Database Develop

A new reader app

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.

Koreader

This app seems promising for viewing pdf djvu ... files. Zoom options. simple UI etc.
But I can't get it working on nook glowlight. Tried several versions, one let me choose file to open then crashed.
Anyone here heard of this app or know of a version that works?
Here's the github link:https://github.com/koreader/koreader
-Sorry for bad english-

cemunleashed said:
This app seems promising for viewing pdf djvu ... files. Zoom options. simple UI etc.
But I can't get it working on nook glowlight. Tried several versions, one let me choose file to open then crashed.
Anyone here heard of this app or know of a version that works?
Here's the github link:https://github.com/koreader/koreader
-Sorry for bad english-
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm surprised you got it to install. It states near the bottom of that referenced page that it's for Android 2.3+. There don't seem to be any older versions posted there, but I'd guess that it's original target was not Android 2.1
Edit: FWIW, there is a dedicated forum over at Mobileread

Sorry I should have been more precise. it's a nook glowlight plus. Just bought the machine didn't think plus version was different android version.
Update: version 1.1(2014.11-262) partially works. Tried EPUB, no luck. Djvu gives error about engine missing. Pdf works fine text reflow works but VERY slow.takes 5 sec. to change pages when reflow option is on.

cemunleashed said:
Sorry I should have been more precise. it's a nook glowlight plus. Just bought the machine didn't think plus version was different android version.
Update: version 1.1(2014.11-262) partially works. Tried EPUB, no luck. Djvu gives error about engine missing. Pdf works fine text reflow works but VERY slow.takes 5 sec. to change pages when reflow option is on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK, so now you're talking about KitKat, not Eclair. Obviously the app will install. As to its behaviors...........?
I still think your best bet is the MobileRead forum because people are there who have experience with that app. But remember, it was originally designed for Kindle so there may be hardware/driver assumptions that just aren't valid with the NG+

mergen3107 said:
Found the workaround here!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried that work around but it did not work for me. If it worked for you, can you clarify what the poster means by creating the koreader directory "under root"? I tried creating in as "/koreader" and "/root/koreader" but in both cases it got removed when I rebooted the NGP per the instructions. I also asked this question in the MobileRead thread.

For some reason, the patch didn't work with latest stable version. Latest nightly works fine with the patch. The patch goes to: /sdcard/koreader/patch.lua
You can add dictionary and custom font to this directory as well.
Dictionary, reflow, OCR all works fine. Unlike previous version reflow is working correctly.

Screen refresh doesn't work.
OCR slows down device(Even if it's disabled.Had to delete it from /sdcard/koreader )
Battery level isn't shown correctly
These are all the bugs I've found so far.

Crossword Puzzles

Edit: Sorry, I had to remove this app when it was brought to my attention recently and I found it was NOT the appI had thought it was :-( It does NOT display properly on the NST/G. Still looking for the one I remember and if I find it I will update this post.
I stumbled across a brief reference to this app buried in another thread from long ago and thought I'd bring it back into the light. Market apps for crossword puzzles seldom work well on the NST, many of them having issues with partially disappearing keyboards.
The app attached below is actually from the Nook Color! It installs and runs just fine on the NST (probably NSTG as well). It has a nice, clean UI--with a custom keyboard that doesn't disappear. Puzzles can be selected by difficulty level.
The drawback: there seems to be no way to get more puzzles. But for casual use, it's great--and the price is right

This app appears to work on the Glowlight Plus also. However, it seems to be pixel mapped, so it appears very small on the higher resolution screen.

are there any services that generate hints?

Great idea! I will gladly support any effort to port/fork/customize/make such app better.

On my Glow3...

Renate said:
On my Glow3...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've actually learned a few things since my original post (shocking!). Just a cursory inspection of the apk file reveals the stored puzzles in res/raw. There appear to be 100 of them and they are actually in a known format (.puz)!
I've not tried adding anything yet (it's probably not that simple), but here is a site with lots of information about obtaining .puz files for use in Across Lite (a puzzle creating and solving platform): https://communicrossings.com/crosswords-sources-web-sites
Maybe I'll pursue this. I do actually have a very old Crossword app that works well across all my devices and can download new puzzles daily from a variety of sources. I don't even recall where I got it but it has clearly been "modified" in some fashion by someone. Most features work on the NST except for updating the list of puzzle sources. For some reason this fails on the NST although it works on other devices. Probably an SSL issue. But as there are quite a few sources in the "old" list, it's fine for the NST where I don't generally spend a lot of time doing puzzles. But it's there when I need a break from reading or just idle entertainment waiting in a doctor's office, etc.
Edit: I lied. There are actually 189 puzzles (easy, medium, hard, themeless).

