a really stupid format based on database files for Palm OS.
EPUB is a halfway reasonable format.
HTML based reflowable text and a table of contents.
What more do you need?
Of course, all the manufacturers (like Kindle) are pushing for whiz-bang HTML5 formats.
Renate NST said:
No, it will not read MOBI.
MOBI is a really stupid format based on database files for Palm OS.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1) I really liked Palm
just kidding, nostalgia kicked in
2) I already have some books in MOBI format, that's why I'm asking.
Yes, I know I can convert them to EPUB ...
Thanks!
Finally ready for a super pre-alpha preview.
Very short user manual:
Hit the right screen edge or PAGEDOWN for forward a whole page
Hit the left screen edge or PAGEUP for backward a whole page
Hit the top screen edge for the navigation menu
Hit the bottom screen edge for table of contents view
Hit the middle of the screen when viewing PDFs to go down a chunk of one page
(These 4 edges are actually the edges of the page view.
When the TOC is showing, the left edge will be somewhere in the middle of the screen.)
There are separate config dialogs for EPUB and PDF.
In TOC view, the +/- are indicators and not controls.
The app tries to keep everything as compact as possible.
TOC scrolls with a drag, selects with a push on a chapter title, dismisses with a bottom push in the page side.
You can call up navigate, page forwards and backwards while the TOC is showing.
A single empty square and the title indicates that the PDF has no TOC.
The eInk special handling only works with 1.2.1 software.
If you are using nofresh/fast refresh/whatever, then no guarantee nor interest in what it will do.
It may be self-delusion, but it seems to me that the text is clearer than the stock reader?
You can just install this as a regular app.
You can set it as default for EPUB or PDF separately.
Unless you're me, you shouldn't get rid of the stock reader just yet. :cyclops:
Hmm, I'm not sure if it will handle Last Reading Point correctly if you are using the stock library.
Oh! It will list all the fonts on your system, but it won't handle the fonts that the underlying library files don't like.
Renate NST said:
Unless you're me, you shouldn't get rid of the stock reader just yet. :cyclops:
.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First problem: On my nook it didn't show up in adw so I can't run it
richardcoop said:
On my nook it didn't show up in adw...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, it wouldn't, would it?
The stock reader doesn't show up there either.
For an application to show up in a launcher its AndroidManifest.xml would have to have:
Code:
<category android:name="android.intent.category.LAUNCHER" />
File viewers normally don't have that, they are invoked by other intents.
Use your "Last Read" icon, a library application or a file manager to open an EPUB or a PDF.
Renate NST said:
Finally ready for a super pre-alpha preview.
I
It may be self-delusion, but it seems to me that the text is clearer than the stock reader?
You can just install this as a regular app.
You can set it as default for EPUB or PDF separately.
Hmm, I'm not sure if it will handle Last Reading Point correctly if you are using the stock library.
.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Think the text is clearer!
Doesn't remember the Last Reading Point for me but not using the stock library.
---------- Post added at 10:00 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:58 PM ----------
Also, looses my place when the screen saver kicks in.
Thanks for the good work Renate. I think the display is better than other epub/pdf readers and maybe stock reader too. As most of my reading is done with my Glow version in bed, a "Night Mode" switch for white font on black background would be great if possible?
Thanks again.
richardcoop said:
Also, loses my place when the screen saver kicks in.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, the integration between a reader app and a library app is close.
Tracking of last point is usually done in the library app.
I was planning on adding a single LRP directly in the reader for files that aren't tracked in the library.
Is it possible to run this on an Android 2.3.4 installation or its code assumes a Nook?
The reason I ask, is because I have a Kobo Glo with android installed, and I would like to check it there, if it is e-Ink optimized.
The problem with supporting eInk is that the interface classes in Java are all different.
Even in the Nook 1.1, 1.1.5. 1.3 are incompatible with 1.2.1
(Notice that the latest 1.3 on the white Nook uses an older scheme than the 1.2.1)
They all use android.hardware.EpdController in /system/framework/framework.jar
I have no idea what the Kobo is using.
I can guarantee that the application posted above will do no special eInk handling as it checks the system build fingerprint for compatibility.
If you are using Nook 1.1.5 or 1.3 it will also not do any special eInk handling.
The application should work on any device if you copy over these two library files:
/system/lib/libpdfhost.so
/system/lib/libbndeviceinfo.so
I have this app running on my (old) Kyocera Rise (cell phone).
It should run (without any special eInk handling) on your Kobo.
Anything further would require research and programming.
