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Old 07-21-2012, 11:43 AM   #1
chaley
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Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Notts, England
Device: Kobo Libra 2
[Android App] Coming: Android app to connect as a device to calibre using wifi

My son and I are almost finished with an Android app that can connect to calibre as a device without using a cable, instead using wifi. This post is both an early announcement and a request for comments.

Calibre currently supports devices in two ways. The first is by connecting the device to the computer with a USB cable. When a device is connected this way, calibre is in charge. One uses calibre to send books to the device, delete books from the device, etc. The "on device" checkmarks show in the library when using this method.

The second way of connecting is by using calibre#s content server. When connecting this way, the device is in charge. The user taps/types on the device to navigate through calibre's web pages, getting books etc. There is no "on device" indication, either in calibre or on the device.

One problem becoming more and more common with the first method, and a major driver for this app, is that newer Android devices cannot be connected to calibre by a cable. These newer versions of Android (versions 3 and up, Honeycomb, Ice Cream Sandwich, and Jellybean) do not support being connected as a "disk drive", something calibre requires to be able to "see" the device. The app we are developing gets around this problem by connecting to calibre wirelessly (wifi, no cable).

In addition to connecting as a device, the app supports the second method, connecting to calibre's content server. It provides a table-like browsing interface.

Some features of the app:
  • Simplicity of setup. There is no requirement to enter/see/change/configure IP addresses, ports or what-have-you when using the app on the same network as the computer running calibre. All you need to do is have calibre running, then start the app and press one of the 'connect' buttons.
  • Support of calibre's device-connection functionality. For example, when the app connects to calibre, news will be downloaded, reading lists will be synced (if you use that plugin), and you can add/delete books. The on-device markers will be shown. For the technical amongst you, driveinfo is supported.
  • Display (on the device) the list of books currently on the device. There is no need to be connected to see this information.
  • Support of calibre's content server. The app keeps track of what books are on the device regardless of whether a book was transferred using the content server or while connected as a device.
  • When using the content server, the app will indicate whether or not a book in that calibre library has already been downloaded to the device.
  • Saved searches stored on the device that are used when connected to the content server. The idea is to simplify seeing lists of books. This and the "already downloaded" indicator make it easy to check whether all the books of interest have already been downloaded. For example, if you use the reading list plugin and its feature to keep a custom column up-to-date with list changes, you can easily search for books on your list that you have not already downloaded. It is equally easy to do the same thing using tags or some other method.
  • Destination folders for books are controlled by the app. When downloading, the destination folder for a book can be selected based on the book's extension. This means (for example) that epubs can go to one folder, mobis to another, and pdfs to a third, which is important if you use reading apps for different formats. Because the app controls the destination, different devices can use different folders.
Some features we hope to have:
  • Display a "details" view of a book, including custom column metadata
  • Invoke a reader app installed on the device to open a book.
If things go well and if there is sufficient demand, we will look at eventually directly supporting some reader apps. For example, one can imagine inserting the books directly into Aldiko's database.

We don't yet have screen shots for the app that are ready to share. The attachment shows the calibre screen when the app has connected as a device.

This Android app, including both the calibre device and the content server interfaces, will be priced at $2.99. It will be available (we hope) before the middle of August, initially on Google Play (ex Android Market). It will be available on Amazon's App Market once the necessary approvals are obtained.

Comments?
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