nmyshkin said:
I've actually learned a few things since my original post (shocking!). Just a cursory inspection of the apk file reveals the stored puzzles in res/raw. There appear to be 100 of them and they are actually in a known format (.puz)!
I've not tried adding anything yet (it's probably not that simple), but here is a site with lots of information about obtaining .puz files for use in Across Lite (a puzzle creating and solving platform): https://communicrossings.com/crosswords-sources-web-sites
Maybe I'll pursue this. I do actually have a very old Crossword app that works well across all my devices and can download new puzzles daily from a variety of sources. I don't even recall where I got it but it has clearly been "modified" in some fashion by someone. Most features work on the NST except for updating the list of puzzle sources. For some reason this fails on the NST although it works on other devices. Probably an SSL issue. But as there are quite a few sources in the "old" list, it's fine for the NST where I don't generally spend a lot of time doing puzzles. But it's there when I need a break from reading or just idle entertainment waiting in a doctor's office, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is the crossword app that works across all of your devices same as the one attached to the first post of this thread? You have my support in doing this man. We think similar in approaching the problem. I would also have started from the file type and then go further. I need to look up that platform and attached link. Say if you need any help with this. I need to check crosswords in my language and is there any available site to download them. It might be futile effort for NST without keyboard change. As for SSL problem it starts to be such pain in the a$$ that someone is going to lose patience and find the way to solve it by programming or find the way to obfuscate it through NST as dashboard and any newer phone as server for example. That was also one of the approaches I proposed for missing GPS. Now I rarely need GPS on NST however making it better in terms of book and newspaper device I am all for it.

SJT75 said:
Is the crossword app that works across all of your devices same as the one attached to the first post of this thread?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, that app of questionable origin is different.
SJT75 said:
You have my support in doing this man. We think similar in approaching the problem. I would also have started from the file type and then go further. I need to look up that platform and attached link. Say if you need any help with this. I need to check crosswords in my language and is there any available site to download them. It might be futile effort for NST without keyboard change. As for SSL problem it starts to be such pain in the a$$ that someone is going to lose patience and find the way to solve it by programming or find the way to obfuscate it through NST as dashboard and any newer phone as server for example. That was also one of the approaches I proposed for missing GPS. Now I rarely need GPS on NST however making it better in terms of book and newspaper device I am all for it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I started to look at this and got a couple of surprises. First, on initialization the app creates one binary file in the data folder. That's all. So any puzzle substitution/updating would have to be done by taking the app apart and then putting it back together with apktool. Not very convenient, but I suppose if you did a good number of puzzles at once it might be worthwhile.
However the real surprise was looking at the app running. It's nothing like I remember! So I'm not sure what I'm looking at now. Maybe I've got yet another crossword app among my files. Better download from the earlier post and see... Although the package does say com.encore.crossword. But the short of it is that the app I was looking at is a no-go on the NST. The puzzles are half-hidden behind the keyboard and no amount of persuasion in either word or gesture (rude or not) will convince the puzzle to scroll up.
Edit: nope, it's the same app I posted earlier in this thread so long ago. It seems impossible but there it is. I wouldn't have posted it if I had seen how it was bolluxed up on the NST. I have no explanation.

Huh. Your 15 x 15 looks better than mine.
I did a once over trying to fix the app.
I chopped down the keyboard a bunch.
Still, the whole layout is a mess.

Renate said:
Huh. Your 15 x 15 looks better than mine.
I did a once over trying to fix the app.
I chopped down the keyboard a bunch.
Still, the whole layout is a mess.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I did a little fiddling but could not convince it to show the entire grid as accessible along with the keyboard. It really must be coded just for the Nook Color/Tablet display.
I am baffled as to its appearance. I am getting older, but its nothing at all like I remember. I never would have posted if it had looked that way when I first tried it. But its definitely an app from the Nook Color, that much is evident from the package name. Just a mystery.