Renate NST said:
Hmm, I'm not sure if it will handle Last Reading Point correctly if you are using the stock library.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It does not handle Last Reading Point correctly when using the stock library.
Great work! I used this for all of 10 minutes and the potential is evident. With some more of your excellent development work you will have a real winner on your hands.
Question, as this obviously will not read books with B&N DRM, is there some way to make this reader the default when using your library app and allow the stock reader to be the default when using the stock library? Perhaps a setting in your library app to use either the "device default" (stock or other) reader or Temblast Reader specifically when a book is selected.
With regard to the text being clearer than the stock reader, I don't notice a difference. However, I am using the Tweaked Modded ROM, which states:
"Forced all rendering to be done on the GPU." I noticed the text was darker using this ROM when I first installed it. Perhaps your reader essentially does the same thing? This might account for the those who notice the text being clearer when using your reader.
David0226 said:
"Forced all rendering to be done on the GPU."
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Interesting, that's not what I explicitly did, but maybe it's effectively what I did.
Font display doesn't seem as good as stock reader upon closer inspection.
For PDF reader I still use two particular versions of Repligo and ezPDF-Reader both: fast, full of options and pinch in-out for zoom on txt/image based files and more, opening all pdfs.
The epub reader is suffering on some files with wrapping longer lines so I get remainder lines with two or three words, unless fonts are much smaller even with little margins so back to AlReader and FBReader I'm afraid.
5-31-21 I've ceased development on this app because I think there is a better alternative. See post #7.
*updated to version 1.3, adding error trap for discontinued or blank feeds*
It's been awhile since the demise of the last working version of Genie Widget (aka Google News and Weather) but not so long since the big G retooled news.google.com so that our browsers can no longer deal with it and also put the kibosh on the Google News RSS feeds. Sigh.
I have a work-around
Google News 1.3 for the NST/G exploits the "alerts" that Google offers on news topics. These alerts can be optioned in the form of RSS feeds. My app downloads the HTML source for the feed, picks out all the good stuff and trashes all the rest, then builds up a local HTML document which is easily displayed by our browsers (I highly recommend Opera Mobile for ease of scrolling and general all-around function). You can build up your own topics, change your mind, mix them about, read that one more story you didn't get to the first time around, etc. I'm not saying that your browser will negotiate every target link. Some newspaper sites have just become too much. That was true even when Genie Widget was still working. But updating Opera Mobile for TLS 1.2 solves much of that. See this post for details.. The beauty of this app is in the simplicity. It's entirely browser-based once the feeds are downloaded, so you're not going back and forth between the app and your browser (like the current Google News app.......). Designed for both portrait and landscape.
Requirements
1. Android 2.1 has a security issue with opening local HTML files. In order for Google News to work properly you need to address that. Included in the zip below is a tiny app, android-open-in-browser-0.0.4-4-debug. Install that. It's not my app but I have used it for years and wish I could credit the originator.
2. This is a Tasker-generated app. If you already have one of my other Tasker-generated apps or have previously installed GApps, you don't need the two Google maps library files included in the zip and can delete them. If you do need them, copy the two files into the locations shown below:
/system/etc/permissions/com.google.android.maps.xml
/system/framework/com.google.android.maps.jar
Set permissions for both files to rw-r--r-- and reboot. Without these files resident, the app will not install.
3. Create a folder in the root directory of your sdcard: Google News (exactly as shown)
4. Install the app itself, Google News.1.apk
How to use
Before you run the app you need to select some news categories, set up the feeds, get the URLs, blah-blah-blah. All of this is covered in the PDF included with the zip. It may seem a little annoying at the start, but it goes quickly once you get started and it's not like you have to do it every time you use the app. You're just setting up your news topics, just as if you were using the current Google News (either the app or the web version). Once you have your topics and URLs and have edited the included text file google_rss_feeds.txt, copy that into the Google News folder of your sdcard.
Note: recently (June 2019) the big G has not been very consistent with the RSS feeds. Some days they are "empty" but come back the next day with lots of stories. Some feed topics simply "die" and a minor change in the topic will resurrect them (change "World" to "World news", as an example). Version 1.3 includes a trap for these eventualities so that the app should not crash, even if your first feed comes up empty. To inspect/edit your feeds, point your browser (on your PC) to your Google Alerts page. If you are signed in this will be found among the options on the Google home page, in the upper right corner where the "apps" grid is shown.
Now you're good to go. Start the app, make sure you're connected to WiFi. There are only three buttons on the app screen. The first one, "Fetch the news" does just that. You will see a little toast that the first news category is being prepared. Once that is done, you will be taken to the browser and that page will open. Meanwhile the remaining pages are being downloaded and reconstructed in the background.
