[Archived] Marvin ePub reader for iPad

[Faterson]

Great red-on-black, subtle background texture there -- can't wait to see something like that in Marvin. I posted samples of similar background textures earlier in this mega-thread (don't ask me where exactly).

[Valkrider]

Originally Posted by Faterson

Great red-on-black, subtle background texture there -- can't wait to see something like that in Marvin. I posted samples of similar background textures earlier in this mega-thread (don't ask me where exactly).

Not for me as long as we can turn it off or not have it on at all that will be great. Plain colours all the way and usually night mode grey on black is what I prefer. We are all different and as long as the app doesn't become bloated and slow then no issue with bells and whistles that I don't need / want.

[Faterson]

Except that for us, background textures are no bells & whistles, but crucial usability features. That's exactly what we were saying.

[kguil]

Valkrider, the feature will definitely be optional and off by default. I'm not expecting any slowdown whatsoever (especially, if textures are off).

[fekhner]

Originally Posted by Terisa de morgan

Faterson, how good are mathematical formulas in ePub? I don't really know.

Let me try to give a different answer that might be more to the point than Faterson's useless rant about epub versus pdf.

After a rather extensive search, I have been able to find exactly 2 examples of actual epub3 books with nice mathematical formulas and (rather involved) instructions on how to actually produce them starting from a latex file.

General discussion:
http://tex.stackexchange.com/questio...ewable-on-ipad

Example 1:
http://loopspace.mathforge.org/discu...of-loop-spaces

Example 2:
http://www.lightandmatter.com/calc/

The epub3 books with math can be viewed on the desktop through the calibre viewer (even though there is no full epub3 support). It can also be viewed through a browser, for instance with firefox.

On the ipad,you can actually read them quite nicely with ibooks because it has (limited) epub3 support. Unfortunately not with marvin yet, but hopefully this is for the future (hint,hint ... )

(General discussion on math capable reading systems:
http://www.mathjax.org/resources/epub-readers/
)

Unfortunately, when trying to follow the instructions in the first thread above, it turns out that the latex to epub3 workflow is currently still a bit too involved, at least for me.

[Faterson]

"Useless rant", Fekhner? Your own post is beside the point. We were never discussing the situation as it is today (and it's admittedly dismal), but the question was about the potential of EPUB as opposed to the atrocious PDF.

[kguil]

@fekhner - hint noted.

[fekhner]

Originally Posted by Faterson

"Useless rant", Fekhner? Your own post is beside the point. We were never discussing the situation as it is today (and it's admittedly dismal), but the question was about the potential of EPUB as opposed to the atrocious PDF.

Maybe for you it was about such generalities, but clearly not for the one that asked the question ...

Originally Posted by Terisa de morgan

...

Novelty of format is not important for me, usability is. We are talking about today, not the future. And I know some people who use rigid PDF with 6" pages... very, very useful for math... There are a lot of options.

[Faterson]

You're quoting from a later post by Terisa, and I disagree completely with what she said in that particular post. Especially with her statement that "manual" and "transparent" are opposites -- of course they are not! Switching the dictionary language in the Kindle app is both manual and transparent at the same time, and that's exactly how it should be.

[Faterson]

Note to Kris, now that we're back to the topic of dictionaries:

The Kindle app is also smart in that it allows the reader to change the dictionary language from within the book. Marvin's current solution is not so smart: you need to close the book, access Marvin's general settings, and change the dictionary language there. That is not optimal. Especially because, as has just been discussed in the Beta group, there are many books that are multi-lingual, that is: that contain words (or even entire passages) from more than a single language within their texts. As it is now in Marvin, I'd have to keep closing and opening the same book just to be able to look up words from various languages. In contrast, the Kindle app allows the reader to change the dictionary language on-the-fly, right inside the book. If possible, Kris, please consider moving the dictionary language selection menus (and everything related, including the custom menu buttons setup) from Marvin's home screen to the book itself -- or, you might decide to make them accessible from both locations. Thank you.

[Terisa de morgan]

Originally Posted by Faterson

You're quoting from a later post by Terisa, and I disagree completely with what she said in that particular post. Especially with her statement that "manual" and "transparent" are opposites -- of course they are not! Switching the dictionary language in the Kindle app is both manual and transparent at the same time, and that's exactly how it should be.

We agree to disagree And, for me, transparent means: "I do nothing", manual means: "I do something, although bit".

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by fekhner

Maybe for you it was about such generalities, but clearly not for the one that asked the question ...

MATHML is supported in ePub 3 and is likely one of the most important additions for technical books. It is also supported as part of the HTML5 effort that most browsers are supporting these days. There is a wiki article on MathML. It will make a huge difference in math support needs and making sense out of equations.

Dale

[kyteflyer]

Originally Posted by kguil

Hello Shykat. Yes, when the iPhone version is ready, you'll be able to sync positions. In fact you should be able to sync positions between any iDevice (say, iPad-to-iPad-to-iPhone).

The aim is to release the iPhone version before September.

Excellent news, Kris. I'm still doing most of my reading on the phone, with some on my new Kobo, and less on the iPad than I thought I would, even with Marvin. Plan is to get a Mini when it goes retina, and it would be good to read a few pages here and there and know it would be in sync, wherever. (looks like the Kobo will go, and I've only had it a minute!)

[Meemo]

Originally Posted by Faterson

The release of Marvin for iPad and of iPad 3 with Retina screen were the top 2 IT events of 2012 for me.

It appears that the release of Marvin for iPhone and of iPad mini with Retina screen might become the top 2 IT events of 2013. OK, let's make it top 3 by also including the Mailbox app, which has completely revolutionized the way I'm handling the hundreds of email messages I receive every day.

(And yes, I'd classify the original release of iPad mini last year, with an obsolete screen and at an inflated price, as one of the top disappointments of 2012.)

And the iPad Mini was one of my top events. I love this little thing - and Marvin made it even better. Value is in the eye of the beholder, clearly. Mailbox, on the other hand, was a disappointment for me. I have gmail but rarely use it. So I fell for the hype but in the end, meh.

Definitely looking forward to Marvin for iPhone, though - there's something we do agree on!

[Shykat]

Originally Posted by kguil

The aim is to release the iPhone version before September.

Fantastic!!!!!

I hadn't thought about it till now but, are most of the features in the current version of Marvin going to cross over and show up in the iPhone version?

The biggies for me are to be able to sort and keep the books in the order they are loaded into the program and the syncing between the iDevices!!!!!!!!

Thank you!