From little bit I have read about this ancient version of Android what nmyshkin reported about behavior of the application led me to believe that is developed as NDK app. I believe it is easier to make new app starting from scratch if you gathered enough knowledge about that crosswords file type and if download sources are not behind paywall. I would start with calculating size of standard on screen keyboard and then put rest of the screen for use by the crossword. It might be little small that way although but if field input is letter sized from some regular NST font I believe it can be squeezed. Other option might be that you do not make keyboard input at all but select input square and then use gesture in input field resembling writing. You would also need erase button. Then you would have more space for crossword but had to program input interface for the app. IIRC Opera does support gestures so maybe you could get the idea how to make that interface there.

Since the thread contain nonworking app can we consider it as place for discussion about either rigging that one or finding or developing new one for NST?
You already mentioned modified keyboard so I guess changing crossword layout is not out of question too. I didn't check .puz file type so obviously I have no idea about it but I did skim little through the site nmyshkin posted here. There are also other options there so it might be good to consider them also. Firstly using browser with JS woodoo. I do not know much about that but I have gained an impression you have previously make some good stuff using similar approach. Second option is using .PDF file type for puzzles. It might work considering that NST have some limited PDF reflow ability. Maybe that can allow us to adjust crossword layout? Problem is that it seems like it is slightly abandoned file format for puzzles although it was possible to have even interactive ones in that format. Can"t say what the term interactive means. Hint, letter reveals or something else. If it means connection to a server on net that will most likely be to big bite for old NST in the future.
Just a stray thought inside puzzle letters shown are real letter font used on NST or pictures generated in app?

Looked little about crossword file format. It seems that .puz is albeit old and easier to view/change using tools as simple as Notepad somehow proprietary. On the other hand it is claimed that .jpz is more versatile but even if it is so it seems to be some hybrid between Java and XML.There is also third format .ipuz that is completely free but as I understand it is originally for Mac which I do not have. Now if I delve into this what is the opinion of others? Consider it as a poll. 1, 2 or 3?

The New York Times apparently uses .puz
I'd give that some weight.
NYT links to this download: https://www.litsoft.com/across/alite/download/index.html
That file format seems to be (mostly) documented here: https://code.google.com/archive/p/puz/wikis/FileFormat.wiki
It could be edited by hand but there are binary parts and checksums.
Edit: Well, I take that all back. NYT (just yesterday!) stated that they are dropping .puz format.
NYT Games No Longer Available on Across Lite as of Aug. 10 (Published 2021)
Starting next week, we will no longer provide downloadable .puz files.
www.nytimes.com

I understand that up until now adoption by influential publisher (which regularly paid to owner of file format for software and rights to use) kept .puz in game. Format is simple and already have been reverse engineered by others which irked rights owner to the point of threatening with lawsuits left and right. They should have invested more in development of format and software instead. Second format .jpz is supposedly better but had so far lagged in adoption on the market.

Ha, ha!
Cross words over New York Times puzzle change
The US-based publication is cutting third party support for its popular crossword puzzles.
www.bbc.com

Well I can anticipate two things. First its a good time to start torrent search for old crosswords files archives. Second is that I believe we can find alternative sources on the link nmyshkin posted earlier. Still that doesn't resolve dilemma which file type is a way to go. Based on previous statement Rennate made on other topic I presume she would like .ipuz as open and free standard.

Just a link to share. If someone need old crosswords it appears someone already had made a database. link

[NST/G] R.I.P. WeatherACE for the Nook Simple Touch

Another one bites the dust.
It took awhile for Wunderground's API to actually die, but it finally did and I used my last data point yesterday. None of the other APIs in the app (OpenWeatherMap, Norwegian MET, Yahoo) have worked for awhile. I tried the obvious with OWM and N-MET, getting new API strings, decompiling the app, replacing the APIs and stitching it all back together. But no joy. The data structures in the new APIs are probably different and that's way beyond me. The jiggered app ran, but it was unable to gather data from anywhere (other than what my location is).
Too bad. Nothing left like it, AFAIK.