The news page is very simple. I tried to aim for readability over all other considerations (this is the reason the news items are in bold black, even though they are the external links). I have my Opera Mobile set to 100% page zoom. It looks good to me, but you could probably get away with 75%. External websites are another matter. At the title bar left is a drop-down menu button that gives you access to your other news topics. Since no fixed navbar schemes work under Android 2.1, there is a duplicate drop-up menu bar at the end of the page. The use of NoRefresh, or to a lesser extent FastMode, is a plus.
Edit: you cannot use this app with Opera Mini. It lacks the ability to open local HTML files.
The second option on the opening screen, "Read old news" sounds a bit daft, but I just thought maybe someone might have been looking at the topic pages, saw something that interested them and then got interrupted. So this option opens the first local file in the browser again and you can navigate from there. Strictly speaking, WiFi is not needed to browse the local files once they have been created, but it is needed to pursue any stories.
The third option simply dismisses the app screen.
Whew! So this is new...and I think I exterminated all the bugs, but I did not try other browsers. I'm open to suggestions and would appreciate feedback.
Google alert change? No option for RSS alerts anymore...
First off, thanks so much for putting the time and effort into this app. I would love to have a more "future-proof" news reader solution for my NST. Sadly however, in typical Google fashion of constantly dropping/messing with feature support, it seems that there is no longer an option to deliver Google alerts to RSS feeds (only email addresses). If I'm reading this thread and your PDF correctly, I'm worried that this may break the app. In any case I'm stuck on page 3 of your setup PDF since I can't figure out how to get the RSS alert string from Google anymore. Any advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated!
v619284 said:
First off, thanks so much for putting the time and effort into this app. I would love to have a more "future-proof" news reader solution for my NST. Sadly however, in typical Google fashion of constantly dropping/messing with feature support, it seems that there is no longer an option to deliver Google alerts to RSS feeds (only email addresses). If I'm reading this thread and your PDF correctly, I'm worried that this may break the app. In any case I'm stuck on page 3 of your setup PDF since I can't figure out how to get the RSS alert string from Google anymore. Any advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm away from home right now but my copy of the app is working so the RSS feeds must still exist. I'll have to sit down with my instructions in front of the computer and see what mischief they've done. Thanks for letting me know.
v619284 said:
If I'm reading this thread and your PDF correctly, I'm worried that this may break the app. In any case I'm stuck on page 3 of your setup PDF since I can't figure out how to get the RSS alert string from Google anymore. Any advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK, so I've run through the instructions sitting at my PC. Everything is correct although Firefox no longer wants to open the RSS feed page as anything other than an xml "text" file. That just means the image on page 4 needs updating.
As far as page 3, everything is currently exactly as shown. Just to be sure, you have to be signed in to Google on your browser before you do any of this. Then when you get to the screen depicted on page 3 you need to change the "Deliver to" option to RSS feed. But even before that, it's important not to get sucked into the email alert business back on page 2. Do NOT click on "Create Alert" there, only on "Show options". That's how you get to the screen I show on page 3.
When you finally get to click on the little RSS symbol shown on the lower half of page 3, you (at least on Firefox) may end up at a page of xml code, or perhaps your browser may show a news feed page. Regardless, the URL shown for the page is the same and it's what you need to copy, just as described on page 4.
Let me know if you are still having issues with this.
v619284 said:
First off, thanks so much for putting the time and effort into this app. I would love to have a more "future-proof" news reader solution for my NST. Sadly however, in typical Google fashion of constantly dropping/messing with feature support, it seems that there is no longer an option to deliver Google alerts to RSS feeds (only email addresses). If I'm reading this thread and your PDF correctly, I'm worried that this may break the app. In any case I'm stuck on page 3 of your setup PDF since I can't figure out how to get the RSS alert string from Google anymore. Any advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So a few days after I wrote my last post, the app stopped working for me. It just hangs on "Preparing......News"
Google has apparently changed the format of their RSS xml file. Right in the middle of something else at the moment, but I will get it fixed.
Nope, nix that. After fooling around with the app and an xml file from the Big G, I find nothing out of place and it seems the app is now working again
They're just messing with us.
Edit: Indeed they are. Today I caught another malfunction but this time looked at the Tasker routines for an error. Google is sending out (at least today) RSS feeds with empty content fields. That messes up my app. So I wrote an error trap for that. Updated in first post. Have to watch the big G like a hawk....
v619284 said:
If I'm reading this thread and your PDF correctly, I'm worried that this may break the app. In any case I'm stuck on page 3 of your setup PDF since I can't figure out how to get the RSS alert string from Google anymore. Any advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Whilst looking around for a solution to a different issue, I came across this: https://medium.com/@cassandragraft/...tion-not-appearing-heres-the-fix-bf842ca32b88
It appears to address the issue you describe. I never encountered the issue, but obviously some people have.
The Big G is making me very angry lately. Even version 1.2 with a new error trap is crashing. I'm finding that some of my feeds are "empty". The skeleton of the RSS file is there but there is no content populating the file. A category as ordinary as "world" is simply blank. This is new and very annoying. Just a change of topic to "world news" brings up a list of stories longer than your arm. I encountered this before with "science" and fixed it with a slight change in name, so I should have seen this coming. It's a nasty game Google seems to be playing....
Anyway, if the app crashes on the first topic it leaves an overlay artifact behind when you exit. To remove this, go to the App Manager and force stop the app. I will work on a fix which will alert you to the effect that the feed appears dead but allow the app to complete the download of whatever is still working and exit properly.
Grr....
Edit: App updated to v1.3 in first post. I hope that solves the problems. For now.
As I mentioned in my edit of the first post, I think my app is exhibiting creakiness already owing to Opera Mobile's increasing difficulty negotiating many websites.
I have an alternative to suggest, however, that is totally browser based. It seems to work "OK" with Opera Mobile although text display is a bit small with a default zoom of 100%. In Opera Mini, however, it shines, especially with NoRefresh.
Thanks to XDA member @SJT75 , I found out about a list of text-only news sites. One of them is a text version of Google News! The list is at: https://greycoder.com/a-list-of-text-only-new-sites/
While the Google News option does not allow for custom categories (hey, there's an app for that!), it does cover all the usual suspects. Even better, all of the links lead to text-only versions of the sources. Occasionally you go to a page and find it could not be fetched by whatever mechanism the author is using, but pages (even those error ones) include a link to the original source
Also notable on the list are the NPR and CNN sites. Both work well.
Two apps that I use on my NST (glowlight) are AlReader and RelaunchX, for which there are still relatively recent apk's to be found. I haven't seen them mentioned here a lot, so here's the link to the latest Alreader that still works on Android 2.1 (hard to find if you don't speak Russian):
http://4pda.ru/pages/go/?u=http://a...340035&usg=ALkJrhhH03h-JtOUNtSq7Dy0YRE5zt-deQ
And here's ReLaunchX, a fork of ReLaunch:
https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.gacode.relaunchx/
I just fixed my Nook after it stopped working with the 1.2.2 update that I hadn't installed yet, so I'm updating it with some recent apps that still work on it.
Sent from my BLA-L09 using Tapatalk
STEELBAS said:
Two apps that I use on my NST (glowlight) are AlReader and RelaunchX, for which there are still relatively recent apk's to be found. I haven't seen them mentioned here a lot, so here's the link to the latest Alreader that still works on Android 2.1 (hard to find if you don't speak Russian):
http://4pda.ru/pages/go/?u=http://a...340035&usg=ALkJrhhH03h-JtOUNtSq7Dy0YRE5zt-deQ
And here's ReLaunchX, a fork of ReLaunch:
https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.gacode.relaunchx/
I just fixed my Nook after it stopped working with the 1.2.2 update that I hadn't installed yet, so I'm updating it with some recent apps that still work on it.
Sent from my BLA-L09 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is also an English version of the Alreader website with app downloads: http://www.alreader.com/?lang=en
nmyshkin said:
There is also an English version of the Alreader website with app downloads: http://www.alreader.com/?lang=en
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's true, but despite what it says there, the version up for download there is not actually compatible with Android 2.1. I had to use Google translate on their support forum to find the above version.
Sent from my BLA-L09 using Tapatalk
STEELBAS said:
That's true, but despite what it says there, the version up for download there is not actually compatible with Android 2.1. I had to use Google translate on their support forum to find the above version.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, you are correct. I've been trying out v. 1.7.7, which is that same as in your link.
I like it a lot except for two minor issues: the TTS does not work (a very minor issue) on the NST, although if you install the app on another device with native audio support it does work properly, and (more significantly for me), there is no way to address the Library directly. Unlike the author of FBReader, this author has made all of the various activities private so there is no way of accessing them from outside the app. I've been looking at the Android Manifest in the decompiled app, trying to decide if this can be "fixed". I've seen references to dealing with this issue before but now when I want then I can't locate them
nmyshkin said:
Yes, you are correct. I've been trying out v. 1.7.7, which is that same as in your link.