Yeah, I'm bummed. Weather Ace was one of the few apps that had nice widgets appropriate for the eInk screen.

scotte9999 said:
Yeah, I'm bummed. Weather Ace was one of the few apps that had nice widgets appropriate for the eInk screen.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I came across this: https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.jsharkey.sky/
It works, which is rare for something so old, but the widgets are butt-ugly on the NST
Looks like I'll be researching changing colors, etc. So far it looks like the icons could be easily replaced, but the most offensive part is the widget background which is a 9-patch png (of course...).
The WeatherACE developer is a nice fellow but it would be ridiculous to contact him over this. So we move on.

nmyshkin said:
I came across this: https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.jsharkey.sky/
So we move on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Indeed. I spent some time yesterday exploring web-based widgets, thinking we could just point the browser at a URL, but most widgets use HTTPS and Javascript, neither of which are the strong suit of the NST, even with Opera Classic instead of the native browser.

Did this work?

disTrck33 said:
Did this work?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Depends on what "this" is.
I eventually wrote my own weather widget app for the NST/G: https://forum.xda-developers.com/nook-touch/themes-apps/app-nst-weather-widget-t3946270
This works.

nmyshkin said:
I came across this: https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.jsharkey.sky/
It works, which is rare for something so old, but the widgets are butt-ugly on the NST
Looks like I'll be researching changing colors, etc. So far it looks like the icons could be easily replaced, but the most offensive part is the widget background which is a 9-patch png (of course...).
The WeatherACE developer is a nice fellow but it would be ridiculous to contact him over this. So we move on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Link said USA only . There is a weather app that can be used for Europe which uses yr.no site for data. It runs on my tablet and should work with Android 1.5+. Nothing special but good enough. Might require some customization to e-ink display though. That needs to be checked.

SJT75 said:
Link said USA only . There is a weather app that can be used for Europe which uses yr.no site for data. It runs on my tablet and should work with Android 1.5+. Nothing special but good enough. Might require some customization to e-ink display though. That needs to be checked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Didn't remember the US restriction, but all of the potential apps I looked at back then looked terrible on the NST or required network location. That is why (shameless promotion...) I eventually worked up my own Weather widget/app just for the NST. It lacks many bells and whistles but will work for any locale that OWM has stations. And, if I say so myself, looks pretty good on the NST.

nmyshkin said:
Another one bites the dust.
It took awhile for Wunderground's API to actually die, but it finally did and I used my last data point yesterday. None of the other APIs in the app (OpenWeatherMap, Norwegian MET, Yahoo) have worked for awhile. I tried the obvious with OWM and N-MET, getting new API strings, decompiling the app, replacing the APIs and stitching it all back together. But no joy. The data structures in the new APIs are probably different and that's way beyond me. The jiggered app ran, but it was unable to gather data from anywhere (other than what my location is).
Too bad. Nothing left like it, AFAIK.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The app is not dead.
I working on adding more weather sources. Atm, the app has 5 weather sources worked correctly - NOAA (USA only), OpenWeatherMap, Norwegian MET (yes, its back to work again, I switched WeatherACE to the their new API), Weatherbit.IO (new weather sources that added to WeatherACE in last build 1.12.30) and Forecast.IO (they are not provide new keys atm). Currently I working on 2 more weather source.
As for Wunderground, they were bought by IBM. The lowest price for weather data from IBM is around of $10000 per year, for a limited set of data. They also provide some weather API for people that provide them data from personal weather stations, but its just current and few days weather and no hourly data forecasts...
So, please check the app again.

mycodefab said:
The app is not dead.
I working on adding more weather sources. Atm, the app has 5 weather sources worked correctly - NOAA (USA only), OpenWeatherMap, Norwegian MET (yes, its back to work again, I switched WeatherACE to the their new API), Weatherbit.IO (new weather sources that added to WeatherACE in last build 1.12.30) and Forecast.IO (they are not provide new keys atm). Currently I working on 2 more weather source.
As for Wunderground, they were bought by IBM. The lowest price for weather data from IBM is around of $10000 per year, for a limited set of data. They also provide some weather API for people that provide them data from personal weather stations, but its just current and few days weather and no hourly data forecasts...
So, please check the app again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, it's not dead. In fact, I run it on most of my devices. I really appreciate the clean-looking widgets and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a good weather app with widgets.
Sadly, in the context of this forum, it is "as good as" dead since the old version that would still run on Android 2.1 can't connect to any of the weather services any longer
I'm sorry if Google-bots picked up this posting and are making it seem like the app is non-functional. I've edited the post title so that maybe in the future that will be corrected.