I like it a lot except for two minor issues: the TTS does not work (a very minor issue) on the NST, although if you install the app on another device with native audio support it does work properly, and (more significantly for me), there is no way to address the Library directly. Unlike the author of FBReader, this author has made all of the various activities private so there is no way of accessing them from outside the app. I've been looking at the Android Manifest in the decompiled app, trying to decide if this can be "fixed". I've seen references to dealing with this issue before but now when I want then I can't locate them
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Ah, yes... Well, I would never use the NST for TTS, so that's no problem for me. As for the library... I take it you mean in the underlying code? Out of interest: what would you use it for? I basically use ReLaunchX to locate the book I want (in my own directory-based library) and open it with Alreader.
The one thing I wish Alreader would provide, myself, is a cover image of the current book to use as a screensaver on the Nook. But that's a minor issue.
STEELBAS said:
Ah, yes... Well, I would never use the NST for TTS, so that's no problem for me. As for the library... I take it you mean in the underlying code? Out of interest: what would you use it for? I basically use ReLaunchX to locate the book I want (in my own directory-based library) and open it with Alreader.
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I have to confess that I hate Relaunch. I use a more traditional Android structure, including ES File Explorer, but that's not a nice way to browse for books. On two devices I have the B&N system and on one for experimentation I have removed all that and am trying out different readers. I miss the Library.
The one thing I wish Alreader would provide, myself, is a cover image of the current book to use as a screensaver on the Nook. But that's a minor issue.
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Ah, but it does! Take a look in /media/screensavers and you will discover that it has created a new folder and there is a cover image there for the book you are currently reading. All you need to do is select that folder from the NST Settings app.
nmyshkin said:
I have to confess that I hate Relaunch. I use a more traditional Android structure, including ES File Explorer, but that's not a nice way to browse for books. On two devices I have the B&N system and on one for experimentation I have removed all that and am trying out different readers. I miss the Library.
Ah, but it does! Take a look in /media/screensavers and you will discover that it has created a new folder and there is a cover image there for the book you are currently reading. All you need to do is select that folder from the NST Settings app.
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Aaaaah. Here I was looking all over for that folder, but for the place where you'd expect it. Well. Great, then.
I never really used the B&N Library app in the first place, I always immediately rooted my Nook and browsed for books in the directory structure, so that helps... Also my meta-data is always a mess so using a real library app wouldn't really work well for me, anyway.
STEELBAS said:
Two apps that I use on my NST (glowlight) are AlReader and RelaunchX.
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You probably have more experience with AlReader than I do so I thought I'd pose a question which I have not been able to answer.
Is there a way to center the page number in the status bar? I don't have any of the other stuff showing in the status bar but I do want to see the page number, even in full screen. What I don't like is to see it floating at some small indentation from the left margin. You can center the title/author in the Header (which I do not have visible in full screen), but why not the page number? I think the answer is perhaps that the developer wanted to cram in all the other possibilities in the status bar and so each has a certain space allotted to it. I hope not.
I've pored through the settings xml file for AlReader but I can't make sense of much of it. Too many obscure abbreviations. I can't even find the line for centering the title/author in the Header.
Any ideas?
Edit: I made a tiny bit of headway, identifying variables in the xml file that control some aspects of the header and footer. However, as sometimes happens with these files, when you make a change and save the file, the values have reverted back if you return for another look. I'm assuming that the master data must be held in a database so I'll look at that tomorrow.
Edit-Edit: Nope, nope and nope. The databases are all about books. So the values are hidden in the app itself (library files or jars perhaps, who knows?). I spent way too much time squinting at the smali files from the decompiled app but it's just all so much mush to me. Not even a hint that resembles English as to how items are positioned. It's a pity that one of the choices in the Header was not "page". If that were true I'd switch the Header with the Status bar and the problem would be solved. The "page number/chapter" I find useless. Oh well....nothing is perfect.
External library app
I have a ton of bookmarks for NST/G stuff that I was reorganizing this morning and in the process came across this app: https://forum.xda-developers.com/nook-touch/themes-apps/library-app-t2823169
I haven't put it through the wringer yet, so to speak, but it looks reasonably good and books open in whatever the default reader is. If it's reliably functional it may serve as a general library app for whatever reader one chooses. Perhaps worth a look.
I'm trying to install v1.77 on NSTG 1.2.2 but I got error: Parse Error
try the
mrhamed said:
I'm trying to install v1.77 on NSTG 1.2.2 but I got error: Parse Error
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Try the attached. It works for me.