nmyshkin said:
No, it's not dead. In fact, I run it on most of my devices. I really appreciate the clean-looking widgets and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a good weather app with widgets.
Sadly, in the context of this forum, it is "as good as" dead since the old version that would still run on Android 2.1 can't connect to any of the weather services any longer
I'm sorry if Google-bots picked up this posting and are making it seem like the app is non-functional. I've edited the post title so that maybe in the future that will be corrected.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm... What version of WeatherACE you use on the old device? Its too bad that I didnt used VCS (version control system) in the time (like I do it now). But I still have backups of source code of some really old versions of the app. The oldest is 1.6.2, then 1.7.4, 1.80, etc.
Not sure if Google will allows me to make it (uploading to Google Play will not be possible for sure), but I could try at least. If everything depended on me, the application would continue to support android 2.1 (or 2.3 was in the very first version, I don't remember exactly). Unfortunately, Google constantly demands to gradually raise the minimum API, and with it, support for older devices decreases.

mycodefab said:
Hmm... What version of WeatherACE you use on the old device? Its too bad that I didnt used VCS (version control system) in the time (like I do it now). But I still have backups of source code of some really old versions of the app. The oldest is 1.6.2, then 1.7.4, 1.80, etc.
Not sure if Google will allows me to make it (uploading to Google Play will not be possible for sure), but I could try at least. If everything depended on me, the application would continue to support android 2.1 (or 2.3 was in the very first version, I don't remember exactly). Unfortunately, Google constantly demands to gradually raise the minimum API, and with it, support for older devices decreases.
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And I completely understand that. It's why I said in post #3 that it would be silly to contact you about this. I still remember how promptly and helpfully you responded to a question I had about more recent versions of the app I was running on my tablet. But restructuring an app that, in Android terms, is nearly an archaeological artifact, is not, I'm sure, a simple matter.
In any case, it looks like this version (1.4.4) is earlier than anything you may still have source code for.

nmyshkin said:
And I completely understand that. It's why I said in post #3 that it would be silly to contact you about this. I still remember how promptly and helpfully you responded to a question I had about more recent versions of the app I was running on my tablet. But restructuring an app that, in Android terms, is nearly an archaeological artifact, is not, I'm sure, a simple matter.
In any case, it looks like this version (1.4.4) is earlier than anything you may still have source code for.
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Seems like the last version that support Android 2.1 and 2.2 is version 1.7.4 and I have sources for it. The changes log for 1.7.4 has mention about such fixes "Hotfixed crash on devices with android 2.1 - 2.3.X for weather alerts"." The version support WeatherACE API for external apps/widgets/early verions of tasker plugin, weather alerts and Forecast.IO source.
Luckily, there is a place where you can get almost any version of this app https://4pda.ru/forum/index.php?showtopic=511055&st=0 The last spoiler in the start post has links to my posts with most of the versions of WeatherACE. So, if you will have time, please try 1.7.4 from the post https://4pda.ru/forum/index.php?s=&showtopic=511055&view=findpost&p=32402422
If 1.7.4 will work for you. I could try to build it from the sources I have. In case it will build correctly, it will not be so hard to update support for OpenWeatherMap and Norwegian MET.NO weather sources. Probably I also could add support for Weatherbit.IO.

mycodefab said:
Seems like the last version that support Android 2.1 and 2.2 is version 1.7.4 and I have sources for it. The changes log for 1.7.4 has mention about such fixes "Hotfixed crash on devices with android 2.1 - 2.3.X for weather alerts"." The version support WeatherACE API for external apps/widgets/early verions of tasker plugin, weather alerts and Forecast.IO source.
Luckily, there is a place where you can get almost any version of this app https://4pda.ru/forum/index.php?showtopic=511055&st=0 The last spoiler in the start post has links to my posts with most of the versions of WeatherACE. So, if you will have time, please try 1.7.4 from the post https://4pda.ru/forum/index.php?s=&showtopic=511055&view=findpost&p=32402422
If 1.7.4 will work for you. I could try to build it from the sources I have. In case it will build correctly, it will not be so hard to update support for OpenWeatherMap and Norwegian MET.NO weather sources. Probably I also could add support for Weatherbit.IO.
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That would be amazing. Unfortunately I get a 404 error when I try to download the app. I always get the error on that site. Not sure if you have to be logged in or what. I'll keep searching for the correct version.

nmyshkin said:
That would be amazing. Unfortunately I get a 404 error when I try to download the app. I always get the error on that site. Not sure if you have to be logged in or what. I'll keep searching for the correct version.
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Please try http://mycodefab.com/files/WeatherACEv1v7v4.apk

mycodefab said:
Please try http://mycodefab.com/files/WeatherACEv1v7v4.apk
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Thanks so much. I tried this version on two NSTs, one with Network Location enabled and the other without. It works on both to the extent I can judge without any weather data being fetched. No sudden crashes or odd behavior. The map at the initial setup is blank, but that was the case in 1.4.4 (something to do with e-ink and the assumptions for default themes, I guess). Anyway, the map does not matter if you can type in your own geocoordinates which is what I did on the device without Network Location.
So this looks like a good candidate.

nmyshkin said:
Thanks so much. I tried this version on two NSTs, one with Network Location enabled and the other without. It works on both to the extent I can judge without any weather data being fetched. No sudden crashes or odd behavior. The map at the initial setup is blank, but that was the case in 1.4.4 (something to do with e-ink and the assumptions for default themes, I guess). Anyway, the map does not matter if you can type in your own geocoordinates which is what I did on the device without Network Location.
So this looks like a good candidate.
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Click to collapse
OK, thanks. In case you have DarkSky API key (the app know it as Forecase.IO, it was an old name of the DarkSky API) please use it with the version 1.7.4, the app version support the weather source. Once purchased by Apple, DarkSky (Forecast.IO) no longer give out free keys. But any old keys continue to work atm, as far as I know.
Building a new version with updated support for weather sources will take some time. As usual, most problems in the case are not related with app itself, but with other libraries. For example, a library that provided map does not support Android 2.1 anymore, so probably I will need to completely remove map from the app. Google libraries related with analytics and ads - also does not support old android versions anymore. I will work on it this weekend.

nmyshkin said:
Anyway, the map does not matter if you can type in your own geocoordinates which is what I did on the device without Network Location.
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Click to collapse
You need GPS.

nmyshkin said:
So this looks like a good candidate.
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OK, seems like its done http://mycodefab.com/files/WeatherACEv1v7v4v2.apk Hope it will work, because I dont have Android 2.1 devices to test. In case of problems, I will try to find something.
The version support 2 weather sources - OWM (open weather map) and Norwegian MET.NO.
Limitations:
1. Removed weather map and adding locations via map. I cant find any android weather libraries that support Android 2.1 devices.
2. Removed ads for same reason.
3. Weather icons limited to the small set of icons inside the app + 1 custom icon set.
As for custom icon set, its mostly same as for latest versions of WeatherACE, just a bit different directory for images. Directory is "Android/data/mycodefab.aleph.weather/files/custom/icons/". It use same format as for the latest versions. So, for example, for "clear sky in day" condition it will use "d_100.png" file, "clear sky in night" will look for "n_100.png" file, "overcast" will use "d_104.png", etc.
In case the version of the appt will start, but not show the weather after weather info update, please get to Menu->Settings->Advanced->Weather Sources. Here you could see Active weather sources on the top. Tap on it. Uncheck OpenWeatherMap and Norwegian MET, tap OK. Enter Active weather sources again. Set check OpenWeatherMap and Norwegian MET, tap OK. It will recheck availability of sources for existing locations and will update the weather info.

mycodefab said:
OK, seems like its done http://mycodefab.com/files/WeatherACEv1v7v4v2.apk Hope it will work, because I dont have Android 2.1 devices to test. In case of problems, I will try to find something.
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Click to collapse
I tried the app on both devices (with and without Network Location). Unfortunately it does not want to run
There is immediate funny business as the package shows in the file manager as a generic "package" icon rather than the app icon. Also, the package name (and generic package icon) are displayed in the launcher rather than the app icon and name.
I've attached a section of a logcat for trying to open the app. I don't know whether it has information that is helpful.
It may or may not have any bearing on what you have done, but as you're already going way beyond any expectations, I would suggest that leaving the app alone except for fixing the weather sources would be more than enough. I can understand your desire to have things "right". I have that same problem , and I do appreciate it, but maybe without so many changes there would be a better chance of the app still working, which is what it did even now, except for the access to weather sources. Of course, it's probably not that simple.
Thanks for your efforts.

[APP][NST/G] Mantano Reader [MOD]

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.
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Now Bookari.
SJT75 said:
Its sad that you had to remove app options to make it work on NST.
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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
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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.
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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.
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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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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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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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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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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.